Dr. Katie I.
@hellyeahcorks.bsky.social
Hydrothermal geologist/geochemist, postdoctoral researcher. Sciences hard, loves the work. Also makes costumes. Views expressed are mine.
Pinned
Dr. Katie I.
@hellyeahcorks.bsky.social
· Nov 18
I'm Katie, a #marinegeologist that uses ROVs and submersibles to study deep-sea #hydrothermal circulation. I'm a huge advocate for #scientificoceandrilling. I also sew #costumes for fun. Welcome!
Reposted by Dr. Katie I.
Rather obvious feedback is that there won't be American science in 2030 with the White House number....
NSF seeks feedback on 2026-30 strategic plan, including
"Goal 2. Advance American leadership in science and technology by empowering STEM talent."
as Congress pushes back against the White House's FY26 budget that would *slash* STEM talent support.
Respond by Jan 27:
www.nsf.gov/od/updates/n...
"Goal 2. Advance American leadership in science and technology by empowering STEM talent."
as Congress pushes back against the White House's FY26 budget that would *slash* STEM talent support.
Respond by Jan 27:
www.nsf.gov/od/updates/n...
January 13, 2026 at 7:39 PM
Rather obvious feedback is that there won't be American science in 2030 with the White House number....
Reposted by Dr. Katie I.
Do you care about the future of the US NSF and science in general? The agency is seeking feedback on the draft Strategic Plan. www.nsf.gov/od/updates/n...
NSF seeks public input on its Fiscal Year (FY) 2026–2030 NSF Strategic Plan
www.nsf.gov
January 13, 2026 at 7:38 PM
Do you care about the future of the US NSF and science in general? The agency is seeking feedback on the draft Strategic Plan. www.nsf.gov/od/updates/n...
Reposted by Dr. Katie I.
Or your entire scientific research enterprise, including the universities that support it.
If you want to put people back on the moon, don’t gut the agency in charge of getting them there. www.wired.com/story/china-...
Trump Declared a Space Race With China. The US Is Losing
If you want to put people back on the moon, don’t gut the agency in charge of getting them there.
www.wired.com
January 13, 2026 at 2:11 PM
Or your entire scientific research enterprise, including the universities that support it.
Reposted by Dr. Katie I.
living in a world where the only two jobs are “gambling” and “murder” isn’t nearly as cool as Cowboy Bebop made it out to be
January 12, 2026 at 3:47 PM
living in a world where the only two jobs are “gambling” and “murder” isn’t nearly as cool as Cowboy Bebop made it out to be
Reposted by Dr. Katie I.
Yeh why is this being reported as some kind of victory? The NSF gets a 3.4% cut here and the NIH budget is still uncertain and is tied up with HHS appropriations.
January 10, 2026 at 5:20 PM
Yeh why is this being reported as some kind of victory? The NSF gets a 3.4% cut here and the NIH budget is still uncertain and is tied up with HHS appropriations.
Reposted by Dr. Katie I.
50 fresh "How to Report ICE" zines folded and ready to deploy in Little Free Libraries around town.
Versions for multiple regions available from @meganpiont.bsky.social
drive.google.com/drive/folder...
Versions for multiple regions available from @meganpiont.bsky.social
drive.google.com/drive/folder...
January 11, 2026 at 6:53 PM
50 fresh "How to Report ICE" zines folded and ready to deploy in Little Free Libraries around town.
Versions for multiple regions available from @meganpiont.bsky.social
drive.google.com/drive/folder...
Versions for multiple regions available from @meganpiont.bsky.social
drive.google.com/drive/folder...
One of my ongoing projects is replacing my old cassettes with their CD versions (caveat, must be secondhand and under $5 each). (no judgement plz, these were all purchased or recorded from the radio between 1987 and 1998)
I've found a bunch so far, but some of these will be a PITA to track down.
I've found a bunch so far, but some of these will be a PITA to track down.
January 11, 2026 at 8:47 AM
One of my ongoing projects is replacing my old cassettes with their CD versions (caveat, must be secondhand and under $5 each). (no judgement plz, these were all purchased or recorded from the radio between 1987 and 1998)
I've found a bunch so far, but some of these will be a PITA to track down.
