Carl Zimmer

Vinay Prasad, key Makary ally and a focus of controversy at the FDA, is leaving the agency Prasad has been involved in several controversial decisions related to rare disease treatments.

@lizzylawrence.bsky.social follows up at Stat www.statnews.com/2026/03/06/f...

Exclusive | FDA’s Controversial Vaccines Chief Will Leave the Agency Dr. Vinay Prasad will depart in April, after a year leading the division that approves vaccines and biotech drugs.

Vinay Prasad is leaving FDA (again). www.wsj.com/health/healt...

Biotech investor set to lead US National Science Foundation If confirmed by the US Senate, Jim O'Neill would be the first non-scientist or engineer to lead the agency, a big funder of US basic research.

O'Neill, an investor in anti-aging technology who worked on HHS policy, would be the first non-scientist or engineer to lead NSF. His background will be a 'major concern' to the science and technology community, former NSF director Neal Lane told me.

@maxkozlov.bsky.social and I report:

Ah, yes, the invaluable wisdom of the markets.

Gemini Said They Could Only Be Together if He Killed Himself. Soon, He Was Dead. A new lawsuit alleges Google’s chatbot sent a Florida man on missions to find an android body it could inhabit. When that failed, it set a suicide countdown clock for him.

A new lawsuit alleges Google’s chatbot sent a Florida man on missions to find an android body it could inhabit. When that failed, it set a suicide countdown clock for him. www.wsj.com/tech/ai/gemi...

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth confirmed the US military carried out a strike against an Iranian warship off the coast of Sri Lanka. Follow live updates here: reut.rs/4ramoWW

Bookcover of Air-Borne by Carl Zimmer. A rainbow cloud centered.

Excellent book on the history of the science of the air we breathe. Great examination of the causes of some of the early uncertainty of how COVID spread.

#booksky #bookreview

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

@carlzimmer.com

Delays in awards and funding calls worry NIH-funded researchers Many programs may be pushed into the next fiscal year, and some could face funding gaps

"The biomedical research community is facing the prospect of major funding disruptions again this year." www.science.org/content/arti...

A titan of vaccine development sees his field’s achievements slip away Stanley Plotkin, the 93-year-old "godfather of vaccines," is watching his field’s achievements slip away.

Stanley Plotkin had a major hand in the development of a number of vaccines in use today; he designed the rubella vaccine. He remembers the world before widespread use of vaccines & knows what's coming as vaccine policy is rewritten & vaccine confidence is eroded. www.statnews.com/2026/03/02/s...

A line graph showing NSF grant awards made through 2/27/26 for fiscal year 2026 compared with grant awards for fiscal years 2021-2025.

NSF Update (Awards through 2/27/26)

Directorates to follow

1/10

‘Unbelievably dangerous’: experts sound alarm after ChatGPT Health fails to recognise medical emergencies Study finds ChatGPT Health did not recommend a hospital visit when medically necessary in more than half of cases

Study finds ChatGPT Health did not recommend a hospital visit when medically necessary in more than half of cases. www.theguardian.com/technology/2...

White House stalls release of approved US science budgets The US Congress rejected sweeping cuts to science agencies. But the NIH, the NSF and NASA have had their spending slowed.

Congress rejected massive cuts to US science budgets for 2026, but much of the money still isn’t flowing to researchers.

The culprit? The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is quietly slow-walking the release of funds. 🧵👇

Cases of #measles have surged in 2026 with 1,270 cases reported, new detections in wastewater across states in areas without confirmed cases showing signs of spread.

Check out this week's #TrackingReport to learn more about measles and other outbreaks from this week.

mailchi.mp/messages/pan...

Progressively Widening Healthcare Costs in Long COVID Over Five Years Background Long COVID affects millions worldwide, yet the long-term trajectory of healthcare costs remains poorly characterized. Prior studies with limited follow-up have documented elevated but stabl...

"Contrary to assumptions of post-acute recovery, Long COVID is associated with progressively widening healthcare costs over five years." Preprint from Massachusetts General Hospital researchers: www.medrxiv.org/content/10.6...

