Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Menno Schilthuizen

@schilthuizen.bsky.social

Drop by if you're in Munich or around. We'll be talking about deep and important topics, such as the relative roles of isolation and selection in the origin of species, the possibility that cities spawn new species, and how much genetic diversity you can lose before a species loses its resilience.

November 13, 2025 at 12:41 PM

Reposted by Menno Schilthuizen

Louis Nastasi

@toomanywasps.bsky.social

Big news - I’ll be starting an #insect #systematics lab at University of Nebraska-Lincoln this coming academic year! I’m looking to #recruit #PhDstudents to work in #wasp systematics, especially gall systems, to begin Fall 2026. Please help me spread the word — more details on the flyer below!

November 12, 2025 at 12:55 PM

Reposted by Menno Schilthuizen

Lars Fischer

@fischblog.bsky.social

55 years ago today the thing with the whale happened.

Happy exploding whale day to all who celebrate.
youtu.be/V6CLumsir34?...

The Exploding Whale: An infamous moment in Oregon history creates a strangely beloved icon

YouTube video by KATU News

youtu.be

November 12, 2025 at 5:40 PM

Reposted by Menno Schilthuizen

Center for Advanced Studies

@caslmu.bsky.social

🧬 The Speciation Puzzle: Diversity, Isolation, and Genetic Resilience

Join us on Thursday, Nov 13, at 7 PM for a fascinating discussion with Menno Schilthuizen @schilthuizen.bsky.social, Kärin Nickelsen @lmumuenchen.bsky.social & Axel Imhof ‪@bmc-lmu.bsky.social.

www.cas.lmu.de/en/events/ev...

The Speciation Puzzle: Diversity, Isolation, and Genetic Resilience

Prof. Dr. Kärin Nickelsen (LMU), Prof. Dr. Menno Schilthuizen (Leiden) | Chair: Prof. Dr. Axel Imhof (LMU)

www.cas.lmu.de

November 12, 2025 at 2:33 PM

Reposted by Menno Schilthuizen

Mark A. Hanson

@hansonmark.bsky.social

We wrote the Strain on scientific publishing to highlight the problems of time & trust. With a fantastic group of co-authors, we present The Drain of Scientific Publishing:

a 🧵 1/n

Drain: arxiv.org/abs/2511.04820
Strain: direct.mit.edu/qss/article/...
Oligopoly: direct.mit.edu/qss/article/...

A table showing profit margins of major publishers. A snippet of text related to this table is below.

1. The four-fold drain
1.1 Money
Currently, academic publishing is dominated by profit-oriented, multinational companies for
whom scientific knowledge is a commodity to be sold back to the academic community who
created it. The dominant four are Elsevier, Springer Nature, Wiley and Taylor & Francis,
which collectively generated over US$7.1 billion in revenue from journal publishing in 2024
alone, and over US$12 billion in profits between 2019 and 2024 (Table 1A). Their profit
margins have always been over 30% in the last five years, and for the largest publisher
(Elsevier) always over 37%.
Against many comparators, across many sectors, scientific publishing is one of the most
consistently profitable industries (Table S1). These financial arrangements make a substantial
difference to science budgets. In 2024, 46% of Elsevier revenues and 53% of Taylor &
Francis revenues were generated in North America, meaning that North American
researchers were charged over US$2.27 billion by just two for-profit publishers. The
Canadian research councils and the US National Science Foundation were allocated US$9.3
billion in that year.

A figure detailing the drain on researcher time.

1. The four-fold drain

1.2 Time
The number of papers published each year is growing faster than the scientific workforce,
with the number of papers per researcher almost doubling between 1996 and 2022 (Figure
1A). This reflects the fact that publishers’ commercial desire to publish (sell) more material
has aligned well with the competitive prestige culture in which publications help secure jobs,
grants, promotions, and awards. To the extent that this growth is driven by a pressure for
profit, rather than scholarly imperatives, it distorts the way researchers spend their time.
The publishing system depends on unpaid reviewer labour, estimated to be over 130 million
unpaid hours annually in 2020 alone (9). Researchers have complained about the demands of
peer-review for decades, but the scale of the problem is now worse, with editors reporting
widespread difficulties recruiting reviewers. The growth in publications involves not only the
authors’ time, but that of academic editors and reviewers who are dealing with so many
review demands.
Even more seriously, the imperative to produce ever more articles reshapes the nature of
scientific inquiry. Evidence across multiple fields shows that more papers result in
‘ossification’, not new ideas (10). It may seem paradoxical that more papers can slow
progress until one considers how it affects researchers’ time. While rewards remain tied to
volume, prestige, and impact of publications, researchers will be nudged away from riskier,
local, interdisciplinary, and long-term work. The result is a treadmill of constant activity with
limited progress whereas core scholarly practices – such as reading, reflecting and engaging
with others’ contributions – is de-prioritized. What looks like productivity often masks
intellectual exhaustion built on a demoralizing, narrowing scientific vision.

