Michael Hochberg
@mkhochb.bsky.social
University of Montpellier - Santa Fe Institute. Working these days on intelligence in biological and artificial systems. Website https://mehochberg.wixsite.com/blog/academia
Pinned
Michael Hochberg
@mkhochb.bsky.social
· Dec 23
Disease as a Mediator of Somatic Mutation - Fitspan Coevolution: Model Analysis and Empirical Tests
Multicellular organisms are confronted not only with germline mutations, but also mutations emerging in somatic cells. Somatic mutations can lead to various conditions, diseases, and cancers in partic...
www.biorxiv.org
Latest preprint where I analyze a simple coevolutionary model of somatic mutation rate and fitness lifespan. Evolution is mediated by disease, notably cancers. The model can explain the non-linear empirical relationship between somatic mutation and lifespan, and more. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
This is SO merited for these great women scientists, one of whom (Isabelle Oliveri) was a close colleague, friend, and helped me fight political obstacles in my move to Montpellier in 2000. www.paris.fr/pages/biento...
Bientôt 72 noms de femmes scientifiques sur la tour Eiffel !
Saviez-vous qu’au premier étage de la tour Eiffel sont inscrits en lettres d’or les noms de 72 illustres savants ? 72 femmes scientifiques auront bientôt leur place au cœur de ce « Panthéon scientifiq...
www.paris.fr
February 2, 2026 at 3:05 PM
This is SO merited for these great women scientists, one of whom (Isabelle Oliveri) was a close colleague, friend, and helped me fight political obstacles in my move to Montpellier in 2000. www.paris.fr/pages/biento...
Reposted by Michael Hochberg
What kinds of cognitions are possible? Are there discrete classes of cognition? Here's our new paper with @brigan.bsky.social @jordiplam.bsky.social @mitibennett.bsky.social @mkhochb.bsky.social and @drmichaellevin.bsky.social arxiv.org/abs/2601.12837 We explore basal, neural and human-AI spaces.
January 21, 2026 at 10:06 AM
What kinds of cognitions are possible? Are there discrete classes of cognition? Here's our new paper with @brigan.bsky.social @jordiplam.bsky.social @mitibennett.bsky.social @mkhochb.bsky.social and @drmichaellevin.bsky.social arxiv.org/abs/2601.12837 We explore basal, neural and human-AI spaces.
Reposted by Michael Hochberg
A quick reminder that the deadline for this exciting postdoc fellowship is due soon. Come work with us! Support for work in biodiversity, ecology, and conservation with applied connections. Contact me or other Lovejoy faculty if you are interested 🧪🌐🌾
New postdoctoral fellowship opportunity! Please pass along. Excited to announce the launch of the Tom Lovejoy Fellowship Program at the University of Arizona for innovative research to protect species, sustain ecosystems, and promote a thriving planet lovejoycenter.arizona.edu/lovejoy-fell... 🧪🌐🌾
January 16, 2026 at 5:46 PM
A quick reminder that the deadline for this exciting postdoc fellowship is due soon. Come work with us! Support for work in biodiversity, ecology, and conservation with applied connections. Contact me or other Lovejoy faculty if you are interested 🧪🌐🌾
if you understand geometry you will understand what is going on
January 3, 2026 at 4:28 PM
if you understand geometry you will understand what is going on
Thanks to Barry Sinervo for leading decades-long research on the amazing side-blotched lizards. www.nytimes.com/2026/01/01/s...
This Diminutive Reptile Plays Rock-Paper-Scissors
www.nytimes.com
January 2, 2026 at 11:42 AM
Thanks to Barry Sinervo for leading decades-long research on the amazing side-blotched lizards. www.nytimes.com/2026/01/01/s...
