forever virologist but not a working one. past researcher. PCR guy. past lab manager. husband. dad. reader. writer. fixer. bad typist. learner. 🦠🤧🧬📑🧀🦟
Australia
Joined December 2023
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Ian M Mackay, PhD (he/him) retweeted
And so Putin will keep dragging things out for the fourth (or fifth? or sixth?) time around, spinning the same bullshit at yet another round of pointless, substance-free “talks” led by some freak like Vladimir Medinsky.
Ian M Mackay, PhD (he/him) retweeted
According to The Economist:
"It appears to have come from a small circle around the president, Mr Musk and Steve Witkoff, the special envoy to Russia. Reports suggest Mr Musk wanted to punish Ukraine for striking Russian refineries. One official says he contacted the White House only after imposing the restrictions."
If true, this suggests Elon Musk imposed the terminal-speed restrictions unilaterally, before notifying the White House.
Congress must urgently investigate whether Musk acted without government authorization. It is unacceptable for a private citizen to exercise unilateral control over a vital military capability. Starshield is a defense system, and decisions to restrict its operational capabilities should rest with the appropriate government authorities, not the CEO of a private contractor.
This should alarm everyone.
The America-Ukraine link grows even spottier economist.com/europe/2026/10…
Ian M Mackay, PhD (he/him) retweeted
This is playing with fire.
Minks and ferrets have such humanlike lung cells that they’re the standard for testing human flu transmission. (Cows aren’t!)
An H5N1 epidemic raging in a mink farm is basically the plot for Dr. Evil tries to spark a pandemic. Luck isn’t a plan.
Here’s something you should know about minks:
They have lungs and airways remarkably similar on a cellular level to those of people.
They’ve spread flus and infected humans before with COVID-19.
Right now, bird flu is spreading on a Utah farm filled with thousands of them… 🧵
ALT A close-up view of a white mink with red eyes and a pink nose baring its teeth and hissing, emerging from under a dark enclosure.
Ian M Mackay, PhD (he/him) retweeted
This is basically a classical dangerous Gain of Function (dGoF) experiment. I wish the US government would shut it down.
A while ago, Stacey Schultz-Cherry and I wrote a commentary (pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/article…), that ends with this sentence:
US: Bird flu has been spreading for around two months on a Utah mink farm holding thousands of animals. None have been culled, workers aren't being monitored, and the USDA says it doesn't regulate mink. So thousands of animals are exposed, workers could be at risk, and nobody seems to be taking responsibility.
theguardian.com/us-news/2026…
Ian M Mackay, PhD (he/him) retweeted
Putin losing elections everywhere, which is why there aren’t real ones in Russia.
Ian M Mackay, PhD (he/him) retweeted
Impossible is nothing. Serbia’s Vucic concedes defeat in the parliamentary election. After Orban, Vucic is the second long-term European ruler who must go, after the oppositional forces have managed to organize themselves and created a credible and viable political alternative.
What will Le Pen do?
France’s “forward nuclear deterrence” gains shape as ten European nations join the club, aiming to deter Russia. My deep dive into what it means and how it will work at a time when Europe is increasingly uncertain that the American nuclear umbrella still exists. wsj.com/world/europe/frances…
Ian M Mackay, PhD (he/him) retweeted
We have measured 47,851 neutralization titers of current human sera vs current influenza strains to inform vaccine update & analyses of viral evolution.
New H1N1 strains (eg, D.3.1.1 + G155E) have reduced neutralization, as do some H3N2 subclade K descendants.
biorxiv.org/content/10.64898…
Ian M Mackay, PhD (he/him) retweeted
⚡Russian-friendly Vucic concedes defeat to student protest movement in Serbian election.
kyivindependent.com/russian-…
Ian M Mackay, PhD (he/him) retweeted
Brazil's left-wing President Lula elected for fourth term, beating Flávio Bolsonaro in knife-edge vote - follow updates
bbc.in/4sohqrT
Ian M Mackay, PhD (he/him) retweeted
⚡Bolsonaro refuses to concede as would-be Ukraine peace mediator Lula wins Brazil election.
kyivindependent.com/bolsonar…
Ian M Mackay, PhD (he/him) retweeted
Musk has spent $446 million backing Republicans in the midterms. Meanwhile, your husband profits off a drone company whose valuation has been bolstered by tech developed and battle-tested in Ukraine. You’ve certainly grown into a proper Russian agent of influence in that every accusation you level is a confession.
