Theo Smart
@theosmart.bsky.social
Senior technical editor at ICAP @Columbia U, and write rare disease reports on the side. Views my own. Interested in life & literature from anthropology to zoology. Originally, I wanted to focus on cultural anthro w/ folklore studies, until life happened.
Reposted by Theo Smart
The mysterious death of a scientist at a plague institute in Siberia has sparked “next pandemic” panic.
I wrote about what we know, what we don’t, why plague is not the Black Death in 2026 and the real outbreaks we ignore while worrying about hypothetical ones.
bktitanji.substack.com/p/plague-is-...
I wrote about what we know, what we don’t, why plague is not the Black Death in 2026 and the real outbreaks we ignore while worrying about hypothetical ones.
bktitanji.substack.com/p/plague-is-...
Plague is Scary but That Doesn’t Make It the Next Pandemic.
Why a mysterious death in Siberia has captured our attention while far more consequential outbreaks struggle to do the same
bktitanji.substack.com
October 5, 2026 at 10:08 PM
The mysterious death of a scientist at a plague institute in Siberia has sparked “next pandemic” panic.
I wrote about what we know, what we don’t, why plague is not the Black Death in 2026 and the real outbreaks we ignore while worrying about hypothetical ones.
bktitanji.substack.com/p/plague-is-...
I wrote about what we know, what we don’t, why plague is not the Black Death in 2026 and the real outbreaks we ignore while worrying about hypothetical ones.
bktitanji.substack.com/p/plague-is-...
Reposted by Theo Smart
It’s confusing that @theatlantic.com described this man as a “a lifelong Democrat who had voted for Trump for the first time in 2024” who when these are some of his very easily findable FB posts:
October 5, 2026 at 2:46 AM
It’s confusing that @theatlantic.com described this man as a “a lifelong Democrat who had voted for Trump for the first time in 2024” who when these are some of his very easily findable FB posts:
Reposted by Theo Smart
Starting Oct. 1, many immigrants who are here legally lose their Medicaid coverage because of the Republican budget bill passed last year. n.pr/4z0FPpq
'It's a nightmare.' Former refugee, professor on Trump's new Medicaid policy
Starting Oct. 1, many immigrants who are here legally lose their Medicaid coverage because of the Republican budget bill passed last year.
n.pr
October 1, 2026 at 10:49 PM
Starting Oct. 1, many immigrants who are here legally lose their Medicaid coverage because of the Republican budget bill passed last year. n.pr/4z0FPpq
Reposted by Theo Smart
Reposted by Theo Smart
A couple quick observations here, which should be obvious. 1) insurance “risk pools” work by requiring younger/healthier people who make few or no claims to sign up and pay premiums alongside older/less healthy people who do, essentially covering their costs.
Assistant AG for Fraud Colin McDonald: "Apparently 35% of people have never even used their Obamacare account for any health services. That is a statistical impossibility and it's because these are not real people seeking real care. These are fraudsters."
September 26, 2026 at 6:29 PM
A couple quick observations here, which should be obvious. 1) insurance “risk pools” work by requiring younger/healthier people who make few or no claims to sign up and pay premiums alongside older/less healthy people who do, essentially covering their costs.
Reposted by Theo Smart
Health Policy Watch: Almost $3 billion Raised For DRC’s Ebola Outbreak, as Focus Shifts to Nord-Kivu
by Kerry Cullinan @healthpolicywatch.bsky.social @kerrycullinan.bsky.social
👉 bit.ly/4iQ7xRe
by Kerry Cullinan @healthpolicywatch.bsky.social @kerrycullinan.bsky.social
👉 bit.ly/4iQ7xRe
Almost $3 Billion Raised For DRC’s Ebola Outbreak, As Focus Shifts To Nord-Kivu - Health Policy Watch
G20+ countries pledged an additional $700 million this week to counter the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Dr Jean Kaseya,
bit.ly
September 26, 2026 at 4:27 AM
Health Policy Watch: Almost $3 billion Raised For DRC’s Ebola Outbreak, as Focus Shifts to Nord-Kivu
by Kerry Cullinan @healthpolicywatch.bsky.social @kerrycullinan.bsky.social
👉 bit.ly/4iQ7xRe
by Kerry Cullinan @healthpolicywatch.bsky.social @kerrycullinan.bsky.social
👉 bit.ly/4iQ7xRe
Reposted by Theo Smart
Cartographic justice, or: The #world we #map is the world we make.
