Nick Fisher
@nef.bsky.social
Biochemist (respiratory & photosynthetic bioenergetics). Ph.D., Visiting Fellow, bibliophile, Mahlerian, feral cat dad. Also other things. Google Scholar: http://bit.ly/2vpjBP1
Pinned
Nick Fisher
@nef.bsky.social
· Nov 6
Hello new folks! Thanks for stopping by. Sometimes I post about biochemistry, but it’s mostly cats/classical music/books/things in my garden here. Live from Cornwall. Beardy, generally worn down by academia.
A cowpea study (genetic mapping of photosynthetic responses associated with cold stress) I was involved with a while ago. Good to see it in print!
☀️🧬 RESEARCH 🧬☀️
This work introduces Linkage Integration Hypothesis Testing (LIgHT) for mechanistic studies of natural variations, exemplified by photosynthetic regulatory mechanisms that underlie natural variations to abiotic stress - Hoh et al.
🔗 doi.org/10.1093/jxb/...
#PlantScience 🧪
This work introduces Linkage Integration Hypothesis Testing (LIgHT) for mechanistic studies of natural variations, exemplified by photosynthetic regulatory mechanisms that underlie natural variations to abiotic stress - Hoh et al.
🔗 doi.org/10.1093/jxb/...
#PlantScience 🧪
November 26, 2025 at 5:20 PM
A cowpea study (genetic mapping of photosynthetic responses associated with cold stress) I was involved with a while ago. Good to see it in print!
Still a few scruffy apples around - Pitmaston Pineapple I think? - which at this time of year, and after a couple of hard frosts, taste more of pear than anything else.
November 24, 2025 at 3:19 PM
Still a few scruffy apples around - Pitmaston Pineapple I think? - which at this time of year, and after a couple of hard frosts, taste more of pear than anything else.
Memories of an antimalarial conference years ago when one decorated researcher accused another of being a 'mouse doctor'.
My favorite from an @hhmi.org scientist: “the great thing about optogenetics is it keeps the riff raff out of the field.”
Heard an established successful neuroscientist dismissing junior scientists as "people at the bottom" 🤦♀️
You folks with lots of research funds & power: young scientists more than ever need our respect and support even if you don't agree with their ideas and approaches
#sfn2025
You folks with lots of research funds & power: young scientists more than ever need our respect and support even if you don't agree with their ideas and approaches
#sfn2025
November 23, 2025 at 8:04 PM
Memories of an antimalarial conference years ago when one decorated researcher accused another of being a 'mouse doctor'.
There's a Nick Drake tribute concert from 2010 on BBC4 at 2215 tonight, which might be your cup of tea.
November 21, 2025 at 5:23 PM
There's a Nick Drake tribute concert from 2010 on BBC4 at 2215 tonight, which might be your cup of tea.
He’s decided that the best way to negotiate the staircase is by sliding down on his head, and I say don’t knock it until you’ve tried it.
November 19, 2025 at 5:22 PM
He’s decided that the best way to negotiate the staircase is by sliding down on his head, and I say don’t knock it until you’ve tried it.
Welcoming in the cold snap with a spritz aperitivo, because why not, damn your eyes.
November 17, 2025 at 6:56 PM
Welcoming in the cold snap with a spritz aperitivo, because why not, damn your eyes.
Always good to read about a live beaked whale sighting (especially this one).
These rare whales had never been seen alive. Then a team in Mexico sighted two
These rare whales had never been seen alive. Then a team in Mexico sighted two
The search for a gingko-toothed beaked whale had taken five years, when a thieving albatross nearly ruined it all
www.theguardian.com
November 17, 2025 at 11:09 AM
Always good to read about a live beaked whale sighting (especially this one).
A rare appearance of Mozart in Wadebridge (Cornwall) this weekend. I'll be there, but not singing, THANK HEAVENS.
November 12, 2025 at 12:11 PM
A rare appearance of Mozart in Wadebridge (Cornwall) this weekend. I'll be there, but not singing, THANK HEAVENS.
Reposted by Nick Fisher
Two men sunbathing, August bank holiday, Blackpool, 1971, by Don McPhee.
November 5, 2025 at 9:08 AM
Two men sunbathing, August bank holiday, Blackpool, 1971, by Don McPhee.
Do we need to rethink the QA quenching model of chlorophyll fluorescence? Probably not, but here's a provocative chin stroker from Győző Garab.
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
Revisiting the QA model of chlorophyll-a fluorescence induction: new perspectives to monitor the photochemical activity and structural dynamics of photosystem II - Photosynthesis Research
The technique of chlorophyll-a fluorescence induction (ChlF) is widely used in plant biology. The ‘mainstream’, so-called QA model of ChlF, posits that the reaction centers (RCs) of Photosystem-II (PS...
link.springer.com
November 6, 2025 at 10:56 AM
Do we need to rethink the QA quenching model of chlorophyll fluorescence? Probably not, but here's a provocative chin stroker from Győző Garab.
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
No fireworks here for miles around, (it frightens the livestock), so here’s some bonus Grandpa Ginger content for you.
November 5, 2025 at 8:43 PM
No fireworks here for miles around, (it frightens the livestock), so here’s some bonus Grandpa Ginger content for you.
So one of us (not me) got wrongly imprisoned in a shed for four days. He said he used his time incarcerated to reflect on becoming a better person.
