This poll came out of a workshop at the Santa Fe Institute @sfiscience.bsky.social co-organized by Edward Slingerland (@slingerland.bsky.social) and Marco Buongiorno Nardelli (@musicntwrk.bsky.social), with input from experts from a wide variety of fields.

"Drunk hypothesis", recently elaborated by @slingerland.bsky.social, argues that alcohol played a significant role in promoting large-scale cooperation and the development of complex hierarchical societies. (2/5)

As with my Rogan appearance, had to weather an anti-vax interlude from the host, but really interesting comments by Ken Mukamal. I thought the medical consensus now was alcohol net-negative, but he disputes this: www.youtube.com/watch?v=rpi-...

We have just published our second release of our Standard Cross Cultural Sample of Religion (SCCSR)! This version adds language tags which can be use to help control for historical relatedness (in addition to a lot more data). Check out the release on Zenodo here: zenodo.org/records/1496...

New paper in print! In it I argue against grounding moral concern for others in the "Golden Rule" or "imagining yourself in another's shoes". The ancient Chinese philosopher Mengzi offers a better approach: Extend your concern for nearby others to similar but more distant others. 1/3

🚨 Finally out! My new @annualreviews.bsky.social in Psychology paper:
www.annualreviews.org/content/jour...
We unpack why psych theories of generalization keep cycling from rigid rule-based models to flexible similarity-based ones, then culminating in Bayesian hybrids. Let's break it down 👉 🧵

This marks our first venture into science communication for the humanities, and I'm grateful to @slingerland.bsky.social for trusting us with telling this story!

In episode 28, I talk with Dr. Edward Slingerland (
@slingerland.bsky.social) about the #CognitiveScience of religion, and what #Science offers the humanities. #Anthropology

youtu.be/zZ3h00-huR4

🚨 Get Paid to Get High! 🚨

Are you a regular cannabis user? Help us uncover the cognitive effects of cannabis in a new study at U of Toronto Scarborough!

Time: 1.5–2 hrs
Compensation: $40
Eligibility: Male (per Health Canada restrictions)

Take the prescreening survey: tinyurl.com/ytdrrjpb

Stereotype threat: a once-dominant idea in social psychology that shaped how we think about identity and performance. But what happens when the evidence crumbles? A deep dive into the failed replications, the myths, and what it all means. Read my latest essay: open.substack.com/pub/michaeli...

Our paper on emotional contagion in a collective ritual is now officially out in the American Journal of Human Biology. Using wearable GPS and electrodermal activity monitors, we track the spread of emotional arousal in the context of a religious procession.
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

Nice review of the Spanish edition of Drunk, "Borrachos": www.milenio.com/cultura/labe...

The Database of Religious History is here at AAR/SBL! Come check us out in the book exhibit near the coffee (booth 814). #aarsbl

Doing good science is 90% finding a science buddy to constantly talk to about the project.

What is the Database of Religious History? Our new intro video is visually stunning and gives a great overview of the project. youtu.be/bkTVIZAwZ4c @religionhistory.bsky.social

Trying to support the move away from X….

I have it bad… It’s embarrassing writing things on the board now.

Pubs are back, and we’re seeing each other face-to-face again—but has something gone missing with the shift to mocktails and mineral water? In my latest piece, I dig into what’s lost (and gained) when we go teetotal—and why our ancestors might not approve.

open.substack.com/pub/michaeli...

Simple tricks, like using a small wine glass, can help moderate consumption. Nice short piece in The Guardian: www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Recent Zoom talk, hosted by East China Normal University, on the new academic book project: www.youtube.com/watch?v=uh8C...