Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Laura Winchester @winchesterl.bsky.social · 14d

This is an interesting one for potential reviewers. The authors used the NHANES cohort publications to count the copycats.

Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 14d

'In a preprint posted on medRxiv on 12 September1, researchers identified more than 400 such papers published in 112 journals over the past 4.5 years'.

Link to preprint: www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1...

Journals infiltrated with ‘copycat’ papers that can be written by AI

Tools such as ChatGPT can be used to generate almost-identical research papers that pass standard plagiarism checks. Hundreds are thought to have been published.

www.nature.com

Reposted by Laura Winchester

Clare Mackay @claremackay.bsky.social · 18d

Big news!

I loved researching and writing this book, which is all about shedding the shame, and getting really curious about urges to pick, pull and bite.

I can't wait to share it with you! It's out on April 2nd, and is available to pre-order now.

#bfrb #bfrbs #bodyfocusedrepetitivebehaviors

Picuture showing forthcoming book, called 'Keep your hair on: understanding urges to pick, pull and bite' by Clare Mackay, which will be launched in April 2026

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Laura Winchester @winchesterl.bsky.social · 18d

Enjoying this as a distraction this morning as well...

David Bauer @davidbauer.ch · 19d

In the first seven days since I launched this new game, almost ten thousand people from 82 countries have played it. (Top cities so far: New York City, Zurich, Toronto, Chicago, Berlin, Vienna, Stockholm)

What topics would you like me to add next?

dataguessr.com

Dataguessr

Update your knowledge of the world. One quiz at a time.

dataguessr.com

Laura Winchester @winchesterl.bsky.social · 18d

My moral support for responding to reviewers on a Saturday morning. He's fed up as well. #Caturday

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Reposted by Laura Winchester

Dementia Researcher @dementiaresearcher.bsky.social · 23d

Who’s ready for Manchester 2026? 🧠

AAIC Neuroscience Next is free, global, and packed with chances to present your work. Abstracts open 22 September – are you in? #AAICNeuro

pod.fo/e/329e2b

Dementia Researcher: The Road To AAIC Neuroscience Next 2026

In this episode of the Dementia Researcher podcast, host Adam Smith discusses the upcoming AAIC Neuroscience Next Conference with guests Tricia Nicholson, Dr Amanda Heslgrave, and Kalli Mavr...

pod.fo

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Laura Winchester @winchesterl.bsky.social · Sep 7

Ah, vodafone didn't come through until 4 minutes past. I'll be hiding in a cardboard box with the cat then.

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Laura Winchester @winchesterl.bsky.social · Aug 15

Starting the training runs for Oxford half from the beach this morning. Will be looking for sponsorship when I get home ... www.justgiving.com/team/aruk-ru...

Beach over sand dunes with sun behind clouds

Reposted by Laura Winchester

Iris van Rooij 💭 @irisvanrooij.bsky.social · Aug 12

AI slop and the destruction of knowledge irisvanrooijcogsci.com/2025/08/12/a...

AI slop and the destruction of knowledge

This week I was looking for info on what cognitive scientists mean when they speak of ‘domain-general’ cognition. I was curious, because the nuances are relevant for something I am researching at t…

irisvanrooijcogsci.com

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Reposted by Laura Winchester

Dylan Williams @dylwil.bsky.social · Aug 12

Just came across this graphical abstract for a paper. No idea what they were going for with the whale and rainbow, but at least it is very calming

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Laura Winchester @winchesterl.bsky.social · Aug 12

I like the rainbow of visualisation best.

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Laura Winchester @winchesterl.bsky.social · Jul 15

Big day for @neuroproteome.bsky.social All proteomic data released at neuroproteome.org and publications in print. Lots to read on AD, PD, FTD and ALS.

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Laura Winchester @winchesterl.bsky.social · Jun 25

Looking for a new PhD student interested in Alzheimer’s disease and informatics starting in October. Details below.

Dementia Researcher @dementiaresearcher.bsky.social · Jun 25

🎓 Join the University of Oxford for a fully funded DPhil in Psychiatry, studying neuroinflammatory pathways in dementia using big data and AI. Supervised by @winchesterl.bsky.social & Prof Alejo Nevado-Holgado - Apply by 25th July

www.dementiaresearcher.nihr.ac.uk/job/phd-infl...

PhD: Inflammation and Alzheimer’s Disease

Oxford DPhil in Psychiatry: study neuroinflammation in dementia using large datasets, bioinformatics & machine learning with Dr Winchester & Prof Nevado-Holgado

www.dementiaresearcher.nihr.ac.uk

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Laura Winchester @winchesterl.bsky.social · Jun 6

For the June DEMON Biomarker working group we are pleased to host Dr Ehsan Pishva who will be presenting his work on DNA methylation and environmental exposures in Parkinson’s disease. Wednesday 11th June 10am BST. Please message for joining links.

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Reposted by Laura Winchester

UK Dementia Research Institute @ukdri.ac.uk · May 6

🚨Calling all ECRs working on dementia biomarkers! 🚨

Are you interested in helping us shape the scientific programme for a one-day conference in February 2026?

Find out more & register your interest 👉 www.dementiaresearcher.nihr.ac.uk/help-design-...