November 2, 2025 at 3:22 PM
So one of us (not me) got wrongly imprisoned in a shed for four days. He said he used his time incarcerated to reflect on becoming a better person.
Reposted by Nick Fisher
The first (1955) Danish edition of Ray Bradbury’s FAHRENHEIT 451. Later editions did not convert the title, so this is the only SI-compatible edition! 🎢
November 1, 2025 at 7:55 PM
The first (1955) Danish edition of Ray Bradbury’s FAHRENHEIT 451. Later editions did not convert the title, so this is the only SI-compatible edition! 🎢
So does anyone else eat their avocados with salt and vinegar? (As a treat mind you, I’m not made of money).
October 29, 2025 at 9:04 PM
So does anyone else eat their avocados with salt and vinegar? (As a treat mind you, I’m not made of money).
The academic experience.
October 26, 2025 at 9:33 AM
The academic experience.
Looking forward to putting all the cats back an hour tonight.
October 25, 2025 at 9:58 AM
Looking forward to putting all the cats back an hour tonight.
Reposted by Nick Fisher
Once again, EVERY R1 research university depends on federal funding for ~15-25% of its budget. You simply can't unplug the largest or 2nd-largest source of $$ of every R1 university & expect it not to have devastating consequences for graduate education, which will spill over to undergrad education.
Wow. Harvard nuking its PhD programs
- Science PhD admissions reduced by more than 75%
- Arts & Humanities reduced by about 60%
- Social Sciences by 50–70%
- History by 60%
- Biology by 75%
- The German department will lose all PhD seats
- Sociology from six PhD students to zero
- Science PhD admissions reduced by more than 75%
- Arts & Humanities reduced by about 60%
- Social Sciences by 50–70%
- History by 60%
- Biology by 75%
- The German department will lose all PhD seats
- Sociology from six PhD students to zero
Harvard FAS Cuts Ph.D. Seats By More Than Half Across Next Two Admissions Cycles | News | The Harvard Crimson
The Faculty of Arts and Sciences slashed the number of Ph.D. student admissions slots for the Science division by more than 75 percent and for the Arts & Humanities division by about 60 percent for th...
www.thecrimson.com
October 21, 2025 at 6:01 PM
Once again, EVERY R1 research university depends on federal funding for ~15-25% of its budget. You simply can't unplug the largest or 2nd-largest source of $$ of every R1 university & expect it not to have devastating consequences for graduate education, which will spill over to undergrad education.
A gentle introduction to dealing with Maxwell's demon in cellular biochemistry (writes someone in need of an exorcist this afternoon).
Omnipresent Maxwell's demons orchestrate information management in living cells
Synthetic biology calls for accurate understanding of the critical functions that operate living cells. Many, including transporters and the ribosome construction machinery, behave as a material impl...
enviromicro-journals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
October 15, 2025 at 3:01 PM
A gentle introduction to dealing with Maxwell's demon in cellular biochemistry (writes someone in need of an exorcist this afternoon).
Broke the quartz cuvette.
In honor of spooky month, share a 4 word horror story that only someone in your profession would understand
I'll go first: Six page commercial lease.
I'll go first: Six page commercial lease.
October 12, 2025 at 8:07 PM
Broke the quartz cuvette.
Not the smartest of cats.
October 10, 2025 at 4:34 PM
Not the smartest of cats.
An unfortunate incident for a friend on vacation provides AMPLE OPPORTUNITY for a gag about photosynthetic control. Honestly, you can’t buy humour like this.
September 28, 2025 at 1:25 PM
An unfortunate incident for a friend on vacation provides AMPLE OPPORTUNITY for a gag about photosynthetic control. Honestly, you can’t buy humour like this.
SimpleFold, a lightweight protein folding modeller from Apple (- I didn't see that coming). arxiv.org/abs/2509.184...
SimpleFold: Folding Proteins is Simpler than You Think
Protein folding models have achieved groundbreaking results typically via a combination of integrating domain knowledge into the architectural blocks and training pipelines. Nonetheless, given the suc...
arxiv.org
September 24, 2025 at 9:47 PM
SimpleFold, a lightweight protein folding modeller from Apple (- I didn't see that coming). arxiv.org/abs/2509.184...
A somewhat tatty old fox has moved into his greenhouse, which he’s not pleased about. Still, nice enough evening.
September 21, 2025 at 6:15 PM
A somewhat tatty old fox has moved into his greenhouse, which he’s not pleased about. Still, nice enough evening.
Four months on from his accident, and he’s as good as new, almost. He’s staying inside for a while yet, though.
September 20, 2025 at 4:34 PM
Four months on from his accident, and he’s as good as new, almost. He’s staying inside for a while yet, though.
Most foreign postdocs working in the US have J1 status, but not all (I was H-1B). H-1B visas in academia are treated differently to those in business, so it's unclear to me if this proposed $100k fee applies (but it will be the absolute death of the program for academics if so).
Trump administration to add $100,000 fee for H-1B visas
The Trump administration is targeting a visa widely used by tech companies and other employers to hire foreign workers.
www.cbsnews.com
September 20, 2025 at 1:54 AM
Most foreign postdocs working in the US have J1 status, but not all (I was H-1B). H-1B visas in academia are treated differently to those in business, so it's unclear to me if this proposed $100k fee applies (but it will be the absolute death of the program for academics if so).