Brigitte Nerlich

@bnerlich.bsky.social

2.3K followers 510 following 8.1K posts

Metaphor hunter, linguist, social scientist, blogger

blog: https://makingsciencepublic.com/
also sorted into categories at https://wakelet.com/@bnerlich
ORCID: 0000-0001-6617-7827

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Psychology 23%

Communication & Media Studies 23%

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Brigitte Nerlich @bnerlich.bsky.social · Nov 17

So, I have created a starter pack for people interested in #metaphor. I bet I left a lot of people out. Please let me know if you want to be added. go.bsky.app/DvxejFX

Reposted by Brigitte Nerlich

ian walker @iantothemax.bsky.social · 13h

reporters: if you absolutely have to link to tweets in your stories, please start using xcancel. you literally just add “cancel” to the URL and it works.

Reposted by Brigitte Nerlich

Prof Ben Britton @bmatb.expmicromech.com · 13h

Many fellows of the @royalsociety.org (FRS) are incredibly good scientists with a wide reach.

Yet, as the society, & the president of the society, react and engage in public discussions of at least one fellow and their conduct, the "brand" and relevance of the society continues to be at risk.

1/

Brigitte Nerlich @bnerlich.bsky.social · 18h

Makes me think of Kamala Harris' comment: "“I believed that on some level, there should be many who consider themselves to be guardians of our system and our democracy, who just capitulated,” she responded."" deadline.com/2025/07/kama...

Reposted by Brigitte Nerlich

$profrachelgan.bsky.social$

Prof Rachel Oliver @profrachelgan.bsky.social · 19h

Following coverage over the weekend of Sir Paul Nurse's comments that suggested that the only reason that a Fellow should be expelled from @royalsociety.org is scientific misconduct, I have written to him to explain the risks such an attitude poses of increasing sexual harassment in STEM.

Dear Sir Paul,

Re: Royal Society Code of Conduct

I am sure that many scientists have written to you about the specific question of Elon Musk’s Fellowship and whether, under the Royal Society’s Code of Conduct, his retaining that Fellowship is appropriate. I will not rehash these issues. Instead, as a female scientist with extensive experience of activities aiming to increase equality, diversity and inclusion in the engineering and physical sciences sector, I am writing to you (in a personal capacity) to ask you to reconsider the statements you have recently made in this context to the UK press about the Royal Society’s Code of Conduct and how it is applied.

A 2018 report from the joint National Academies of the United States of America, concluded that “sexual harassment is common in academic science, engineering, and medicine” and that “greater than 50 percent of women faculty and staff and 20–50 percent of women students encounter or experience sexually harassing conduct in academia”. This report described codes of conduct that make clear that sexual harassment is unethical and will not be tolerated as a “powerful incentive for change”. The authors also noted that sexual harassment can have significant and damaging effects on the integrity of research. In my own praxis, I have found that clear and consistently-implemented codes of conduct that address these issues make female scientists and engineers safer, and allow them to focus more effectively on their research. For codes of conduct to have such a positive effect, it is vital that sanctions for actions which transgress the code are meaningful and substantial.

I was hence aghast to realise that in an interview with the Financial Times published on 9/1/26, you appear to have suggested that the Royal Society “should only expel fellows if their science proved “faulty or fraudulent or highly defective””. Moreover, in a further interview with the Guardian on 11/1/26 you suggested that the code “may need to be looked at again”, with the implication that your aim would be to remove the option of sanctions on Fellows for reasons not strictly related to faults or defects in their research.

I suggest that changing the Royal Society’s code of conduct so that the likelihood of serious sanctions for sexual harassment is reduced, would directly endanger women who interact with the Royal Society at events or otherwise, and would provide a licence to harass to the already powerful people on whom the Society bestows fellowship. The implications of your words - that under your leadership the only infringements of the code which are likely to receive the sanction of the Fellowship being removed are those related to research misconduct - already risk empowering harassers. You stated, in the Financial Times interview, that “there’s many bad people around, but they have made scientific advances”. Given this awareness of the possibility of bad actors in our scientific community, it is wholly irresponsible to suggest that the Royal Society would not act to sanction these people if they harass more vulnerable scientists.

I am hence writing to request that you retract any suggestion that the Society’s Code of Conduct should be changed so that the only reason a Fellow might be sanctioned by the removal of their Fellowship is “faulty or fraudulent or highly defective” research. This action is necessary to safeguard female scientists, a requirement placed on the Society by safeguarding legislation and UK statutory guidance.

Yours sincerely,

Professor Rachel A. Oliver.

Brigitte Nerlich @bnerlich.bsky.social · 1d

Reminds me of Labov and all that improbable.com/2017/02/23/i...

