Rodrigo Fernandez-Gonzalez
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rodrigofg.bsky.social
Rodrigo Fernandez-Gonzalez
@rodrigofg.bsky.social
3.1K followers 2.5K following 140 posts
Epithelial morphogenesis, microscopy and image analysis. Cytoskeleton and cell adhesion. Author of pyjamas.readthedocs.io and bitbucket.org/rfg_lab/junkie. Keeping a group of brilliant scientists entertained at www.quantmorph.ca. Also marathons and sushi.
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rodrigofg.bsky.social
Rodrigo Fernandez-Gonzalez @rodrigofg.bsky.social · Nov 11
A quick re-intro: we are interested in the mechanisms of collective cell behaviour, particularly cell movement. We use fly embryos, quantitative microscopy, image analysis and computer-based modelling. One of the systems where we study collective cell movement is the wound healing response.
Reposted by Rodrigo Fernandez-Gonzalez
lucksmith.bsky.social
v sad to hear Antonio García-Bellido's passing. his work on mitotic clones led to fundamental insights such as compartment boundaries, enabled post-embryonic analysis of lethals, and revealed autonomous vs non-autonomous effects of mutants. and founding father of Spanish DB and Drosophila schools.🪰
fly-eds.bsky.social European Drosophila Society @fly-eds.bsky.social · 7d
The European Drosophila Society #flyEDS extends the condolences on the passing of Antonio García-Bellido, considered the founder of the Spanish school of #Drosophila genetics and an influential figure in developmental biology research worldwide. May he rest in peace.
November 12, 2025 at 5:08 PM
Reposted by Rodrigo Fernandez-Gonzalez
peiferlabunc.bsky.social
A giant in my field, the mentor of so many Spanish scientists, and an inspiration for me. Reading his Scientific American article on Compartments in Development as an undergraduate set me on the path I follow today!
fly-eds.bsky.social European Drosophila Society @fly-eds.bsky.social · 7d
The European Drosophila Society #flyEDS extends the condolences on the passing of Antonio García-Bellido, considered the founder of the Spanish school of #Drosophila genetics and an influential figure in developmental biology research worldwide. May he rest in peace.
November 14, 2025 at 12:19 PM
Reposted by Rodrigo Fernandez-Gonzalez
peiferlabunc.bsky.social
I hope you and your colleagues are getting the right message from yesterday's selections-we need real leadership in the Democratic party, that stands strong against all of Trump's fascist positions, from ICE to science funding cuts to trans rights to SNAP cuts. Mamdani showed the way. Get moving!
November 5, 2025 at 6:26 PM
Reposted by Rodrigo Fernandez-Gonzalez
thegodpodcast.com
Dear New York, at the very least, please give wonderful Democratic Socialist Mamdani a massive landslide victory so that he has a mandate.
October 31, 2025 at 2:07 AM
Reposted by Rodrigo Fernandez-Gonzalez
nytimes.com
In @nytopinion.nytimes.com

“The Trump administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration has become a campaign of discrimination against Latinos,” writes the Times editorial board. “American citizens are living in fear of a government that is sworn to protect their liberties and keep them safe.”
Opinion | Being Latino in the United States Should Not Be a Crime
Trump’s immigration tactics violate both the law and human decency.
nyti.ms
October 27, 2025 at 6:25 PM
rodrigofg.bsky.social
This is a super fun watch that will make you have a greater appreciation for a tool many of us use on a daily basis 🧪