I've found a bunch so far, but some of these will be a PITA to track down.
Reposted by Dr. Katie I.
I went to the Kumamoto Earthquake Museum today. One of the faults that ruptured in the 2016 earthquake went through the middle of the administration building of Tokai University, and they have preserved both. Luckily, the earthquake happened in the middle of the night so no one was there.
January 11, 2026 at 6:54 AM
I went to the Kumamoto Earthquake Museum today. One of the faults that ruptured in the 2016 earthquake went through the middle of the administration building of Tokai University, and they have preserved both. Luckily, the earthquake happened in the middle of the night so no one was there.
Reposted by Dr. Katie I.
Fundamentally, just because there are minerals in the ground you don't have to mine them. Calling them resources has already moved them from a natural phenomenon to an unrealised profit
January 10, 2026 at 8:28 PM
Fundamentally, just because there are minerals in the ground you don't have to mine them. Calling them resources has already moved them from a natural phenomenon to an unrealised profit
Reposted by Dr. Katie I.
The changes happening at NSF in terms of award processes & types of projects prioritized for funding clearly show this is where we’re heading: political appointees playing key roles, people self censoring or worse to get money, whole research areas excluded from funding… corruption has many facets.
Keeping funding levels high while installing apparatchiks to steer it in political favored directions will fund at least as much corruption as it will science.
This is a HUGE win…and one that happened because we ~collectively~ said “NO!”
But AAAS coming in and saying on record to the NYT “Science is doing ok. Things are not bad at all…” is baffling.
If things are hard for you as a scientist, please share in the comments.
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/10/s...
But AAAS coming in and saying on record to the NYT “Science is doing ok. Things are not bad at all…” is baffling.
If things are hard for you as a scientist, please share in the comments.
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/10/s...
January 10, 2026 at 3:38 PM
The changes happening at NSF in terms of award processes & types of projects prioritized for funding clearly show this is where we’re heading: political appointees playing key roles, people self censoring or worse to get money, whole research areas excluded from funding… corruption has many facets.
Reposted by Dr. Katie I.
In summary:
Science is not ok because Russell Vought and Project 2025 are killing it, no matter what Congress does with the budget.
Science is not ok because Russell Vought and Project 2025 are killing it, no matter what Congress does with the budget.
January 10, 2026 at 4:26 PM
In summary:
Science is not ok because Russell Vought and Project 2025 are killing it, no matter what Congress does with the budget.
Science is not ok because Russell Vought and Project 2025 are killing it, no matter what Congress does with the budget.
Reposted by Dr. Katie I.
Further agreement on this:
We wouldn’t say foreign aid is doing ok right now, just because the budget isn’t being cut by Congress.
It’s the White House and its presidential power grab that is the problem.
We wouldn’t say foreign aid is doing ok right now, just because the budget isn’t being cut by Congress.
It’s the White House and its presidential power grab that is the problem.
This is 100% the tension in the govt right now - not just for science funding, but also foreign aid - congress is willing to continue to appropriate at normal levels, but the exec branch agencies don't want to spend it, or are spending it for cronies/political purposes only
January 10, 2026 at 3:32 PM
Further agreement on this:
We wouldn’t say foreign aid is doing ok right now, just because the budget isn’t being cut by Congress.
It’s the White House and its presidential power grab that is the problem.
We wouldn’t say foreign aid is doing ok right now, just because the budget isn’t being cut by Congress.
It’s the White House and its presidential power grab that is the problem.
Reposted by Dr. Katie I.
This is the Project 2025 plan, an outgrowth of the Fed Soc and conservative legal cartel:
Stealing Congress’ power and giving it to the President.
It’s a pro-dictator theory of government and it’s happening via the Roberts Court.
Stealing Congress’ power and giving it to the President.
It’s a pro-dictator theory of government and it’s happening via the Roberts Court.
