Dang Liu
@dangliu.bsky.social
Postdoc @ Universität Zürich | genomics & genetics | human evolutionary & adaptive history | dangliu.github.io
Reposted by Dang Liu
Starting off 2026 in a highly porcine manner. The story dropped on Jan 1 when a lot of the planet was focussed more on a hangover cure (myself included), than on the latest in human-pig research. Huge congrats to the dozens of amazing scientists and hooray for pigs!
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Genomic and morphometric evidence for Austronesian-mediated pig translocation in the Pacific
Several millennia of human-mediated translocation of non-native pig species (genus Sus) to the islands of Wallacea and Oceania have considerably altered local ecosystems. To investigate the timing and...
www.science.org
January 7, 2026 at 1:59 PM
Starting off 2026 in a highly porcine manner. The story dropped on Jan 1 when a lot of the planet was focussed more on a hangover cure (myself included), than on the latest in human-pig research. Huge congrats to the dozens of amazing scientists and hooray for pigs!
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Reposted by Dang Liu
Oh, look! A paper about the coolest piece of software I've ever built!
demografr: A toolkit for simulation-based inference in population genetics https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2025.12.18.694482v1
January 6, 2026 at 10:07 PM
Oh, look! A paper about the coolest piece of software I've ever built!
Reposted by Dang Liu
And we're live, Lecture A1 is online. Introduction to Bayesian workflow, generative models, estimands, estimators, estimates, error checking, beginnings of probability theory and Bayesian updating. www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztbY...
January 6, 2026 at 11:02 AM
And we're live, Lecture A1 is online. Introduction to Bayesian workflow, generative models, estimands, estimators, estimates, error checking, beginnings of probability theory and Bayesian updating. www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztbY...
Reposted by Dang Liu
📢 We're hiring a postdoc (33 months) in human evolutionary genomics / paleogenomics / statistical genetics, Paris 🇫🇷
Project on selection on disease-associated variants, integrating ancient genomes, GWAS, and Ancestral Rec. Graphs.
Start May 2026 (flexible).
Apply here: emploi.cnrs.fr/Offres/CDD/U...
Project on selection on disease-associated variants, integrating ancient genomes, GWAS, and Ancestral Rec. Graphs.
Start May 2026 (flexible).
Apply here: emploi.cnrs.fr/Offres/CDD/U...
Portail Emploi CNRS - Offre d'emploi - Postdoc in human evolutionary genetics and bioinformatics (M/F)
Assurez-vous que votre profil candidat soit correctement renseigné avant de postuler
emploi.cnrs.fr
December 31, 2025 at 10:26 AM
📢 We're hiring a postdoc (33 months) in human evolutionary genomics / paleogenomics / statistical genetics, Paris 🇫🇷
Project on selection on disease-associated variants, integrating ancient genomes, GWAS, and Ancestral Rec. Graphs.
Start May 2026 (flexible).
Apply here: emploi.cnrs.fr/Offres/CDD/U...
Project on selection on disease-associated variants, integrating ancient genomes, GWAS, and Ancestral Rec. Graphs.
Start May 2026 (flexible).
Apply here: emploi.cnrs.fr/Offres/CDD/U...
Reposted by Dang Liu
How much better is an ancestral recombination graph (ARG) than a site frequency spectrum (SFS)? For recovering mutation rate history, we can answer fairly precisely because both ARG and SFS are linear transforms of mutation rate history. This blog post uses spectral analysis to clarify the picture.
Observability of mutation rate histories from ancestral recombination graphs
This post explores mathematical aspects of recovering mutation rate histories from an ancestral recombination graph (ARG) Vs a sample frequency spectrum (SFS), expanding on a recent collaborative pape...
dewitt-lab.github.io
December 22, 2025 at 6:19 PM
How much better is an ancestral recombination graph (ARG) than a site frequency spectrum (SFS)? For recovering mutation rate history, we can answer fairly precisely because both ARG and SFS are linear transforms of mutation rate history. This blog post uses spectral analysis to clarify the picture.