youtu.be/GfH4QL4VqJ0?...
Python: The Documentary | An origin story
YouTube video by CultRepo
youtu.be
October 26, 2025 at 2:19 PM
Reposted by Rodrigo Fernandez-Gonzalez
yanlanmao.bsky.social
Thank you @rodrigofg.bsky.social and Lola Martin Bermuda for organising this great meeting in Baeza! Beautiful architecture and beautiful science!
October 25, 2025 at 3:57 PM
Reposted by Rodrigo Fernandez-Gonzalez
peiferlabunc.bsky.social
When the Black Lives Matter protests broke out around the nation, I was one of those who was challenged to look at my own life and what I could do to change the system. I wrote this piece, and every word remains as true today as it did in 2021
www.molbiolcell.org/doi/10.1091/...
🧪
Title and abstract from the link
October 23, 2025 at 6:48 PM
Reposted by Rodrigo Fernandez-Gonzalez
needhibhalla.bsky.social
@joann-trejo.bsky.social, @marymunson4.bsky.social and I have a commentary in @natcellbio.nature.com on recent attacks on DEI in biomedical research: "If scientific research, especially biomedical research, is meant to serve everyone, then it requires that everyone has an opportunity to participate"
Scaling back DEI programmes and the loss of scientific talent
Nature Cell Biology - Programmes that support diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in science are under attack in the USA. Data indicate that diversity in the scientific workforce increases...
www.nature.com
October 23, 2025 at 4:36 PM
Reposted by Rodrigo Fernandez-Gonzalez
peiferlabunc.bsky.social
Three amazing scientists who aren't afraid to speak out for values most of us claim to support. I wish more of my colleagues would join them 🧪
October 23, 2025 at 6:44 PM
Reposted by Rodrigo Fernandez-Gonzalez
bioimagearchive.bsky.social
We recently had the pleasure of chatting about the newly published MIFA guidelines, which aim to improve how we share AI-ready datasets for bioimage analysis.
Huge thanks to Joshua Talks and @rodrigofg.bsky.social for sharing the user perspective — check out the interview below!
ebi.embl.org EMBL-EBI @ebi.embl.org · Oct 13
AI has so much potential for interpreting biological images, and yet, annotated biological datasets needed to train AI tools remain scarce.

If you generate microscopy data or develop AI tools to interpret it, check it these new guidelines:
www.ebi.ac.uk/about/news/t...

#bioimaging #microscopy
🧬🔬
October 13, 2025 at 3:17 PM
Reposted by Rodrigo Fernandez-Gonzalez
peiferlabunc.bsky.social
I'm very excited to announce that UNC Biology has 6 faculty positions open this year! The first is for an Asst Professor who studies organismal resilience using an integrative approach 1/n
unc.peopleadmin.com/postings/307...
Poster with QR code linking to the position
October 12, 2025 at 2:20 PM
rodrigofg.bsky.social
Congrats to Dr. @negberry.bsky.social , who successfully defended her PhD in @bme-uoft.bsky.social @utoronto.ca last week!! Negar and I had our annual career one-on-one today, and she showed up with this totally AMAZING present. If you don’t yet, you should follow her: she is onto great things!!
Two cross-stitched fruit flies, male and female, with three-dimensional wings (one of them is Curly!!).
October 8, 2025 at 9:05 PM
Reposted by Rodrigo Fernandez-Gonzalez
tryangregory.bsky.social
Ok, then there's no Alberta oil or Saskatchewan potash, it's Canada's oil and Canada's potash.

www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
'There is no B.C. coast. It's Canada's coast': Sask. premier supports Alta. pipeline proposal | CBC News
Sask. Premier Scott Moe repeated his support for the proposed pipeline between Alberta and the northern B.C. coast earlier this week by Alberta Premier Danielle Smith.
www.cbc.ca
October 5, 2025 at 1:34 PM
Reposted by Rodrigo Fernandez-Gonzalez
katecavanaugh.bsky.social
See this? This = implanting mouse embryo. Usually this happens inside its mother and is invisible to us, but we can actually watch implantation ex vivo with the hope of understanding why implantation goes awry in embryos of older women. A 🧵...
October 1, 2025 at 6:21 PM
Reposted by Rodrigo Fernandez-Gonzalez
angierasmussen.bsky.social
Terrific new review of flu & COVID vaccine recommendations in Vaccine from Jessica Breznik, Matt Miller, & @msmacrophage.bsky.social!

They make a compelling data-driven case for expanding COVID vaccines & optimizing timing for COVID waves, as we do for flu.👇

