Nori Ishii
@tatsunoriishii.bsky.social
Social & Cognitive Psychologist@JWU: social cog, mindreading, cognitive science of religion / Drummer: heavy metal, Metallica
Reposted by Nori Ishii
Thrilled to share our latest paper, out now in Science Advances! We explored the development of cooperative behaviors — fairness, trustworthiness, forgiveness, & honesty — across five societies, culturally contextualizing them & seeing how they correlate. (1/5) www.science.org/doi/full/10....
February 7, 2026 at 3:09 PM
Thrilled to share our latest paper, out now in Science Advances! We explored the development of cooperative behaviors — fairness, trustworthiness, forgiveness, & honesty — across five societies, culturally contextualizing them & seeing how they correlate. (1/5) www.science.org/doi/full/10....
Reposted by Nori Ishii
If you tell an AI to convince someone of a true vs. false claim, does truth win? In our *new* working paper, we find...
‘LLMs can effectively convince people to believe conspiracies’
But telling the AI not to lie might help.
Details in thread
‘LLMs can effectively convince people to believe conspiracies’
But telling the AI not to lie might help.
Details in thread
January 20, 2026 at 3:00 PM
If you tell an AI to convince someone of a true vs. false claim, does truth win? In our *new* working paper, we find...
‘LLMs can effectively convince people to believe conspiracies’
But telling the AI not to lie might help.
Details in thread
‘LLMs can effectively convince people to believe conspiracies’
But telling the AI not to lie might help.
Details in thread
Reposted by Nori Ishii
We’re organizing IACESR 2026 in Brno (July 1–3) — CFP closes Feb 6.
If you work on cognitive or evolutionary approaches to religion, we’d be very happy to welcome you in Brno :)
If you work on cognitive or evolutionary approaches to religion, we’d be very happy to welcome you in Brno :)
IACESR call for paper closes Feb 6th. Come join us to talk about the cognitive and evolutionary science of religion in Brno in July! iacesr.com/conferences/
Conferences - IACESR
We are delighted to announce that the 10th Biennial Meeting of the International Association for the Cognitive and Evolutionary Sciences of Religion (IACESR) will be held at Masaryk University in Brno...
iacesr.com
January 13, 2026 at 2:09 PM
We’re organizing IACESR 2026 in Brno (July 1–3) — CFP closes Feb 6.
If you work on cognitive or evolutionary approaches to religion, we’d be very happy to welcome you in Brno :)
If you work on cognitive or evolutionary approaches to religion, we’d be very happy to welcome you in Brno :)
Reposted by Nori Ishii
IACESR call for paper closes Feb 6th. Come join us to talk about the cognitive and evolutionary science of religion in Brno in July! iacesr.com/conferences/
Conferences - IACESR
We are delighted to announce that the 10th Biennial Meeting of the International Association for the Cognitive and Evolutionary Sciences of Religion (IACESR) will be held at Masaryk University in Brno...
iacesr.com
January 6, 2026 at 5:56 PM
IACESR call for paper closes Feb 6th. Come join us to talk about the cognitive and evolutionary science of religion in Brno in July! iacesr.com/conferences/
Reposted by Nori Ishii
Arising out of discussions in @csi-research.bsky.social we conducted a Registered Report replicating Triplett’s (1898) experiment with over 400 children, showing children completed the task faster when paired with a coactor, compared to competing the task alone rdcu.be/eQwAE 1/3
A replication of Triplett’s ‘social facilitation experiment’
Scientific Reports - A replication of Triplett’s ‘social facilitation experiment’
rdcu.be
November 18, 2025 at 4:03 PM
Arising out of discussions in @csi-research.bsky.social we conducted a Registered Report replicating Triplett’s (1898) experiment with over 400 children, showing children completed the task faster when paired with a coactor, compared to competing the task alone rdcu.be/eQwAE 1/3
Reposted by Nori Ishii
Watson and Crick elucidated the structure of DNA. Stop saying that they discovered DNA! This was done by another guy you probably haven't heard of! And therein lies a story. academic.oup.com/genetics/art...