Help Design a Pioneering Dementia Biomarkers Conference - DEMENTIA RESEARCHER

Are you an ECR working on dementia biomarkers? Help shape a major 2026 conference & UK AAIC hub bid. Volunteer by 11 May to get involved!

www.dementiaresearcher.nihr.ac.uk

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Reposted by Laura Winchester

Tom Gauld @tomgauld.bsky.social · Apr 28

My latest @newscientist.com cartoon

Title:
SOME GRAMMATICAL VOICES FOR USE IN SCIENTIFIC WRITING

ACTIVE VOICE
e.g.
Our team collected samples and then we tested them.

CLICKBAIT VOICE
e.g.
We collected some samples...
You won't believe what happened next!

PASSIVE VOICE
e.g.
Samples were collected and tested.

HAIKU VOICE
e.g.
Quiet science lab.
Workers arrive with samples.
The testing begins.

PASSIVE-AGGRESSIVE VOICE
e.g. We did all the collecting and testing.
No need to thank us.
Just doing our job.

CONSPIRACY VOICE
e.g.
Mysterious "Samples" were harvested and covertly "tested" by so-called scientists.

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Reposted by Laura Winchester

Stephen Turner @stephenturner.us · Apr 14

A benchmarking crisis in biomedical machine learning www.nature.com/articles/s41... 🧬🖥️🧪

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Laura Winchester @winchesterl.bsky.social · Apr 7

In this month's DEMON Biomarker working group we are looking forward to hearing from @sanasuri.bsky.social who will be discussing her work on predicting dementia risk factors related to the heart and brain. 📅 Wed 9th April 10am (BST). Please message for joining details

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Laura Winchester @winchesterl.bsky.social · Mar 28

Sharing on a Friday without the need for any further comment.

womensartbluesky.bsky.social @womensartbluesky.bsky.social · Mar 28

A map of procrastination' by contemporary UK illustrator, Gemma Correll #WomensArt #FridayFeeling

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Laura Winchester @winchesterl.bsky.social · Mar 27

Lovely paper on cat coat genetics.

Elinor Karlsson @elinork.bsky.social · Mar 27

How did Coati get their stripes? Not yet known ... but we know how another Carnivore loses them! 3 mutations in gene TAQPEP changes a cat from tabby striped to blotchy #RIP #2025MMM www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

(A) Allelic variation at Tabby controls color patterning—mackerel (Taᴹ) is dominant over blotched (Taᵇ). Diagrams show how the distribution of eumelanin (dark) and pheomelanin (light) within hairs contributes to coat patterns.
(B) Taqpep encodes a type II membrane aminopeptidase. The T139N variant, found in feral cats, is associated with swirled patterns (P = 0.0017) but shows incomplete penetrance.

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Reposted by Laura Winchester

British Society for Immunology @britsocimm.bsky.social · Mar 26

Thanks to global immunisation efforts, an estimated 154 million lives have been saved over the past 50 years 🌎 🤝

That’s equivalent to 6 lives every minute.

#CelebrateVaccines

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Reposted by Laura Winchester

Petra Proitsi @ppetra.bsky.social · Mar 10

We're excited to have @dorsaabdolkarimi.bsky.social from @preventiveneur1.bsky.social at our monthly DEMON Biomarkers WG meeting, on Wednesday, 12th March, @ 10am GMT presenting on "Identifying a Signature of Inflammatory Proteins Predicting Dementia." DM me or @winchesterl.bsky.social for details

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Laura Winchester @winchesterl.bsky.social · Feb 27

Had a brilliant time in Birmingham this week but I do have to say the Early Careers Day was my favourite this year even if i am biased. Fantastic talks from both early career researchers and our invited experts. #arukconf25

Research at ARUK @alzheimersresearchuk.org · Feb 24

What’s next for dementia research? Experts from Edinburgh, Loughborough & Kings College London explore the future of the field. Where do you see dementia research heading? #ARUKConf25

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Reposted by Laura Winchester

Cristina Legido-Quigley @legidoquigley.bsky.social · Jan 31

I did a list of #WomeinSTEM working in #metabolomics & #lipidomics and #datascience please join or share with others, use it for conferences, media & networking, mentoring, supporting, anything that helps, 300+ women have joined
docs.google.com/document/u/0...

LIST “WOMEN IN METABOLOMICS, LIPIDOMICS, PROTEOMICS AND RELATED DATA SCIENCE”

NAME INSTITUTION COUNTRY Dr. Maria Eugenia Monge CIBION-CONICET Argentina Prof. Elaine Holmes Murdoch University- Imperial College London Australia- UK Dr Ruey-Leng Loo Murdoch University, Au...

docs.google.com

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Laura Winchester @winchesterl.bsky.social · Jan 30

Next week the DEMON biomarkers working group are hosting Dr Sofia Toniolo who will be talking about the opportunities and pitfalls from digital and plasma biomarkers in Alzheimer’s Disease. 📅 Thursday 6th Feb 10am GMT. All welcome - PM for details.

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Laura Winchester @winchesterl.bsky.social · Jan 29

Oh no. I remember the faulty headsets from last year. Hoping to come along tomorrow if you are attending both days and would like a coffee.

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