Tim Stearns
@StearnsLab
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Professor and Dean at The Rockefeller University. Cell biologist. Believer in the power of science education.
New York, NY
Joined November 2010
@HHMINEWS Summer Undergraduate Research Experience - #CechFellows named in honor of Prof Tom Cech Deadline to apply: 12/22/2025 Spend 9 weeks in a paid, mentored biomedical research experience in an HHMI lab. See you next summer!!! https://t.co/FglNF1FdiF
hhmi.org
The Cech Fellows Program is a paid, nine-week summer research experience empowering the next generation of scientific leaders.
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NYC Postdocs: Join us for our next Postdoc Night Science NYC session, when we will practice how to get new ideas using "puzzle-switching"! This time we're in Columbia (Morningside Campus) on Dec 3rd at 5PM. Free registration: https://t.co/zjYM6IsJ4i
@StearnsLab @KelseyRMonson
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Hot off the press! Our latest paper led by @fernpizza , understanding how plasmids evolve inside individual cells. These small pieces of self-replicating DNA live inside bacteria and can transfer antibiotic resistance genes, but they also compete with one another to replicate. 1/
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A reminder for the “next Bell Labs” folks
Highly recommend “The Idea Factory” by Jon Gertner for anyone interested in how Bell Labs really worked, and why its success has been so hard to replicate.
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Thread: a letter from Francis Crick to Jim Watson about a draft of Watson’s book.
profiles.nlm.nih.gov
In the interest of promoting an understanding of the history, this scathing letter from Crick to Watson in 1967 is a remarkable document. Crick lays out a detailed criticism of the draft of Watson's "Double Helix" (provisionally titled "Honest Jim" here). https://t.co/yz1zGwufKL
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Great thread on a new preprint about controlling gene expression in differentiating cells.
biorxiv.org
The ability to control transgene expression both temporally and quantitatively in human-relevant cells and tissues is a cornerstone of biomedical research. Additionally, precise transgene control is...
1/ Happy to share important work done with my co-author Andrew Khalil in the labs of Rudolf Jaenisch @WhiteheadInst @MITBiology @MIT and Dave Mooney @Harvard @wyssinstitute trying to assess and fix the major problem of transgene silencing in human ESC/iPSC based work
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The first detailed look at how mosquitoes mate from @leslievosshall's lab reverses the assumption that male mosquitoes control the process, finding that a subtle female behavior dictates whether mating will take place or not. @CurrentBiology More here: https://t.co/Z8Sl0zysAS
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Imagine if everything in life was as good as gold. It’s easy to invest in, could help grow your wealth, and protect it too. A timeless asset that stands strong when others may not.
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Interested in learning how to be a good speaker and give effective talks? Season 2 of the NYC Postdoc Night Science Club begins October 15th. Join us NYC Postdocs for a 2hr workshop and maybe also a drink at a bar! Free registration (usually ~100 come): https://t.co/8dNh2KGXl2
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🧵1/14 Preprint thread! Can we predict a cell’s fate based on its dynamics? 🔮 Our new study unveils a framework for watching development unfold in real-time, revealing how a cell's shape and movement encode info about its future fate. 🔬📄 Preprint: https://t.co/84lDgRTJgc
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Earlier this year, I learned I have a pathogenic variant in BRCA2, which gives me a very high lifetime risk of breast cancer (55-69%), as well as an increased risk of ovarian cancer (12-29%) and pancreatic cancer (5-10%). 🧵1/ …
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🚨UNEEKOR BLACK FRIDAY SALE - Up to 30% OFF best-selling golf simulators!
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In 1965, Margaret Dayhoff published the Atlas of Protein Sequence and Structure, which collated the 65 proteins whose amino acid sequences were then known. Inspired by that Atlas, today we are releasing the Dayhoff Atlas of protein sequence data and protein language models.
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1/ Better late than never, here’s a long thread of threads summarizing our MOSAIC preprint. If you’re curious about the process by which a new microscope is conceived and brought into the world, this is the thread for you. If you’ve come for eye candy, there’s plenty of that too
biorxiv.org
Understanding biological systems requires observing features and processes across vast spatial and temporal scales, spanning nanometers to centimeters and milliseconds to days, often using multiple...
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In the July issue of #GENETICS, the 2025 Elizabeth W. Jones Award for Excellence in Education recipient @JasonWilliamsNY pens down a timely and pertinent essay—There’s never been a better time to be a STEM educator! Read here: https://t.co/3lZbUTbz3f 1/2🧵
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Excited that our nucleolus mapping paper just came out today in Nature! Truly an amazing study from even more amazing due of @sofiquinodoz & @jiang_lifei w/ @LafontaineLab & Sebastian Klinge and other fantastic co-authors
nature.com
Nature - Spatially segregated rRNA processing dictates nucleolar morphology and drives outward progression of pre-ribosomal RNA through nucleolar phases.
Excited to share a new preprint! (1)🔬The nucleolus is the most prominent nuclear condensate, with a fascinating multilayered liquid-like structure, and is the site of ribosome biogenesis. But how does this multiphase architecture form and function? https://t.co/xKP9tGFFlQ
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Saw @elliotkirschner’s new film about @RBReich’s last class taught at UC Berkeley. It’s a film about Reich’s remarkable life, but also about the power of teaching and the classroom. Check it out!
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Are you an early stage researcher? Check out the newly released #FundingOpportunity for the #NIH Director’s New Innovator Award to fund exceptionally creative scientists proposing innovative, high-impact projects. Learn more: https://t.co/7aqq93PapD
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If you’ve ever felt something essential is missing in men’s lives today, this book names it and shows a path forward. Taboo: The Lost Codes of Men by Martin Brossman
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An amazing group of Freeman Hrabowski Scholars from @HHMINEWS! Great to see @Steve_Bonilla, who is off to an outstanding start at @RockefellerUniv
https://t.co/9kE9YyVojr
hhmi.org
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Atul Butte died yesterday. The world lost a giant. A big bear of a man. With a huge smile. With love for everyone. With energy that could power a room. I loved everything about Atul. I loved how he was always happy. I loved how excited he was about science and helping people.
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