Reposted by Dang Liu
demografr: A toolkit for simulation-based inference in population genetics https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2025.12.18.694482v1
December 19, 2025 at 7:31 AM
demografr: A toolkit for simulation-based inference in population genetics https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2025.12.18.694482v1
Reposted by Dang Liu
The Influence of Demographic History and Genetic Architecture on Complex Traits via Runs of Homozygosity https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2025.12.17.694908v1
December 18, 2025 at 6:31 AM
The Influence of Demographic History and Genetic Architecture on Complex Traits via Runs of Homozygosity https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2025.12.17.694908v1
Reposted by Dang Liu
Preprint online right before the holidays! Excited to share the first piece of work from the Zhang Lab, led by my absolutely stellar postdoc Michelle Kim! In this work, we ask how admixture, selection and demography shape complex trait genetics and GWAS performance www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
Determining the driving factors shaping genetic architecture of complex traits in recently admixed populations
Understanding the genetic architecture of complex traits in admixed populations remains challenging due to heterogeneous genetic backgrounds and demographic histories. Mischaracterizing admixture can ...
www.biorxiv.org
December 16, 2025 at 1:47 PM
Preprint online right before the holidays! Excited to share the first piece of work from the Zhang Lab, led by my absolutely stellar postdoc Michelle Kim! In this work, we ask how admixture, selection and demography shape complex trait genetics and GWAS performance www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
Reposted by Dang Liu
A curated global dataset of social contact between diverse language communities
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
December 11, 2025 at 7:34 PM
A curated global dataset of social contact between diverse language communities
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by Dang Liu
GWAS has been an incredible discovery tool for human genetics: it regularly identifies *causal* links from 1000s of SNPs to any given trait. But mechanistic interpretation is usually difficult.
Our latest work on causal models for this is out yesterday:
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
A short🧵:
Our latest work on causal models for this is out yesterday:
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
A short🧵:
Causal modelling of gene effects from regulators to programs to traits - Nature
Approaches combining genetic association and Perturb-seq data that link genetic variants to functional programs to traits are described.
www.nature.com
December 11, 2025 at 5:54 PM
GWAS has been an incredible discovery tool for human genetics: it regularly identifies *causal* links from 1000s of SNPs to any given trait. But mechanistic interpretation is usually difficult.
Our latest work on causal models for this is out yesterday:
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
A short🧵:
Our latest work on causal models for this is out yesterday:
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
A short🧵:
Reposted by Dang Liu
I'm teaching Statistical Rethinking again starting Jan 2026. This time with live lectures, divided into Beginner and Experienced sections. Will be a lot more work for me, but I hope much better for students.
I will record lectures & all will be found at this link: github.com/rmcelreath/s...
I will record lectures & all will be found at this link: github.com/rmcelreath/s...
December 9, 2025 at 1:58 PM
I'm teaching Statistical Rethinking again starting Jan 2026. This time with live lectures, divided into Beginner and Experienced sections. Will be a lot more work for me, but I hope much better for students.
I will record lectures & all will be found at this link: github.com/rmcelreath/s...
I will record lectures & all will be found at this link: github.com/rmcelreath/s...
Reposted by Dang Liu
Work from my amazing undergrad @leyan-wang.bsky.social is just preprinted! TL;DR: If you worry that ARG methods might fail on unphased data due to phasing errors, you may not need to.
Check it out & consider reposting to support a great young scientist!
Check it out & consider reposting to support a great young scientist!
We are excited to share our recent work on the surprising robustness of Ancestral Recombination Graph (ARG) inference tools to computational phasing errors, now available on BioRxiv: biorxiv.org/content/10.1....
This work is co-advised by @yundeng.bsky.social and Rasmus Nielsen.
1/7
This work is co-advised by @yundeng.bsky.social and Rasmus Nielsen.
1/7
Robustness of Ancestral Recombination Graph Inference Tools to Phasing Errors
Ancestral Recombination Graphs (ARGs) are fundamental population genetic structures that encode the genealogical history of a sample of haplotypes along the genome. They have recently received substan...
biorxiv.org
November 26, 2025 at 5:12 PM
Work from my amazing undergrad @leyan-wang.bsky.social is just preprinted! TL;DR: If you worry that ARG methods might fail on unphased data due to phasing errors, you may not need to.
Check it out & consider reposting to support a great young scientist!
Check it out & consider reposting to support a great young scientist!
Reposted by Dang Liu
The preprint from my first postdoc is finally out! I had a blast working on this project with such an amazing team!
