Ehud
@duhe.bsky.social
Do you really don’t know?
(I’m a philosopher and historian of biology, interested in all things evolutionary, #genetic, or #cognitive. I find most things ridiculous.)
http://www.ehudlamm.com
(I’m a philosopher and historian of biology, interested in all things evolutionary, #genetic, or #cognitive. I find most things ridiculous.)
http://www.ehudlamm.com
Pinned
Ehud
@duhe.bsky.social
· May 29
New paper alert:
Finkel & Lamm, Cultural evolution beyond the individual: what human collective knowledge adds to high fidelity copying.
This is the third in the Distributed Adaptation series.
Many thanks to the diligent reviewers! #philbio #cultevo
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
Finkel & Lamm, Cultural evolution beyond the individual: what human collective knowledge adds to high fidelity copying.
This is the third in the Distributed Adaptation series.
Many thanks to the diligent reviewers! #philbio #cultevo
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
Reposted by Ehud
Very excited that this paper is out!
www.science.org/doi/full/10....
Led by the fabulous @dorsaamir.bsky.social with invaluable contributions from many awesome collaborators.
www.science.org/doi/full/10....
Led by the fabulous @dorsaamir.bsky.social with invaluable contributions from many awesome collaborators.
The emergence of cooperative behaviors, norms, and strategies across five diverse societies
Children’s cooperative behaviors and norms develop along distinct cultural pathways shaped by local norms.
www.science.org
February 6, 2026 at 10:25 PM
Very excited that this paper is out!
www.science.org/doi/full/10....
Led by the fabulous @dorsaamir.bsky.social with invaluable contributions from many awesome collaborators.
www.science.org/doi/full/10....
Led by the fabulous @dorsaamir.bsky.social with invaluable contributions from many awesome collaborators.
Pragmatics > semantics
Worth noting that this response actually concedes that what Pritzker said is true.
February 7, 2026 at 6:07 AM
Pragmatics > semantics
Reposted by Ehud
No joke: I got angry hate mail today for writing an obituary of a Black woman scientist—because the person felt she did didn’t deserve the recognition.
Which just makes me want to share it again: www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Which just makes me want to share it again: www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Gladys Mae West obituary: mathematician who pioneered GPS technology
She made key contributions to US cold-war science despite facing huge barriers as a Black woman.
www.nature.com
February 6, 2026 at 9:09 AM
No joke: I got angry hate mail today for writing an obituary of a Black woman scientist—because the person felt she did didn’t deserve the recognition.
Which just makes me want to share it again: www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Which just makes me want to share it again: www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Reposted by Ehud
I do want to shout-out my fellow sociologists, who have collectively created a discipline so woke that not a single one of our introductory textbooks can make it past Florida's censors.
Great work everyone.
Great work everyone.
February 6, 2026 at 3:00 PM
I do want to shout-out my fellow sociologists, who have collectively created a discipline so woke that not a single one of our introductory textbooks can make it past Florida's censors.
Great work everyone.
Great work everyone.
Reposted by Ehud
It’s always great to hear these stories. ❤️
And yes. My mom died of ovarian cancer. I want more progress there so others can be saved. And it is being blown up. I am horrified at how biomedical research and cures are being destroyed.
And yes. My mom died of ovarian cancer. I want more progress there so others can be saved. And it is being blown up. I am horrified at how biomedical research and cures are being destroyed.
You won’t even know they killed you. You’ll just get a cancer medicine doesn’t have an answer for. I’m cancer free thanks to research that began in the 80s in rats & led to a chemo drug approved in 1998 under Clinton. Pre 1998, my cancer had poor survival. Now, if caught early, survival is ~98%. /1
February 7, 2026 at 3:54 AM
It’s always great to hear these stories. ❤️
And yes. My mom died of ovarian cancer. I want more progress there so others can be saved. And it is being blown up. I am horrified at how biomedical research and cures are being destroyed.
And yes. My mom died of ovarian cancer. I want more progress there so others can be saved. And it is being blown up. I am horrified at how biomedical research and cures are being destroyed.
Reposted by Ehud
Reposted by Ehud
This is an especially good article about why the Epstein files matter so much.
February 6, 2026 at 9:54 PM
This is an especially good article about why the Epstein files matter so much.
Reposted by Ehud
Cognitive Science needs an Epstein number so we can track the creeps.
E1 if you hung out with him on the island, E2 if you just let him buy you a lab at MIT…
E1 if you hung out with him on the island, E2 if you just let him buy you a lab at MIT…
Mathematicians track how close they were to the genius Erdős:
If you published with him your Erdős number is 1. If you published with an E1 you are E2, etc
There are databases you can lookup about this (I’m E5)
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erd%C5%...
