Brianne Barker
@bioprofbarker.bsky.social
Immunologist/Virologist teaching and doing research with undergrads at Drew University. 1x Jeopardy Champ. Science communicator podcasting on TWiV and Immune. Duke sports fan and cat mom.
Reposted by Brianne Barker
i’ve never once judged anyone for needing an extension except when that person is me, and then i’m unbelievably harsh
August 28, 2026 at 6:43 PM
i’ve never once judged anyone for needing an extension except when that person is me, and then i’m unbelievably harsh
Reposted by Brianne Barker
This is a fantastic, good faith discussion of the origins of SARS-CoV-2
The peer-reviewed research evidence published in scholarly journals points to zoonotic origins (&, as @angierasmussen.bsky.social notes, it’s not possible to square the lab leak theory with that proven evidence)
1/2
The peer-reviewed research evidence published in scholarly journals points to zoonotic origins (&, as @angierasmussen.bsky.social notes, it’s not possible to square the lab leak theory with that proven evidence)
1/2
I so appreciated @angierasmussen.bsky.social in this discussion, particularly her pointing out that the disinformation about science and the propaganda designed to break trust in institutions is specifically a threat to democracy - something I have been saying since 2021.
youtu.be/3W4pJJ3SVis?...
youtu.be/3W4pJJ3SVis?...
Did COVID Actually Come From a LAB?
YouTube video by Zeteo
youtu.be
August 24, 2026 at 10:29 PM
This is a fantastic, good faith discussion of the origins of SARS-CoV-2
The peer-reviewed research evidence published in scholarly journals points to zoonotic origins (&, as @angierasmussen.bsky.social notes, it’s not possible to square the lab leak theory with that proven evidence)
1/2
The peer-reviewed research evidence published in scholarly journals points to zoonotic origins (&, as @angierasmussen.bsky.social notes, it’s not possible to square the lab leak theory with that proven evidence)
1/2
Reposted by Brianne Barker
The professor told me
his classes start soon,
but that’s okay, as he
has already achieved
all of his goals for this summer: he didn’t catch Covid or cyclospora either;
so, I reminded him the summer isn’t over,
and in response
he let out a heavy sigh.
all of his goals for this summer: he didn’t catch Covid or cyclospora either;
so, I reminded him the summer isn’t over,
and in response
he let out a heavy sigh.
August 20, 2026 at 8:57 PM
The professor told me
his classes start soon,
but that’s okay, as he
has already achieved
all of his goals for this summer: he didn’t catch Covid or cyclospora either;
so, I reminded him the summer isn’t over,
and in response
he let out a heavy sigh.
all of his goals for this summer: he didn’t catch Covid or cyclospora either;
so, I reminded him the summer isn’t over,
and in response
he let out a heavy sigh.
Reposted by Brianne Barker
Didn’t need this graph because I’m seeing it in the classroom in real time. But this is useful for my quantitatively minded STEM students who are not convinced of why they shouldn’t use gAI
August 19, 2026 at 2:47 PM
Didn’t need this graph because I’m seeing it in the classroom in real time. But this is useful for my quantitatively minded STEM students who are not convinced of why they shouldn’t use gAI
Reposted by Brianne Barker
I'm gonna need people to stop being judgemental shits about what other people enjoy reading, please, coz nobody's griefing them about their loving whatever easy reading they enjoy, they oughta pay the same respect and leave smutlovers alone. People feel feelings for different reasons, leave them be
I am indeed a professor.
I read ugh, theory.
I read a lot of history; articles and books.
Its because the stuff I read for work is so dark, and intense that I need something to change the gears.
So hell yes, I read absolutely trashy romance novels, and I read smut.
We can do it all, I believe.
I read ugh, theory.
I read a lot of history; articles and books.
Its because the stuff I read for work is so dark, and intense that I need something to change the gears.
So hell yes, I read absolutely trashy romance novels, and I read smut.
We can do it all, I believe.
August 19, 2026 at 12:08 AM
I'm gonna need people to stop being judgemental shits about what other people enjoy reading, please, coz nobody's griefing them about their loving whatever easy reading they enjoy, they oughta pay the same respect and leave smutlovers alone. People feel feelings for different reasons, leave them be
This, this, very much this
Jeff Bezos, Stephen Jay Gould, and the Perverse Myth of Genius Scarcity
www.dailygrail.com/2026/08/jeff...
www.dailygrail.com/2026/08/jeff...
