Ryan Comes
@rbcomes.bsky.social
Delaware MSE faculty leading FINCH Lab growing oxide & chalcogenide films; formerly Auburn & PNNL; Carnegie Mellon & UVA alum/sports fan. Opinions here are mine, not my employer's. There will be a lot of politics. He/him.
http://sites.udel.edu/finch-lab
http://sites.udel.edu/finch-lab
Being a professor in this era means letting so many things pile up that your Thanksgiving vacation is an opportunity to do all the work that you aren't able to get done during the rest of the semester. That isn't helped at all by the fact that federal program managers are back to work now. #academia
November 21, 2025 at 8:32 PM
Being a professor in this era means letting so many things pile up that your Thanksgiving vacation is an opportunity to do all the work that you aren't able to get done during the rest of the semester. That isn't helped at all by the fact that federal program managers are back to work now. #academia
This entire article will make your skin crawl. The final line by the authors is perfect though.
November 17, 2025 at 11:48 AM
This entire article will make your skin crawl. The final line by the authors is perfect though.
+1. Same here @coons.senate.gov @bluntrochester.senate.gov
November 9, 2025 at 11:26 PM
+1. Same here @coons.senate.gov @bluntrochester.senate.gov
I don't think this one should count. Self-aware.
November 9, 2025 at 3:27 AM
I don't think this one should count. Self-aware.
I opened the Post website a few minutes ago and saw this. Indistinguishable from Breitbart slop. Bad writing and incoherent garbage. The editorial board was to my left growing up, but I enjoyed learning from the articles and op-eds. There's nothing to learn here. So sad to see what Bezos has done.
November 8, 2025 at 7:08 PM
I opened the Post website a few minutes ago and saw this. Indistinguishable from Breitbart slop. Bad writing and incoherent garbage. The editorial board was to my left growing up, but I enjoyed learning from the articles and op-eds. There's nothing to learn here. So sad to see what Bezos has done.
We have a new pre-print out focusing on SrIrO3-SrCoO3 superlattices! Jibril Ahammad led this work as part of his PhD research at Auburn. Jibril is on the market for a postdoc and has expertise in MBE film growth, transport, and X-ray spectroscopy. Feel free to message me if you have a position! 🧪⚛️
Band Alignment Tuning from Charge Transfer in Epitaxial SrIrO$_3$/SrCoO$_3$ Superlattices
https://arxiv.org/pdf/2511.04513
Jibril Ahammad, Brian B. Opatosky, Tanzila Tasnim, John W. Freeland, Gabriel Calderon Ortiz, Jinwoo Hwang, Gaurab Rimal, Boris Kiefer, Ryan B. Comes.
https://arxiv.org/pdf/2511.04513
Jibril Ahammad, Brian B. Opatosky, Tanzila Tasnim, John W. Freeland, Gabriel Calderon Ortiz, Jinwoo Hwang, Gaurab Rimal, Boris Kiefer, Ryan B. Comes.
https://arxiv.org/abs/2511.04513
arXiv abstract link
arxiv.org
November 8, 2025 at 12:18 PM
We have a new pre-print out focusing on SrIrO3-SrCoO3 superlattices! Jibril Ahammad led this work as part of his PhD research at Auburn. Jibril is on the market for a postdoc and has expertise in MBE film growth, transport, and X-ray spectroscopy. Feel free to message me if you have a position! 🧪⚛️
Couldn't happen to a better pair. One of the last straws for me with Auburn was bringing Freeze in as a coach. Made me feel dirty to be associated with a school that would employ him.
SOURCES: Auburn has fired head coach Hugh Freeze, @theathletic.com has learned.
Comes one day after a 10-3 loss to Kentucky to fall to 1-5 in SEC play. DJ Durkin will be the interim head coach.
Comes one day after a 10-3 loss to Kentucky to fall to 1-5 in SEC play. DJ Durkin will be the interim head coach.
November 2, 2025 at 7:00 PM
Couldn't happen to a better pair. One of the last straws for me with Auburn was bringing Freeze in as a coach. Made me feel dirty to be associated with a school that would employ him.
There was a discussion on LinkedIn yesterday about the good days of Academic Twitter before everything went to crap and we left. I'm curious why we haven't been able to recreate that here. A lot of the same folks are here, but there's not as much engagement. What's Bluesky missing? ⚛️🧪
November 2, 2025 at 3:27 PM
There was a discussion on LinkedIn yesterday about the good days of Academic Twitter before everything went to crap and we left. I'm curious why we haven't been able to recreate that here. A lot of the same folks are here, but there's not as much engagement. What's Bluesky missing? ⚛️🧪
This is for the head of the Office of Naval Research, which oversees university funding and the Naval Research Lab. I assume similar moves are planned at AFOSR/AFRL and ARO/ARL. Folks assumed DOD research would be safe, but that's definitely not a given. They're intent on breaking our government. 🧪⚛️
Another step in the de-professionalization and politicization of DOD.