If you published with him your Erdős number is 1. If you published with an E1 you are E2, etc
There are databases you can lookup about this (I’m E5)
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erd%C5%...
Erdős number - Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erdős_number
February 6, 2026 at 11:55 PM
Cognitive Science needs an Epstein number so we can track the creeps.
E1 if you hung out with him on the island, E2 if you just let him buy you a lab at MIT…
E1 if you hung out with him on the island, E2 if you just let him buy you a lab at MIT…
Reposted by Ehud
The Washington Post just laid off its entire award-winning photo team. They were our eyes in places we'll never see. It's a horrifying loss at a time when lying governments, propaganda and AI slop are on the rise.
February 6, 2026 at 6:59 PM
The Washington Post just laid off its entire award-winning photo team. They were our eyes in places we'll never see. It's a horrifying loss at a time when lying governments, propaganda and AI slop are on the rise.
Reposted by Ehud
So great to chat with @thetransmitter.bsky.social about our findings :)
A region in the cerebellum is language-selective—something previously found only in the cortex, a new study suggests.
By @natmesanash.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/language/cer...
By @natmesanash.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/language/cer...
Cerebellum responds to language like cortical areas
One of four language-responsive cerebellar regions may encode meaningful information, much like the cortical language network in the left hemisphere, according to a new study.
www.thetransmitter.org
February 6, 2026 at 4:09 PM
So great to chat with @thetransmitter.bsky.social about our findings :)
Reposted by Ehud
I had a wonderful time speaking to Tanay and Jay from the Cognitations podcast about why Pleistocene human societies were much more diverse—including being larger, more sedentary, and more hierarchical—than is often assumed. Check it out!!
🎙️ EP #19
Think our ancestors lived in a state of "primitive communism"? New research reveals our deep past was far more complex than the "noble savage" myth suggests.
@adigitaltanay.bsky.social & Jay explore this & much more with @manvir.bsky.social
youtu.be/1BRZy9O665k?...
Think our ancestors lived in a state of "primitive communism"? New research reveals our deep past was far more complex than the "noble savage" myth suggests.
@adigitaltanay.bsky.social & Jay explore this & much more with @manvir.bsky.social
youtu.be/1BRZy9O665k?...
The Social Lives of Our Ancestors | Manvir Singh
YouTube video by The Cognitations Podcast
youtu.be
February 6, 2026 at 7:25 PM
I had a wonderful time speaking to Tanay and Jay from the Cognitations podcast about why Pleistocene human societies were much more diverse—including being larger, more sedentary, and more hierarchical—than is often assumed. Check it out!!
Reposted by Ehud
The most interesting story in global markets right now isn’t “Sell America.”
It’s that reallocating capital toward faster-growing, less-correlated economies could raise returns and reduce risk at the same time.
My Essay for #Bloomberg on why this is good news!
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
It’s that reallocating capital toward faster-growing, less-correlated economies could raise returns and reduce risk at the same time.
My Essay for #Bloomberg on why this is good news!
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
Global Capital’s Break With the US Is Long Overdue
Trump’s policies have accelerated an overdue shift, as US market advantages fade and investors reassess their heavy exposure to American assets.
www.bloomberg.com
February 6, 2026 at 12:28 PM
The most interesting story in global markets right now isn’t “Sell America.”
It’s that reallocating capital toward faster-growing, less-correlated economies could raise returns and reduce risk at the same time.
My Essay for #Bloomberg on why this is good news!
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
It’s that reallocating capital toward faster-growing, less-correlated economies could raise returns and reduce risk at the same time.
My Essay for #Bloomberg on why this is good news!
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
Reposted by Ehud
Ali Teymoori and I wrote up a piece for @markrubin.bsky.social's excellent Critical Metascience blog. We summarise our new paper on disciplinary crises in psychology and some of the key take-homes for psychologists.
“Methodological and administrative solutions are valuable, but they are not enough. Rather, we need to engage with the epistemic processes and ideals at the heart of psychological knowledge production and engage very closely with critical perspectives...”
#PsycSci #Methodology #MetaSci
#PsycSci #Methodology #MetaSci
Psychology’s Recurring Crises: Lessons from History and Philosophy of Science
We examine what generated crisis discussions, how they tended to unfold, and how they were resolved. And we derive some lessons from history for the current replication crisis.
open.substack.com
February 6, 2026 at 2:06 PM
Ali Teymoori and I wrote up a piece for @markrubin.bsky.social's excellent Critical Metascience blog. We summarise our new paper on disciplinary crises in psychology and some of the key take-homes for psychologists.
