Meike van der Heijden
@meikeesther.bsky.social
Thinking about work, life, and balance. Looking for answers in the cerebellum.
Assistant Professor @ Virginia Tech
www.vanderheijdenlab.com
Assistant Professor @ Virginia Tech
www.vanderheijdenlab.com
Pinned
'Big Science, Small Pod' podcast: How does a brain even happen?
Neuroscientist Meike van der Heijden of the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC explains how understanding childhood brain development could guide treatments for movement disorders.
news.vt.edu
A podcast about my work, my life, and balance… the things I think about a lot:
@fralinbiomed.bsky.social
news.vt.edu/articles/202...
@fralinbiomed.bsky.social
news.vt.edu/articles/202...
Not a Spotify listener myself, but every year I’m baffled by the year wrapped summaries a full month before the year is over.
Does music not count in December?
Does music not count in December?
December 4, 2025 at 1:44 AM
Not a Spotify listener myself, but every year I’m baffled by the year wrapped summaries a full month before the year is over.
Does music not count in December?
Does music not count in December?
Reposted by Meike van der Heijden
An important write up from the NYT on the funding changes at the NIH.
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
The U.S. Is Funding Fewer Grants in Every Area of Science and Medicine (Gift Article)
A quiet policy change means the government is making fewer bets on long-term science.
www.nytimes.com
December 2, 2025 at 11:51 AM
An important write up from the NYT on the funding changes at the NIH.
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
Neuroscientist and “do you know this podcast by Andrew Huberman?”
As a cancer scientist, it’s definitely, “are they really hiding the cure for cancer?”
What’s the worst question someone can ask after you tell them your profession? For linguists, it’s definitely “how many languages do you speak?”, but I’m curious what else is happening to the rest of y’all out there?!
December 1, 2025 at 2:24 PM
Neuroscientist and “do you know this podcast by Andrew Huberman?”
Reposted by Meike van der Heijden
Asking informally: does anyone know someone who might be interested in a postdoc focused on understanding changes in memory representations driven by attention using EEG? ⚡️Thanks!
December 1, 2025 at 5:03 AM
Asking informally: does anyone know someone who might be interested in a postdoc focused on understanding changes in memory representations driven by attention using EEG? ⚡️Thanks!
A 9 am proposal deadline on the Monday after Thanksgiving for a FOA announced only three weeks ago. Is this peak academic evil?
November 29, 2025 at 7:11 PM
A 9 am proposal deadline on the Monday after Thanksgiving for a FOA announced only three weeks ago. Is this peak academic evil?
Same same but different
A mole, a cat, a dog, a turkey, a swallow, a sparrow, a barn owl, a very large duck, and a dormouse.
--
This isn't a children's book but a short essay I wrote about my view on the cerebellum.
vanderheijdenlab.com/resources/
A mole, a cat, a dog, a turkey, a swallow, a sparrow, a barn owl, a very large duck, and a dormouse.
--
This isn't a children's book but a short essay I wrote about my view on the cerebellum.
vanderheijdenlab.com/resources/
November 28, 2025 at 2:50 PM
Same same but different
A mole, a cat, a dog, a turkey, a swallow, a sparrow, a barn owl, a very large duck, and a dormouse.
--
This isn't a children's book but a short essay I wrote about my view on the cerebellum.
vanderheijdenlab.com/resources/
A mole, a cat, a dog, a turkey, a swallow, a sparrow, a barn owl, a very large duck, and a dormouse.
--
This isn't a children's book but a short essay I wrote about my view on the cerebellum.
vanderheijdenlab.com/resources/
Happy 1 year anniversary to this viewpoint and receiving weekly emails addressed to Dr. Dooley asking for a contribution to Journals of Surgery, Transportation, and Integrative Neuroscience (among others).
There is no other publication I can link as directly to the amount of spam email. Worth it?
There is no other publication I can link as directly to the amount of spam email. Worth it?
Looking for an escape over the holiday?
@meikeesther.bsky.social and I published a ViewPoint looking at the intersection of Developmental and Systems Neuroscience titled “More Than a Small Brain: The Importance of Studying Neural Function during Development”
www.jneurosci.org/content/44/4...