A table of profit margins across industries. The section of text related to this table is below:

1. The four-fold drain
1.1 Money
Currently, academic publishing is dominated by profit-oriented, multinational companies for
whom scientific knowledge is a commodity to be sold back to the academic community who
created it. The dominant four are Elsevier, Springer Nature, Wiley and Taylor & Francis,
which collectively generated over US$7.1 billion in revenue from journal publishing in 2024
alone, and over US$12 billion in profits between 2019 and 2024 (Table 1A). Their profit
margins have always been over 30% in the last five years, and for the largest publisher
(Elsevier) always over 37%.
Against many comparators, across many sectors, scientific publishing is one of the most
consistently profitable industries (Table S1). These financial arrangements make a substantial
difference to science budgets. In 2024, 46% of Elsevier revenues and 53% of Taylor &
Francis revenues were generated in North America, meaning that North American
researchers were charged over US$2.27 billion by just two for-profit publishers. The
Canadian research councils and the US National Science Foundation were allocated US$9.3
billion in that year.

The costs of inaction are plain: wasted public funds, lost researcher time, compromised
scientific integrity and eroded public trust. Today, the system rewards commercial publishers
first, and science second. Without bold action from the funders we risk continuing to pour
resources into a system that prioritizes profit over the advancement of scientific knowledge.

November 11, 2025 at 11:52 AM

Reposted by Menno Schilthuizen

Peter Siegel

@duurzamedocent.bsky.social

Nederland exporteert verboden pesticiden. Wij roepen de fractievoorzitters van alle politieke partijen op om een einde te maken aan de export van verboden pesticiden vanuit Nederland.
Teken de petitie nu.

www.pan-netherlands.org/stopgifexport/

3 Afbeeldingen in 1 van 3 mensen die pesticiden gebruiken. De foto's zijn niet in Nederland gemaakt.

November 11, 2025 at 7:18 PM

Reposted by Menno Schilthuizen

Jeroen van der Sluijs

@jeroenvandersluijs.bsky.social

Large-scale citizen science study identifies imidacloprid as primary chemical risk in UK freshwaters

imidacloprid was detected in 24% of samples. In every sample where it was present, concentrations exceeded risk thresholds for aquatic invertebrates.

www.watermagazine.co.uk/2025/11/05/l...

Large-scale citizen science study identifies imidacloprid as primary chemical risk in UK freshwaters - Water Magazine

60% of freshwater sites show elevated nutrient pollution -- comprehensive chemical analysis reveals contamination in all samples.

www.watermagazine.co.uk

November 5, 2025 at 8:28 PM

Reposted by Menno Schilthuizen

Entomological Collections Network

@entcollnet.bsky.social

📢 Ento job klaxon!

Texas A&M University are advertising not one but TWO faculty positions in #Arthropod #Systematics and #Biodiversity 🪲

Full details and to apply:
➡️ apply.interfolio.com/175600

Apply - Interfolio {{$ctrl.$state.data.pageTitle}} - Apply - Interfolio

apply.interfolio.com

November 7, 2025 at 5:13 PM

Reposted by Menno Schilthuizen

marc konijn

@marckonijn.bsky.social

De volharding waarmee de Georgiërs iedere dag weer de straat op gaan om te demonstreren voor een vrije wereld, voor democratie, is - gezien de hardheid van het regime, van de politie - bewonderenswaardig en hartverwarmend

Voer om na te denken over onze actiebereidheid en moed.

Marika Mikiashvili 🇬🇪🇺🇦🇪🇺 @marikamikiashvili.bsky.social · 7d

Day 344 of #GeorgiaProtests

The regime police didn't allow people to close the road, which people have been doing despite mass arrests, as a symbol of persistence.

I see Grandma Nino being pushed off the road. She’s 80+ and protests every day.

#TerrorinGeorgia

📷 MOSE

November 7, 2025 at 3:04 PM

Reposted by Menno Schilthuizen

Mongabay

@mongabay.com

[COMMENTARY]

The accelerating loss of nature is also a failure of information: those closest to the crises often lack the training, mentorship, or editorial support to tell their stories effectively.

Structured programs like fellowships bridge that gap argues @rhettayersbutler.bsky.social.

Investing in the next generation of environmental journalists (commentary)

The global environmental crisis is also a crisis of information. The destruction of forests, reefs, and rivers proceeds faster than our ability to explain it. Yet in many countries, the people best…

news.mongabay.com

November 7, 2025 at 11:53 AM

Menno Schilthuizen

@schilthuizen.bsky.social

'Veel mensen zullen boeren de schuld te geven dat die kosten zo hoog zijn. „Dat is natuurlijk onzin. Het komt in algemene zin door het systeem, de manier waarop we het georganiseerd hebben.”'

www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2025/...

Deloitte: schade door landbouw miljarden groter dan opbrengsten

Kosten-batenanalyse: Milieuschade door landbouw leidt tot hoge maatschappelijke kosten, laat Deloitte zien. „Deze cijfers geven wel aan dat de problematiek nijpend is.”

www.nrc.nl

November 6, 2025 at 12:12 PM

Reposted by Menno Schilthuizen

ella martin

@ellmartin.bsky.social

Part one of my common garden experiment is out today in Nature E&E!! We compare how urban and rural environments affect selection on HCN production, local adaptation, and eco-evo dynamics in white clover doi.org/10.1038/s415...