Reposted by Ehud
For those interested in the longer history of IQ and the like, new book by an excellent historian 👇
“Smart: A History of Intelligence” by David Brydan (published with @wearefootnote.bsky.social) is out for the world to read!
The book explores the people and projects that have shaped the idea of modern intelligence.
📚 tinyurl.com/mr2t7e3s
@kingshistory.bsky.social
#histsci #intelligence #histm
The book explores the people and projects that have shaped the idea of modern intelligence.
📚 tinyurl.com/mr2t7e3s
@kingshistory.bsky.social
#histsci #intelligence #histm
Smart
We encounter the idea of intelligence everywhere in our modern lives. Parents are told that their children will grow up smart if they are made to listen to Mozart, play with the right toys, and eat…
tinyurl.com
February 6, 2026 at 12:23 PM
For those interested in the longer history of IQ and the like, new book by an excellent historian 👇
Reposted by Ehud
Genomic clues to the origin of eukaryotic cells www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Genomic clues to the origin of eukaryotic cells
How did eukaryotic cells with complex architecture evolve from simpler prokaryotic cells? DNA analyses offer possible answers.
www.nature.com
February 6, 2026 at 9:55 AM
Genomic clues to the origin of eukaryotic cells www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Reposted by Ehud
Laura Georgescu reviews David Marshall Miller and Dana Jalobeanu's The Cambridge History of Philosophy of the Scientific Revolution in #HOPOS.
Review: www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/abs/10.1...
Book website: www.cambridge.org/core/books/c...
Review: www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/abs/10.1...
Book website: www.cambridge.org/core/books/c...
The Cambridge History of Philosophy of the Scientific Revolution
Cambridge Core - History of Science and Technology - The Cambridge History of Philosophy of the Scientific Revolution
www.cambridge.org
February 6, 2026 at 9:15 AM
Laura Georgescu reviews David Marshall Miller and Dana Jalobeanu's The Cambridge History of Philosophy of the Scientific Revolution in #HOPOS.
Review: www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/abs/10.1...
Book website: www.cambridge.org/core/books/c...
Review: www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/abs/10.1...
Book website: www.cambridge.org/core/books/c...
Reposted by Ehud
Reading the Turvey book in depth has really made me unsympathetic to predictive coding approaches as anything other than just the last flavour of doomed Cartesian cognitive theory 🤔
Jakob @hohwy.bsky.social unravels how we understand the mind, cognition, and existence in "The Self-Evidencing Agent," analyzing how human agents perceive and make sense of the world, decide to act, and act of their own volition: bit.ly/4sXomMq
February 3, 2026 at 9:58 PM
Reading the Turvey book in depth has really made me unsympathetic to predictive coding approaches as anything other than just the last flavour of doomed Cartesian cognitive theory 🤔
Reposted by Ehud
To all the non-academics who don't understand the point of academic freedom and don't care to learn about it, let me give you a factor you might care about:
Tenure is the biggest reason you get my services at a steep discount over my private sector value.
Tenure is the biggest reason you get my services at a steep discount over my private sector value.
No Tenure for Oklahoma.
Instead, faculty will be on "renewable contracts “tied to teaching effectiveness, student completion, job placement, and economic alignment.”
#academicsky
Instead, faculty will be on "renewable contracts “tied to teaching effectiveness, student completion, job placement, and economic alignment.”
#academicsky
Tenure Will Be Eliminated at Most of Oklahoma’s Public Colleges, Governor Says
Gov. J. Kevin Stitt, a Republican, directed the state’s two-dozen regional universities and community colleges to phase out the practice. Existing faculty members will be grandfathered in.
www.chronicle.com
February 6, 2026 at 3:16 AM
To all the non-academics who don't understand the point of academic freedom and don't care to learn about it, let me give you a factor you might care about:
Tenure is the biggest reason you get my services at a steep discount over my private sector value.
Tenure is the biggest reason you get my services at a steep discount over my private sector value.
