5 January 2026
Hello again, friends of science,
Bongu mill-ġdid, ħbieb tax-xjenza,
[Spoken on Malta, Maltese is an Arabic dialect with some vocabulary borrowed from Sicilian, Italian, and English.]
It’s a new year. Our Earth, traveling at 108,000 k/hr, completed another 360° circuit of Sol, our star, the Sun.
The Sun, traveling at 828,000 k/hr around our Galaxy’s center, completed another 0.00000156th of a degree. Since its formation, our Solar System has made almost exactly 20 circuits of the Galaxy; each circuit taking about 230 million years.
Good news: There are over 250 active lawsuits against the Trump Administration. Many of those aim to counter its assaults on climate initiatives and medical science. Examples:
- The American Association of Pediatrics is suing Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. to put an end to the Secretary’s assault on science, public health and evidence-based medicine.
- 21 States and Washington, D.C. are suing to prevent the Administration from eliminating the US Consumer Protection Bureau.
- 16 states and Washington, D.C., are suing the administration for freezing billions in federally approved EV charging grants.
- The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals blocked the Administration’s attempt to slash nearly $1 billion in mental health funding for schools.
Good news: Many advances in science are expected in 2026:
- More gene therapy cures using CRISPR
- Improvements in batteries & solar cells
- Improvements in medical diagnoses and treatments through artificial intelligence
- Improved detection of dangerous asteroids
- Improved examination of exoplanets for signs of life [Pandora satellite]
Good news: The global transition away from fossil fuel use is accelerating
- Globally, EV sales continue to rise
- The levelized cost of energy – LCOE – continues to decline for renewables
To stay on top of Bay Area science news – the good, the bad, and the baffling – subscribe to the weekly SciSchmooze. Just enter your email address at bayareascience.org/. ¿Who knows – maybe you’re climate-denying second cousin Jerry could use a subscription?
BEST SCIENCE STORIES OF 2025
Bob Siederer compiled a fantastic list last week: The Best of 2025
The column “Your Local Epidemiologist” lists 20 “wins” for public health in 2025. A few:
- Fifty measles outbreaks were contained.
- Maricopa County [Phoenix, Arizona region] cut heat-related deaths by nearly 40% in 2025 (the second year of decline on record) even as extreme heat days increased, thanks to expanded cooling centers, hydration stations, and outreach to vulnerable residents.
- Food allergies in kids dropped dramatically. This year, we got news that childhood food allergies dropped 36%, driven by a 43% drop in peanut allergy. This success traces back to the 2015 LEAP study, which showed that early introduction of potential allergens prevents allergy— changing guidelines and, now, lives.
- New Mexico guaranteed free child care for all families.
- Maryland made adult vaccines free.
HEALTH
Oops! The current flu vaccine misses a nasty variant: H3N2 subclade K. Hospital admissions are soaring; nearly doubling from week to week. The flu shot helps prevent infection and lessens symptoms from this variant – but not by much. The shot does protect against other nasty variants. Best things to do: get your flu shot, wash hands frequently, and wear an N95 mask in public.
Masks? Again?
Yes. The flu can spread by “presymptomatic transmission” simply by conversing with others a day or so before symptoms appear.
The journal, Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology, withdrew the paper published in 2000 that found the weedkiller RoundUp [glyphosphate] is not a health risk to humans. The journal cited “serious ethical concerns regarding the independence and accountability of the authors,” and not because Roundup is known as a health risk. Due to a lawsuit, the Federal Government must reëvaluate RoundUp’s safety this year.
MEDICAL RESEARCH
Our badly misguided Health & Human Services Secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., is “deeply committed to ending animal experimentation.”
“What a disaster this would be for not only infectious disease, but also neuroscience, behavior, reproductive biology, and transplant research.”
JoAnne Flynn, University of Pittsburgh microbiologist who uses nonhuman primates to study tuberculosis.
Scientific use of animals is tightly monitored under the Animal Welfare Act of 1966. In 1985, the AWA became even more stringent regarding the ethical treatment of animals involved in scientific research. The AWA covers transport, housing, treatment, feeding, pain, and more. Researchers are always looking for non-animal alternatives, but so far in this century, animal surrogates are essential.
CLIMATE
¿Want a source of up-to-date reading on climate change? Quanta Magazine just released an excellent 9-chapter primer. It even has a chapter on why Venus is a hell.
Meanwhile the Trump administration is helping coal-fed power plants remain on line by easing environmental restrictions and funding plant upgrades with hundreds of millions of dollars. Two coal plants in Indiana were scheduled to close last Wednesday until the administration ordered them to remain operating.
America appears to be trapped in a ‘large car syndrome’ that baffles Europeans. “While [pickup trucks] started as work vehicles, their size, powerful presence, and even luxurious amenities now project an image of capability, freedom, and masculinity, with marketing heavily leaning into these aspirational qualities.” [Chat GTP] I might add that driving a pickup tells people that you are sufficiently wealthy to afford large amounts of gasoline to get around – even if that may not be entirely accurate. Regardless, burning all that extra fossil fuel is harming our planet.
BIOLOGY / ETHOLOGY
To successfully transfer sperm to a female, the male octopus needs an extralong arm tipped with organs that can sense the concentration of progesterone. That long arm – the hectocotylus – is grooved for peristaltically moving a sperm packet into the female’s mantle cavity. [¿Could extraterrestrials have sex any more weird?]
Before we leave the topic, here’s a warning: getting humped by a hadrosaur could be injurious.
FUN NERDY VIDEOS
Evolution of Formula 1 Engines – Cleo Abrams – 1 min
China’s Thorium Molten Salt Reactor Success – Sabine Hossenfelder – 5 mins
Time is an Illusion – Quanta Magazine – Carlo Rovelli – 6 mins
Lorenzo’s Oil – The Right Chemistry – Joe Schwarcz – 6 mins
The Troubled Road of Germ Theory – SciShow – Savannah Geary – 7.5 mins
¿When Is It OK to Extinct an Animal? – Bizarre Beasts – Hank Green – 10 mins
“Plastic” Without Fossil Fuels – Just Have A Think – Dave Borlace – 12 mins
Deep Dive into Sea Level Rise – PBS Terra – Maiya May – 13.5 mins
Brewing Tea (in Excruciating Detail) – SciSchow – Reid Reimers – 15.5 mins
Google DeepMind Robotics Lab Tour with Hannah Fry – 17.5 mins
Quantum Mechanics: a Century in the Making – PBS SpaceTime – Matt O’Dowd – 25.5 mins
Ancient Human Species We Co-Existed With – New Scientist – Ella Al-Shamahi – 42 mins
Why Societies Fall for Bad Information – Big Think – Yuval Noah Harari – 47 mins
Nitrogen – Tales from the Periodic Table – Ron Hipschman – 50 mins
The World’s Most Complex & Important Machine – Veritaseum – Casper Mebius – 53 mins
Have a great week,
Dave Almandsmith, Bay Area Skeptics
“I believe we can aim for something a little bit better than ‘not doomed.’”
Kate Marvel, Climate Scientist
Hi Dave, I enjoyed this post. The list of informative articles at the end looks very helpful too. I want to read several. Many of my friends and I are increasingly fascinated by octopus life. Wherever do they store that handy long arm that I had never heard of? I hope you and Carmen are happy and well! Happy New Year! Barbara