@meikeesther.bsky.social and I published a ViewPoint looking at the intersection of Developmental and Systems Neuroscience titled “More Than a Small Brain: The Importance of Studying Neural Function during Development”
www.jneurosci.org/content/44/4...
More Than a Small Brain: The Importance of Studying Neural Function during Development
The nervous system contains complex circuits comprising thousands of cell types and trillions of connections. Here, we discuss how the field of “developmental systems neuroscience” combines the molecu...
www.jneurosci.org
November 27, 2025 at 4:16 PM
Happy 1 year anniversary to this viewpoint and receiving weekly emails addressed to Dr. Dooley asking for a contribution to Journals of Surgery, Transportation, and Integrative Neuroscience (among others).
There is no other publication I can link as directly to the amount of spam email. Worth it?
There is no other publication I can link as directly to the amount of spam email. Worth it?
Reposted by Meike van der Heijden
Nature Sci Rep publishes incoherent AI slop. eLife publishes a paper which the reviewers didn't agree with, making all the comments and responses public with thoughtful commentary. One of these journals got delisted by Web of Science for quality concerns from not doing peer review. Guess which one?
November 27, 2025 at 1:35 PM
Nature Sci Rep publishes incoherent AI slop. eLife publishes a paper which the reviewers didn't agree with, making all the comments and responses public with thoughtful commentary. One of these journals got delisted by Web of Science for quality concerns from not doing peer review. Guess which one?
Reposted by Meike van der Heijden
And here is the story after peer review. This work highlights our current approach, which is to use Piezo channels to uncover new areas of biology that are shaped by mechanical forces: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
November 13, 2025 at 10:05 PM
And here is the story after peer review. This work highlights our current approach, which is to use Piezo channels to uncover new areas of biology that are shaped by mechanical forces: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Our 18 mo daughter pointed out this morning that I have many pairs of shoes. All I have to say is… rude.
November 26, 2025 at 12:28 AM
Our 18 mo daughter pointed out this morning that I have many pairs of shoes. All I have to say is… rude.
Reposted by Meike van der Heijden
Our new paper is out in Nature Communications! nature.com/articles/s41...
We combined psychophysics, 7T fMRI, and computational modeling of vision with placebo, 5mg, and 10mg psilocybin, in the same group of participants, to clarify the computational mechanisms of psychedelics. 🧵
We combined psychophysics, 7T fMRI, and computational modeling of vision with placebo, 5mg, and 10mg psilocybin, in the same group of participants, to clarify the computational mechanisms of psychedelics. 🧵
November 23, 2025 at 10:26 PM
Our new paper is out in Nature Communications! nature.com/articles/s41...
We combined psychophysics, 7T fMRI, and computational modeling of vision with placebo, 5mg, and 10mg psilocybin, in the same group of participants, to clarify the computational mechanisms of psychedelics. 🧵
We combined psychophysics, 7T fMRI, and computational modeling of vision with placebo, 5mg, and 10mg psilocybin, in the same group of participants, to clarify the computational mechanisms of psychedelics. 🧵
Exciting to see this work published.
Katie Hsiao and her team found cerebellar circuit deficits in a mouse model for Down syndrome, likely contributing to motor incoordination in the mice and individuals with Down syndrome.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Katie Hsiao and her team found cerebellar circuit deficits in a mouse model for Down syndrome, likely contributing to motor incoordination in the mice and individuals with Down syndrome.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Altered motor coordination, vocal communication, and cerebellar circuit connectivity in mice carrying a near-complete human chromosome 21 - Translational Psychiatry
Translational Psychiatry - Altered motor coordination, vocal communication, and cerebellar circuit connectivity in mice carrying a near-complete human chromosome 21
www.nature.com
November 22, 2025 at 2:39 PM
Exciting to see this work published.
Katie Hsiao and her team found cerebellar circuit deficits in a mouse model for Down syndrome, likely contributing to motor incoordination in the mice and individuals with Down syndrome.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Katie Hsiao and her team found cerebellar circuit deficits in a mouse model for Down syndrome, likely contributing to motor incoordination in the mice and individuals with Down syndrome.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Great meeting. Honored to be part of it and represent team preclinical models.
