Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Reposted by Niels G. Mede

Lars Lott @larslott.bsky.social · Sep 5

Is research performance related to academic freedom? A preprint co-authored with @lutzb.bsky.social conducts a large-scale empirical analysis on the national level to this question. osf.io/2mh8f #academicfreedom #AcademicFreedomIndex Short 🧵

1 8 8

Reposted by Niels G. Mede

Olivia Guest · Ολίβια Γκεστ @olivia.science · Sep 6

Finally! 🤩 Our position piece: Against the Uncritical Adoption of 'AI' Technologies in Academia:
doi.org/10.5281/zeno...

We unpick the tech industry’s marketing, hype, & harm; and we argue for safeguarding higher education, critical
thinking, expertise, academic freedom, & scientific integrity.
1/n

Abstract: Under the banner of progress, products have been uncritically adopted or
even imposed on users — in past centuries with tobacco and combustion engines, and in
the 21st with social media. For these collective blunders, we now regret our involvement or
apathy as scientists, and society struggles to put the genie back in the bottle. Currently, we
are similarly entangled with artificial intelligence (AI) technology. For example, software updates are rolled out seamlessly and non-consensually, Microsoft Office is bundled with chatbots, and we, our students, and our employers have had no say, as it is not
considered a valid position to reject AI technologies in our teaching and research. This
is why in June 2025, we co-authored an Open Letter calling on our employers to reverse
and rethink their stance on uncritically adopting AI technologies. In this position piece,
we expound on why universities must take their role seriously toa) counter the technology
industry’s marketing, hype, and harm; and to b) safeguard higher education, critical
thinking, expertise, academic freedom, and scientific integrity. We include pointers to
relevant work to further inform our colleagues.

Figure 1. A cartoon set theoretic view on various terms (see Table 1) used when discussing the superset AI
(black outline, hatched background): LLMs are in orange; ANNs are in magenta; generative models are
in blue; and finally, chatbots are in green. Where these intersect, the colours reflect that, e.g. generative adversarial network (GAN) and Boltzmann machine (BM) models are in the purple subset because they are
both generative and ANNs. In the case of proprietary closed source models, e.g. OpenAI’s ChatGPT and
Apple’s Siri, we cannot verify their implementation and so academics can only make educated guesses (cf.
Dingemanse 2025). Undefined terms used above: BERT (Devlin et al. 2019); AlexNet (Krizhevsky et al.
2017); A.L.I.C.E. (Wallace 2009); ELIZA (Weizenbaum 1966); Jabberwacky (Twist 2003); linear discriminant analysis (LDA); quadratic discriminant analysis (QDA).

Table 1. Below some of the typical terminological disarray is untangled. Importantly, none of these terms
are orthogonal nor do they exclusively pick out the types of products we may wish to critique or proscribe.

Protecting the Ecosystem of Human Knowledge: Five Principles

96 1.5K 3.1K

Reposted by Niels G. Mede

Tobia Spampatti, PhD @tspampatti.bsky.social · Sep 8

In this new Commentary in @natclimate.nature.com, I reflect on the recent focus on truth discernment in #misinfo research and argue that this outcome alone may not be beneficial to society if interventions do not improve behaviour and other outcomes because... 1/

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Truth discernment may not help to overcome misinformation

Nature Climate Change - Scientists increasingly assess interventions against misinformation mainly via truth discernment. However, pursuing truth discernment may not be sufficiently beneficial to...

www.nature.com

2 36 93

Reposted by Niels G. Mede

Claes de Vreese @claesdevreese.bsky.social · Sep 6

“De wetenschap heeft een tweeledige rol: als locomotief van de vooruitgang, maar ook als rem om de trein van de geschiedenis op de rails te houden.”

Robbert Dijkgraaf in @nrc.nl

Trump en de tech-trawanten www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2025/... www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2025/...

Column | Trump en de tech-trawanten

Column: Vijandigheid tegenover de wetenschap staat in een lange traditie in de Amerikaanse Republikeinse partij. Robbert Dijkgraaf ziet een verrassende ontwikkeling.

www.nrc.nl

1 2 5

Reposted by Niels G. Mede

Jan Pfänder @janpfa.bsky.social · Sep 5

How much do people really reject science?

New paper out doi.org/10.1177/0963...

In four studies, we asked Americans—including flat Earthers, climate change deniers and vaccine skeptics—whether they accepted basic scientific facts.

The result? A surprisingly high level of agreement. 👇

Quasi-universal acceptance of basic science in the United States - Jan Pfänder, Lou Kerzreho, Hugo Mercier, 2025

Substantial minorities of the population report a low degree of trust in science, or endorse conspiracy theories that violate basic scientific knowledge. This m...

doi.org

3 13 32

Reposted by Niels G. Mede

NeFCA Political Communication @nefcapolcom.bsky.social · Sep 5

🚀 We’re live!

