In the Pipeline by Derek Lowe
Shares rank 16 of 26 newsletters by recommenders
A long-running blog by a drug discovery chemist who explains research news and industry developments, read by both experts and non-experts.
A long-running blog by a drug discovery chemist who explains research news and industry developments, read by both experts and non-experts.
6 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 6
- criticize it
- 0
- approval share
- 100%
Recommended in 5 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 6 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- Nobody criticizes itNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 5 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Consistently interesting and enjoyable to read
“Always interesting, though a lot of the chemistry goes way way over my head.”
Comment from 27 Jan 2026 in “Ask HN: Who do you follow via RSS feed?” “Always love reading Derek Lowe's writings”
Comment from 11 Aug 2026 in “Flatworms, Ion Channels, and Burning Mouths” “Derek Lowe is always such a great read”
Comment from 27 May 2026 in “Chemistry behind the Garden Grove chemical tank” Explains science for experts and non-experts
“Derek Lowe as a science communicator, and others like him, is sorely needed to understand the real meaning and significance of the study”
Comment from 15 Aug 2026 in “So How Is AI Drug Discovery Doing, Really?” “His series "In The Pipeline" has a cult following of experts and non-experts alike.”
Comment from 16 Jun 2026 in “Copper transport drug restores memory and clears toxic Alzheimer's proteins”
Other newsletters people recommend
The four most recommended other newsletters, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ed Zitron newsletter | 46 | 42 | 52% | 12 | — | — |
| Simon Willison's blog | 21 | 2 | 91% | 9 | — | Approved |
| SemiAnalysis | 20 | 12 | 63% | 8 | — | — |
| acoup.blog | 19 | 0 | 100% | 10 | — | Approved |
| In the Pipeline by Derek LoweThis page | 6 | 0 | 100% | 5 | — | — |
What people said
All 6 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“Derek Lowe as a science communicator, and others like him, is sorely needed to understand the real meaning and significance of the study”
“Always love reading Derek Lowe's writings”
“His series "In The Pipeline" has a cult following of experts and non-experts alike.”
“Derek Lowe is always such a great read”
“Derek Lowe's blog is excellent, with 192 posts tagged "Alzheimer's Disease"”
“Always interesting, though a lot of the chemistry goes way way over my head.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.