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Ed Hagen @edhagen.net · 1h

One final point. This article shows that (ignoring infanticide) many more men than women die violently in several small-scale S. American populations, including two mentioned by Will (and the hypothesis in question is about a sex *difference* in protectiveness):
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Body counts in lowland South American violence

Violence was likely often a strong selective pressure in many traditional lowland South American societies. A compilation of 11 anthropological studie…

www.sciencedirect.com

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Ed Hagen @edhagen.net · 1h

...open science folks (including you?) were defensive about this (imo, unwarranted) attack on open science: www.science.org/content/arti...

Science’s reform movement should have seen Trump’s call for ‘gold standard science’ coming, critics say

Efforts to improve the rigor of research may have unwittingly handed the administration a way to attack science

www.science.org

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Ed Hagen @edhagen.net · 1h

I agree that EP's meta theory makes it easier to falsify EP hypotheses. I also agree that there is a tendency to circle the wagons, probably due to a universal evolved ingroup/outgroup psychology 🙂. For example...

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Ed Hagen @edhagen.net · 19h

Yep, and many women *endorse* husbands beating their wives. Here are results from data I'm working on right now from 2.3 million women in low and middle income countries (TRUE: agree with at least 1 reason; FALSE: do not agree with any of these reasons):

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Ed Hagen @edhagen.net · 20h

But my strong impression is that the distribution of study quality within EP is about the same as the distribution within psychology in general (i.e., quite mixed). That's why I appreciate the work that you and Julia do to help all social scientists up their game.

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Ed Hagen @edhagen.net · 20h

I haven't read the Costello et al. study. What I push back against is "evolutionary psychologists" believe x, y, or z, when it's actually "Costello et al." argue x, y, or z. By all means critique specific authors.

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Ed Hagen @edhagen.net · 23h

Since women are ~50% of every society (and often more, due to higher adult male mortality), you're claiming that there's little evidence that women are sensitive to harm towards women (i.e., towards themselves). How plausible is that?

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Ed Hagen @edhagen.net · 1d

I would bet that in all the cultures that Buckner mentions, men are also very violent towards other men. Hence, is there a sex *difference* in the targets of violence? which is the claim in question:

I bring all this up because, in a recent preprint titled ‘Why Incels Capture Attention’1, Costello & Acerbi reference what they refer to as the ‘harm hypothesis’ and the ‘greater protectiveness of females theory’, which, they write,

suggest[s] that humans evolved heightened sensitivity to harm directed at women, given their higher reproductive value and centrality to offspring survival (Stewart-Williams et al., 2024). This protective bias is robust across domains (see Graso & Reynolds, 2024 for a review). For example, people are less willing to harm women than men (e.g., FeldmanHall et al., 2016), are more punitive toward people who victimize women than men (e.g., Curry et al., 2004), and are less willing to accept harm befalling women compared to men (e.g., Graso et al., 2023)

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Ed Hagen @edhagen.net · 1d

Many of Daly and Wilson's papers are available here: www.martindaly.ca/publications...

Martin Daly

Biography of and Publications for Martin Daly.

www.martindaly.ca

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Ed Hagen @edhagen.net · 1d

Two of the founders of evolutionary psychology, who also basically established Evolution and Human Behavior, the flagship journal in the field, devoted much of their careers to studying men's use of violence to control women.

From the TOC of their classic book (which has >5k citations):

Homicide, by Martin Daly and Margo Wilson.

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Ed Hagen @edhagen.net · 2d

To carbonate, fill a standard 2L soft drink bottle with water, chill it in the fridge, and then attach the cap, crack the CO2 valve, and shake for about 1 minute.

Is it worth it? I'm not sure yet, tbh.

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Ed Hagen @edhagen.net · 2d

3. Carbonator cap and tubing. I bought this for $20: www.amazon.com/dp/B09FQ36FVJ

Amazon.com: Hgkeke 5.5ft 5/16 Co2 Gas Line Tubing for Kegerator Assembly with stainless steel carbonator cap carbonation cap for soda bottle, Ball Gas Lock Draft beer Red Hose kit for Homebrew: Home &...

Shop Hgkeke at the Amazon Small Appliance Parts & Accessories store. Free Shipping on eligible items. Everyday low prices, save up to 50%.

www.amazon.com

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Ed Hagen @edhagen.net · 2d

2. A CO2 regulator. I bought this one for $40: www.amazon.com/dp/B0B8QW7TD7

Amazon.com: HGKEKE CO2 Keg Regulator Draft Beer CO2 Regulator CGA-320 Regulator Dual Stage CO2 Pressure Regulator 5/16’’ Barb Dual Gauge Dual Knob Quadruple Hose Clamp Kegerator Regulator for CO2 Tank...

