Rachel Penton (she/her)
@rpenton.bsky.social
UG curriculum and faculty developer (neuro, cell bio, & immuno!); frequent conference attendee; pedagogy & andragogy nerd; former neuroscience teaching faculty; intuitive abstract & process artist; posts my own
Reposted by Rachel Penton (she/her)
Reposted by Rachel Penton (she/her)
An exciting collaboration is underway. @thetransmitter.bsky.social is partnering with @neuromatch.bsky.social to serve the computational neuroscience community and help connect neuroscientists across all career stages.
www.thetransmitter.org/neuromatch-p...
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/neuromatch-p...
#neuroskyence
July 18, 2025 at 2:28 PM
An exciting collaboration is underway. @thetransmitter.bsky.social is partnering with @neuromatch.bsky.social to serve the computational neuroscience community and help connect neuroscientists across all career stages.
www.thetransmitter.org/neuromatch-p...
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/neuromatch-p...
#neuroskyence
Reposted by Rachel Penton (she/her)
make art! if it's the end of the world, you might as well make art! if it's not the end of the world, then the future will be better because people made art right now!
July 18, 2025 at 9:39 PM
make art! if it's the end of the world, you might as well make art! if it's not the end of the world, then the future will be better because people made art right now!
Reposted by Rachel Penton (she/her)
Think worked examples are the key to learning? Think again! In a large active-learning genetics class, students believed worked examples were most useful—but actual test gains came from prediction-based exercises. From Elise Walck‑Shannon, Washington University 👩🔬 www.lifescied.org/doi/10.1187/...
July 7, 2025 at 1:03 PM
Think worked examples are the key to learning? Think again! In a large active-learning genetics class, students believed worked examples were most useful—but actual test gains came from prediction-based exercises. From Elise Walck‑Shannon, Washington University 👩🔬 www.lifescied.org/doi/10.1187/...
Reposted by Rachel Penton (she/her)
May every single human being on this planet be safe.
May every single person be protected from harm.
May we bring into being a time in which we are all free from those who do evil— together, speedily and in our days.
May every single person be protected from harm.
May we bring into being a time in which we are all free from those who do evil— together, speedily and in our days.
June 22, 2025 at 1:44 AM
May every single human being on this planet be safe.
May every single person be protected from harm.
May we bring into being a time in which we are all free from those who do evil— together, speedily and in our days.
May every single person be protected from harm.
May we bring into being a time in which we are all free from those who do evil— together, speedily and in our days.
Reposted by Rachel Penton (she/her)
Most higher ed #BiologyEducation research is done at 4 year institutions even though most biology education in higher ed happens at #CommunityColleges. Presented by Noah Courtney at the @alleninstitute.org in the #OpenScience in Undergrad Educ symposium.
June 16, 2025 at 10:00 PM
Most higher ed #BiologyEducation research is done at 4 year institutions even though most biology education in higher ed happens at #CommunityColleges. Presented by Noah Courtney at the @alleninstitute.org in the #OpenScience in Undergrad Educ symposium.
Reposted by Rachel Penton (she/her)
The amazing Carlos Goller speaking about #metagenomics at the @alleninstitute.org #OpenScience in Undergraduate Education Symposium! @rioscommunity.bsky.social
June 17, 2025 at 4:34 PM
The amazing Carlos Goller speaking about #metagenomics at the @alleninstitute.org #OpenScience in Undergraduate Education Symposium! @rioscommunity.bsky.social
Reposted by Rachel Penton (she/her)
Sam Donovan delivers an awesome keynote at the Allen Institute #OpenScience in Undergraduate Education Symposium. A brilliant articulation of the Open Ecosystem as connections between networks, gateways, community, science ed reform, #OER, #OpenScience & #OpenEducation providers, and so much more.
June 16, 2025 at 9:41 PM
Sam Donovan delivers an awesome keynote at the Allen Institute #OpenScience in Undergraduate Education Symposium. A brilliant articulation of the Open Ecosystem as connections between networks, gateways, community, science ed reform, #OER, #OpenScience & #OpenEducation providers, and so much more.
Reposted by Rachel Penton (she/her)
Science is for everyone.
Our Education & Engagement program empowers students, educators, and scientists to harness the power of real-world #OpenScience tools and data.
📽️ youtu.be/uDnCFnzDLec
#EduSky #iTeachBio #Neuroskyence
Our Education & Engagement program empowers students, educators, and scientists to harness the power of real-world #OpenScience tools and data.
📽️ youtu.be/uDnCFnzDLec
#EduSky #iTeachBio #Neuroskyence
Allen Institute Education and Engagement Program: Fostering the Next Generation of Scientists
YouTube video by Allen Institute
youtu.be
June 18, 2025 at 7:47 PM
Science is for everyone.
Our Education & Engagement program empowers students, educators, and scientists to harness the power of real-world #OpenScience tools and data.
📽️ youtu.be/uDnCFnzDLec
#EduSky #iTeachBio #Neuroskyence
Our Education & Engagement program empowers students, educators, and scientists to harness the power of real-world #OpenScience tools and data.