Reposted by Michael Hochberg
Abstract submission is now open for the 2026 ISEEC Conference (21st-24th May in Crete). The theme is human-tech cooperation for the evolutionary management of cancer but we welcome submissions on all topics related to evolution, ecology and cancer. Submit abstracts by 10th Jan via www.evocancer.com
ISEEC
The International Society for Evolution, Ecology and Cancer
www.evocancer.com
December 15, 2025 at 9:55 AM
Abstract submission is now open for the 2026 ISEEC Conference (21st-24th May in Crete). The theme is human-tech cooperation for the evolutionary management of cancer but we welcome submissions on all topics related to evolution, ecology and cancer. Submit abstracts by 10th Jan via www.evocancer.com
Latest preprint where I analyze a simple coevolutionary model of somatic mutation rate and fitness lifespan. Evolution is mediated by disease, notably cancers. The model can explain the non-linear empirical relationship between somatic mutation and lifespan, and more. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Disease as a Mediator of Somatic Mutation - Fitspan Coevolution: Model Analysis and Empirical Tests
Multicellular organisms are confronted not only with germline mutations, but also mutations emerging in somatic cells. Somatic mutations can lead to various conditions, diseases, and cancers in partic...
www.biorxiv.org
December 23, 2025 at 8:39 AM
Latest preprint where I analyze a simple coevolutionary model of somatic mutation rate and fitness lifespan. Evolution is mediated by disease, notably cancers. The model can explain the non-linear empirical relationship between somatic mutation and lifespan, and more. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Reposted by Michael Hochberg
Putting on my hat as @asn-amnat.bsky.social ASN President for a minute for a string of announcements, please share widely!!!
1. Student research awards are open for applications, to fund research expenses for 10 graduate students ($2000 each)
nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com?url=https%3A...
1. Student research awards are open for applications, to fund research expenses for 10 graduate students ($2000 each)
nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com?url=https%3A...
Student Research Award
<p>The ASN Student Research Awards support research by student members that advances the goals of the society: the conceptual unification of ecology, evolution, and behavior. Each award consists of a ...
nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com
November 25, 2025 at 5:55 PM
Putting on my hat as @asn-amnat.bsky.social ASN President for a minute for a string of announcements, please share widely!!!
1. Student research awards are open for applications, to fund research expenses for 10 graduate students ($2000 each)
nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com?url=https%3A...
1. Student research awards are open for applications, to fund research expenses for 10 graduate students ($2000 each)
nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com?url=https%3A...
After about a year of almost daily use, I'm having my first argument with ChatGpt. Seems it differs in "opinion" with Gemini about the employment of e-folding for return times to equilibrium between nodes and foci. Getting to the bottom of this!
December 10, 2025 at 11:56 AM
After about a year of almost daily use, I'm having my first argument with ChatGpt. Seems it differs in "opinion" with Gemini about the employment of e-folding for return times to equilibrium between nodes and foci. Getting to the bottom of this!
Was happy to run into a pair of Buthus occitanus during a hike. They seemed happy too.
December 4, 2025 at 4:05 PM
Was happy to run into a pair of Buthus occitanus during a hike. They seemed happy too.
Reposted by Michael Hochberg
Postdoc position in individual-level incentives, social
learning, and payoff-biased imitation shape group-level accuracy in complex prediction and decision-making tasks in Konstanz
files.newsletter2go.com/l3slzozn/s_i...
learning, and payoff-biased imitation shape group-level accuracy in complex prediction and decision-making tasks in Konstanz
files.newsletter2go.com/l3slzozn/s_i...
files.newsletter2go.com
November 17, 2025 at 9:27 AM
Postdoc position in individual-level incentives, social
learning, and payoff-biased imitation shape group-level accuracy in complex prediction and decision-making tasks in Konstanz
files.newsletter2go.com/l3slzozn/s_i...
learning, and payoff-biased imitation shape group-level accuracy in complex prediction and decision-making tasks in Konstanz
files.newsletter2go.com/l3slzozn/s_i...
Nice discussion of our recent paper led by
@paulbrainey.bsky.social on possible routes to Human - AI interdependence and emergence of a new evolutionary individual www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y7LM...
@paulbrainey.bsky.social on possible routes to Human - AI interdependence and emergence of a new evolutionary individual www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y7LM...
#48 Could humans and AI merge into an evolutionary individual?
YouTube video by The DeepDive lab
www.youtube.com
November 18, 2025 at 9:21 PM
Nice discussion of our recent paper led by
@paulbrainey.bsky.social on possible routes to Human - AI interdependence and emergence of a new evolutionary individual www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y7LM...
@paulbrainey.bsky.social on possible routes to Human - AI interdependence and emergence of a new evolutionary individual www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y7LM...