Before Watson and Crick in 1953 Came Friedrich Miescher in 1869
Abstract. The story of genetics typically omits the original discovery of the molecular nature of DNA: Friedrich Miescher's 1869 discovery of the substance
academic.oup.com
November 8, 2025 at 7:54 AM
Watson and Crick elucidated the structure of DNA. Stop saying that they discovered DNA! This was done by another guy you probably haven't heard of! And therein lies a story. academic.oup.com/genetics/art...
Reposted by Nori Ishii
"Dunbar's Number" is a zombie that lives forever in the science press it seems. Estimates of Dunbar's Number with 95% intervals, for a range of model specifications (from doi.org/10.1098/rsbl... ):
October 14, 2025 at 5:51 PM
"Dunbar's Number" is a zombie that lives forever in the science press it seems. Estimates of Dunbar's Number with 95% intervals, for a range of model specifications (from doi.org/10.1098/rsbl... ):
Reposted by Nori Ishii
Teaching a fun science & critical thinking course this semester.
Trying out THAMES as a handy mnemonic for what to look for in evaluating science papers & such (obvs not all are as relevant for every paper)...
Trying out THAMES as a handy mnemonic for what to look for in evaluating science papers & such (obvs not all are as relevant for every paper)...
October 10, 2025 at 9:11 AM
Teaching a fun science & critical thinking course this semester.
Trying out THAMES as a handy mnemonic for what to look for in evaluating science papers & such (obvs not all are as relevant for every paper)...
Trying out THAMES as a handy mnemonic for what to look for in evaluating science papers & such (obvs not all are as relevant for every paper)...
Reposted by Nori Ishii
predators: evolution, culture, and the neuroscience of alien hunters
Come for the alien, stay for the science
open.substack.com/pub/brainpiz...
#predators #humans #guild #comparative #neuroskyence #psychscisky
Of interest @iandunt.bsky.social ?
Come for the alien, stay for the science
open.substack.com/pub/brainpiz...
#predators #humans #guild #comparative #neuroskyence #psychscisky
Of interest @iandunt.bsky.social ?
predators
evolution, culture, and the neuroscience of alien hunters
open.substack.com
October 1, 2025 at 4:50 PM
predators: evolution, culture, and the neuroscience of alien hunters
Come for the alien, stay for the science
open.substack.com/pub/brainpiz...
#predators #humans #guild #comparative #neuroskyence #psychscisky
Of interest @iandunt.bsky.social ?
Come for the alien, stay for the science
open.substack.com/pub/brainpiz...
#predators #humans #guild #comparative #neuroskyence #psychscisky
Of interest @iandunt.bsky.social ?
Reposted by Nori Ishii
There's a lot more in the paper itself, here's the link!
Opening strategies in the game of go from feudalism to superhuman AI | Evolutionary Human Sciences | Cambridge Core
Opening strategies in the game of go from feudalism to superhuman AI - Volume 7
www.cambridge.org
September 16, 2025 at 2:04 PM
There's a lot more in the paper itself, here's the link!
Reposted by Nori Ishii
🚨 Excited to share a new paper 📃, years in the making, with Zach Wood.
We propose that human evolution is characterized as an Evolutionary Transition in Inheritance and Individuality (ETII).
Explainer and OA paper below:
We propose that human evolution is characterized as an Evolutionary Transition in Inheritance and Individuality (ETII).
Explainer and OA paper below:
September 15, 2025 at 4:16 PM
🚨 Excited to share a new paper 📃, years in the making, with Zach Wood.
We propose that human evolution is characterized as an Evolutionary Transition in Inheritance and Individuality (ETII).
Explainer and OA paper below:
We propose that human evolution is characterized as an Evolutionary Transition in Inheritance and Individuality (ETII).