This is 100% the tension in the govt right now - not just for science funding, but also foreign aid - congress is willing to continue to appropriate at normal levels, but the exec branch agencies don't want to spend it, or are spending it for cronies/political purposes only
January 10, 2026 at 3:23 PM
This is the Project 2025 plan, an outgrowth of the Fed Soc and conservative legal cartel:
Stealing Congress’ power and giving it to the President.
It’s a pro-dictator theory of government and it’s happening via the Roberts Court.
Stealing Congress’ power and giving it to the President.
It’s a pro-dictator theory of government and it’s happening via the Roberts Court.
FYI science is not, in fact, "OK"....the agencies are still cutting everything left and right despite the budget we're probably gonna get.
Like, most of us had our careers demolished, so....🤷♀️💀
Like, most of us had our careers demolished, so....🤷♀️💀
This is wrong: “Science is doing OK,” Ms. Zimmermann, of @aaas.org, said. “Things are not bad at all, given our expectations.”
No. I might guess that this quote was taken out of context, meant to be solely about the budgeting process. Because the agencies are still being corrupted internally.
No. I might guess that this quote was taken out of context, meant to be solely about the budgeting process. Because the agencies are still being corrupted internally.
Congress Is Reversing Trump’s Steep Budget Cuts to Science
www.nytimes.com
January 10, 2026 at 6:13 PM
FYI science is not, in fact, "OK"....the agencies are still cutting everything left and right despite the budget we're probably gonna get.
Like, most of us had our careers demolished, so....🤷♀️💀
Like, most of us had our careers demolished, so....🤷♀️💀
Reposted by Dr. Katie I.
I would submit that a big part of the problem is that the public still gets to have things like football championships, even as the academic core is being gutted. It preserves the simulacrum of a real university at precisely the wrong time.
January 10, 2026 at 3:22 PM
I would submit that a big part of the problem is that the public still gets to have things like football championships, even as the academic core is being gutted. It preserves the simulacrum of a real university at precisely the wrong time.
Reposted by Dr. Katie I.
🚨 "...a grievous setback at a moment when the impacts of climate change and environmental degradation are only accelerating and when scientific expertise and collaboration are indispensable to addressing them" 🧪⚒️
@AGU.ORG STATEMENT ON US WITHDRAWAL FROM CLIMATE AND ENVIRONMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS AND TREATIES
news.agu.org/press-releas...
news.agu.org/press-releas...
AGU statement on US withdrawal from climate and environmental organizations and treaties
The Trump Administration’s announcement that the United States will withdraw from a multitude of international organizations and treaties that support global cooperation on climate and environmental i...
news.agu.org
January 9, 2026 at 11:51 PM
🚨 "...a grievous setback at a moment when the impacts of climate change and environmental degradation are only accelerating and when scientific expertise and collaboration are indispensable to addressing them" 🧪⚒️
Reposted by Dr. Katie I.
Huh, somehow I totally missed that a new USGS director was put in place. www.usgs.gov/staff-profil...
Ned Mamula, Ph.D.
Dr. Ned Mamula is the 19th Director of the U.S. Geological Survey.
www.usgs.gov
January 9, 2026 at 11:50 PM
Huh, somehow I totally missed that a new USGS director was put in place. www.usgs.gov/staff-profil...
Reposted by Dr. Katie I.
Craigslist is what the Internet used to be and (aesthetics aside) is what it still should be.
arstechnica.com/culture/2026...
arstechnica.com/culture/2026...
“Ungentrified” Craigslist may be the last real place on the Internet
People still use Craigslist to find jobs, love, and even to cast creative projects.
arstechnica.com
January 9, 2026 at 6:10 PM
Craigslist is what the Internet used to be and (aesthetics aside) is what it still should be.
arstechnica.com/culture/2026...
arstechnica.com/culture/2026...
Reposted by Dr. Katie I.
Breaking: Trump's pick to lead the BLM is a walking conflict of interest and an anti-environment extremist who's encouraged vigilantes to seize control of federal public lands. We’re sounding the alarm to Senate leaders.
Read the letter, signed by 81 orgs:
biologicaldiversity.org/w/news/press...