📽️ youtu.be/uDnCFnzDLec
#EduSky #iTeachBio #Neuroskyence
Reposted by Rachel Penton (she/her)
Looking forward to day 2 of the Open Science in Undergraduate Education Symposium at @alleninstitute.org. So much great discussion about #openscience and #openeducation from @karencang.bsky.social Carlos Goller Davida Smyth Melissa Aikens @rpenton.bsky.social and many others.
June 17, 2025 at 2:15 PM
Looking forward to day 2 of the Open Science in Undergraduate Education Symposium at @alleninstitute.org. So much great discussion about #openscience and #openeducation from @karencang.bsky.social Carlos Goller Davida Smyth Melissa Aikens @rpenton.bsky.social and many others.
Reposted by Rachel Penton (she/her)
The AAUP wholly condemns this punitive weaponization of federal grant funding. This attempt to discipline & control a university campus is a transparent hallmark of authoritarian rule & harshly violates the central mission of education to serve the public good.
www.nytimes.com/2025/03/07/n...
www.nytimes.com/2025/03/07/n...
White House Cancels $400 Million in Grants and Contracts to Columbia
The Trump administration blamed the university’s failure to protect Jewish students from harassment during protests last year over the war in Gaza.
www.nytimes.com
March 10, 2025 at 5:42 PM
The AAUP wholly condemns this punitive weaponization of federal grant funding. This attempt to discipline & control a university campus is a transparent hallmark of authoritarian rule & harshly violates the central mission of education to serve the public good.
www.nytimes.com/2025/03/07/n...
www.nytimes.com/2025/03/07/n...
Reposted by Rachel Penton (she/her)
In an unprecedented move, the US National Institutes of Health has begun mass terminations of research grants that fund active scientific projects because they no longer meet “agency priorities”.
https://go.nature.com/4bpG2It
https://go.nature.com/4bpG2It
Exclusive: NIH to terminate hundreds of active research grants
Studies that touch on LGBT+ health, gender identity and DEI in the biomedical workforce could be terminated, according to documents obtained by Nature.
go.nature.com
March 6, 2025 at 2:25 AM
In an unprecedented move, the US National Institutes of Health has begun mass terminations of research grants that fund active scientific projects because they no longer meet “agency priorities”.
https://go.nature.com/4bpG2It
https://go.nature.com/4bpG2It
Reposted by Rachel Penton (she/her)
"Universities must be spaces of learning, not intolerance. It’s time to take action to protect and support the trans community."
Universities Must Do Better for the Trans Community - Ms. Magazine
Universities must be spaces of learning, not intolerance. It’s time to take action to protect and support the LGBTQ+ community.
buff.ly
February 27, 2025 at 12:24 AM
"Universities must be spaces of learning, not intolerance. It’s time to take action to protect and support the trans community."
Reposted by Rachel Penton (she/her)
This is very bad. “A panel of scientific experts that advises the Food and Drug Administration on vaccine policy — and has been the target of criticism from Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — learned on Wednesday that its upcoming meeting to discuss next year’s flu vaccines has been canceled.”
F.D.A. Cancels Meeting of Vaccine Experts Scheduled to Advise on Flu Shots
The cancellation plays into fears among scientists who worry that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will use his position as health secretary to sow doubts about vaccines.
www.nytimes.com
February 27, 2025 at 1:11 AM
This is very bad. “A panel of scientific experts that advises the Food and Drug Administration on vaccine policy — and has been the target of criticism from Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — learned on Wednesday that its upcoming meeting to discuss next year’s flu vaccines has been canceled.”
Reposted by Rachel Penton (she/her)
Nothing runs like a Deere, but they don’t back down either.
💥 BREAKING: At John Deere's annual shareholders meeting today, shareholders overwhelmingly rejected an anti-DEI proposal brought by the same group that targeted Costco and Apple. An anti-DEI proposal from the NCPPR received less than 1 percent of votes.
Deere shareholders: DEI is in. Bigots are out
Deere shareholders: DEI is in. Bigots are out
February 27, 2025 at 1:31 AM
Nothing runs like a Deere, but they don’t back down either.
Reposted by Rachel Penton (she/her)
NEWS: The FDA abruptly canceled its upcoming advisory committee meeting to select the strains for next year's flu shot.
by @berkeleyjr.bsky.social
by @berkeleyjr.bsky.social
FDA cancels meeting to select flu strains for next season's shots
The canceled meeting comes just days after a CDC vaccine advisory committee meeting was abruptly postponed.
www.nbcnews.com
February 27, 2025 at 12:38 AM
NEWS: The FDA abruptly canceled its upcoming advisory committee meeting to select the strains for next year's flu shot.
by @berkeleyjr.bsky.social
by @berkeleyjr.bsky.social
Reposted by Rachel Penton (she/her)
Abstract deadline extended to March 3 for consideration for a talk! (And still 4/1 for posters!)
Abstract submissions are now open for the
@alleninstitute.bsky.social
Open Science in Undergraduate Education Symposium!
🎤 Submit by February 22 for consideration for a short talk
📃 Submit by April 1 for posters
alleninstitute.org/events/opens...