Explainer and OA paper below:
Our new study in Japan—supported by Miraikan and Waseda University’s Watanabe Lab—published in "Psychology of Religion and Spirituality" shows that children’s religious beliefs are predicted independently by their own empathy and their parents’ beliefs.
doi.org/10.1037/rel0...
doi.org/10.1037/rel0...
APA PsycNet
doi.org
August 15, 2025 at 5:34 AM
Our new study in Japan—supported by Miraikan and Waseda University’s Watanabe Lab—published in "Psychology of Religion and Spirituality" shows that children’s religious beliefs are predicted independently by their own empathy and their parents’ beliefs.
doi.org/10.1037/rel0...
doi.org/10.1037/rel0...
Reposted by Nori Ishii
Our recently published paper in Psychonomic Bulletin & Review on #reasoning styles and #belief in God is now featured by @psychonomicsociety.bsky.social!
Thanks, Jonathan Caballero, for the interesting article.
📄 Read the paper here: doi.org/10.3758/s134...
Thanks, Jonathan Caballero, for the interesting article.
📄 Read the paper here: doi.org/10.3758/s134...
June 5, 2025 at 4:27 AM
Our recently published paper in Psychonomic Bulletin & Review on #reasoning styles and #belief in God is now featured by @psychonomicsociety.bsky.social!
Thanks, Jonathan Caballero, for the interesting article.
📄 Read the paper here: doi.org/10.3758/s134...
Thanks, Jonathan Caballero, for the interesting article.
📄 Read the paper here: doi.org/10.3758/s134...
Reposted by Nori Ishii
New paper in PSPB! journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
Well, actually, not "new". We first put this paper online way back Dec 2022... in any case, we think it's really cool!
We find that conspiracy believers tend to be overconfident & really don't seem to realize that most disagree with them
Well, actually, not "new". We first put this paper online way back Dec 2022... in any case, we think it's really cool!
We find that conspiracy believers tend to be overconfident & really don't seem to realize that most disagree with them
May 29, 2025 at 5:18 PM
New paper in PSPB! journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
Well, actually, not "new". We first put this paper online way back Dec 2022... in any case, we think it's really cool!
We find that conspiracy believers tend to be overconfident & really don't seem to realize that most disagree with them
Well, actually, not "new". We first put this paper online way back Dec 2022... in any case, we think it's really cool!
We find that conspiracy believers tend to be overconfident & really don't seem to realize that most disagree with them
The Japanese version of Claire White’s "An Introduction to the Cognitive Science of Religion" is out! Happy to be part of the translation. I hope this book helps advance research in this field in Japan. The elegant cover—black with soft cherry blossom pink—is also worth noting.
April 23, 2025 at 11:03 AM
The Japanese version of Claire White’s "An Introduction to the Cognitive Science of Religion" is out! Happy to be part of the translation. I hope this book helps advance research in this field in Japan. The elegant cover—black with soft cherry blossom pink—is also worth noting.
Reposted by Nori Ishii
“Scientists reject the idea that race is biologically real. The claim that race is a “biological reality” cuts against modern scientific knowledge”
theconversation.com/race-isnt-a-...
theconversation.com/race-isnt-a-...
Race isn’t a ‘biological reality,’ contrary to recent political claims − here’s how scientific consensus on race developed in the 20th century
An executive order critiques the idea that race is a human invention. But that’s exactly what modern science supports.
theconversation.com
April 11, 2025 at 8:47 PM
“Scientists reject the idea that race is biologically real. The claim that race is a “biological reality” cuts against modern scientific knowledge”
theconversation.com/race-isnt-a-...
theconversation.com/race-isnt-a-...
