Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

New paper is out! We have demonstrated the efficacy of summer prescribed fires in Pinus nigra forests
kwnsfk27.r.eu-west-1.awstrack.me/L0/https:%2F...

June 9, 2025 at 3:06 PM

Reposted by Oscar RdR Ortega

Richard McElreath 🐈‍⬛

@rmcelreath.bsky.social

I have learned that some people have still not heard the Good News about Hamiltonian Monte Carlo. My gentle animated interactive explanation: elevanth.org/blog/2017/11...

Markov Chains: Why Walk When You Can Flow?

In 1989, Depeche Mode was popular, the first version of Microsoft Office was released, large demonstrations brought down the wall separating East and West Germany, and a group of statisticians in the ...

elevanth.org

April 18, 2025 at 9:09 AM

Reposted by Oscar RdR Ortega

Timothée Giraud

@rcarto.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy

Introducing {maposm}, an R package that extracts, modifies and merges sets of layers from OpenStreetMap for cartographic purposes.

On github: https://github.com/riatelab/maposm

The package is not on CRAN, but it is on r-universe: https://riatelab.r-universe.dev/maposm

#rstats #rspatial #gischat

A map of Castries in Saint Lucia. The map is in a circle, we can see roads, buildings, water bodies and green areas. The map is colorful.

A map of Castries in Saint Lucia. The map is in a circle, we can see roads, buildings, water bodies and green areas. The map is in black and white colors.

March 20, 2025 at 4:40 PM

Reposted by Oscar RdR Ortega

Paula Moraga

@paulamoraga.bsky.social

📢 Postdoc position in the GeoHealth group at KAUST

Spatio-temporal models for disease mapping, forecasting & early detection of outbreaks 🌍📊💻

PhD #statistics, #maths, #epidemiology. Experience in spatial stats/machine learning & #rstats

👉 www.paulamoraga.com/opportunitie...

March 12, 2025 at 7:12 PM

Reposted by Oscar RdR Ortega

TR Baker

@trbaker.bsky.social

Nat Geog Society launched a request for proposals, Spatial Thinking: Inspiring Place Based Solutions - seeking proposals that identify a challenge related to a place and leverages an edu solution using spatial thinking. www.nationalgeographic.org/society/gran... #GIS #geography #edusky

Spatial Thinking: Inspiring Action through Place-Based Solutions - National Geographic Society

This funding opportunity supports projects that identify a challenge related to a specific place and its unique conditions and leverages an educational solution using spatial thinking to enable people...

www.nationalgeographic.org

February 14, 2025 at 5:23 PM

Reposted by Oscar RdR Ortega

GBIF

@gbif.org

Session and workshop submission deadline extended for #LivingData2025! ⏰

📌New deadline: Friday 14 February 23:59 GMT-5

🔗www.livingdata2025.c...

#DatosVivos2025

@tdwg.org @gbif.org #OBIS @geobon.org BON #InstitutoHumboldt

February 13, 2025 at 7:00 AM

Oscar RdR Ortega

@orrortega.bsky.social

10 days to apply! Drop me an email if you want to talk about the project!

Oscar RdR Ortega @orrortega.bsky.social · Jan 10

PhD alert!!! I am advertising a PhD position in spatial modelling. If you want to enjoy data fusion in spatial modelling this is your place. If you want to know more about this project about statistical ecology with pretty pictures drop me an email!! Some info here: www.exeter.ac.uk/v8media/recr...

www.exeter.ac.uk

February 1, 2025 at 10:27 AM

Reposted by Oscar RdR Ortega

Richard McElreath 🐈‍⬛

@rmcelreath.bsky.social

All my ecology peeps slinging the GAM(M)s might find this paper interesting. I was surprised to learn there is a frequentist interpretation of GAM(M)s! (jk) besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....

Bayesian views of generalized additive modelling

Generalized additive models (GAMs) are a frequently used, flexible framework applied to many problems in statistical ecology. They are commonly used to incorporate smooth effects into models via s...

besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com

January 28, 2025 at 8:27 AM

Reposted by Oscar RdR Ortega

Chris Sutherland

@chrissuthy.bsky.social

Now accepting applicants for 25-26 intake of our #StatisticalEcology MSc: bit.ly/3ooHNyc. A unique opportunity to develop skills at the interface of #statistics and #ecology (some partial scholarships available too). Please help me share!

January 29, 2025 at 8:53 PM

Oscar RdR Ortega

@orrortega.bsky.social

PhD alert!!! I am advertising a PhD position in spatial modelling. If you want to enjoy data fusion in spatial modelling this is your place. If you want to know more about this project about statistical ecology with pretty pictures drop me an email!! Some info here: www.exeter.ac.uk/v8media/recr...

www.exeter.ac.uk

January 10, 2025 at 9:17 PM

Reposted by Oscar RdR Ortega

NETGAIN

@netgain.bsky.social

We just posted our first round of fully funded interdisciplinary challege-led projects!

netgain.wp.st-andrews.ac.uk/phd-projects/

PhDs available at: @aberdeenunilib.bsky.social, @durhamuniversity.bsky.social, @glasgowunisrc.bsky.social, @uniofstandrews.bsky.social, @ukri.org

December 19, 2024 at 10:07 PM

Reposted by Oscar RdR Ortega

Sarah Vollert

@sarahvollert.bsky.social

In true academic style, I'm finishing my new years resolutions just before due date.