Here's a nice clear explainer of the new Neanderthal study, by @carlzimmer.com, including commentary from a range of experts in population genomics & paleoanthropology. 👇

Neanderthals, modern humans, and the rules of attraction. Here's my story on a tantalizing study on mating preferences as far back as 250,000 years ago. Gift link: nyti.ms/4bcNzvy

Del Bigtree, a longtime ally of RFK Jr., says he wants not only his own children to contract measles, but others as well. www.theatlantic.com/health/2026/...

"The Cyclops," painted by Odilon Redon, 1914. Via Wikipedia

The origin of our eyes over half a billion years ago is looking more and more weird--from a cyclops to four eyes to two. Here's my story (gift link): nyti.ms/4rzisQP

Wake up and smell the roses. This tiny, mighty, microscopic captain is a distant part of our human origin story.

Hell yeah look at that little guy go

On mitochondria definitely

Scientists have seen Asgard archaea crawling for the first time. When it comes to the origin of eukaryotes, this is like seeing a feathered dinosaur in the wild. (Video courtesy of Philipp Ralder)

Thanks! Fixing now.

A pilot in a submersible vehicle collecting sediments samples in 30 meters of water looking for Asgards (microbial relatives of eukaryotes)

One of the biggest questions in biology is how complex cells evolved about 2 billion years ago. Here's my new story on how scientists are solving the mystery of eukaryotes like us. Gift link: nyti.ms/4qMbo22

One of the biggest questions in biology is how complex cells evolved about 2 billion years ago. Here's my new story on how scientists are solving the mystery of eukaryotes like us. Gift link: nyti.ms/4qMbo22

One Year of RFK Jr. Has Left Public Health Devastated Robert F. Kennedy Jr. made a lot of promises on his way to becoming health secretary. He pledged to Make America Healthy Again, of course, and to restore trust in embattled health agencies. And he sai...

For my latest for @opinion.bloomberg.com, wrote about RFK Jr.'s disastrous first year as health secretary:

National Institutes of Health faces leadership vacuum as director positions sit open More than half of the NIH's institutes and centers don’t have permanent directors, giving the Trump administration an unusual opportunity to reshape the agency. The latest departure came on Friday.

“It’s like going to battle with half your generals in place.” Of the 27 institutes and centers that make up NIH, 16 were missing permanent directors as of Friday, when staff received news of the latest departure. www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...

The EPA has considered these comments and, in this final action, is not finalizing the alternative climate science rationale and is not finalizing new findings by the Administrator with respect to global climate change concerns under CAA section 202(a)(1). The EPA does not rely on any specific critique of climate science as a necessary justification for this action. Given our conclusion that we lack legal authority to regulate in response to global climate change concerns under CAA section 202(a)(1), it would be unnecessary and inappropriate to resolve such questions in this regulatory context. The EPA includes this section to summarize major scientific themes commenters raised and to acknowledge that scientific research and debate about climate change will continue. This discussion does not endorse or reject any particular assessment, study, or comment letter in the docket with respect to assertions regarding global climate change science and has limited its responses to the bases being finalized in this final action. The EPA’s conclusion in this final action is limited to the legal determination that CAA section 202(a) does not provide the authority to regulate GHG emissions from new motor vehicles or new motor vehicle engines for the purpose of addressing global climate change concerns, irrespective of how ongoing scientific debates are ultimately resolved.

As expected, in the final rule, EPA's Endangerment Finding repeal backs down entirely from challenging the science, choosing to focus on statutory arguments regarding EPA's authority. Good work, everyone who contributed to the @andrewdessler.com review!

Breaking News: The Trump administration repealed the bedrock scientific finding that greenhouse gases threaten human life and well being, meaning that the EPA can no longer regulate them. nyti.ms/4rSszQu

Over of the book "Air-borne: The hidden history of the life we breathe" by Carl Zimmer. Book cover is blue with a multi-coloured cloud in the middle.

Just finished this fantastic book, "Air-Borne". One piece Carl Zimmer understands about science is that it is fundamentally a human endeavor. At its best, it builds on the previous works of others, in other cases the interplay of society and personalities shapes how it does or does not advance.