The Political Communication Division of @nefca.bsky.social is now on BlueSky. Follow us for updates on research, events, and conversations in the PolCom community.

1 8 8

Reposted by Niels G. Mede

Lena Frischlich @lenafrescamente.bsky.social · Aug 20

@nielsmede.bsky.social is opening our workshop based on his TrygFonden * @ddc-sdu.bsky.social fellowship on countering science related online harrassment - very excited to discuss how to support science communicators with a stellar line-up of academics and stakeholders!

1 3 10

Reposted by Niels G. Mede

Hu Chuan-Peng @hcp4715.bsky.social · Aug 19

thrilled that our guides for #OpenScience in developing countries is now published in AMPPS of @psychscience.bsky.social: journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
Please see the thread for details

20 32

Reposted by Niels G. Mede

Barnabas Szaszi @szaszibarnabas.bsky.social · Jul 28

🧵 Can you predict whether behavioral interventions will work in new contexts?

… probably not, right?

In our new paper with @dggoldst.bsky.social @dilipsoman.bsky.social @susanmichie.bsky.social, we dive into how to better understand and improve generalizability. rdcu.be/ewD2z

Summary👇

Generalizability of choice architecture interventions

Nature Reviews Psychology - Choice architecture interventions (or ‘nudges’) aim to guide behaviour by changing the proximal physical, social or psychological environment. In this...

rdcu.be

2 15 38

Reposted by Niels G. Mede

koenfucius @koenfucius.bsky.social · Jul 18

It’s not just social media algorithms that determine whether content goes viral.

Research by @steverathje.bsky.social and @jayvanbavel.bsky.social finds how the psychology of spreaders and consumers interacts with the environment also significantly influences virality:

buff.ly/q17VnXN

3 3

Reposted by Niels G. Mede

Karen Melchior @karmel80.bsky.social · Jul 10

Which is why the way reporting is done is crucial... "We find: It’s not necessarily firsthand experience of extreme weather events. Instead, it’s whether people think that these events are linked to climate change."

Niels G. Mede @nielsmede.bsky.social · Jul 4

New paper: What increases people’s support for policy responses to #climate #change? ✊
We find: It’s not necessarily firsthand experience of extreme weather events. Instead, it’s whether people think that these events are linked to climate change. Here is the paper: www.nature.com/articles/s41... 🔎

Extreme weather event attribution predicts climate policy support across the world - Nature Climate Change

Literature produced inconsistent findings regarding the links between extreme weather events and climate policy support across regions, populations and events. This global study offers a holistic asse...

www.nature.com

1 2

Reposted by Niels G. Mede

Larry Miller, PhD @larrymillerphd.bsky.social · Jul 2

What if science communication wasn’t just about facts—but about trust, humility & shared values? This new agenda from PNAS calls for participatory models to replace top-down fixes. In this ultra-polarized environment, it’s about co-creation, not just correction. What are your thoughts? 🧪🧬🔬

An agenda for science communication research and practice | PNAS

Science should not unilaterally dictate individuals’ decisions or public policies. Yet, it provides a vital source of information for societies and...

www.pnas.org

2 9 21

Niels G. Mede @nielsmede.bsky.social · Jul 6

Excellent new study in @actapolitica.bsky.social: @roderikrekker.bsky.social uses 15 years of representative panel survey data (2007-2022, n = 19,084) to show how science skepticism is linked to political discontent in the Netherlands ⬇️

Roderik Rekker @roderikrekker.bsky.social · Jul 3

(1/5) Out now in Acta Politica: Populist parties increasingly target scientists and scientific knowledge. By analyzing 15 annual waves of representative panel data from the Netherlands (2007–2022), I examine to what extent populist parties fuel science skepticism among their supporters.

5

Niels G. Mede @nielsmede.bsky.social · Jul 4

Thanks a lot to everyone involved, especially our lead author @colognaviktoria.bsky.social! 🙏

And please feel free to check out @omidghasemi.bsky.social’s excellent piece in @theconversation.com, which includes a great summary and very nice visuals: theconversation.com/experiencing...