Jeff Bezos, Stephen Jay Gould, and the Perverse Myth of Genius Scarcity
In a 2023 interview with Dark Enlightenment promoter Lex Fridman, Amazon mega-billionaire Jeff Bezos shared his vision of the future: “I would love to see a trillion humans living in the solar system....
www.dailygrail.com
August 19, 2026 at 1:10 AM
This, this, very much this
Reposted by Brianne Barker
Jeff Bezos, Stephen Jay Gould, and the Perverse Myth of Genius Scarcity
www.dailygrail.com/2026/08/jeff...
www.dailygrail.com/2026/08/jeff...
Jeff Bezos, Stephen Jay Gould, and the Perverse Myth of Genius Scarcity
In a 2023 interview with Dark Enlightenment promoter Lex Fridman, Amazon mega-billionaire Jeff Bezos shared his vision of the future: “I would love to see a trillion humans living in the solar system....
www.dailygrail.com
August 18, 2026 at 11:47 PM
Jeff Bezos, Stephen Jay Gould, and the Perverse Myth of Genius Scarcity
www.dailygrail.com/2026/08/jeff...
www.dailygrail.com/2026/08/jeff...
Reposted by Brianne Barker
In 2026, there is no longer any lab leak hypothesis you can state consistently with the available evidence.
Despite this, it has been the dominant media narrative for six years.
Read my new data-driven investigation:
www.protagonist-science.com/p/biased-med...
Despite this, it has been the dominant media narrative for six years.
Read my new data-driven investigation:
www.protagonist-science.com/p/biased-med...
Biased media coverage and the lab leak theory
Gain-of-function fearmongering and blame gets the glitzy NYT visual treatment as Republicans weaponize the lab leak theory again in attacks on Dr. Anthony Fauci
www.protagonist-science.com
August 18, 2026 at 10:44 PM
In 2026, there is no longer any lab leak hypothesis you can state consistently with the available evidence.
Despite this, it has been the dominant media narrative for six years.
Read my new data-driven investigation:
www.protagonist-science.com/p/biased-med...
Despite this, it has been the dominant media narrative for six years.
Read my new data-driven investigation:
www.protagonist-science.com/p/biased-med...
Reposted by Brianne Barker
It was great discussing the scientific research on COVID origins and where the evidence stands in 2026 with @kgandersen.bsky.social, @worobey.bsky.social, and @eddieholmes.bsky.social. Less fun to discuss the political persecution of scientists, but also important. www.youtube.com/watch?v=Od9c...
Lab Leak and Covid Origins in 2026: An Interview with Holmes, Andersen, & Worobey
YouTube video by Decoding the Gurus
www.youtube.com
August 17, 2026 at 2:18 AM
It was great discussing the scientific research on COVID origins and where the evidence stands in 2026 with @kgandersen.bsky.social, @worobey.bsky.social, and @eddieholmes.bsky.social. Less fun to discuss the political persecution of scientists, but also important. www.youtube.com/watch?v=Od9c...
Reposted by Brianne Barker
Whomst could have foreseen that pushing high school students to publish in peer reviewed journals could have had downsides?
retractionwatch.com/2026/08/14/p...
retractionwatch.com/2026/08/14/p...
Princeton student says she did not conduct the experiments described in her now-retracted paper
A figure from the now-retracted paper in Macromolecular Materials and Engineering shows the “hypothesized effects” of the experiments described in the study. Earlier this week, Retracti…
retractionwatch.com
August 15, 2026 at 4:33 AM
Whomst could have foreseen that pushing high school students to publish in peer reviewed journals could have had downsides?
retractionwatch.com/2026/08/14/p...
retractionwatch.com/2026/08/14/p...
Reposted by Brianne Barker
I know that right now
you’re probably focusing
on other health related news,
but according to
the wastewater tracking data
Covid levels are rising again,
which is a reminder
(an unfortunate reminder)
that cyclospora is not
the only bad shit happening.
you’re probably focusing
on other health related news,
but according to
the wastewater tracking data
Covid levels are rising again,
which is a reminder
(an unfortunate reminder)
that cyclospora is not
the only bad shit happening.