Learned a lot from my clinical colleagues and got many good ideas on where to steer the lab’s projects in the near future.
Learned a lot from my clinical colleagues and got many good ideas on where to steer the lab’s projects in the near future.
The DMRF hosted a meeting on “Neuromodulation in Dystonia,” chaired by Noreen Bukhari-Parlakturk, MD, PhD, Asst. Prof of Neurology, Duke University and Michael D. Fox, MD, PhD, Dir, Center for Brain Circuit Therapeutics, Brigham & Women's Hospital in Boston, MA.
#dystonia #dmrf #dystoniafoundation
#dystonia #dmrf #dystoniafoundation
November 22, 2025 at 12:39 AM
Great meeting. Honored to be part of it and represent team preclinical models.
Learned a lot from my clinical colleagues and got many good ideas on where to steer the lab’s projects in the near future.
Learned a lot from my clinical colleagues and got many good ideas on where to steer the lab’s projects in the near future.
This is just a tired academic once again pleading with the scientific community to use only sans-serif fonts in their papers, grants, and seminars.
This is how Times New Roman looks to me; on screens, the words actually dance.
This is how Times New Roman looks to me; on screens, the words actually dance.
November 20, 2025 at 7:25 PM
This is just a tired academic once again pleading with the scientific community to use only sans-serif fonts in their papers, grants, and seminars.
This is how Times New Roman looks to me; on screens, the words actually dance.
This is how Times New Roman looks to me; on screens, the words actually dance.
Reposted by Meike van der Heijden
I am increasingly of the opinion that people who change menus and look and feel of computer software just so that you know it's a new version should be personally forced to play tech support to my mother for five months.
November 19, 2025 at 4:10 AM
I am increasingly of the opinion that people who change menus and look and feel of computer software just so that you know it's a new version should be personally forced to play tech support to my mother for five months.
Reposted by Meike van der Heijden
Link to study:
Clinical Trials Affected by Research Grant Terminations at the National Institutes of Health
This cross-sectional study summarizes the number of trials with terminated grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and calculates the proportion of affected trials among those with previou...
jamanetwork.com
November 17, 2025 at 7:57 PM
Link to study:
Reposted by Meike van der Heijden
The link between the gut #microbiome and autism is not backed by science, researchers say.
Read the full opinion piece in @cp-neuron.bsky.social: spkl.io/63322AbxpA
@wiringthebrain.bsky.social, @statsepi.bsky.social, & @deevybee.bsky.social
Read the full opinion piece in @cp-neuron.bsky.social: spkl.io/63322AbxpA
@wiringthebrain.bsky.social, @statsepi.bsky.social, & @deevybee.bsky.social
November 13, 2025 at 4:00 PM
The link between the gut #microbiome and autism is not backed by science, researchers say.
Read the full opinion piece in @cp-neuron.bsky.social: spkl.io/63322AbxpA
@wiringthebrain.bsky.social, @statsepi.bsky.social, & @deevybee.bsky.social
Read the full opinion piece in @cp-neuron.bsky.social: spkl.io/63322AbxpA
@wiringthebrain.bsky.social, @statsepi.bsky.social, & @deevybee.bsky.social
Reposted by Meike van der Heijden
The room is
almost all
elephant.
Almost none
of it isn’t.
Pretty much
solid elephant.
So there’s no
room to talk
about it.
-Kay Ryan, “The Elephant in the Room”
#everynightapoem
almost all
elephant.
Almost none
of it isn’t.
Pretty much
solid elephant.
So there’s no
room to talk
about it.
-Kay Ryan, “The Elephant in the Room”
#everynightapoem
November 13, 2025 at 12:13 AM
The room is
almost all
elephant.
Almost none
of it isn’t.
Pretty much
solid elephant.
So there’s no
room to talk
about it.
-Kay Ryan, “The Elephant in the Room”
#everynightapoem
almost all
elephant.
Almost none
of it isn’t.
Pretty much
solid elephant.
So there’s no
room to talk
about it.