Reposted by Ehud
Excel World Championships are a thing:
"...when I saw the instructions for the final case – using Excel to fold a virtual sheet of origami – it felt like something I could do. I won, defeating a three-time champion, who’s an actuary from Australia. It was really exciting. "'
"...when I saw the instructions for the final case – using Excel to fold a virtual sheet of origami – it felt like something I could do. I won, defeating a three-time champion, who’s an actuary from Australia. It was really exciting. "'
Experience: I am the Excel world champion
I have been called the LeBron James of spreadsheets, but I try not to take myself too seriously
www.theguardian.com
February 6, 2026 at 6:02 AM
Excel World Championships are a thing:
"...when I saw the instructions for the final case – using Excel to fold a virtual sheet of origami – it felt like something I could do. I won, defeating a three-time champion, who’s an actuary from Australia. It was really exciting. "'
"...when I saw the instructions for the final case – using Excel to fold a virtual sheet of origami – it felt like something I could do. I won, defeating a three-time champion, who’s an actuary from Australia. It was really exciting. "'
Reposted by Ehud
Imagination in bonobos!
I am thrilled to share a new paper w/ Amalia Bastos, out now in @science.org
We provide the first experimental evidence that a nonhuman animal can follow along a pretend scenario & track imaginary objects. Work w/ Kanzi, the bonobo, at Ape Initiative
youtu.be/NUSHcQQz2Ko
I am thrilled to share a new paper w/ Amalia Bastos, out now in @science.org
We provide the first experimental evidence that a nonhuman animal can follow along a pretend scenario & track imaginary objects. Work w/ Kanzi, the bonobo, at Ape Initiative
youtu.be/NUSHcQQz2Ko
Apes Share Human Ability to Imagine
YouTube video by Johns Hopkins University
youtu.be
February 5, 2026 at 7:18 PM
Imagination in bonobos!
I am thrilled to share a new paper w/ Amalia Bastos, out now in @science.org
We provide the first experimental evidence that a nonhuman animal can follow along a pretend scenario & track imaginary objects. Work w/ Kanzi, the bonobo, at Ape Initiative
youtu.be/NUSHcQQz2Ko
I am thrilled to share a new paper w/ Amalia Bastos, out now in @science.org
We provide the first experimental evidence that a nonhuman animal can follow along a pretend scenario & track imaginary objects. Work w/ Kanzi, the bonobo, at Ape Initiative
youtu.be/NUSHcQQz2Ko
Reposted by Ehud
“Our findings suggest the capacity to form secondary representations of pretend objects is within the cognitive potential of, at least, an enculturated ape & likely dates back 6-9 million years, to our common evolutionary ancestors.” Amalia Bastos & @chriskrupenye.bsky.social today in @science.org.🧪
Evidence for representation of pretend objects by Kanzi, a language-trained bonobo
Secondary representations enable our minds to depart from the here-and-now and generate imaginary, hypothetical, or alternate possibilities that are decoupled from reality, supporting many of our rich...
www.science.org
February 5, 2026 at 8:06 PM
“Our findings suggest the capacity to form secondary representations of pretend objects is within the cognitive potential of, at least, an enculturated ape & likely dates back 6-9 million years, to our common evolutionary ancestors.” Amalia Bastos & @chriskrupenye.bsky.social today in @science.org.🧪
Reposted by Ehud
New book with more Chomsky-bashing. The website says March 2026, but it is available now.
cup.columbia.edu/book/intertw...
cup.columbia.edu/book/intertw...
February 5, 2026 at 3:42 PM
New book with more Chomsky-bashing. The website says March 2026, but it is available now.
cup.columbia.edu/book/intertw...
cup.columbia.edu/book/intertw...
Reposted by Ehud
We actually prefer to be called scientists thanks 😂
Why do otherwise rational people disagree about the same evidence? Our new paper finds that group membership is a deeply rooted influence on how we form beliefs, leading even preschoolers to bias their evidential standards and form inaccurate beliefs.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
February 5, 2026 at 5:26 PM
We actually prefer to be called scientists thanks 😂
Reposted by Ehud
The Edge’s culture was centered on elitism. The “third culture” promulgated by Brockman split science between great idea generators (mostly white men) and menial data collectors. This is pure idealism, and misinformation that science was just great ideas rather than the messy reality of research.
This gets to some important points. There was always something cold, even chilling, about Brockman's "Edge" culture. That feeling still pervades some scientific circles. There's a real problem here that won't go away with Epstein.
www.theverge.com/2019/9/19/20...
www.theverge.com/2019/9/19/20...
Jeffrey Epstein infiltrated science because it was ready to accommodate him
What could “nerd tunnel vision” possibly mean?
www.theverge.com
February 5, 2026 at 1:28 PM
The Edge’s culture was centered on elitism. The “third culture” promulgated by Brockman split science between great idea generators (mostly white men) and menial data collectors. This is pure idealism, and misinformation that science was just great ideas rather than the messy reality of research.