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Rationalizing recommendations for influenza and COVID-19 vaccines
Influenza vaccination saves lives, reduces short-term and long-term health consequences, decreases healthcare utilization, and improves pregnancy outc…
www.sciencedirect.com
September 27, 2025 at 4:56 PM
Reposted by Rodrigo Fernandez-Gonzalez
jeffvandermeer.bsky.social
"War-ravaged" Portland today... #WarRavagedPortland
beautiful orange flower in a hellscape of calming shadow and a gorgeous white picket fence during a morning of peace and quiet an explosion... of yellow leaves on a winsome tree on a lazy fall day a riotous... number of white pollinator blossoms in front of the purple haze of a nicely maintained house with a lovely set of stairs leading to the street the civil disobedience of a quiet, well kept street with delightful gardens beyond moss encrusted stone terracing
September 27, 2025 at 5:06 PM
Reposted by Rodrigo Fernandez-Gonzalez
thetnholler.bsky.social
It’s funny because it isn’t 😕 🇺🇸
September 27, 2025 at 6:26 PM
rodrigofg.bsky.social
Isn’t that hate speech???? Shouldn’t it be prosecuted????
atrupar.com Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · Sep 13
Brian Kilmeade endorses euthanizing homeless people: "Involuntary lethal injection, or something. Just kill them."
September 13, 2025 at 6:38 PM
Reposted by Rodrigo Fernandez-Gonzalez
moorejh.bsky.social
A wonderful open-source software package en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blender... #blender
Blender (software) - Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org
September 7, 2025 at 9:40 PM
Reposted by Rodrigo Fernandez-Gonzalez
spavel.bsky.social
UNLIMITED VELOCITY
One of the ways that LLM-authored code improves productivity is by merely SAYING it does things. It's way faster than the whole time-consuming process of actually doing things. This is real code someone sent to me for review. A screenshot of a code editor. The line numbers are in the lefthand column, running from 121 to 125. There is a comment that says "Verify packages were created and check sizes" Then line 123 says echo Verifying Lambda packages were created... and Line 124 says echo checkmark emoji colon All Lambda packages verified successfully. There is no line in here that actually did anything.
September 7, 2025 at 4:25 PM
Reposted by Rodrigo Fernandez-Gonzalez
hillaryclinton.bsky.social
If you enjoy…

Weekends
Safe working conditions
Retirement benefits
Paid vacations
Breaks at work
Sick leave
Paid holidays

… then you’re part of the labor movement. Happy Labor Day.
September 1, 2025 at 12:59 PM
Reposted by Rodrigo Fernandez-Gonzalez
peiferlabunc.bsky.social
If anyone wants to write individually or collectively (but politely):