Look at the Senators and Members of Congress that are currently attacking @Starlink regarding Ukraine. None of these elected officials have engaged in PEACE talks. Now look at who is donating to their campaign and check out their stock portfolios. There is a reason why they want the war to continue. The UNITED STATES HAS SENT BILLIONS TO UKRAINE. 25,000 HUMANS are DYING a month due to the war. We MUST lead the negations to end the war. STARLINK is NOT responsible for the FAILED foreign policy of the previous administration or CONGRESS. There was only ONE Democrat to date, in the entire House of Represenatives that was WILLING to engage in peace talks. END THE WAR!
Ian M Mackay, PhD (he/him) retweeted
LOL.
New: Sources from three countries confirm that the Trump Administration has advocated Viktor Orbán for UN Secretary-General.
The US has encouraged Orbán to enter the race, even bringing him the initial idea of a joint U.S.-Russia-China candidacy.
WSJ:
wsj.com/opinion/viktor-orban…
Ian M Mackay, PhD (he/him) retweeted
🚀 A year ago, I wrote about the lack of scalable mini jet engine production in Europe and the wider West.
Demand has since accelerated faster than anticipated, driven by Western procurement of low-cost cruise missiles and by the need for jet-powered interceptors to counter Russia’s Geran-4, Geran-5, and S8000 Banderol.
Manufacturers have responded, with new suppliers entering the market and established groups such as MTU and CSG buying their way in.
My latest Missile Matters post maps the Western turbojet supplier base, covering 26 confirmed designs from nine manufacturers. It then compiles the available production figures to assess whether turbojet output can sustain the targets missile manufacturers have set for offensive and defensive systems, and how Western output compares with Russia’s.
The full analysis is available here: missilematters.substack.com/…
Ian M Mackay, PhD (he/him) retweeted
Note the sequencing of Ukrainian deep strikes.
Oil and gas infrastructure has remained a persistent target since 2023. Ukrainian targeting then expanded to warehouses and logistics centers and is now expanding to data centers, with intermittent strikes against Russia's own electricity infrastructure.
Ukraine's access to ballistic missile interceptors may be limited and variable, but its deep-strike capability is comprehensive and constant.
Economic pain is guaranteed for Russia for as long as it stays in this war, independent of what the White House says on any given day.
Ian M Mackay, PhD (he/him) retweeted
The Audi CEO speaking at a Trump rally has not been on my Midterms bingo card.
We really live in the most bizarre of timelines 🙃
Der @AudiOfficial Chef Gernot Döllner tritt im US-Wahlkampf der #Midterms2026 für Donald #Trump auf.
Ich weiß nicht, wann ein Firmenchef zuletzt so brutal seiner eigenen Marke geschadet hat.
Wer soll diesem Mann und dieser Firma noch ein Auto abkaufen?
@Audi #audi @VW
Ian M Mackay, PhD (he/him) retweeted
Umm, so does this apply to the U.S. military too? SpaceX will disable Starshield when it thinks that the U.S. military defending Taiwan, for example, is using the network for “unequivocally offensive” strikes? Or does this only apply to Ukrainians?
Good thread👇
There is something really concerning (and disappointing) going on in the US right now.
A dangerous and preventable situation.
Let me explain.
nextstrain.org/avian-flu/h5n…
1/
Ian M Mackay, PhD (he/him) retweeted
Fascist Russia, perhaps sensing Trump may no longer be of much use to it if the midterms render him a lame duck, is softening it’s position slightly.
❗️Putin aide Yuri Ushakov says Russia is ready to resume trilateral talks with Ukraine and the US after November 4. He said the planned meeting would be preliminary and expectations should remain low, adding that Europe must also be involved because its position could be key. #Ukraine