Abandoning a #eurocentric worldview: www.theguardian.com/world/2026/s... by @eromoegbejule.bsky.social via @theguardian.com
Abandoning a #eurocentric worldview: www.theguardian.com/world/2026/s... by @eromoegbejule.bsky.social via @theguardian.com
UN votes to adopt new world map that shows Africa’s true scale
Togo-sponsored resolution called to phase out traditional map that depicts continent as similar size to Greenland
www.theguardian.com
September 23, 2026 at 6:36 AM
Cartographic justice, or: The #world we #map is the world we make.
Abandoning a #eurocentric worldview: www.theguardian.com/world/2026/s... by @eromoegbejule.bsky.social via @theguardian.com
Abandoning a #eurocentric worldview: www.theguardian.com/world/2026/s... by @eromoegbejule.bsky.social via @theguardian.com
Reposted by Theo Smart
Testing more people who report TB symptoms at public sector clinics is one of the most effective things we can do to reduce rates of TB disease and death, according to a major new modelling study.
www.spotlightnsp.co.za/2026/09/23/t...
www.spotlightnsp.co.za/2026/09/23/t...
Testing more people with TB symptoms is critical to reducing new infections, study finds
Many people who report with TB symptoms at South Africa’s public sector clinics do not receive TB tests. Testing more of these people is one of the most effective things we can do to reduce rates of T...
www.spotlightnsp.co.za
September 23, 2026 at 7:48 AM
Testing more people who report TB symptoms at public sector clinics is one of the most effective things we can do to reduce rates of TB disease and death, according to a major new modelling study.
www.spotlightnsp.co.za/2026/09/23/t...
www.spotlightnsp.co.za/2026/09/23/t...
Reposted by Theo Smart
SILENT PHONE LINES | A crucial hotline run for nearly 20 years from the slopes of Devil’s Peak in Cape Town for healthcare workers anywhere in South Africa was suspended this week due to a lack of funding.
www.spotlightnsp.co.za/2026/09/16/a...
www.spotlightnsp.co.za/2026/09/16/a...
Angst as South Africa's HIV & TB Healthcare Worker Hotline goes offline
A crucial hotline run for nearly 20 years from the slopes of Devil's Peak in Cape Town for healthcare workers anywhere in South Africa, from the country’s busiest urban hospitals to far flung resource...
www.spotlightnsp.co.za
September 16, 2026 at 9:21 AM
SILENT PHONE LINES | A crucial hotline run for nearly 20 years from the slopes of Devil’s Peak in Cape Town for healthcare workers anywhere in South Africa was suspended this week due to a lack of funding.
www.spotlightnsp.co.za/2026/09/16/a...
www.spotlightnsp.co.za/2026/09/16/a...
Sat that Catherine Ringer of Les Rita Mitsouko died at 68. Cancer.
Marcia Baila Les Rita Mitsouko
ALT: Marcia Baila Les Rita Mitsouko
static.klipy.com
September 16, 2026 at 9:34 AM
Sat that Catherine Ringer of Les Rita Mitsouko died at 68. Cancer.
Reposted by Theo Smart
mailchi.mp/spotlightnsp... love our health journalists
SA's health department is struggling. Can its new DG turn things around?
mailchi.mp
September 13, 2026 at 9:03 AM
mailchi.mp/spotlightnsp... love our health journalists
Reposted by Theo Smart
Reposted by Theo Smart
Reposted by Theo Smart
When I was in Brittany last month, I made a quick visit to the amazing Dolmen of Ty ar Boudiged, an ancient tomb that still retains its original mound. Its name translates into English as 'the House of the Fairies'. #TombTuesday
September 8, 2026 at 7:53 AM
When I was in Brittany last month, I made a quick visit to the amazing Dolmen of Ty ar Boudiged, an ancient tomb that still retains its original mound. Its name translates into English as 'the House of the Fairies'. #TombTuesday
Reposted by Theo Smart
A good way to tell if folk feel a particular tree is home to a Wood Sprite is to check its base and any hollows too see if offerings have been left. It is important not to disturb, let alone remove, any appeasements made at the tree. – Instructions to the 1979 Wood Sprite Census takers
September 8, 2026 at 8:10 AM
A good way to tell if folk feel a particular tree is home to a Wood Sprite is to check its base and any hollows too see if offerings have been left. It is important not to disturb, let alone remove, any appeasements made at the tree. – Instructions to the 1979 Wood Sprite Census takers
Reposted by Theo Smart
The US House passed the Northeast Lobstermen Protection Act (H.R. 9436) by a vote of 219-196, which stops NOAA from protecting endangered right whales through to 2035 by requiring more expensive ropeless lobster pots. 1/n
defenders.org/newsroom/hou...
defenders.org/newsroom/hou...
