Sophie Slaats
@sophieslaats.bsky.social
🔎 distributional information and syntactic structure in the 🧠 | 💼 postdoc @ Université de Genève | 🎓 MPI for Psycholinguistics, BCBL, Utrecht University | 🎨 | she/her
Pinned
Surprisal is the ‘everything bagel/nothing burger’ of predictors—it has everything baked in, which is the problem.
Reposted by Sophie Slaats
Many studies of naturalistic comprehension report that surprisal (often LLM derived) explains more of the variance in data than other predictors. Why is this? And why can it be problematic for our conclusions?
A 🧵 of takeaways from our paper doi.org/10.1007/s421... with @andreaeyleen.bsky.social
A 🧵 of takeaways from our paper doi.org/10.1007/s421... with @andreaeyleen.bsky.social
What’s Surprising About Surprisal - Computational Brain & Behavior
In the computational and experimental psycholinguistic literature, the mechanisms behind syntactic structure building (e.g., combining words into phrases and sentences) are the subject of considerable...
doi.org
November 17, 2025 at 5:13 PM
Many studies of naturalistic comprehension report that surprisal (often LLM derived) explains more of the variance in data than other predictors. Why is this? And why can it be problematic for our conclusions?
A 🧵 of takeaways from our paper doi.org/10.1007/s421... with @andreaeyleen.bsky.social
A 🧵 of takeaways from our paper doi.org/10.1007/s421... with @andreaeyleen.bsky.social
Many studies of naturalistic comprehension report that surprisal (often LLM derived) explains more of the variance in data than other predictors. Why is this? And why can it be problematic for our conclusions?
A 🧵 of takeaways from our paper doi.org/10.1007/s421... with @andreaeyleen.bsky.social
A 🧵 of takeaways from our paper doi.org/10.1007/s421... with @andreaeyleen.bsky.social
What’s Surprising About Surprisal - Computational Brain & Behavior
In the computational and experimental psycholinguistic literature, the mechanisms behind syntactic structure building (e.g., combining words into phrases and sentences) are the subject of considerable...
doi.org
November 17, 2025 at 5:13 PM
Many studies of naturalistic comprehension report that surprisal (often LLM derived) explains more of the variance in data than other predictors. Why is this? And why can it be problematic for our conclusions?
A 🧵 of takeaways from our paper doi.org/10.1007/s421... with @andreaeyleen.bsky.social
A 🧵 of takeaways from our paper doi.org/10.1007/s421... with @andreaeyleen.bsky.social
Reposted by Sophie Slaats
![[Scene is a kitchen - a middle aged woman called JANET is boiling peas at the stove. A younger more colourfully dressed woman named LIZ approached her.]
JANET:
Ugh...
LIZ:
What's up?
JANET:
I am so bored of cooking peas!
LIZ:
Have you tried...
AI peas?
JANET:
AI peas?
LIZ:
They're peas with AI!
[Liz holds up to us a packet of peas labelled: Pea-i AI - Peas with AI].
LIZ:
Al-powered peas harness the potential of your peas
JANET:
What
LIZ [Now a voiceover as we cut to a whizzy technology diagram of peas all connected by meaningless dotted lines]
Why not take your peas to the next level with Al Peas' new Al tools to power your peas?
[Show a techno diagram of a pea with a label reading 'AI' pointing to a random zone in it]
LIZ:
Each pea has Al in a way we haven't quite worked out yet but it's fine
[Show Janet and Liz now in a Matrix-style world of peas]
LIZ:
With Al peas you can supercharge productivity and make AI work for your peas!
JANET:
What
LIZ:
Shut up
LIZ:
Our game-changing Pea-Al gives you the freedom to unlock the potential of the power of the future of your peas workflow
From opening the bag of peas
to boiling the peas
to eating the peas
To spending millions on adding Al to the peas and then having to work out what that even means.