@alleninstitute.bsky.social
Open Science in Undergraduate Education Symposium!
🎤 Submit by February 22 for consideration for a short talk
📃 Submit by April 1 for posters
alleninstitute.org/events/opens...
Open Science in Undergraduate Education Symposium
Join the Allen Institute for the Open Science in Undergraduate Education Symposium in Seattle, Washington next June. This interactive symposium brings together those working to integrate openly availa...
alleninstitute.org
February 25, 2025 at 6:57 PM
Abstract deadline extended to March 3 for consideration for a talk! (And still 4/1 for posters!)
Reposted by Rachel Penton (she/her)
#Neuroskyence students! We're brainstorming ways to support your development over this summer break, esp. given the changes in summer intern programs across our fields. What other opportunities would you like to see?
Some ideas: undergrad-focused webinars, self-paced courses, challenges, etc.
Some ideas: undergrad-focused webinars, self-paced courses, challenges, etc.
February 25, 2025 at 5:01 PM
#Neuroskyence students! We're brainstorming ways to support your development over this summer break, esp. given the changes in summer intern programs across our fields. What other opportunities would you like to see?
Some ideas: undergrad-focused webinars, self-paced courses, challenges, etc.
Some ideas: undergrad-focused webinars, self-paced courses, challenges, etc.
Reposted by Rachel Penton (she/her)
The landscape of diversity and inclusion in science funding has shifted. David Barker explains how neuroscientists must adapt and take action or risk losing ground on all of the progress made.
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/funding/adap...
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/funding/adap...
Safeguarding diversity and inclusion funding in neuroscience
As DEI funding initiatives crumble, neuroscientists must change their approach to grant writing and communication and engage in constructive conflict.
www.thetransmitter.org
February 25, 2025 at 3:17 PM
The landscape of diversity and inclusion in science funding has shifted. David Barker explains how neuroscientists must adapt and take action or risk losing ground on all of the progress made.
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/funding/adap...
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/funding/adap...
Reposted by Rachel Penton (she/her)
imagine WANTING to receive two million emails
February 25, 2025 at 8:50 AM
imagine WANTING to receive two million emails
Reposted by Rachel Penton (she/her)
Transgender Youth Have Better Emotional Health After Taking Hormones, New Study Finds www.scientificamerican.com/article/tran...
Transgender Youth Have Better Emotional Health After Taking Hormones, New Study Finds
Hormone therapy improves transgender young people's well-being and social relationships, but Trump’s recent executive order and state bans threaten to take it away
www.scientificamerican.com
February 25, 2025 at 3:58 PM
Transgender Youth Have Better Emotional Health After Taking Hormones, New Study Finds www.scientificamerican.com/article/tran...
Reposted by Rachel Penton (she/her)
i wrote about the impact of Trump’s DEIA shutdown across the sciences earlier this month. but i wanted to do a deeper dive into what it means to explicitly target accessibility — both for supporting scientists with disabilities & broader disability research itself:
www.nytimes.com/2025/02/22/s...
www.nytimes.com/2025/02/22/s...
Accessibility Is Taking a Hit Across the Sciences (Gift Article)
Confusion has ensued about the future of programs and research supporting people with disabilities as a result of President Trump’s executive order.
www.nytimes.com
February 22, 2025 at 5:48 PM
i wrote about the impact of Trump’s DEIA shutdown across the sciences earlier this month. but i wanted to do a deeper dive into what it means to explicitly target accessibility — both for supporting scientists with disabilities & broader disability research itself:
www.nytimes.com/2025/02/22/s...
www.nytimes.com/2025/02/22/s...
Reposted by Rachel Penton (she/her)
Great write up at @thetransmitter.bsky.social on the seeming erasure of SABV in the new era of NIH. Gotta say The Transmitter is killing it the last few weeks, first to report on the Federal Register block and now this. Leading the charge! 💪 www.thetransmitter.org/policy/exclu...
Exclusive: NIH appears to archive policy requiring female animals in studies
Such a shift would “put us back in the dark ages in terms of our science,” says neuroscientist Anne Murphy, who helped to formulate the original policy.
www.thetransmitter.org
February 25, 2025 at 1:14 AM
Great write up at @thetransmitter.bsky.social on the seeming erasure of SABV in the new era of NIH. Gotta say The Transmitter is killing it the last few weeks, first to report on the Federal Register block and now this. Leading the charge! 💪 www.thetransmitter.org/policy/exclu...
Reposted by Rachel Penton (she/her)
Reposted by Rachel Penton (she/her)
Exclusive: NIH appears to archive policy requiring female animals in studies www.thetransmitter.org/policy/exclu...
Exclusive: NIH appears to archive policy requiring female animals in studies
Such a shift would “put us back in the dark ages in terms of our science,” says neuroscientist Anne Murphy, who helped to formulate the original policy.
www.thetransmitter.org
February 24, 2025 at 10:28 PM
Exclusive: NIH appears to archive policy requiring female animals in studies www.thetransmitter.org/policy/exclu...