President Alan Garber
Harvard University
president@harvard.edu

Dr. Rachelle Gaudet
Chair, Harvard MCB Department
gaudet@mcb.harvard.edu
peiferlabunc.bsky.social Mark Peifer (He, him) @peiferlabunc.bsky.social · Aug 23
The community of Drosophila researchers is amazing, mutually supportive and collaborative. Right now a key resource for our community, @flybase.bsky.social , is threatened by the cancellation of its NIH grant and is seeking community help in raising short term funds 1/n 🧪 please share
Dear Fly Community, In May 2025, the NIH terminated all grant funding to Harvard University, including the NHGRI grant that supported FlyBase. This grant also funded FlyBase teams at Indiana University (IU) and the University of Cambridge (UK), and as a result, their subawards were also canceled. The Cambridge team has secured support for one to two years through generous donations from the European fly community, emergency funding from the Wellcome Trust, and support from the University of Cambridge. At IU, funding has been secured for one year thanks to reserve funds from Thom Kaufman and a supplement from ORIP/NIH to the Bloomington Drosophila Stock Center (BDSC). Unfortunately, the situation at Harvard is far more critical. Harvard University had supported FlyBase staff since May but recently denied a request for extended bridge funding. As a result, all eight employees (four full-time and four part-time) were abruptly laid off, with termination dates ranging from August to mid-October depending on their positions. In addition, our curator at the University of New Mexico will leave her position at the end of August. This decision came as a shock, and we are urgently pursuing all possible funding options. To put the need into perspective: although FlyBase is free to use, it is not free to make. It takes large teams of people and millions of dollars a year to create FlyBase to support fly research (the last NHGRI grant supported us with more than 2 million USD per annum). To help sustain FlyBase operations, we have been reaching out to you to ask for your support. We have set up a donation site in Cambridge, UK, to which European labs have and can continue to contribute, and a new donation site at IU to which labs in the US and the rest of the world can contribute. We urge researchers to work with their grant administrators to contribute to FlyBase via these sites if at all possible, as more of the money will go to FlyBase. However, we appreciate that some fu… https://wiki.flybase.org/wiki/FlyBase:Contribute_to_FlyBase Our immediate goals are: 1. To maintain core curation activities and keep the FlyBase website online 2. To complete integration with the Alliance of Genome Resources (The Alliance). Integration with the Alliance is essential for FlyBase’s long-term sustainability. For nearly a decade, NHGRI/NIH has supported the unification of Model Organism Databases (MODs) into the Alliance, which we aim to achieve by 2028. Therefore, securing bridge funding to sustain FlyBase over the next three years is crucial for successful integration and the long-term access to FlyBase data. At present, our remaining funds will allow us to keep the FlyBase website online for approximately one more year. Beyond that, its future is uncertain unless new funding is secured. We will, of course, continue pursuing additional grant opportunities as they arise. Given the uncertainty of future NIH or alternative funding sources, we are relying on the Fly community for support. Your contributions will directly help us retain the staff needed to complete this transition and to secure ongoing fly data curation into the Alliance beyond 2028. We at FlyBase are incredibly grateful for the outpouring of support from the community during this challenging time. Your encouragement has strengthened our resolve and underscores how vital this resource remains to Drosophila research worldwide. Sincerely, The FlyBase Team
August 24, 2025 at 1:25 PM
Reposted by Rodrigo Fernandez-Gonzalez
peiferlabunc.bsky.social
The community of Drosophila researchers is amazing, mutually supportive and collaborative. Right now a key resource for our community, @flybase.bsky.social , is threatened by the cancellation of its NIH grant and is seeking community help in raising short term funds 1/n 🧪 please share
Dear Fly Community, In May 2025, the NIH terminated all grant funding to Harvard University, including the NHGRI grant that supported FlyBase. This grant also funded FlyBase teams at Indiana University (IU) and the University of Cambridge (UK), and as a result, their subawards were also canceled. The Cambridge team has secured support for one to two years through generous donations from the European fly community, emergency funding from the Wellcome Trust, and support from the University of Cambridge. At IU, funding has been secured for one year thanks to reserve funds from Thom Kaufman and a supplement from ORIP/NIH to the Bloomington Drosophila Stock Center (BDSC). Unfortunately, the situation at Harvard is far more critical. Harvard University had supported FlyBase staff since May but recently denied a request for extended bridge funding. As a result, all eight employees (four full-time and four part-time) were abruptly laid off, with termination dates ranging from August to mid-October depending on their positions. In addition, our curator at the University of New Mexico will leave her position at the end of August. This decision came as a shock, and we are urgently pursuing all possible funding options. To put the need into perspective: although FlyBase is free to use, it is not free to make. It takes large teams of people and millions of dollars a year to create FlyBase to support fly research (the last NHGRI grant supported us with more than 2 million USD per annum). To help sustain FlyBase operations, we have been reaching out to you to ask for your support. We have set up a donation site in Cambridge, UK, to which European labs have and can continue to contribute, and a new donation site at IU to which labs in the US and the rest of the world can contribute. We urge researchers to work with their grant administrators to contribute to FlyBase via these sites if at all possible, as more of the money will go to FlyBase. However, we appreciate that some fu… https://wiki.flybase.org/wiki/FlyBase:Contribute_to_FlyBase Our immediate goals are: 1. To maintain core curation activities and keep the FlyBase website online 2. To complete integration with the Alliance of Genome Resources (The Alliance). Integration with the Alliance is essential for FlyBase’s long-term sustainability. For nearly a decade, NHGRI/NIH has supported the unification of Model Organism Databases (MODs) into the Alliance, which we aim to achieve by 2028. Therefore, securing bridge funding to sustain FlyBase over the next three years is crucial for successful integration and the long-term access to FlyBase data. At present, our remaining funds will allow us to keep the FlyBase website online for approximately one more year. Beyond that, its future is uncertain unless new funding is secured. We will, of course, continue pursuing additional grant opportunities as they arise. Given the uncertainty of future NIH or alternative funding sources, we are relying on the Fly community for support. Your contributions will directly help us retain the staff needed to complete this transition and to secure ongoing fly data curation into the Alliance beyond 2028. We at FlyBase are incredibly grateful for the outpouring of support from the community during this challenging time. Your encouragement has strengthened our resolve and underscores how vital this resource remains to Drosophila research worldwide. Sincerely, The FlyBase Team
August 23, 2025 at 12:18 PM
Reposted by Rodrigo Fernandez-Gonzalez
cdelawalla.bsky.social
As one can imagine, I have some thoughts. Here’s a thread no one asked for:

1. SCIENCE IN THE US IS POLITICAL. No matter how much you want to ignore that fact, it is supported by taxpayer dollars and is therefore, political by nature.

2. BUT it has had bipartisan support for decades, which…
theatlantic.com The Atlantic @theatlantic.com · Aug 23
For some scientists fighting partisan attacks, the goal is to defend their work from political interference. But in retaliating, @katherinejwu.com reports, they also run the risk of advancing the narrative that they want to fight.
Scientists Are Caught in a Political Trap
Fighting back against the Trump administration means they start to look more like activists.
bit.ly
August 23, 2025 at 4:15 PM