August 11, 2026 at 8:36 PM
I know that right now
you’re probably focusing
on other health related news,
but according to
the wastewater tracking data
Covid levels are rising again,
which is a reminder
(an unfortunate reminder)
that cyclospora is not
the only bad shit happening.
you’re probably focusing
on other health related news,
but according to
the wastewater tracking data
Covid levels are rising again,
which is a reminder
(an unfortunate reminder)
that cyclospora is not
the only bad shit happening.
Reposted by Brianne Barker
By now
you have probably heard
about the deadly outbreak
of vibrio vulnificus
along the Gulf Coast,
and in case you were wondering:
yes, this is another case
(yes, this is yet another case)
where surveillance
of this threat to public health
was recently cut.
you have probably heard
about the deadly outbreak
of vibrio vulnificus
along the Gulf Coast,
and in case you were wondering:
yes, this is another case
(yes, this is yet another case)
where surveillance
of this threat to public health
was recently cut.
August 11, 2026 at 10:37 PM
By now
you have probably heard
about the deadly outbreak
of vibrio vulnificus
along the Gulf Coast,
and in case you were wondering:
yes, this is another case
(yes, this is yet another case)
where surveillance
of this threat to public health
was recently cut.
you have probably heard
about the deadly outbreak
of vibrio vulnificus
along the Gulf Coast,
and in case you were wondering:
yes, this is another case
(yes, this is yet another case)
where surveillance
of this threat to public health
was recently cut.
Home from a long and scary day at the vet, where my sweet kitty was diagnosed with a heart disease. A friend works on the same disease in people. The new drug just approved for this disease in cats is a molecule I know of for other research. Life as a scientist is weird sometimes.
August 11, 2026 at 9:48 PM
Home from a long and scary day at the vet, where my sweet kitty was diagnosed with a heart disease. A friend works on the same disease in people. The new drug just approved for this disease in cats is a molecule I know of for other research. Life as a scientist is weird sometimes.
Reposted by Brianne Barker
Vaccines do not cause autism.
Autism is not something to be fixed. Autism is not something to be cured. My autistic friends, you are autistic joy. Thank you for being wonderful you ✨
Sincerely,
Your Autistic Library Friend 💛
Autism is not something to be fixed. Autism is not something to be cured. My autistic friends, you are autistic joy. Thank you for being wonderful you ✨
Sincerely,
Your Autistic Library Friend 💛
August 10, 2026 at 9:48 PM
Vaccines do not cause autism.
Autism is not something to be fixed. Autism is not something to be cured. My autistic friends, you are autistic joy. Thank you for being wonderful you ✨
Sincerely,
Your Autistic Library Friend 💛
Autism is not something to be fixed. Autism is not something to be cured. My autistic friends, you are autistic joy. Thank you for being wonderful you ✨
Sincerely,
Your Autistic Library Friend 💛
Reposted by Brianne Barker
I’ve seen a few people commenting today that the idea of separating the MMR vaccine into three separate shots might be a good strategy to get anti-vax parents to vaccinate.
Absolutely not. Here’s why.
First, countering anti-vax misinformation is like playing whack a mole. You bat down one lie…
Absolutely not. Here’s why.
First, countering anti-vax misinformation is like playing whack a mole. You bat down one lie…
August 11, 2026 at 2:19 AM
I’ve seen a few people commenting today that the idea of separating the MMR vaccine into three separate shots might be a good strategy to get anti-vax parents to vaccinate.
Absolutely not. Here’s why.
First, countering anti-vax misinformation is like playing whack a mole. You bat down one lie…
Absolutely not. Here’s why.
First, countering anti-vax misinformation is like playing whack a mole. You bat down one lie…
Reposted by Brianne Barker
I cried the day I got that first shot.
It is a sign of the total failure of our constitutional order that, a mere six years after we were all desperately praying for a miraculous scientific breakthrough to end the worst global pandemic in a century, that the President of the United States can do what he did today & face no consequences.
August 10, 2026 at 9:02 PM
I cried the day I got that first shot.
Reposted by Brianne Barker
In response to today’s White House Executive Order (EO) on vaccines, parents should continue to rely on evidence-based immunization recommendations developed by experts.
Today's EO does not change the scientific evidence supporting childhood immunization. That data has been built over decades.
Today's EO does not change the scientific evidence supporting childhood immunization. That data has been built over decades.