Read the letter, signed by 81 orgs:
biologicaldiversity.org/w/news/press...
January 8, 2026 at 6:35 PM
Breaking: Trump's pick to lead the BLM is a walking conflict of interest and an anti-environment extremist who's encouraged vigilantes to seize control of federal public lands. We’re sounding the alarm to Senate leaders.
Read the letter, signed by 81 orgs:
biologicaldiversity.org/w/news/press...
Read the letter, signed by 81 orgs:
biologicaldiversity.org/w/news/press...
Reposted by Dr. Katie I.
I’d like to cancel my 7day trial version of 2026 please
January 8, 2026 at 4:33 PM
I’d like to cancel my 7day trial version of 2026 please
Let's have a little HR Team Canada jacket thread because everything is awful.
We know for sure that this jacket was made specifically for the show, thanks to an IG post from the costume designer. www.instagram.com/p/DS5-4aFkfXu/
We know for sure that this jacket was made specifically for the show, thanks to an IG post from the costume designer. www.instagram.com/p/DS5-4aFkfXu/
January 8, 2026 at 2:00 AM
Let's have a little HR Team Canada jacket thread because everything is awful.
We know for sure that this jacket was made specifically for the show, thanks to an IG post from the costume designer. www.instagram.com/p/DS5-4aFkfXu/
We know for sure that this jacket was made specifically for the show, thanks to an IG post from the costume designer. www.instagram.com/p/DS5-4aFkfXu/
Reposted by Dr. Katie I.
I wish negative major historical inflection points would stop occurring on a daily basis.
January 7, 2026 at 9:06 PM
I wish negative major historical inflection points would stop occurring on a daily basis.
Reposted by Dr. Katie I.
The institutional memory of NOAA has suffered: “All these leaders of things who’ve been around for a long time and know how it operates, we’re kind of moving on.” NOAA lost 2,000 of its 11,800 employees through layoffs and retirements since Trump took office”. Now at its lowest staffing level ever.
A look at one scientist’s journey provides a window into the Trump administration’s hollowing out of NOAA, an agency that has long been a world leader in ocean science and protection.
How Trump Derailed a NOAA Pioneer’s Move From Climate Impacts to Solutions - Inside Climate News
Libby Jewett founded the U.S. ocean acidification program and had begun work on offshore wind energy. But she joined the past year’s historic exodus from the agency, the impacts of which are still not...
insideclimatenews.org
January 7, 2026 at 3:23 PM
The institutional memory of NOAA has suffered: “All these leaders of things who’ve been around for a long time and know how it operates, we’re kind of moving on.” NOAA lost 2,000 of its 11,800 employees through layoffs and retirements since Trump took office”. Now at its lowest staffing level ever.
Among others:
- college baseball games
- warm summer CA days on the porch with a cold beverage
- petting cats
- the open sea with no land in sight
- seeing the Milky Way in dark places
- selecting fabric for a project
- a bountiful garden
- college baseball games
- warm summer CA days on the porch with a cold beverage
- petting cats
- the open sea with no land in sight
- seeing the Milky Way in dark places
- selecting fabric for a project
- a bountiful garden
I got one question….. what do Yall actually enjoy in life? Seems like folks don’t enjoy anything anymore (if you don’t have anything good just keep it moving)
January 7, 2026 at 3:59 AM
Among others:
- college baseball games
- warm summer CA days on the porch with a cold beverage
- petting cats
- the open sea with no land in sight
- seeing the Milky Way in dark places
- selecting fabric for a project
- a bountiful garden
- college baseball games
- warm summer CA days on the porch with a cold beverage
- petting cats
- the open sea with no land in sight
- seeing the Milky Way in dark places
- selecting fabric for a project
- a bountiful garden
I did theatre. I still use the mic.
Always use the mic at a conference even if you’re loud. People who can’t hear you *can’t hear you * when you ask if you can hear them in the back. Some of us went to one too many hardcore shows in our youth without ear plugs and our hearing ain’t what it used to be 🥺
#SICB2026
#SICB2026
January 7, 2026 at 2:40 AM
I did theatre. I still use the mic.