Reposted by Nori Ishii
New research by Wendy Higgins, @vsavalei.bsky.social, Vince Polito, and me shows that the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test scores have poor structural properties. journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test Scores Demonstrate Poor Structural Properties in Nine Large Non-Clinical Samples - Wendy C. Higgins, Victoria Savalei, Vince Polito, Robert M. Ross, 2025
The Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (RMET) is widely used in clinical and non-clinical research. However, the structural properties of RMET scores have yet to...
journals.sagepub.com
April 1, 2025 at 5:15 AM
New research by Wendy Higgins, @vsavalei.bsky.social, Vince Polito, and me shows that the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test scores have poor structural properties. journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
Reposted by Nori Ishii
🚨New Paper Klaxon 🚨
Belief in Belief: Even Atheists in Secular Countries Show Intuitive Preferences Favoring Religious Belief.
Now out at PNAS
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Here's a quick 🧵 on what we did and found!👇
1/ 11
🧪
#atheism
#religion
#culture
#evolution
Belief in Belief: Even Atheists in Secular Countries Show Intuitive Preferences Favoring Religious Belief.
Now out at PNAS
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Here's a quick 🧵 on what we did and found!👇
1/ 11
🧪
#atheism
#religion
#culture
#evolution
Belief in belief: Even atheists in secular countries show intuitive preferences favoring religious belief | PNAS
We find evidence of belief in belief—intuitive preferences for religious belief over
atheism, even among atheist participants—across eight comparat...
www.pnas.org
March 28, 2025 at 10:33 AM
🚨New Paper Klaxon 🚨
Belief in Belief: Even Atheists in Secular Countries Show Intuitive Preferences Favoring Religious Belief.
Now out at PNAS
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Here's a quick 🧵 on what we did and found!👇
1/ 11
🧪
#atheism
#religion
#culture
#evolution
Belief in Belief: Even Atheists in Secular Countries Show Intuitive Preferences Favoring Religious Belief.
Now out at PNAS
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Here's a quick 🧵 on what we did and found!👇
1/ 11
🧪
#atheism
#religion
#culture
#evolution
Reposted by Nori Ishii
For those who missed the @culturalevolsoc.bsky.social conference in Durham last September, the recorded talks are now freely available to watch here:
underline.io/events/456/l...
underline.io/events/456/l...
Watch lectures from the best researchers.
On-demand video platform giving you access to lectures from conferences worldwide.
underline.io
February 12, 2025 at 9:32 AM
For those who missed the @culturalevolsoc.bsky.social conference in Durham last September, the recorded talks are now freely available to watch here:
underline.io/events/456/l...
underline.io/events/456/l...
Reposted by Nori Ishii
Reiterating "that RMET scores are unsubstantiated, and thus uninterpretable" & again recommending "that researchers stop using the RMET as a measure of social cognitive ability and re-evaluate existing research findings based on RMET scores" www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti... autism-relevant
Why most research based on the reading the mind in the eyes test is unsubstantiated and uninterpretable: A response to
Murphy and Hall (2024) present two criticisms of our review of construct validity evidence reporting practices for the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Te…
sciencedirect.com
December 13, 2024 at 10:42 AM
Reiterating "that RMET scores are unsubstantiated, and thus uninterpretable" & again recommending "that researchers stop using the RMET as a measure of social cognitive ability and re-evaluate existing research findings based on RMET scores" www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti... autism-relevant
Wow! I received highly positive feedback on my manuscript during the review process for Psychology for Religion and Spirituality. I'll give my best effort to complete the revisions.
January 22, 2025 at 9:24 AM
Wow! I received highly positive feedback on my manuscript during the review process for Psychology for Religion and Spirituality. I'll give my best effort to complete the revisions.
Reposted by Nori Ishii
JOHN SYKES (THIN LIZZY, WHITESNAKE, Etc.) Dead At 65 metalinjection.net/this-is-just...
JOHN SYKES (THIN LIZZY, WHITESNAKE, Etc.) Dead At 65
Rest in power, John.
metalinjection.net
January 20, 2025 at 9:37 PM
JOHN SYKES (THIN LIZZY, WHITESNAKE, Etc.) Dead At 65 metalinjection.net/this-is-just...