August 10, 2026 at 8:04 PM
In response to today’s White House Executive Order (EO) on vaccines, parents should continue to rely on evidence-based immunization recommendations developed by experts.
Today's EO does not change the scientific evidence supporting childhood immunization. That data has been built over decades.
Today's EO does not change the scientific evidence supporting childhood immunization. That data has been built over decades.
Reposted by Brianne Barker
Important: Trump’s executive order is NOT legislation. Though the executive order promotes more misinformation about vaccines, nothing has changed about the availability of childhood vaccines. For evidence-based guidance, please follow and share American Academy of Pediatrics recommendations.
August 10, 2026 at 9:52 PM
Important: Trump’s executive order is NOT legislation. Though the executive order promotes more misinformation about vaccines, nothing has changed about the availability of childhood vaccines. For evidence-based guidance, please follow and share American Academy of Pediatrics recommendations.
Reposted by Brianne Barker
Reposted by Brianne Barker
Why should you care if childhood vaccination rates are dropping in your community?
1. All kids deserve to be protected from vaccine-preventable disease.
2. There are people who can’t be vaccinated, such as babies who are too young. If everyone around them is vaccinated, they’re protected.
1. All kids deserve to be protected from vaccine-preventable disease.
2. There are people who can’t be vaccinated, such as babies who are too young. If everyone around them is vaccinated, they’re protected.
August 6, 2026 at 11:19 PM
Why should you care if childhood vaccination rates are dropping in your community?
1. All kids deserve to be protected from vaccine-preventable disease.
2. There are people who can’t be vaccinated, such as babies who are too young. If everyone around them is vaccinated, they’re protected.
1. All kids deserve to be protected from vaccine-preventable disease.
2. There are people who can’t be vaccinated, such as babies who are too young. If everyone around them is vaccinated, they’re protected.
Reposted by Brianne Barker
Reposted by Brianne Barker
The COVID Lab leak theory debunked by Paul Offit
1. Started in the Hunan wholesale seafood market (Southwestern section). The first few cases were there and spread out.
2. The Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) is 9 miles away from that seafood market, on the other side of the Yangtze river. 🧵
1. Started in the Hunan wholesale seafood market (Southwestern section). The first few cases were there and spread out.
2. The Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) is 9 miles away from that seafood market, on the other side of the Yangtze river. 🧵
August 7, 2026 at 10:18 PM
The COVID Lab leak theory debunked by Paul Offit
1. Started in the Hunan wholesale seafood market (Southwestern section). The first few cases were there and spread out.
2. The Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) is 9 miles away from that seafood market, on the other side of the Yangtze river. 🧵
1. Started in the Hunan wholesale seafood market (Southwestern section). The first few cases were there and spread out.
2. The Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) is 9 miles away from that seafood market, on the other side of the Yangtze river. 🧵
See, it’s not a weakness on my part. It’s evolution…
A sweet tooth may have helped set the stage for the evolution of the human brain.
https://www.sciencenews.org/article/sugar-ingredient-human-evolution-fruit
https://www.sciencenews.org/article/sugar-ingredient-human-evolution-fruit
Sugar may have been a key ingredient in human evolution
A sweet tooth for sugars from fruits and honey may have helped fuel brain growth in our primate cousins and early human ancestors, a new study suggests.
www.sciencenews.org
August 7, 2026 at 6:59 AM
See, it’s not a weakness on my part. It’s evolution…
Reposted by Brianne Barker
FDA approved the Moderna mRNA flu vaccine, which is great news for everyone! In clinical trials it outperformed existing flu vaccine technology so well that not even Vinay Prasad could cancel it.
I talked to Scott Tong at @npr.org @hereandnow.bsky.social about it
www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2...
I talked to Scott Tong at @npr.org @hereandnow.bsky.social about it
www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2...
What to know about the new FDA-approved flu shot using mRNA technology
The flu shot uses the same technology as the COVID-19 vaccines.
www.wbur.org
August 6, 2026 at 7:31 PM
FDA approved the Moderna mRNA flu vaccine, which is great news for everyone! In clinical trials it outperformed existing flu vaccine technology so well that not even Vinay Prasad could cancel it.
I talked to Scott Tong at @npr.org @hereandnow.bsky.social about it
www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2...
I talked to Scott Tong at @npr.org @hereandnow.bsky.social about it
www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2...
Reposted by Brianne Barker