JANET:
Is it really necessary to-
LIZ [Grabbing Janet by the collar]:
THE PEAS HAVE GOT AI, JANET
[Cut to an advert ending screen, with the bag of peas and the slogan:
AI PEAS: Just 'Peas' for god's sake buy the AI peas.
[Ends]](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:4m3we4apbjayclzcnhwe3pfp/bafkreiayqa37f7kik7l7s7fbtfp2sir5ckb662ry2lylinyjrfa2rkvvka@jpeg)
Reposted by Sophie Slaats
Frog looked at Toad's calendar. The November page was still on top.
November 13, 2025 at 11:37 AM
Frog looked at Toad's calendar. The November page was still on top.
Reposted by Sophie Slaats
Thinking only of Rosalind Franklin today, and what was stolen from her (and so many other female scientists alongside her).
Rosalind Franklin and the damage of gender harassment
Spurred by a recent report on sexual harassment in academia, our columnist revisits a historical case and reflects on what has changed—and what hasn’t
www.science.org
November 7, 2025 at 7:58 PM
Thinking only of Rosalind Franklin today, and what was stolen from her (and so many other female scientists alongside her).
Reposted by Sophie Slaats
In the first Cognitive Webinar of this year, we are excited to host @sophieslaats.bsky.social , a postdoctoral researcher at the Université de Genève.
Registration link is below 👇
#cogist #cognitivewebinar
Registration link is below 👇
#cogist #cognitivewebinar
November 9, 2025 at 3:09 PM
In the first Cognitive Webinar of this year, we are excited to host @sophieslaats.bsky.social , a postdoctoral researcher at the Université de Genève.
Registration link is below 👇
#cogist #cognitivewebinar
Registration link is below 👇
#cogist #cognitivewebinar
Reposted by Sophie Slaats
Please repost! I am looking for a PhD candidate in the area of Computational Cognitive Neuroscience to start in early 2026.
The position is funded as part of the Excellence Cluster "The Adaptive Mind" at @jlugiessen.bsky.social.
Please apply here until Nov 25:
www.uni-giessen.de/de/ueber-uns...
The position is funded as part of the Excellence Cluster "The Adaptive Mind" at @jlugiessen.bsky.social.
Please apply here until Nov 25:
www.uni-giessen.de/de/ueber-uns...
November 4, 2025 at 1:57 PM
Please repost! I am looking for a PhD candidate in the area of Computational Cognitive Neuroscience to start in early 2026.
The position is funded as part of the Excellence Cluster "The Adaptive Mind" at @jlugiessen.bsky.social.
Please apply here until Nov 25:
www.uni-giessen.de/de/ueber-uns...
The position is funded as part of the Excellence Cluster "The Adaptive Mind" at @jlugiessen.bsky.social.
Please apply here until Nov 25:
www.uni-giessen.de/de/ueber-uns...
Reposted by Sophie Slaats
The Spoken Language group @bcbl.bsky.social is currently recruiting for these positions:
👉PhD students (expressions of interest are welcome on a rolling basis)
👉Postdoctoral Researcher (start date: Nov '26 - Sep '27) tinyurl.com/3um3bjze
👉Research Assistant tinyurl.com/y5uebra6
Please share ☺️
👉PhD students (expressions of interest are welcome on a rolling basis)
👉Postdoctoral Researcher (start date: Nov '26 - Sep '27) tinyurl.com/3um3bjze
👉Research Assistant tinyurl.com/y5uebra6
Please share ☺️
SPONSORSHIP FOR JUAN DE LA CIERVA POSTDOCTORAL FELLOWSHIP - SPOKEN LANGUAGE GROUP (E.K)
at the BCBL- Basque Center on Cognition Brain and Language (San Sebastián, Basque Country, Spain) www.bcbl.eu
tinyurl.com
October 30, 2025 at 9:06 AM
The Spoken Language group @bcbl.bsky.social is currently recruiting for these positions:
👉PhD students (expressions of interest are welcome on a rolling basis)
👉Postdoctoral Researcher (start date: Nov '26 - Sep '27) tinyurl.com/3um3bjze
👉Research Assistant tinyurl.com/y5uebra6
Please share ☺️
👉PhD students (expressions of interest are welcome on a rolling basis)
👉Postdoctoral Researcher (start date: Nov '26 - Sep '27) tinyurl.com/3um3bjze
👉Research Assistant tinyurl.com/y5uebra6
Please share ☺️
Reposted by Sophie Slaats
"I DON'T NEED YOU TO FUCKING REWRITE WHAT I'VE JUST WRITTEN!"
