¶The researchers describe vertebrate eyes as the product of an unusual evolutionary detour. An ancestor first lost its paired eyes after becoming largely inactive, retained a simple central eye, and later used parts of that structure to build a new and more advanced visual system.

¶The researchers argue that its evolutionary remains survive today as the pineal gland, a small organ located deep within the vertebrate brain. Although humans do not use the pineal gland to see images, it remains connected to the body’s response to light and darkness.

¶The eyes of vertebrates are quite different from those of others, like insects. Our retinas developed from brain tissue; theirs from skin. And, under this new “cyclops” theory, ours may trace back to a small one-eyed ocean-dweller with a simple ability to detect night and day. Our cyclops ancestor may still be with us, too, as the researchers behind the paper in this article argue that the pineal gland, which regulates our circadian rhythm and sleep-wake cycles, is its evolutionary remains.

¶Sort of gives new meaning to the expression “in my minds eye”.

¶The U.S. Department of Education will continue to be in charge of the statutory responsibilities over special education as required by federal law, but this shifts the day-to-day operations to HHS. 

¶“It adds another layer of complexity because two departments are involved, and one is still going to have the ultimate responsibility for this other department underneath it, but then how does a parent of a child with a disability who has an issue navigate that?” Marks asked.  

¶Aside from raising concerns about returning to a medical model of special education, Trump’s dismantling of the Department of Education is actually adding layers of government to the delivery of education services, at least for special education. That’s ironic, considering his painting of the Department as “an unneeded layer of bureaucracy that burdens local schools” was a foundation of the entire effort.

¶The biggest threat to research universities from recent federal policy shifts aimed at them is not that those changes chase promising American scholars abroad but that they discourage the world’s best and brightest from coming here to do their work.

¶[Harvard President Alan Garber] said his assessment of the state of research in America reflects the fact that the ability to attract talent from everywhere to work alongside U.S. scientists has long been a difference-maker for the nation as a global leader in research and innovation.

¶Citing anti-immigration policies as “the biggest threat” seems obvious but the impact on American scholars should not be dismissed as quickly as Garber does here. American scholars, and would-be American scholars, are making career-defining decisions now as Trump’s assault on science funding continues. This undoubtedly will “chase promising American scholars abroad”. And it will, and probably already has, lead others out of science and math altogether. Casting those exoduses as secondary to the anti-immigration side of the equation might be part of the problem.

¶Microinfluencers average a 3.2% engagement rate, almost triple the 1.1% rate for macroinfluencers (more than 1 million followers), according to growth marketing agency ATTN. And though macroinfluencers generate roughly six times more revenue, their associated costs can reach about 18 times higher, according to an American Marketing Association study.

¶The age of the microinfluencer is upon us. Why? Higher engagement and lower costs.