Effects of urbanization on local adaptation and eco-evolutionary feedbacks in white clover - Nature Ecology & Evolution

Evidence of adaptation to the urban environment remains limited. Using reciprocal transplants of white clover in urban and rural environments, this study shows divergent selection on an antiherbivore ...

doi.org

November 3, 2025 at 3:40 PM

Reposted by Menno Schilthuizen

BOU

@bou.org.uk

Large old trees sustain avian communities and critical plant-bird interactions in highly urbanised environments | www.sciencedirect.co... | Biological Conservation | #ornithology 🪶

November 4, 2025 at 11:30 AM

Reposted by Menno Schilthuizen

JosBolte

@josbolte.bsky.social

"Je gaat het pas zien als je het door hebt", zei Cruijff al. Na de wetenschap van gisteren dankzij @aglaia.bsky.social zie ik nu op allerlei foto's van vliegen (en muggen) de haltertjes. Hier nog een voorbeeld met oranje halters, een Hebecnema spec. @janwieringa.bsky.social #elkedageeninsect

November 4, 2025 at 8:25 AM

Menno Schilthuizen

@schilthuizen.bsky.social

Hmm, waar zou die "W." voor staan, @nrc.nl? Oh wacht, het staat gelukkig verderop.

November 3, 2025 at 8:26 PM

Reposted by Menno Schilthuizen

The Linnean Society of London

@linneansociety.bsky.social

Shell-o...is it a Linnean Lens you're looking for?

Tomorrow, Jon Ablett will share some species from our collection – from sex changing seashells, to killer cone shells. We'll hear how molluscs have been used for dyes, clothing, and even musical instruments.

Join online, 2pm, 4 Nov

Linnean Lens | Treasures of the Linnean Shells collection

A shell show-and-tell, with Jon Ablett, Senior Curator of Mollusca at the Natural History Museum, sharing the Linnean shell collection.

buff.ly

November 3, 2025 at 8:30 AM

Menno Schilthuizen

@schilthuizen.bsky.social

Highly recommended: the latest @radiolab.bsky.social episode with my fellow Camp Sandbox laureate Edie Widder on the light fantastic under the waves: oceanic #bioluminescence! (Plus a shoutout on the Sandbox docu on her work that is about to drop) @simonsfoundation.org
radiolab.org/podcast/the-...

The Glow Below

A story of light that sparkles and glows, drips and squirts. And, maybe, talks.

radiolab.org

November 2, 2025 at 1:07 PM

Reposted by Menno Schilthuizen

Michiel de Groot

@michieldegroot.bsky.social

Slow traffic this morning in Ghent 🐑

November 2, 2025 at 11:00 AM

Reposted by Menno Schilthuizen

Hubert Smeets

@hubertsmeets.bsky.social

October 31, 2025 at 7:22 AM

Reposted by Menno Schilthuizen

De Speld

@speld.nl

Uitslag verkiezingen pas duidelijk als Marco (40) zijn hand uit stembus krijgt

De uitslag van de verkiezingen is pas duidelijk wanneer de 40-jarige Marco uit Barneveld zijn hand uit de overvolle stembus krijgt.

speld.nl

October 30, 2025 at 6:07 PM

Reposted by Menno Schilthuizen

Bantshire University

@bantshireuni.bsky.social

Welcome to our Open Day 👋

Unfortunately, due to the clocks change, our ANPR cameras have fined all Open Day guests who have parked in our car parks between 8-9am. The fines cannot be cancelled, but 5% will go back into improving the student experience.

October 26, 2025 at 12:35 PM

Reposted by Menno Schilthuizen

Mike Moore

@moore-evo-eco.bsky.social

Bumping this up one last time. I'm looking to hire graduate student(s) to work on an NSF-funded project to study elevational range shifts among dragonflies here in Colorado. @cudenverclas.bsky.social 🧪🌍🐙

Applications will be considered until Nov 1. See post below for more details

October 24, 2025 at 12:24 PM

Reposted by Menno Schilthuizen

🇺🇦 paul q. brussée

@paulbrussee.bsky.social

‘... vrijwel geen serieuze onderzoeker heeft ooit beweerd dat de hele soort Culex molestus ook daadwerkelijk in de Londense metro ontstaan zou zijn.’ Menno Schilthuizen

@schilthuizen.bsky.social @nrcwetenschap.bsky.social #biologie
www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2025/...

De mythische Londense metromug ontstond in het Midden-Oosten

Biologie: In metro’s en parkeergarages van grote steden leeft een mug die al een paar duizend jaar geleden in het Midden-Oosten is geëvolueerd. Een hardnekkig misverstand was dat de mug in de Londense...

www.nrc.nl

October 24, 2025 at 4:43 AM

Menno Schilthuizen

@schilthuizen.bsky.social

In NRC schrijf ik over onderzoek dat in vee detail laat zien wat we eigenlijk al wisten: de urbane metromug begon in vroege nederzettingen in het Midden-Oosten. Wel jammer dat de auteurs een stroman nodig vonden. Want niemand dacht dat de mug écht in Londen ontstaan was.
www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2025/...