Shop Hgkeke at the Amazon Home Brewing & Wine Making store. Free Shipping on eligible items. Everyday low prices, save up to 50%.

www.amazon.com

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Ed Hagen @edhagen.net · 2d

DIY soda maker. You need to buy 3 things:

1. A 5 lb CO2 tank. Mine cost $100 from a local beer-brewing supply store, which will swap empties for filled units for $20.

5 lb -> 100-150 liters -> $0.13-$0.20/liter vs. $1/liter for store-bought vs. $0.50/liter for sodastream.

A 5 lb CO2 tank, regulator, and PET soda bottle hose and adapter.

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Ed Hagen @edhagen.net · 4d

Great thread on the discovery that a rare mutation in FOXP2 disrupts language, with an appearance by Steve Pinker. Subsequent research showed that FOXP2, a transcription factor, is highly conserved, yet acquired 2 amino acid substitutions in the human lineage. 🧪 #BioAnth

Simon Fisher @profsimonfisher.bsky.social · 4d

Twenty-four years ago today, our paper “A forkhead-domain gene is mutated in a severe speech and language disorder” was published: www.nature.com/articles/350....
A personal thread about the ups & downs of the journey we took to get to that point....1/n
🗣️🧬🧪

Image shows the first two printed pages of the paper “A forkhead-domain gene is mutated in a severe speech and language disorder” by Cecilia Lai and colleagues, published in Nature in 2001 (volume 413, pages 519-523). The abstract reads as follows:
Individuals affected with developmental disorders of speech and language have substantial difficulty acquiring expressive and/or receptive language in the absence of any profound sensory or neurological impairment and despite adequate intelligence and opportunity. Although studies of twins consistently indicate that a significant genetic component is involved, most families segregating speech and language deficits show complex patterns of inheritance, and a gene that predisposes individuals to such disorders has not been identified. We have studied a unique three-generation pedigree, KE, in which a severe speech and language disorder is transmitted as an autosomal-dominant monogenic trait. Our previous work mapped the locus responsible, SPCH1, to a 5.6-cM interval of region 7q31 on chromosome 7. We also identified an unrelated individual, CS, in whom speech and language impairment is associated with a chromosomal translocation involving the SPCH1 interval. Here we show that the gene FOXP2, which encodes a putative transcription factor containing a polyglutamine tract and a forkhead DNA-binding domain, is directly disrupted by the translocation breakpoint in CS. In addition, we identify a point mutation in affected members of the KE family that alters an invariant amino-acid residue in the forkhead domain. Our findings suggest that FOXP2 is involved in the developmental process that culminates in speech and language.

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Ed Hagen @edhagen.net · 7d

@mgurven.bsky.social

Ed Hagen @edhagen.net · 8d

If I only want one or two cols from df2, I typically use this version of the 2nd approach:

df1 |> left_join(df2[c("id", "timestamp")])

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Ed Hagen @edhagen.net · 8d

"Now I talk to the popular kids and they treat me like a normal person because their frontal lobes are finally catching up to my frontal lobes...."

- teen daughter

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Ed Hagen @edhagen.net · 10d

If you haven't seen it, try Paper Skygest: bsky.app/profile/pape...

bsky.app

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Ed Hagen @edhagen.net · 15d

TIL that the "Krebs" of Krebs and Davies was the son of "Krebs" of the Krebs cycle:

Arvid Ågren @arvidagren.bsky.social · 15d

John Krebs on growing up with a famous father (and not naming his daughters Hans).

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Ed Hagen @edhagen.net · 15d

I didn't realize Krebs was the son of *that* Krebs.

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Reposted by Ed Hagen

Zach Garfield @zhgarfield.com · 15d

#HBES2026 abstract submissions are live! More exciting details to come soon.

Arrive early for @ces2026.bsky.social

@humbehevosoc.bsky.social

HBES2026 @hbes2026.bsky.social · 15d

We’re delighted to share that the 37th annual Human Behavior and Evolution Society conference (HBES2026) website is now live!

#HBES2026

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Ed Hagen @edhagen.net · 18d

These days, King snd Wilson is usually cited for the insight that evolution of non-coding regulatory DNA is really important, and explains most of the difference between chimps and humans (and species differences more generally).

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Reposted by Ed Hagen

Zach Garfield @zhgarfield.com · 24d

It's happening! And HBES will directly follow and overlap with CES, including a joint plenary to unite these two stellar scientific communities...don't we all love economies of scale.

Do you happen to know anything about that cool logo?

Cultural Evolution Society @culturalevolsoc.bsky.social · 25d

The count down starts for #CESRabat! Follow @ces2026.bsky.social and join us May 11-13 next year for an exciting meeting in Rabat, Morocco.

Massive thanks to the #CESRabat organising committee:
Sarah Alami (co-chair)
Mathieu Charbonneau (co-chair)
Zachary Garfield
Edmond Seabright

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Ed Hagen @edhagen.net · 24d

Yes, the authors need to correct the table heading

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