-Kay Ryan, “The Elephant in the Room”
#everynightapoem
Someone booked me a 6 am outbound flight tomorrow only to fly back the next day at 11 pm. I seriously question this someone’s sanity.
This someone, of course, was me.
This someone, of course, was me.
November 12, 2025 at 11:39 PM
Someone booked me a 6 am outbound flight tomorrow only to fly back the next day at 11 pm. I seriously question this someone’s sanity.
This someone, of course, was me.
This someone, of course, was me.
Being a leading edge fellow has been the single best thing for my scientific career.
Zara’s voice and vision was no small part in that.
Apply. Apply. Apply.
Zara’s voice and vision was no small part in that.
Apply. Apply. Apply.
The Leading Edge Fellows gathered this week to celebrate Zara Weinberg, a beloved member of our community. Our 7th cohort of Leading Edge Fellows (2026) will be named in her honor.
The Zara Weinberg Leading Edge Cohort application is now open! Due Feb 2.
www.leadingedgesymposium.org/apply/
The Zara Weinberg Leading Edge Cohort application is now open! Due Feb 2.
www.leadingedgesymposium.org/apply/
November 5, 2025 at 5:55 PM
Being a leading edge fellow has been the single best thing for my scientific career.
Zara’s voice and vision was no small part in that.
Apply. Apply. Apply.
Zara’s voice and vision was no small part in that.
Apply. Apply. Apply.
Reposted by Meike van der Heijden
MindCORE Summer Fellowship Program
May 31-Aug 7, 2026
This is a paid 10-wk research experience for undergrad students matched with select Penn faculty in mind sciences.
Open to both Penn students & non-Penn US students through our REU.
Apply by Jan 11: mindcore.sas.upenn.edu/research/sum...
May 31-Aug 7, 2026
This is a paid 10-wk research experience for undergrad students matched with select Penn faculty in mind sciences.
Open to both Penn students & non-Penn US students through our REU.
Apply by Jan 11: mindcore.sas.upenn.edu/research/sum...
October 30, 2025 at 7:36 PM
MindCORE Summer Fellowship Program
May 31-Aug 7, 2026
This is a paid 10-wk research experience for undergrad students matched with select Penn faculty in mind sciences.
Open to both Penn students & non-Penn US students through our REU.
Apply by Jan 11: mindcore.sas.upenn.edu/research/sum...
May 31-Aug 7, 2026
This is a paid 10-wk research experience for undergrad students matched with select Penn faculty in mind sciences.
Open to both Penn students & non-Penn US students through our REU.
Apply by Jan 11: mindcore.sas.upenn.edu/research/sum...
Reposted by Meike van der Heijden
Zara Weinberg was a brilliant, loving, and beautiful woman. She inspired everyone who she interacted with, and always strived to make the world a better place for everyone. Tho the world is a little less bright today without her, her memory will always be a blessing.
She was truly one of the best.
She was truly one of the best.
October 30, 2025 at 8:55 PM
Zara Weinberg was a brilliant, loving, and beautiful woman. She inspired everyone who she interacted with, and always strived to make the world a better place for everyone. Tho the world is a little less bright today without her, her memory will always be a blessing.
She was truly one of the best.
She was truly one of the best.
Reposted by Meike van der Heijden
Excited to share the final version of our paper, where we invented a robotic device (ARM) for pain and somatosensory testing in rodents. We are excited to see many groups already getting this device in their labs through our startup company Tactorum Inc.
elifesciences.org/articles/996...
elifesciences.org/articles/996...
October 20, 2025 at 11:23 AM
Excited to share the final version of our paper, where we invented a robotic device (ARM) for pain and somatosensory testing in rodents. We are excited to see many groups already getting this device in their labs through our startup company Tactorum Inc.
elifesciences.org/articles/996...
elifesciences.org/articles/996...
Reposted by Meike van der Heijden
Absolutely. If a pregnant person or a mom with a child on the back can’t ride safely on the “bike lane” then it’s trash
October 19, 2025 at 1:59 PM
Absolutely. If a pregnant person or a mom with a child on the back can’t ride safely on the “bike lane” then it’s trash