Reposted by Michael Hochberg
Un poste d’IE en bioinformatique est actuellement ouvert au CEFE à Montpellier pour travailler dans le cadre de l'ERC RegEvol.
Détails ici:
emploi.cnrs.fr/Offres/CDD/U...
Début 01/01/2026 pour 18 mois potentiellement renouvelable.
candidature jusqu'au 29/11
N’hésitez pas à diffuser largement
Détails ici:
emploi.cnrs.fr/Offres/CDD/U...
Début 01/01/2026 pour 18 mois potentiellement renouvelable.
candidature jusqu'au 29/11
N’hésitez pas à diffuser largement
Portail Emploi CNRS - Offre d'emploi - Ingénieur d'études en bioinformatique (H/F)
emploi.cnrs.fr
November 18, 2025 at 3:09 PM
Un poste d’IE en bioinformatique est actuellement ouvert au CEFE à Montpellier pour travailler dans le cadre de l'ERC RegEvol.
Détails ici:
emploi.cnrs.fr/Offres/CDD/U...
Début 01/01/2026 pour 18 mois potentiellement renouvelable.
candidature jusqu'au 29/11
N’hésitez pas à diffuser largement
Détails ici:
emploi.cnrs.fr/Offres/CDD/U...
Début 01/01/2026 pour 18 mois potentiellement renouvelable.
candidature jusqu'au 29/11
N’hésitez pas à diffuser largement
Reposted by Michael Hochberg
Come and do a PhD at Exeter with me and Chico Camargo (Computer Science) on human-genAI coevolution
"Leveraging Natural Language Processing for Data-Driven Agent-Based Modelling of Online Cultural Dynamics"
www.exeter.ac.uk/v8media/recr...
More details here:
www.exeter.ac.uk/study/fundin...
"Leveraging Natural Language Processing for Data-Driven Agent-Based Modelling of Online Cultural Dynamics"
www.exeter.ac.uk/v8media/recr...
More details here:
www.exeter.ac.uk/study/fundin...
www.exeter.ac.uk
November 14, 2025 at 3:14 PM
Come and do a PhD at Exeter with me and Chico Camargo (Computer Science) on human-genAI coevolution
"Leveraging Natural Language Processing for Data-Driven Agent-Based Modelling of Online Cultural Dynamics"
www.exeter.ac.uk/v8media/recr...
More details here:
www.exeter.ac.uk/study/fundin...
"Leveraging Natural Language Processing for Data-Driven Agent-Based Modelling of Online Cultural Dynamics"
www.exeter.ac.uk/v8media/recr...
More details here:
www.exeter.ac.uk/study/fundin...
Reposted by Michael Hochberg
#48 Could humans and AI merge into an evolutionary individual?
YouTube video by The DeepDive lab
youtu.be
November 15, 2025 at 8:42 AM
Reposted by Michael Hochberg
New theme issue of #PhilTransB on the evolutionary functions of #consciousness. Read: buff.ly/blMm4eR
November 14, 2025 at 7:00 PM
New theme issue of #PhilTransB on the evolutionary functions of #consciousness. Read: buff.ly/blMm4eR
Reposted by Michael Hochberg
SAVE THE DATE: the yearly NY Population Genetics meeting will be back on March 9 2026, generously hosted by the
@simonsfoundation.org. Details to follow. Please RT.
@simonsfoundation.org. Details to follow. Please RT.
November 14, 2025 at 5:05 PM
SAVE THE DATE: the yearly NY Population Genetics meeting will be back on March 9 2026, generously hosted by the
@simonsfoundation.org. Details to follow. Please RT.
@simonsfoundation.org. Details to follow. Please RT.
Reposted by Michael Hochberg
My department at UT Austin is looking to hire an Assistant Professor in Evolutionary Biology, broadly defined. Feel free to reach out to me with any questions you may have.
apply.interfolio.com/177547
apply.interfolio.com/177547
Apply - Interfolio
{{$ctrl.$state.data.pageTitle}} - Apply - Interfolio
apply.interfolio.com
November 13, 2025 at 3:23 PM
My department at UT Austin is looking to hire an Assistant Professor in Evolutionary Biology, broadly defined. Feel free to reach out to me with any questions you may have.
apply.interfolio.com/177547
apply.interfolio.com/177547
Still some hope. They did say "implies".