October 28, 2025 at 10:46 AM
"I DON'T NEED YOU TO FUCKING REWRITE WHAT I'VE JUST WRITTEN!"
Reposted by Sophie Slaats
OPEN PHD POSITION - Come join our group! The IMPRS at @mpi-nl.bsky.social is offering an PhD position on modelling structured meaning in the brain, supervised by me and Helen De Hoop at the Centre for Language Studies in the @dondersinst.bsky.social -
www.mpi.nl/imprs-phd-fe... #NeuroJobs #cogsci
www.mpi.nl/imprs-phd-fe... #NeuroJobs #cogsci
IMPRS PhD Fellowships 2026 | Max Planck Institute
www.mpi.nl
October 23, 2025 at 9:05 AM
OPEN PHD POSITION - Come join our group! The IMPRS at @mpi-nl.bsky.social is offering an PhD position on modelling structured meaning in the brain, supervised by me and Helen De Hoop at the Centre for Language Studies in the @dondersinst.bsky.social -
www.mpi.nl/imprs-phd-fe... #NeuroJobs #cogsci
www.mpi.nl/imprs-phd-fe... #NeuroJobs #cogsci
Reposted by Sophie Slaats
“Women-led papers were more likely to be featured in local outlets than in national, international, or science-specialty media. They appeared more often in liberal-leaning outlets than conservative ones. And coverage of their work carried a more negative tone”
www.science.org/content/arti...
www.science.org/content/arti...
When women researchers publish, media attention doesn’t always follow
Men-led papers receive more media coverage than women’s, new study finds
www.science.org
October 10, 2025 at 7:22 AM
“Women-led papers were more likely to be featured in local outlets than in national, international, or science-specialty media. They appeared more often in liberal-leaning outlets than conservative ones. And coverage of their work carried a more negative tone”
www.science.org/content/arti...
www.science.org/content/arti...
Reposted by Sophie Slaats
PhD Position: Accented Speech Processing - Apply now!
Come work with Mirjam Broersma, @davidpeeters.bsky.social, and me at the Centre for Language Studies, Radboud University in the Netherlands.
Application deadline: 19 October 2025
For more information, see
www.ru.nl/en/working-a...
Come work with Mirjam Broersma, @davidpeeters.bsky.social, and me at the Centre for Language Studies, Radboud University in the Netherlands.
Application deadline: 19 October 2025
For more information, see
www.ru.nl/en/working-a...
PhD Position: Accented Speech Processing | Radboud University
Do you want to work as a PhD: Accented Speech Processing at the Faculty of Arts? Check our vacancy!
www.ru.nl
October 2, 2025 at 2:35 PM
PhD Position: Accented Speech Processing - Apply now!
Come work with Mirjam Broersma, @davidpeeters.bsky.social, and me at the Centre for Language Studies, Radboud University in the Netherlands.
Application deadline: 19 October 2025
For more information, see
www.ru.nl/en/working-a...
Come work with Mirjam Broersma, @davidpeeters.bsky.social, and me at the Centre for Language Studies, Radboud University in the Netherlands.
Application deadline: 19 October 2025
For more information, see
www.ru.nl/en/working-a...
Reposted by Sophie Slaats
Postdoc (flexible start): child language development across different populations and contexts, methods including behavioral studies, large-scale data analysis, and/or computational modeling. M. Cychosz, Linguistics, Stanford Univ. postdocs.stanford.edu/prospective/...
