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Peter Gray @peterbgray.bsky.social · 9d

As the US approaches 250 years, Jill Lepore’s These Truths offers a one-volume overview of those years. Focuses on key themes and figures in a long but enjoyable read. She just launched a new book on the US Constitution in case you need even more history.

Jill Lepore’s at book launch and signing event

Peter Gray @peterbgray.bsky.social · May 17

Dragon Boat racing today: how it started (rains this morning) and how it ended (finals races cancelled due to winds and waves). We did have two races in between, racing in synch and enjoying a full day. Some 44 boats, and even retirees coming back just to help out. I am sapped.

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Peter Gray @peterbgray.bsky.social · May 14

I recently spent a week in Munich with my oldest daughter, who finished her 3rd year in university. I feel grateful to have such opportunities, and while we enjoyed some amazing sites and experiences. A few highlights, including the all-important pretzel.

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Peter Gray @peterbgray.bsky.social · May 14

Next year the US will celebrate 250 years since independence. Last night I attended a panel on the “Meck Dec”: the claim is that a few folks declared independence in May 1775 in what’s now Charlotte. There’s no smoking gun to support or refute the claim. But an interesting case of public history.

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Reposted by Peter Gray

Siobhán Cully 🇺🇸 🐱🥼🤓🩼 @siobhancully.bsky.social · Apr 21

w/ @kristinemaassen.bsky.social, #RutgersAnthropology is hosting a fabulous line-up of panelists for an #alt-ac #career panel tomorrow. Please register and attend. Info attached!
@dianamonkey.bsky.social @peterbgray.bsky.social and others not on BS!

Alt ac career panel April 22, 2025, 10:30-12EDT Register here: https://rutgers.zoom.us/meeting/register/ynUT7VlXSEaP6kLhGbGRxA

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Reposted by Peter Gray

Ethan Mollick @emollick.bsky.social · Mar 17

I regret to announce that the meme Turing Test has been passed

LLMs produce funnier memes than the average human, as judged by humans. Humans working with AI get no boost (a finding that is coming up often in AI-creativity work) The best human memers still beat AI, however. arxiv.org/abs/2501.11433

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Peter Gray @peterbgray.bsky.social · Feb 11

Time for fatherhood, courtesy of James Rilling and his new book. #fatherhood #testosterone #oxytocin #dad apple.news/ALmCPtGhtTb2...

Men Are More Prepared for Fatherhood Than We Think — Scientific American

In many cultures, men are not involved with hands-on childcare. But biology tells us we are perfectly capable of doing so Biology I like to tell my undergraduates that hormones predispose organisms, i...

apple.news

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Peter Gray @peterbgray.bsky.social · Feb 6

Morning run near and before work. Feels like anti-spring. Lots of leaves, dried, fallen and all-around.

Reposted by Peter Gray

Eric Topol @erictopol.bsky.social · Feb 3

An update with latest data available for graph of life expectancy vs health care expenditures per capita for 20 countries and one outlier.

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Peter Gray @peterbgray.bsky.social · Feb 4

What does your future look like? What regrets might your future self have about your current self? Here’s an AI tool intended to enable mental time travel and make the future more salient. It’s Future You. #future #aging test.futureyou.life

Future You

test.futureyou.life

Reposted by Peter Gray

Dorsa Amir @dorsaamir.bsky.social · Jan 25

Does the culture you grow up in shape the way you see the world? In a new Psych Review paper, @chazfirestone.bsky.social & I tackle this centuries-old question using the Müller-Lyer illusion as a case study. Come think through one of history's mysteries with us🧵(1/13):

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Peter Gray @peterbgray.bsky.social · Jan 25

Read @sbkaufman.bsky.social’s Transcend. Learned lots: Maslow’s pyramid was likely created by a management consultant in the 1960s, and Harlow advised Maslow’s PhD captive monkey dominance behavior. Nice overview of Maslow’s arc and current, related research. New image instead of pyramid:

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Peter Gray @peterbgray.bsky.social · Jan 24

What makes for an interesting Thursday eve? Having the chance to attend a local financial advisor’s presentation—free dinner too—on retirement planning. It’s a research opportunity to consider how they frame planning and how they offer services. Diversification, taxes & more. #retirement

Reposted by Peter Gray

Eric Topol @erictopol.bsky.social · Jan 24

Life expectancy in the US
—by educational attainment, by county
www.thelancet.com/journals/lan... @ihmeuw.bsky.social
—the growing inequalities
abcnews.go.com/Health/growi... @amymaxmen.bsky.social @kffhealthnews.bsky.social