The ideas behind this paper have been my passion project since day 1 of my PhD, and I'm pleased to announce that it's finally published!

doi.org/10.1007/s115...
@chris-drovandi.bsky.social

Ecosystem Knowledge Should Replace Coexistence and Stability Assumptions in Ecological Network Modelling - Bulletin of Mathematical Biology

Quantitative population modelling is an invaluable tool for identifying the cascading effects of conservation on an ecosystem. When population data from monitoring programs is not available, determini...

doi.org

December 30, 2024 at 5:54 AM

Reposted by Oscar RdR Ortega

Gavin Simpson

@gsimpson.bsky.social

I wrote a thing about using the gratia 📦 for #RStats, which makes working with #GAMs and the mgcv 📦 a little easier and, dare I say, prettier

#mgcvchat #ggplot2

Journal of Open Source Software @joss-openjournals.bsky.social · Dec 21

Just published in JOSS: 'gratia: An R package for exploring generalized additive models' https://doi.org/10.21105/joss.06962

December 21, 2024 at 5:57 PM

Reposted by Oscar RdR Ortega

Graduate School of Environment and Sustainability

@exetergses.bsky.social

New Paper! 🐒🌍🦤🧪

@andyhouldcroft.bsky.social built upon his MSc Conservation & Biodiversity project to develop a mapping model using monkeys in Guinea Bissau which aims to boost conservation & promote human-wildlife coexistence
@uniexecec.bsky.social #ExeterGSES

news.exeter.ac.uk/faculty-of-e...

Photo of Campbell's monkeys sat in trees. New Research. Joint spatial modeling of cluster size and density for a heavily hunted primate persisting in a heterogeneous landscape. Andrew Houldcroft et al. (2024) Ecography.

December 20, 2024 at 11:36 AM

Reposted by Oscar RdR Ortega

Ecolandlab

@ecolandlab.bsky.social

JOB OFFER: Postdoctoral researcher on biodiversity modelling and scenario development @ipbes.bsky.social @biodiversaplus.bsky.social @creaf.cat creaf.factorialhr.com/job_posting/...

POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCHER ON BIODIVERSITY MODELLING AND SCENAR

Apply today to POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCHER ON BIODIVERSITY MODELLING AND SCENARIO DEVELOPMENT IN EUROPE FOR SPEAR PROJECT (ref. 24-090-38822) job of

creaf.factorialhr.com

December 13, 2024 at 3:51 PM

Reposted by Oscar RdR Ortega

Vojtech Brlik

@ecobrlik.bsky.social

15 000 fieldworkers | 28 countries | decades of effort | 170 #bird species🐦

Data paper on European long-term population changes in #birds: doi.org/10.1038/s415...

Data: doi.org/10.5281/zeno...

#ornithology

Long-term and large-scale multispecies dataset tracking population changes of common European breeding birds - Scientific Data

Measurement(s) population Technology Type(s) Count Factor Type(s) time scale • geographic location Sample Characteristic - Organism Aves Sample Characteristic - Location Europe Machine-accessible meta...

doi.org

December 7, 2024 at 9:58 PM

Oscar RdR Ortega

@orrortega.bsky.social

Some art to introduce my seminar next week about spatial models in forest ecosystems. Not everything is going to be formulae!

December 5, 2024 at 3:44 PM

Reposted by Oscar RdR Ortega

Tiago A. Marques

@talom.bsky.social

If you're looking for a gentle introduction to fit linear mixed models with R, with lots of examples, data & code available, here's one below. And not just another paper, just realized this one actually cites a Marvel’s comic book: cool-geek level unlocked :) journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

December 2, 2024 at 10:41 AM

Reposted by Oscar RdR Ortega

Paula Moraga

@paulamoraga.bsky.social

📚 Spatial Statistics for #datascience w/ #rstats

Chapter 1: Spatial Data Types
🔹 Areal: aggregated number of events (disease counts)
🔹 Geostatistical: observations at known locations (air pollution)
🔹 Point patterns: event locations (fires, trees)

Examples 👉 www.paulamoraga.com/book-spatial...

November 23, 2024 at 4:59 PM

Reposted by Oscar RdR Ortega

Matthew Holden 🏳️‍🌈

@matthholden.bsky.social

When do you need to collect more data? ... surprisingly, more data often has little value for decisions. Our new paper unravels why "Value of Information Analyses" can yield surprising results in #ecology doi.org/10.1111/2041... w @katehelmstedt.bsky.social in @methodsinecoevol.bsky.social 🌍

3D plots showing how the value of information is often low and only high when an analytic condition is met. See the paper in link for a full description

Plots showing how the value of information depends on the number of actions and states, with more actions and states often leading to higher value of information. See the paper in the link for a full description

November 18, 2024 at 10:27 PM

Oscar RdR Ortega

@orrortega.bsky.social

PhD alert!!! I am advertising a PhD position in spatial modelling in ecology. If you want to have fun trying to understand ecological processes applying cool models with pretty pictures drop me an email!!
More info in the link (project 3)

www.exeter.ac.uk/study/fundin...