October 3, 2025 at 1:56 AM
Postdoc (flexible start): child language development across different populations and contexts, methods including behavioral studies, large-scale data analysis, and/or computational modeling. M. Cychosz, Linguistics, Stanford Univ. postdocs.stanford.edu/prospective/...
Reposted by Sophie Slaats
We're seeking the next Director of the Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics! Lead cutting-edge research in language & cognition. Nominations (incl. self) due 19 Dec 2025.
mpi.nl/career-education/vacancies/vacancy/nominations-and-self-nominations-sought-position-director-max
mpi.nl/career-education/vacancies/vacancy/nominations-and-self-nominations-sought-position-director-max
October 3, 2025 at 7:53 AM
We're seeking the next Director of the Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics! Lead cutting-edge research in language & cognition. Nominations (incl. self) due 19 Dec 2025.
mpi.nl/career-education/vacancies/vacancy/nominations-and-self-nominations-sought-position-director-max
mpi.nl/career-education/vacancies/vacancy/nominations-and-self-nominations-sought-position-director-max
Reposted by Sophie Slaats
🎉We're hiring!🎉
We're looking for 2 Postdoctoral Researchers to join our exciting, interdisciplinary team. Both are full-time, fixed-term (almost 4 years), based in Edinburgh's @uoe-cahss.bsky.social / @uoe-llc.bsky.social w/ links to @schoolofppls.bsky.social & @morayhouse.bsky.social
Pls share!
We're looking for 2 Postdoctoral Researchers to join our exciting, interdisciplinary team. Both are full-time, fixed-term (almost 4 years), based in Edinburgh's @uoe-cahss.bsky.social / @uoe-llc.bsky.social w/ links to @schoolofppls.bsky.social & @morayhouse.bsky.social
Pls share!
October 2, 2025 at 1:49 PM
🎉We're hiring!🎉
We're looking for 2 Postdoctoral Researchers to join our exciting, interdisciplinary team. Both are full-time, fixed-term (almost 4 years), based in Edinburgh's @uoe-cahss.bsky.social / @uoe-llc.bsky.social w/ links to @schoolofppls.bsky.social & @morayhouse.bsky.social
Pls share!
We're looking for 2 Postdoctoral Researchers to join our exciting, interdisciplinary team. Both are full-time, fixed-term (almost 4 years), based in Edinburgh's @uoe-cahss.bsky.social / @uoe-llc.bsky.social w/ links to @schoolofppls.bsky.social & @morayhouse.bsky.social
Pls share!
"Langauge in the Brian" - free title for grant proposal for studying the neural basis of the Transposed Letter effect
October 1, 2025 at 2:00 PM
"Langauge in the Brian" - free title for grant proposal for studying the neural basis of the Transposed Letter effect
Dr. Fernández Merino shone at her defense today! 🌟
🎓✨ So proud of my PhD student for brilliantly defending her thesis today! Years of hard work, resilience, and curiosity have paid off — welcome, Dr. Fernández-Merino! 👩🎓👏
September 22, 2025 at 8:30 PM
Dr. Fernández Merino shone at her defense today! 🌟
Reposted by Sophie Slaats
I somehow called temporal response functions “millennial ERPs” in lab meeting and now I can’t stop thinking about that 😅🥹
September 18, 2025 at 4:03 PM
I somehow called temporal response functions “millennial ERPs” in lab meeting and now I can’t stop thinking about that 😅🥹
Reposted by Sophie Slaats
Out now in Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews!
When studying language in the brain, we often look for things that can be model systems for language (songbirds, artificial grammars, etc.). Here, we flip this on its head and argue that language itself is an excellent model system for cognition 🗣️🧏♀️🧠
When studying language in the brain, we often look for things that can be model systems for language (songbirds, artificial grammars, etc.). Here, we flip this on its head and argue that language itself is an excellent model system for cognition 🗣️🧏♀️🧠
Linguistic structure as a guiding principle for human neuroscience. New paper by @annamai.bsky.social & @andreaeyleen.bsky.social
doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2025.106322
doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2025.106322
Redirecting
doi.org
September 8, 2025 at 3:37 PM
Out now in Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews!