New pre-print out! 🎉 With @mathilde-andre.bsky.social + team we traced spatio-temporal shifts in genetically regulated #transcription across 10,000 years of Western Eurasia, fine-mapping regulatory features targeted by #selection! 👉 doi.org/10.1101/2025... ! #popgen #genomics
doi.org
November 23, 2025 at 9:21 AM
The preprint from my first postdoc is finally out! I had a blast working on this project with such an amazing team!
Reposted by Dang Liu
Origins of language, one of humanity’s most distinctive traits, may be best explained as a unique convergence of multiple capacities each with its own evolutionary history, involving intertwined roles of biology & culture. This framing can expand research horizons. A 🧵 on our @science.org paper.🧪1/n
What enables human language? A biocultural framework
Explaining the origins of language is a key challenge in understanding ourselves as a species. We present an empirical framework that draws on synergies across fields to facilitate robust studies of l...
www.science.org
November 23, 2025 at 11:54 AM
Origins of language, one of humanity’s most distinctive traits, may be best explained as a unique convergence of multiple capacities each with its own evolutionary history, involving intertwined roles of biology & culture. This framing can expand research horizons. A 🧵 on our @science.org paper.🧪1/n
Reposted by Dang Liu
The 2026 EMBL symposium 'Reconstructing the human past using ancient and modern genomics' is live with a fantastic invited speaker lineup!
Abstract deadline 9 June. If work is ongoing, plan for Heidelberg in September😉.
Organised by Maanasa Raghavan, @matejahajdi.bsky.social, Choongwon Jeong & me.
Abstract deadline 9 June. If work is ongoing, plan for Heidelberg in September😉.
Organised by Maanasa Raghavan, @matejahajdi.bsky.social, Choongwon Jeong & me.
November 19, 2025 at 1:41 PM
The 2026 EMBL symposium 'Reconstructing the human past using ancient and modern genomics' is live with a fantastic invited speaker lineup!
Abstract deadline 9 June. If work is ongoing, plan for Heidelberg in September😉.
Organised by Maanasa Raghavan, @matejahajdi.bsky.social, Choongwon Jeong & me.
Abstract deadline 9 June. If work is ongoing, plan for Heidelberg in September😉.
Organised by Maanasa Raghavan, @matejahajdi.bsky.social, Choongwon Jeong & me.
Reposted by Dang Liu
Exciting new study led by @ekerdoncuff.bsky.social and @meaghanmarohn.bsky.social on the evolution of Lactase Persistence in South Asia.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Revisiting the Evolution of Lactase Persistence: Insights from South Asian Genomes
Lactase persistence (LP), the ability to digest lactose from milk into adulthood, is a classic example of natural selection in humans. Multiple mutations upstream of the LCT gene are associated with L...
www.biorxiv.org
November 7, 2025 at 2:33 PM
Exciting new study led by @ekerdoncuff.bsky.social and @meaghanmarohn.bsky.social on the evolution of Lactase Persistence in South Asia.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Reposted by Dang Liu
If you're interested in how advances in human genomics are transforming our understanding of the biology of spoken & written language abilities, please do check out my new peer-reviewed "tutorial" article, just published.
🗣️🧬🧪
[Will also make a Bsky explainer 🧵 on it next week when I get some time🙂.]
🗣️🧬🧪
[Will also make a Bsky explainer 🧵 on it next week when I get some time🙂.]
Genomic Investigations of Spoken and Written Language Abilities: A Guide to Advances in Approaches, Technologies, and Discovery
Purpose: The aim of this tutorial is to show how the rise of molecular technologies
and analytical methods in human genetics yields exciting new ...
pubs.asha.org
October 30, 2025 at 3:49 PM
If you're interested in how advances in human genomics are transforming our understanding of the biology of spoken & written language abilities, please do check out my new peer-reviewed "tutorial" article, just published.
🗣️🧬🧪
[Will also make a Bsky explainer 🧵 on it next week when I get some time🙂.]
🗣️🧬🧪
[Will also make a Bsky explainer 🧵 on it next week when I get some time🙂.]