Reposted by Brigitte Nerlich

Juliet E McKenna @julietemckenna.bsky.social · 1d

Hello new people! Please share a bit about yourself in a brief profile. I don't need to see a 'legal' name or ID photo, just some indication of interest in the wide range of things that interest me. Blank profiles tend to get blocked, along with bots, grifters and accounts solely amplifying outrage.

Brigitte Nerlich @bnerlich.bsky.social · 1d

This is really worth a read by everybody interested in, using or opposing #AI

Reposted by Brigitte Nerlich

Licia Corbolante (@terminologia) @terminologiaetc.it · 2d

a proposito di nuovi tipi di slop

Testo in inglese da articolo di The Guardian:
JD Vance, the US vice-president, has agreed that it is “entirely unacceptable” for platforms such as X to allow the proliferation of AI-generated sexualised images of women and children, David Lammy has told the Guardian.

The deputy prime minister said Vance, usually known as an AI enthusiast, expressed concern about how the technology was being used to fuel “hyper-pornographied slop” online when they met in Washington on Thursday.

Reposted by Brigitte Nerlich

Andrew Maynard @andrewmaynard.net · 2d

Is AI a Cognitive Trojan Horse?

Could on-demand, seductively responsive and highly fluent AI models bypass our "epistemic vigilance" mechanisms, and present a novel cognitive risk?

Read the full article here:

www.futureofbeinghuman.com/p/is-ai-a-co...

Is AI a Cognitive Trojan Horse?

Could on-demand, seductively responsive and highly fluent AI models bypass our "epistemic vigilance" mechanisms, and present a novel cognitive risk?

www.futureofbeinghuman.com

Brigitte Nerlich @bnerlich.bsky.social · 2d

I enjoyed that post and the pictures!

Brigitte Nerlich @bnerlich.bsky.social · 2d

reading, writing metaphors all the way down, or is it metaphors?

Brigitte Nerlich @bnerlich.bsky.social · 2d

au, ja!

Brigitte Nerlich @bnerlich.bsky.social · 2d

Just read on some packaging: "Scanning Sie hier für Recyling Anweisungen". Why not just say "Scan here for recycling instructions" and be done with it!

Reposted by Brigitte Nerlich

Heard Island Government @heardislandgov.bsky.social · 2d

Word and meetings are not sufficient. By request, we are deploying a contingent of Heard Island Defense Forces to Greenland to send a simple message. Flippers up and F*%# right Off! -General Thaddeus Snowclaw

Reposted by Dorothy Bishop, Brigitte Nerlich, Aidan O’Sullivan

Alison Fisk @alisonfisk.bsky.social · 2d

Something lovely for the weekend!

Minoan cups made by Bronze Age potters some 3,800 years ago!

Heraklion Archaeological Museum, Crete 📷 by me

#Archaeology

My photo collage shows five cylindrical Minoan cups each with a single handle and a slightly flaring rim. Each cup is decorated with a different geometric polychrome motif as follows:

Top left: on a black background, a central band delineated by an upper and lower white line contains evenly-spaced dark-orange circles, each orange circle is outlined by a white line. Above and below the central band are swirling white vine-like lines.

Top right: on a black background, a large white spiral on the front of the cup and beside it a dark-orange oval with stylised white petals at each end which looks like a wrapped sweet!

Middle left: a central band of white and dark orange diagonal lines runs around the cup. Above and below the central band are alternating black and white diagonal shapes, the black ones look like shark fins

Bottom left: a central reddish-orange band delineated with a white line. Above the central band are swirling, spiralling white lines against a black background, and below the central band are alternating white and black diagonal lines.

Bottom right: all set against a black background. A central band delineated with white lines contains white ‘s’-shaped diagonal white stripes. Above the central band a row of red dots outlined with white circles. Below the central band a single white line on the black background.

This type of Minoan pottery is known as Kamares Ware, named after the Kamares Cave on Mount Ida on the Greek island of Crete where this kind of pottery was first discovered. Kamares Ware vessels were luxury items produced by palace workshops at Phaistos and Knossos on Crete. These five cups were excavated at Phaistos and are dated 1800-1700 BC.

Brigitte Nerlich @bnerlich.bsky.social · 2d

from biobricks as Lego during nano times to AI bricks as lego during AI times....

Reposted by Brigitte Nerlich

Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 3d

Here’s just some of that Royal Society code of conduct. It looks extremely clear to me that Musk is breaching it in multiple ways. It also seems clear to me that the Royal Society has explicitly set out that it should judge the character & actions o its fellows.