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Peter Gray @peterbgray.bsky.social · Jan 23

This is the story behind a viral retirement ad: The agency: “It was easy to do the math. We took the average rate of inflation and extrapolated out thirty years. Then we wrote the ad. It was attention-getting. It was informative. It spurred people to act.” #retirement #inflation

Jason Michaels @50champ.bsky.social · Dec 5

We started with our target audience: The advertisers realized if they simply promoted TIAA-CREF's retirement services, people wouldn't take action. They needed to overcome people's procrastination, and inspire them to take action now. https://buff.ly/4f0OlKS #ads #finance #TIAA #agencies #marketing

This 30-Year-Old Ad Predicted Life Today, and Keeps Going Viral. Here's How Its Creators Made It | Entrepreneur

This TIAA-CREF ad was shockingly accurate. Its makers said they didn't want to commit "advertising malpractice."

buff.ly

Reposted by Peter Gray

Matt Eastwood @matteastwood.bsky.social · Jan 16

22% of Americans aged 65+ are still working, with the highest % in NJ (33.8%) and the lowest in WV (15.7%). Retirement doesn’t look the same everywhere—see where your state stands! #Retirement #WorkforceData

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Reposted by Peter Gray

John Sumser @johnsumser.bsky.social · Jan 18

Japan is just a few years ahead of us. An aging workforce causes labor shortages.

www.reuters.com/sustainabili...

Japan firms face serious labour crunch from aging population, survey shows

Two-thirds of Japanese companies are experiencing a serious business impact from a shortage of workers, a Reuters survey showed on Thursday, as the country's population continues to shrink and age rapidly.

www.reuters.com

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Reposted by Peter Gray

KCUR (Kansas City's best news source) @kcur.org · Jan 16

Popcorn and movie theaters are inseparable today. But did you know that a century ago, cinemas actually banned popcorn?

A Kansas City saleswoman named Julia Braden became one of the first vendors to talk her way inside the lobby — and built a concession empire in the middle of the Depression.

Why do we eat popcorn at the movies? A tough Kansas City widow helped open the door

Popcorn and movie theaters are inseparable today. But a century ago, cinemas actually banned the beloved treat for being cheap and messy. A Kansas City saleswoman named Julia Braden became one of the ...

www.kcur.org

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Reposted by Peter Gray

The Conversation U.S. @us.theconversation.com · Jan 17

The wealthiest cities in the U.S. are now almost seven times richer than the poorest regions, a disparity that has almost doubled since 1960.

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Reposted by Peter Gray

Juan Moreno-Cruz @jmorenocruz.bsky.social · Jan 13

We've heard this before with oil and coal, but soon, we will find new deposits of kids in Alaska or the deep ocean, and things will be fine.

Our World in Data @ourworldindata.org · Jan 13

The world has passed “peak child”

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Reposted by Peter Gray

Dark Academia otter @acerbicotter.bsky.social · Jan 11

The Forbidden Push-Up Pop

CNN @cnn.com · Jan 11

An international research team has successfully drilled and retrieved a 9,186-foot-long (2,800-meter-long) ice core from Antarctica that dates back 1.2 million years. The sample extended so deep that it reached the bedrock beneath the Antarctic Ice Sheet.

Read more: cnn.it/3Wekfgo

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Reposted by Peter Gray

Alice Evans @draliceevans.bsky.social · Jan 11

Coupling and Fertility are Falling.

In Finland, Mexico, Peru, South Korea, Thailand, Turkey and the US, both are going down.

Superb column by @jburnmurdoch.bsky.social

A must-read for anyone interested in why fertility is falling, and how to respond.

🧵

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Peter Gray @peterbgray.bsky.social · Jan 6

What do veterinarian care providers think about direct-to-consumer pet genetic testing? Find out in this new paper from @nikki-bennett.bsky.social #dogs #cats #pets #genetics avmajournals.avma.org/view/journal...

avmajournals.avma.org

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Reposted by Peter Gray

NBER @nber.org · Jan 6

Exploring past episodes of technological disruption in the US labor market, with the goal of learning lessons about the likely future impact of AI, from David J. Deming, Christopher Ong, and Lawrence H. Summers https://www.nber.org/papers/w33323

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Reposted by Peter Gray

Jay Van Bavel, PhD @jayvanbavel.bsky.social · Jan 5

Changing our behaviour isn't easy–and changing the behaviour of others is even harder.

Here is a great analysis of 19 behavioural principles we proposed that are rooted in decades of research.

What works and what doesn't when it comes to changing behavior: www.bps.org.uk/psychologist...

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