When studying language in the brain, we often look for things that can be model systems for language (songbirds, artificial grammars, etc.). Here, we flip this on its head and argue that language itself is an excellent model system for cognition 🗣️🧏♀️🧠
When studying language in the brain, we often look for things that can be model systems for language (songbirds, artificial grammars, etc.). Here, we flip this on its head and argue that language itself is an excellent model system for cognition 🗣️🧏♀️🧠
Reposted by Sophie Slaats
Interested in doing a PhD with me and lacns.github.io? Or with any of the incredible fellows in the IMPRS School of Cognition www.maxplanckschools.org/cognition-en - apply before Dec 1st at cognition.maxplanckschools.org/en/application
Language and Computation in Neural Systems
We are an international group of scientists consisting of linguists, cognitive scientists, cognitive neuroscientists, computational neuroscientists, computational modellers, computational scientists, ...
lacns.github.io
September 3, 2025 at 3:15 PM
Interested in doing a PhD with me and lacns.github.io? Or with any of the incredible fellows in the IMPRS School of Cognition www.maxplanckschools.org/cognition-en - apply before Dec 1st at cognition.maxplanckschools.org/en/application
I had a fantastic time at #AMLaP2025 in gorgeous Prague! Great feedback on my poster, lovely talks, wonderful reunions, and a phenomenal keynote by @lindadrijvers.bsky.social (so relevant when looking at the photos of my own presentation... 👐 ).
work with Alexis Hervais-Adelman 🌐 link in comment
work with Alexis Hervais-Adelman 🌐 link in comment
September 8, 2025 at 12:03 PM
I had a fantastic time at #AMLaP2025 in gorgeous Prague! Great feedback on my poster, lovely talks, wonderful reunions, and a phenomenal keynote by @lindadrijvers.bsky.social (so relevant when looking at the photos of my own presentation... 👐 ).
work with Alexis Hervais-Adelman 🌐 link in comment
work with Alexis Hervais-Adelman 🌐 link in comment
Come find my poster on how syntax and lexical probability interact in intracranial EEG today at 10:00 at #AMLaP2025 - poster 106! 🗣️
September 5, 2025 at 7:42 AM
Come find my poster on how syntax and lexical probability interact in intracranial EEG today at 10:00 at #AMLaP2025 - poster 106! 🗣️
Reposted by Sophie Slaats
HOW DO I LOG IN TO EDITORIAL MANAGER TO SUBMIT MY REVIEW
Psychologists & related fields: what is a big methods question that you believe remains somewhat unanswered & that you'd love to see adressed? There may be an opportunity for a large-scale meta-science project with many teams trying to figure out a question.
Any thoughts welcome! #psychscisky
Any thoughts welcome! #psychscisky
July 30, 2025 at 5:45 PM
HOW DO I LOG IN TO EDITORIAL MANAGER TO SUBMIT MY REVIEW
It's always a pleasure to read the research report from the @mpi-nl.bsky.social - but when your own work is mentioned, it does hit different. Thanks for the mention and, of course, the wonderful years of work! 🧠 💬 @andreaeyleen.bsky.social
Report: www.mpi.nl/sites/defaul...
Report: www.mpi.nl/sites/defaul...
July 24, 2025 at 11:46 AM
It's always a pleasure to read the research report from the @mpi-nl.bsky.social - but when your own work is mentioned, it does hit different. Thanks for the mention and, of course, the wonderful years of work! 🧠 💬 @andreaeyleen.bsky.social
Report: www.mpi.nl/sites/defaul...
Report: www.mpi.nl/sites/defaul...
Reposted by Sophie Slaats
Is it possible to use AI well and ethically in academia? I don't know but these amazing resources - via @dingemansemark.bsky.social - may help you make an informed decision 1/
July 24, 2025 at 11:03 AM
Is it possible to use AI well and ethically in academia? I don't know but these amazing resources - via @dingemansemark.bsky.social - may help you make an informed decision 1/