Reposted by Dang Liu
Séminaire sur les apports récents de la génomique à l'histoire évolutive humaine au cours des derniers dix millénaires
Etienne Patin - L'histoire d'Homo sapiens à la lumière de la génomique
YouTube video by Institut Pasteur EDUCATION
www.youtube.com
October 22, 2025 at 9:20 AM
Séminaire sur les apports récents de la génomique à l'histoire évolutive humaine au cours des derniers dix millénaires
Reposted by Dang Liu
The most surprising insight is that the Jomon, early inhabitants of the Japanese Archipelago, have much less Denisovan ancestry than all other East Asians - thus the Jomon (partially) descend from a lineage that predates the gene flow between modern-humans and Denisovans
October 20, 2025 at 6:14 PM
The most surprising insight is that the Jomon, early inhabitants of the Japanese Archipelago, have much less Denisovan ancestry than all other East Asians - thus the Jomon (partially) descend from a lineage that predates the gene flow between modern-humans and Denisovans
Reposted by Dang Liu
🎉The 1st paper in our special issue "Population Genomics Methods and Software" is now published!!
“SimHumanity: Using SLiM 5.0 to run whole-genome simulations of human evolution”
www.pivotscipub.com/hpgg/5/4/000...
Many more exciting papers to come - stay tuned!
www.pivotscipub.com/hpgg/special...
“SimHumanity: Using SLiM 5.0 to run whole-genome simulations of human evolution”
www.pivotscipub.com/hpgg/5/4/000...
Many more exciting papers to come - stay tuned!
www.pivotscipub.com/hpgg/special...
SimHumanity: Using SLiM 5.0 to run whole-genome simulations of human evolution
SimHumanity: Using SLiM 5.0 to run whole-genome simulations of human evolution
www.pivotscipub.com
October 16, 2025 at 7:05 AM
🎉The 1st paper in our special issue "Population Genomics Methods and Software" is now published!!
“SimHumanity: Using SLiM 5.0 to run whole-genome simulations of human evolution”
www.pivotscipub.com/hpgg/5/4/000...
Many more exciting papers to come - stay tuned!
www.pivotscipub.com/hpgg/special...
“SimHumanity: Using SLiM 5.0 to run whole-genome simulations of human evolution”
www.pivotscipub.com/hpgg/5/4/000...
Many more exciting papers to come - stay tuned!
www.pivotscipub.com/hpgg/special...
Reposted by Dang Liu
FLARE2: local ancestry inference with poorly-matched reference panels https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.10.13.681993v1
October 14, 2025 at 5:34 PM
FLARE2: local ancestry inference with poorly-matched reference panels https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.10.13.681993v1
Reposted by Dang Liu
Selection scans and downstream analysis with selscan https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.10.10.681670v1
October 13, 2025 at 5:32 AM
Selection scans and downstream analysis with selscan https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.10.10.681670v1
Reposted by Dang Liu
Method works from simple and complex scenarios in jointly estimating epoch time, population size, migration rate (symmetric or asymmetric), growth rate, and admixture proportion. Software integrated with msprime, demes, tsinfer/tsdate, relate, and singer. github.com/aprilweilab/...
October 8, 2025 at 2:48 PM
Method works from simple and complex scenarios in jointly estimating epoch time, population size, migration rate (symmetric or asymmetric), growth rate, and admixture proportion. Software integrated with msprime, demes, tsinfer/tsdate, relate, and singer. github.com/aprilweilab/...
Reposted by Dang Liu
Inference of complex demographic history using composite likelihood based on whole-genome genealogies https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.10.07.680347v1
October 8, 2025 at 1:33 AM
Inference of complex demographic history using composite likelihood based on whole-genome genealogies https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.10.07.680347v1
Reposted by Dang Liu
We have a few remaining seats left in the “Programming for Evolutionary Biologists” course - 10th edition, Berlin, Feb 17 to Mar 6
evop.bioinf.uni-leipzig.de
A highly motivated and experienced team is waiting for you with an updated curriculum!
evop.bioinf.uni-leipzig.de
A highly motivated and experienced team is waiting for you with an updated curriculum!
Programming for Evolutionary Biology School (EVOP) | February 18th – March 5th 2026
evop.bioinf.uni-leipzig.de
October 7, 2025 at 9:55 AM
We have a few remaining seats left in the “Programming for Evolutionary Biologists” course - 10th edition, Berlin, Feb 17 to Mar 6
evop.bioinf.uni-leipzig.de
A highly motivated and experienced team is waiting for you with an updated curriculum!
evop.bioinf.uni-leipzig.de
A highly motivated and experienced team is waiting for you with an updated curriculum!