"The head of an office that helps organize technical research and disburse billions of dollars for the Navy is being replaced by a 33-year-old former DOGEr with no apparent naval experience."
www.thebulwark.com/p/scoop-trum...
"The head of an office that helps organize technical research and disburse billions of dollars for the Navy is being replaced by a 33-year-old former DOGEr with no apparent naval experience."
www.thebulwark.com/p/scoop-trum...
SCOOP: Trump Swaps Decorated Admiral With 33-Year-Old DOGEr
The highly unorthodox personnel change affects a critical government research role.
www.thebulwark.com
October 30, 2025 at 12:10 PM
This is for the head of the Office of Naval Research, which oversees university funding and the Naval Research Lab. I assume similar moves are planned at AFOSR/AFRL and ARO/ARL. Folks assumed DOD research would be safe, but that's definitely not a given. They're intent on breaking our government. 🧪⚛️
Paging UVA... The school has a conservative legal scholar as Interim President right now. Everyone is still waiting for him to act.
This is a remarkable piece. Conservative AND liberal legal scholars come out TOGETHER to condemn Trump’s compact for higher education. www.chronicle.com/article/our-...
Opinion | Our Politics Differ, But We Agree: Trump’s ‘Compact’ Violates Academic Freedom
Using federal funding to dictate who colleges admit and what faculty can say crosses a dangerous line.
www.chronicle.com
October 17, 2025 at 10:54 AM
Paging UVA... The school has a conservative legal scholar as Interim President right now. Everyone is still waiting for him to act.
Sign me up for this version of tenure. Great 🧵
October 13, 2025 at 5:58 PM
Sign me up for this version of tenure. Great 🧵
Good work @ssurovell.bsky.social and company! This is how to send a message. @abigailspanberger.com should speak up as well and make clear that what the current Board of Visitors has allowed will not be continuing after she takes office.
#JustIn: Democrats in the state Senate say "future budget considerations" could impact UVA if it signs onto the Trump administration's education compact.
State Senate Democrats tell UVA to not consider education compact
Democrats in the state Senate write that if UVA signs the Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education, “there will be significant consequences in future Virginia budget cycles.”
www.cbs19news.com
October 8, 2025 at 11:13 PM
Good work @ssurovell.bsky.social and company! This is how to send a message. @abigailspanberger.com should speak up as well and make clear that what the current Board of Visitors has allowed will not be continuing after she takes office.
This has been a great service to the oxide thin film community since COVID. And it's free! 🧪⚛️
🚨 We’re excited to announce QUOROM-13 — ✨
📅 Tuesday, Nov 18, 2025
🌐 Free & online | Oxide electronics, spintronics, multiferroics & quantum materials.
📝 Submit abstracts by Nov 10
🔗 Register & submit: quoromvirtualconference.wordpress.com
#QUOROM13 #QuantumMaterials #Spintronics #Multiferroics
📅 Tuesday, Nov 18, 2025
🌐 Free & online | Oxide electronics, spintronics, multiferroics & quantum materials.
📝 Submit abstracts by Nov 10
🔗 Register & submit: quoromvirtualconference.wordpress.com
#QUOROM13 #QuantumMaterials #Spintronics #Multiferroics
October 7, 2025 at 10:30 AM
This has been a great service to the oxide thin film community since COVID. And it's free! 🧪⚛️
Reposted by Ryan Comes
Nice short thread here. My favorite example of the length of time between discovery and application is superconductivity and MRI's. Superconductors were discovered in 1911, and the first MRI-like techniques were implemented in the 1970's, but they truly became widely available in the 90's and 00's.
I think for me the most compelling answer for "why fund basic research?" (and the one most relevant to the people doing the work) is that humans are curious and finding stuff out makes us happy and fulfilled. Science is a thing humans like. Life would be more dull and sad if we didn't do it.
end/🧵
end/🧵
October 4, 2025 at 1:17 PM
Nice short thread here. My favorite example of the length of time between discovery and application is superconductivity and MRI's. Superconductors were discovered in 1911, and the first MRI-like techniques were implemented in the 1970's, but they truly became widely available in the 90's and 00's.
Reposted by Ryan Comes
Say NO to Trump’s loyalty oaths and extortion of our universities!
We will NOT throw our students, faculty, and staff under the bus to comply with undemocratic and partisan ideological agendas.
We will NOT throw our students, faculty, and staff under the bus to comply with undemocratic and partisan ideological agendas.
October 3, 2025 at 2:34 PM
Say NO to Trump’s loyalty oaths and extortion of our universities!
We will NOT throw our students, faculty, and staff under the bus to comply with undemocratic and partisan ideological agendas.
We will NOT throw our students, faculty, and staff under the bus to comply with undemocratic and partisan ideological agendas.
Reposted by Ryan Comes
Some problems have simple solutions. This new “Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education” is one. The answer is simply saying no.
Simple does not mean easy. But Brown, Dartmouth, MIT, Vanderbilt, Univ of AZ, UPenn, USC, UT Austin & UVA must understand what they’ll lose if they sign on.