House Gambles with Survival for North Atlantic Right Whales in Latest Vote to Delay Protections
The House of Representatives voted to pass H.R. 9436, a bill that will delay conservation protections for critically endangered North Atlantic right whales.
defenders.org
September 4, 2026 at 3:38 PM
The US House passed the Northeast Lobstermen Protection Act (H.R. 9436) by a vote of 219-196, which stops NOAA from protecting endangered right whales through to 2035 by requiring more expensive ropeless lobster pots. 1/n
defenders.org/newsroom/hou...
defenders.org/newsroom/hou...
Better life
And no one knows how many of the dolphins that leap in the waters of the Inmost Sea were men once, wise men, who forgot their wisdom and their name in the joy of the restless sea.
September 4, 2026 at 5:30 AM
Better life
I-70 is such a bleak and god forsaken place to do it too. And we all go about business as usual.
September 1, 2026 at 8:17 PM
I-70 is such a bleak and god forsaken place to do it too. And we all go about business as usual.
#AIDS2026 Advanced HIV Disease persists despite gains in HIV Treatment. icap.columbia.edu/news-events/...
At AIDS 2026, Advanced HIV Disease Goes Under the Microscope
icap.columbia.edu
August 26, 2026 at 11:34 PM
#AIDS2026 Advanced HIV Disease persists despite gains in HIV Treatment. icap.columbia.edu/news-events/...
Reposted by Theo Smart
World’s largest research funder lifts ban on South Africa
The United States National Institutes of Health (NIH) has lifted its ban nearly 18 months after an order to stop work with South...
The United States National Institutes of Health (NIH) has lifted its ban nearly 18 months after an order to stop work with South...
World’s largest research funder lifts ban on South Africa
The United States National Institutes of Health (NIH) has lifted its ban nearly 18 months after an order to stop work with South Africa. The funding ban created a crisis...
www.spotlightnsp.co.za
August 24, 2026 at 10:11 AM
World’s largest research funder lifts ban on South Africa
The United States National Institutes of Health (NIH) has lifted its ban nearly 18 months after an order to stop work with South...
The United States National Institutes of Health (NIH) has lifted its ban nearly 18 months after an order to stop work with South...
Reposted by Theo Smart
Health Policy Watch: Ebola Outbreak May be Three Times the Officially Reported Size
by Kerry Cullinan @healthpolicywatch.bsky.social @kerrycullinan.bsky.social
bit.ly/4gqTyy7
by Kerry Cullinan @healthpolicywatch.bsky.social @kerrycullinan.bsky.social
bit.ly/4gqTyy7
Ebola Outbreak May Be Three Times The Officially Reported Size - Health Policy Watch
Over 5,000 people have been infected with the Ebola Bundibugyo virus in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), but the outbreak may be three times the
bit.ly
August 23, 2026 at 4:33 PM
Health Policy Watch: Ebola Outbreak May be Three Times the Officially Reported Size
by Kerry Cullinan @healthpolicywatch.bsky.social @kerrycullinan.bsky.social
bit.ly/4gqTyy7
by Kerry Cullinan @healthpolicywatch.bsky.social @kerrycullinan.bsky.social
bit.ly/4gqTyy7
Reposted by Theo Smart
New: NIH's ban on funding projects in South Africa has been lifted.
The ban was tied to a Feb 7, 2025 executive order directing agencies to halt foreign aid to South Africa.
18 months later, the agency has determined that grants don't constitute aid, so it was never subject to the EO.
The ban was tied to a Feb 7, 2025 executive order directing agencies to halt foreign aid to South Africa.
18 months later, the agency has determined that grants don't constitute aid, so it was never subject to the EO.
August 18, 2026 at 6:04 PM
New: NIH's ban on funding projects in South Africa has been lifted.
The ban was tied to a Feb 7, 2025 executive order directing agencies to halt foreign aid to South Africa.
18 months later, the agency has determined that grants don't constitute aid, so it was never subject to the EO.
The ban was tied to a Feb 7, 2025 executive order directing agencies to halt foreign aid to South Africa.
18 months later, the agency has determined that grants don't constitute aid, so it was never subject to the EO.
Reposted by Theo Smart
The traitor, the self; the self that cries I want to live; let the world burn so long as I can live!
August 16, 2026 at 10:55 AM
The traitor, the self; the self that cries I want to live; let the world burn so long as I can live!
Reposted by Theo Smart
Reposted by Theo Smart
“At the #AIDS2026 conference, Brazilian advocates said health systems need to be more independent from foreign funding” via @theguardian.com
Brazil’s HIV advocates say they predicted USAID funding cuts: ‘We would see the trends’
At the Aids 2026 conference, Brazilian advocates said health systems need to be more independent from foreign funding
www.theguardian.com
August 1, 2026 at 1:04 PM
“At the #AIDS2026 conference, Brazilian advocates said health systems need to be more independent from foreign funding” via @theguardian.com