Tom Farsides
@tomfarsides.bsky.social
Internet waif. Employed as a social psychologist at the Univeristy of Sussex but my interest in people caring about and trying to help others takes me far beyond the boundaries suggested by my job title.
"AI can ... mimick"
Oliveira et al (2025). Culturally-attuned AI: Implicit learning of altruistic cultural values through inverse reinforcement learning. PLoS One, 20(12), e0337914. doi.org/10.1371/jour...
Press release: www.washington.edu/news/2025/12...
Oliveira et al (2025). Culturally-attuned AI: Implicit learning of altruistic cultural values through inverse reinforcement learning. PLoS One, 20(12), e0337914. doi.org/10.1371/jour...
Press release: www.washington.edu/news/2025/12...
AI can pick up cultural values by mimicking how kids learn
A new University of Washington study suggests that AI could learn cultural values by observing human behavior, similar to how children learn by watching and interacting with adults. Researchers had AI...
www.washington.edu
December 12, 2025 at 9:16 AM
"AI can ... mimick"
Oliveira et al (2025). Culturally-attuned AI: Implicit learning of altruistic cultural values through inverse reinforcement learning. PLoS One, 20(12), e0337914. doi.org/10.1371/jour...
Press release: www.washington.edu/news/2025/12...
Oliveira et al (2025). Culturally-attuned AI: Implicit learning of altruistic cultural values through inverse reinforcement learning. PLoS One, 20(12), e0337914. doi.org/10.1371/jour...
Press release: www.washington.edu/news/2025/12...
Reposted by Tom Farsides
A jar of pickle beetroot:
2/10 wobble dobble
4/10 jimmy jam
My inner cynic says this has about as much construct validity as the average psychological rating scale…
2/10 wobble dobble
4/10 jimmy jam
My inner cynic says this has about as much construct validity as the average psychological rating scale…
December 10, 2025 at 11:28 AM
A jar of pickle beetroot:
2/10 wobble dobble
4/10 jimmy jam
My inner cynic says this has about as much construct validity as the average psychological rating scale…
2/10 wobble dobble
4/10 jimmy jam
My inner cynic says this has about as much construct validity as the average psychological rating scale…
Reposted by Tom Farsides
A surprising diversity of dog shapes and sizes evolved long before the Victorians began making modern breeds
Dog Skull Analysis Rewrites Evolution of Humanity's Best Friend
A surprising diversity of dog shapes and sizes evolved long before the Victorians began making modern breeds
www.scientificamerican.com
November 13, 2025 at 8:44 PM
A surprising diversity of dog shapes and sizes evolved long before the Victorians began making modern breeds
"In 1923, Franz Kafka encountered a distraught little girl who had lost her doll and was inconsolable. Kafka told her the doll wasn't lost but traveling the world having grand adventures! To reassure her, Kafka began delivering letters from the doll ..." www.youtube.com/watch?v=AvNZ...
KAFKA AND THE DOLL | Read Along Story Time |
YouTube video by Audiobook Story Time for Children with Viola
www.youtube.com
October 7, 2025 at 4:38 PM
"In 1923, Franz Kafka encountered a distraught little girl who had lost her doll and was inconsolable. Kafka told her the doll wasn't lost but traveling the world having grand adventures! To reassure her, Kafka began delivering letters from the doll ..." www.youtube.com/watch?v=AvNZ...
Reposted by Tom Farsides
In a strange circularity, it seems that all the work I was doing in the early 1990s on concealment/distortion of statistics by USSR & DDR is becoming very relevant now
academic.oup.com/ije/article-...
academic.oup.com/ije/article-...
Commentary: The health crisis in the USSR: looking behind the facade
My first visit to the USSR was in February 1981, by coincidence at exactly the same time that Nick Eberstadt published a commentary on ‘The health crisis i
academic.oup.com
August 1, 2025 at 10:13 PM
In a strange circularity, it seems that all the work I was doing in the early 1990s on concealment/distortion of statistics by USSR & DDR is becoming very relevant now
academic.oup.com/ije/article-...
academic.oup.com/ije/article-...
As I move into the “Recycling the last hard copy of my PhD” stage of clearing my office, it gives me pause to see just how unrelenting my malcontent and snark have been. 🤪
July 28, 2025 at 1:16 PM
As I move into the “Recycling the last hard copy of my PhD” stage of clearing my office, it gives me pause to see just how unrelenting my malcontent and snark have been. 🤪
Reposted by Tom Farsides
Silly psy cartoon for the weekend!
July 20, 2025 at 9:56 AM
Silly psy cartoon for the weekend!