Royal Society: Code of Conduct and Disciplinary Regulations
Code of Conduct for Royal Society Fellows and Foreign Members
The Royal Society (“Society”)’s fundamental purpose, reflected in its founding Charters of the 1660s, is to
recognise, promote, and support excellence in science and to encourage the development and use of
science for the benefit of humanity. The credibility of the Society’s work in pursuit of these objectives
rests in large part upon its reputation. This in turn rests upon the reputation of the Fellows and Foreign
Members of which the Society is composed, and their upholding of high standards in their work and
conduct both inside and outside of the Society.
Fellowship and Foreign Membership of the Society is a privilege predicated on adherence to particular
standards of conduct. Fellows and Foreign Members, by joining the Society, agree to abide by this Code of
Conduct.
Section 1 – Principles
1. 2. Fellows and Foreign Members shall support the Society and its charitable purposes.
Fellows and Foreign Members shall adhere to the provisions within the Society's governing
document relating to them and their role and responsibilities, and shall adhere to all of the
Society's policies that at any time are relevant to Fellows and Foreign Members.
3. The Society strives to act in accordance with the highest standards of public life. In their work with
the Society, all Fellows and Foreign Members are expected to follow the Nolan principles of public
life, namely: selflessness, integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty and leadership.
4. 5. Fellows and Foreign Members shall have due regard for the statement of values developed from
time to time by Society from time to time (the current version of which is outlined below in the
Appendix), and shall use their best endeavours to promote these values.
Fellows and Foreign Members shall not act or fail to act in any way which would undermine the
Society's mission or bring the Society into disrep…

Brigitte Nerlich @bnerlich.bsky.social · 3d

I really can't believe that!

Brigitte Nerlich @bnerlich.bsky.social · 3d

eerie

Brigitte Nerlich @bnerlich.bsky.social · 3d

oh interesting, I have an article geoeng metaphors stuck in reviewing for over a year, so if are ever getting to the point to revise.... hahahahaha hysterical laughter

Brigitte Nerlich @bnerlich.bsky.social · 3d

I so agree: "I unironically believe that the emergence of human language deserves to stand alongside the emergence of life as one of the great unsolved mysteries of science."

Brigitte Nerlich @bnerlich.bsky.social · 3d

same here - Jan and Feb - fingers crossed

Brigitte Nerlich @bnerlich.bsky.social · 3d

'Timelines' we live in, with and by - little linguistic investigation #linguistics makingsciencepublic.com/2026/01/09/t...

Timelines we live in: A linguistic investigation

At the beginning of the year, I was browsing my timeline on Bluesky* and came across sentences like this: “The absolute dumbest possible timeline. That’s what we live in.” “I know we all say …

makingsciencepublic.com

Reposted by Brigitte Nerlich

Philip Ball @philipcball.bsky.social · 3d

Really nice article and interview. As Molz says, there were some things in this study that were surprising and some that weren't at all (if you'd been paying attention).
www.reviewertoo.com/theres-no-ge...

There's no gene for being human

A Q&A on genetics and human evolution with Barbara Molz

www.reviewertoo.com

Brigitte Nerlich @bnerlich.bsky.social · 3d

A post on the use of '#timeline' in modern English (I wrote it at the beginning of the week when my timelines wasn't quite as bad as it is now) #linguistics makingsciencepublic.com/2026/01/09/t...

Timelines we live in: A linguistic investigation

makingsciencepublic.com

Reposted by Brigitte Nerlich, Christina Pagel

Otto English @ottoenglish.bsky.social · 4d

As reported by @theguardian.com

www.theguardian.com/politics/liv...

Former minister says government should quit X over child sexual abuse imagery – UK politics live

Louise Haigh says use of Elon Musk’s social media platform ‘unconscionable’ amid proliferation of abuse imagery

www.theguardian.com

Brigitte Nerlich @bnerlich.bsky.social · 4d

You have a point there!

Reposted by Brigitte Nerlich, Will Jennings, Steve Peers , and 7 more Brigitte Nerlich, Will Jennings, Steve Peers, Leigh Sparks, Elizabeth Stokoe, Tom Griffin, Stephen Ryan, Michael H. Whitworth, Mark Robinson, Francesco Nicoli

Louise Haigh @louisehaighmp.bsky.social · 4d

I call on my party and my government to remove themselves entirely from X and communicate with the public where they actually participate online and can be protected from such illegality.

Brigitte Nerlich @bnerlich.bsky.social · 4d

but it has a woman in it, isn't that great!?

Brigitte Nerlich @bnerlich.bsky.social · 4d

I think you are right. I use a forum for a thing and have a lived experience thing of the thing - they are quite separate but they also intersect in interesting ways

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