Physicists prove the #Universe is NOT a #SIMULATION [via UBC Okanagan] 🧪🥼🌌❌🔢
“[From] [math] theorems [of] incompleteness and indefinability, we [show] that a fully consistent and complete description of reality cannot be achieved through #computation alone”
news.ok.ubc.ca/2025/10/30/u...
#real
“[From] [math] theorems [of] incompleteness and indefinability, we [show] that a fully consistent and complete description of reality cannot be achieved through #computation alone”
news.ok.ubc.ca/2025/10/30/u...
#real
UBCO study debunks the idea that the universe is a computer simulation - UBC's Okanagan News
New study uses logic and physics to definitively answer one of science's biggest questions
news.ok.ubc.ca
November 10, 2025 at 7:51 PM
Still some hope. They did say "implies".
Reposted by Michael Hochberg
I started a new job in Montpellier, France!
Happy about new opportunities, sad about the state of things in the US.
abetterscientist.wordpress.com/2025/10/26/w...
Happy about new opportunities, sad about the state of things in the US.
abetterscientist.wordpress.com/2025/10/26/w...
We left the US and moved to France
Hello readers, I got big updates! Some of you already know this, but it’s getting more real and more official every month: my family and I have left the US and moved to France! A few months ago I q…
abetterscientist.wordpress.com
October 27, 2025 at 7:19 PM
I started a new job in Montpellier, France!
Happy about new opportunities, sad about the state of things in the US.
abetterscientist.wordpress.com/2025/10/26/w...
Happy about new opportunities, sad about the state of things in the US.
abetterscientist.wordpress.com/2025/10/26/w...
Hard to know what to say here. So much going on.
Last night’s election results, in a nutshell.
(watching this legitimately made me laugh out loud)
(watching this legitimately made me laugh out loud)
just....enjoy this
November 6, 2025 at 8:38 PM
Hard to know what to say here. So much going on.
Reposted by Michael Hochberg
New @natgenet.nature.com paper from the brilliant @eszterlakatos.bsky.social presents evidence that chromatin alterations disrupt antigen presentation & neoantigens in colorectal cancer. Also that immune escape is part of the "Big Bang", at the outset of CRC growth. www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Epigenetically driven and early immune evasion in colorectal cancer evolution - Nature Genetics
This study nominates immune escape as an early event in colorectal cancer and shows how this can be driven through both genetic and epigenetic changes.
www.nature.com
November 5, 2025 at 4:36 PM
New @natgenet.nature.com paper from the brilliant @eszterlakatos.bsky.social presents evidence that chromatin alterations disrupt antigen presentation & neoantigens in colorectal cancer. Also that immune escape is part of the "Big Bang", at the outset of CRC growth. www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by Michael Hochberg
A new technique called ‘mind captioning’ generates descriptive sentences of what a person is seeing or picturing in their mind using a read-out of their brain activity, with impressive accuracy.
go.nature.com/3XbnxB1
go.nature.com/3XbnxB1
‘Mind-captioning’ AI decodes brain activity to turn thoughts into text
A non-invasive imaging technique can translate scenes in your head into sentences. It could help to reveal how the brain interprets the world.
go.nature.com
November 5, 2025 at 8:17 PM
A new technique called ‘mind captioning’ generates descriptive sentences of what a person is seeing or picturing in their mind using a read-out of their brain activity, with impressive accuracy.
go.nature.com/3XbnxB1
go.nature.com/3XbnxB1
Reposted by Michael Hochberg
#microsky #mevosky @spp2389.bsky.social
A PhD position is available in my lab to work on:
Emergence and self-organisation of bacterial metabolism in consortia of cross-feeding bacteria.
Please RT
Deadline: 12.11.25
More infos 👇
shorturl.at/rAKAT
A PhD position is available in my lab to work on:
Emergence and self-organisation of bacterial metabolism in consortia of cross-feeding bacteria.
Please RT
Deadline: 12.11.25
More infos 👇
shorturl.at/rAKAT
October 30, 2025 at 7:50 AM