Experiencing extreme weather and disasters is not enough to change views on climate action, study shows

A 70,000-person global study found understanding how events such as fires and floods are linked to climate change may be a key driver of support for climate action.

theconversation.com

3

Niels G. Mede @nielsmede.bsky.social · Jul 4

This study is based on a great collaboration of our #TISP consortium and @simonameiler.bsky.social, Chahan Kropf, @samluethi.bsky.social and David N. Bresch (@ethz.ch). @colognaviktoria.bsky.social and I joined forces with them to combine our worldwide survey data with their climate modelling data 🤝

1 1 6

Niels G. Mede @nielsmede.bsky.social · Jul 4

New paper: What increases people’s support for policy responses to #climate #change? ✊
We find: It’s not necessarily firsthand experience of extreme weather events. Instead, it’s whether people think that these events are linked to climate change. Here is the paper: www.nature.com/articles/s41... 🔎

Extreme weather event attribution predicts climate policy support across the world - Nature Climate Change

Literature produced inconsistent findings regarding the links between extreme weather events and climate policy support across regions, populations and events. This global study offers a holistic asse...

www.nature.com

2 11 25

Niels G. Mede @nielsmede.bsky.social · Jul 2

Danke!

1

Niels G. Mede @nielsmede.bsky.social · Jul 2

Thanks, Sarah!

Reposted by Niels G. Mede

Viktoria Cologna @colognaviktoria.bsky.social · Jul 1

🚨 How do exposure to extreme weather events and the subjective attribution of these events to climate change relate to climate policy support across the world? 🔥🌎

Find out more in our OA article published in Nature Climate Change 👇 1/7 🧵 www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Extreme weather event attribution predicts climate policy support across the world - Nature Climate Change

Literature produced inconsistent findings regarding the links between extreme weather events and climate policy support across regions, populations and events. This global study offers a holistic asse...

www.nature.com

1 43 75

Niels G. Mede @nielsmede.bsky.social · Jul 2

Ade Zürich, hallo #Wageningen! This week I started my new position as Assistant Professor at @w-u-r.bsky.social ✨
Thanks a lot for the warm welcome – I'm very excited about what’s ahead! At the same time, I'm very grateful for the years I spent at @ikmz.bsky.social. Merci vielmal und uf widerluege 🫶

2 1 13

Reposted by Niels G. Mede

Kochav Koren @kochav.bsky.social · Jun 13

This was a remarkable milestone in our careers, and the next steps look very promising with our TISP leaders @colognaviktoria.bsky.social and @nielsmede.bsky.social.

If you haven’t read our article yet, it’s fully open access.

#PhilSky #AcademicSky

Viktoria Cologna @colognaviktoria.bsky.social · Jan 20

Our global study on the state of trust in scientists is now out in Nature Human Behaviour! 🥳

With a team of 241 researchers, we surveyed 71,922 people in 68 countries, providing the largest dataset on trust in scientists post-pandemic 👇🧵https://www.nature.com/articles/s41562-024-02090-5

2 4

Reposted by Niels G. Mede

Sebastian Ramirez-Ruiz @seramirezruiz.bsky.social · Jun 5

🤔 How much do politicians engage with academic researchers online?

In my latest paper, I find that politicians from 12 countries rarely engage with researchers on social media, but this can change when expertise gains salience

Preprint: osf.io/preprints/osf/wqbe4_v1

🧵👇

2 17 48

Reposted by Niels G. Mede

Lara Kobilke @larakobilke.bsky.social · Jun 4

Young adults who overestimate their knowledge about climate change try to reach out to politicians and persuade others more often. This is what we find in our brand new OA paper. See @nielsmede.bsky.social amazing thread for more info 👇

Niels G. Mede @nielsmede.bsky.social · Jun 3

Published in Social Media + Society: Our 4-wave panel #survey on the relationship between #socialmedia and misperceptions of one’s knowledge about #climate #change – co-authored with @larakobilke.bsky.social @naylafawzi.bsky.social #ThomasZerback: journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/... ✨

4 3

Niels G. Mede @nielsmede.bsky.social · Jun 3

ℹ️ More details?
Check out the paper for more results and info on the methods: journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
All analyses reproducible with open data and materials: osf.io/qkrm3

Thanks a lot, Lara, Nayla, and Thomas – it’s been a pleasure working with you! 🙏
#climatecomm #scicomm #Wisskomm

The Climate Change Generation: Vocal but Overconfident? How Young Adults Who Overestimate Their Climate Knowledge Use Social Media and Engage With Others - Niels G. Mede, Lara Kobilke, Nayla Fawzi, Th...

Research suggests that social media can cause users, especially young adults, to overestimate their knowledge about climate change. Knowledge overestimation may...

journals.sagepub.com

Niels G. Mede @nielsmede.bsky.social · Jun 3

🔎 How did we test this?
We conducted a four-wave panel #survey of 18- to 29-year-olds in #Germany (n = 1,309) in Feb-Aug 2022 and used Bayesian within-between regressions and cross-lagged panel models to get (tentative) evidence on causal effects.

1