Simple does not mean easy. But Brown, Dartmouth, MIT, Vanderbilt, Univ of AZ, UPenn, USC, UT Austin & UVA must understand what they’ll lose if they sign on.
October 2, 2025 at 6:14 AM
Some problems have simple solutions. This new “Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education” is one. The answer is simply saying no.
Simple does not mean easy. But Brown, Dartmouth, MIT, Vanderbilt, Univ of AZ, UPenn, USC, UT Austin & UVA must understand what they’ll lose if they sign on.
Simple does not mean easy. But Brown, Dartmouth, MIT, Vanderbilt, Univ of AZ, UPenn, USC, UT Austin & UVA must understand what they’ll lose if they sign on.
I moved to the @udelaware.bsky.social to join a school that is a leader in my research field. Now the administration is going to selectively prioritize schools that sign on, which hurts our state. No school should sign.
@coons.senate.gov @bluntrochester.senate.gov @mcbride.house.gov
🧪⚛️
@coons.senate.gov @bluntrochester.senate.gov @mcbride.house.gov
🧪⚛️
The government is officially shut down, but the Trump administration is trying to get nine selective colleges to agree to major controls on their operations in order to get a leg up on federal funding.
www.wsj.com/us-news/educ...
www.wsj.com/us-news/educ...
October 2, 2025 at 9:46 AM
I moved to the @udelaware.bsky.social to join a school that is a leader in my research field. Now the administration is going to selectively prioritize schools that sign on, which hurts our state. No school should sign.
@coons.senate.gov @bluntrochester.senate.gov @mcbride.house.gov
🧪⚛️
@coons.senate.gov @bluntrochester.senate.gov @mcbride.house.gov
🧪⚛️
If my grad alma mater, UVA, signs this they'll be dead to me. This is completely antithetical to academic freedom.
Cc @juliamahoney.bsky.social
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/02/u...
Cc @juliamahoney.bsky.social
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/02/u...
Trump Administration Asks Colleges to Sign ‘Compact’ to Get Funding Preference
www.nytimes.com
October 2, 2025 at 9:30 AM
If my grad alma mater, UVA, signs this they'll be dead to me. This is completely antithetical to academic freedom.
Cc @juliamahoney.bsky.social
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/02/u...
Cc @juliamahoney.bsky.social
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/02/u...
Reposted by Ryan Comes
There's a really nice explanation (with clear graphics) in this @quantamagazine.bsky.social article of why most molecules in the atmosphere (oxygen & nitrogen) don't act as greenhouse gases, but a lot of the far less numerous ones (like carbon dioxide and methane) do. A great teaching aid :)
The Quantum Mechanics of Greenhouse Gases | Quanta Magazine
Earth’s radiation can send some molecules spinning or vibrating, which is what makes them greenhouse gases. This infographic explains how relatively few heat-trapping molecules can have a planetary ef...
www.quantamagazine.org
September 26, 2025 at 9:24 AM
There's a really nice explanation (with clear graphics) in this @quantamagazine.bsky.social article of why most molecules in the atmosphere (oxygen & nitrogen) don't act as greenhouse gases, but a lot of the far less numerous ones (like carbon dioxide and methane) do. A great teaching aid :)
Reposted by Ryan Comes
This.
No TT/non-TT/VAP job will be offered to an int'l candidate, since it requires an H1-B until the green card is issued.
This process takes at least a couple of years.
No TT/non-TT/VAP job will be offered to an int'l candidate, since it requires an H1-B until the green card is issued.
This process takes at least a couple of years.
September 20, 2025 at 1:02 PM
This.
No TT/non-TT/VAP job will be offered to an int'l candidate, since it requires an H1-B until the green card is issued.
This process takes at least a couple of years.
No TT/non-TT/VAP job will be offered to an int'l candidate, since it requires an H1-B until the green card is issued.
This process takes at least a couple of years.
Reposted by Ryan Comes
To my H-1B friends, I am so fucking sorry. This all sucks so much.
September 19, 2025 at 11:46 PM
To my H-1B friends, I am so fucking sorry. This all sucks so much.
This is the best summary of the current state of affairs in our country that I have read. Kudos to @ezrakleinbot.bsky.social for writing such a prescient article.
"Democratic leaders have had six months to come up with a plan. If there’s a better plan than a shutdown, great. But if the plan is still nothing, then Democrats need new leaders."
Opinion | Stop Acting Like This Is Normal
www.nytimes.com
September 7, 2025 at 11:55 AM
This is the best summary of the current state of affairs in our country that I have read. Kudos to @ezrakleinbot.bsky.social for writing such a prescient article.
Delaware football is playing Colorado in the first FBS v. FBS matchup in school history. QB just got smushed and lost his helmet. Welcome to the big leagues...
September 6, 2025 at 8:30 PM
Delaware football is playing Colorado in the first FBS v. FBS matchup in school history. QB just got smushed and lost his helmet. Welcome to the big leagues...