Reposted by Tom Farsides
I was explaining to my Ukrainian colleague the phrase ‘There’s no such thing as a free lunch’. She told me the equivalent in Ukrainian is ‘The only free cheese is in the mousetrap’ - which is so much better
July 16, 2025 at 6:39 AM
I was explaining to my Ukrainian colleague the phrase ‘There’s no such thing as a free lunch’. She told me the equivalent in Ukrainian is ‘The only free cheese is in the mousetrap’ - which is so much better
Reposted by Tom Farsides
Modern theories of emotion (especially “interoceptive inference”) often cite William James as a key inspiration. But what did James actually say about emotion, and is it supported by the data? Here’s a brief look at the core arguments and classic evidence. 🧵
July 13, 2025 at 7:47 AM
Modern theories of emotion (especially “interoceptive inference”) often cite William James as a key inspiration. But what did James actually say about emotion, and is it supported by the data? Here’s a brief look at the core arguments and classic evidence. 🧵
Is it “brash” to be concerned if societies foster freedom of thought or insist on the “narrow, mean, intolerable and brainless prejudice of soulless … maniacs”?
100 years ago today, the small town of Dayton, Tennessee, was thrust into the spotlight as one of the most famous legal confrontations of the 20th century got underway. I recently wrote about the legacy of the Scopes trial for @smithsonianmag.bsky.social: #OTD
www.smithsonianmag.com/science-natu...
www.smithsonianmag.com/science-natu...
A Century Ago, a High School Teacher From a Small Tennessee Town Ignited a National Debate Over Human Evolution
The Scopes “monkey trial” garnered international attention, and the battle that was fought continues in some form in other states today
www.smithsonianmag.com
July 10, 2025 at 3:38 PM
Is it “brash” to be concerned if societies foster freedom of thought or insist on the “narrow, mean, intolerable and brainless prejudice of soulless … maniacs”?
What a wonderful book review!
July 10, 2025 at 12:53 PM
What a wonderful book review!
Reposted by Tom Farsides
GiveWell sought an independent check on the evidence supporting >$1 billion it has granted to its top charities. This fall, Alex Cohen asked whether we could obtain the datasets needed to reproduce the underlying RCTs. We said yes; charging only a modest fee to cover our time.
🧵 + 🐀 + blog post!
🧵 + 🐀 + blog post!
May 29, 2025 at 7:06 PM
GiveWell sought an independent check on the evidence supporting >$1 billion it has granted to its top charities. This fall, Alex Cohen asked whether we could obtain the datasets needed to reproduce the underlying RCTs. We said yes; charging only a modest fee to cover our time.
🧵 + 🐀 + blog post!
🧵 + 🐀 + blog post!
Reposted by Tom Farsides
[Blog Archive]
Excerpt from the Introduction to
Until Darwin: Science & the Origins of Race (2010)
[UNCORRECTED PROOF]
"Introduction: Ecce Homo or Slavery and Human Variety"
#UntilDarwinBibliography #HistSTM #HistSci #CharlesDarwin
Excerpt from the Introduction to
Until Darwin: Science & the Origins of Race (2010)
[UNCORRECTED PROOF]
"Introduction: Ecce Homo or Slavery and Human Variety"
#UntilDarwinBibliography #HistSTM #HistSci #CharlesDarwin
Excerpt from the Introduction to Until Darwin: Science & the Origins of Race
Classification Species Darwin Degeneration Evolution History of Science, Sociology, Sciences of Life, Human Variety, Natural History, Ecology
until-darwin.blogspot.com
September 6, 2024 at 2:10 PM
[Blog Archive]
Excerpt from the Introduction to
Until Darwin: Science & the Origins of Race (2010)
[UNCORRECTED PROOF]
"Introduction: Ecce Homo or Slavery and Human Variety"
#UntilDarwinBibliography #HistSTM #HistSci #CharlesDarwin
Excerpt from the Introduction to
Until Darwin: Science & the Origins of Race (2010)
[UNCORRECTED PROOF]
"Introduction: Ecce Homo or Slavery and Human Variety"
#UntilDarwinBibliography #HistSTM #HistSci #CharlesDarwin
Today I learned about the empiricist's moustache. Steinmetz, G. (2004). Odious comparisons: Incommensurability, the case study, and “small N's” in sociology. Sociological theory, 22(3), 371-400. doi.org/10.1111/j.07...
June 12, 2025 at 3:28 PM
Today I learned about the empiricist's moustache. Steinmetz, G. (2004). Odious comparisons: Incommensurability, the case study, and “small N's” in sociology. Sociological theory, 22(3), 371-400. doi.org/10.1111/j.07...
I like this framing a lot. Whether intelligence is a thing, various things, a combination of things, or different things to different people, what do we mean and what are we trying to say when we use the label?
🤯 We use the term 'intelligence' a lot, but wth do we mean?
We got 303 survey responses from researchers. The most agreed-on criteria are generalization, adaptability & reasoning.
ACL Findings preprint: arxiv.org/abs/2505.20959
with @brtrm.bsky.social @terne.bsky.social @heinrichst.bsky.social /1
We got 303 survey responses from researchers. The most agreed-on criteria are generalization, adaptability & reasoning.
ACL Findings preprint: arxiv.org/abs/2505.20959
with @brtrm.bsky.social @terne.bsky.social @heinrichst.bsky.social /1
June 3, 2025 at 10:26 AM
I like this framing a lot. Whether intelligence is a thing, various things, a combination of things, or different things to different people, what do we mean and what are we trying to say when we use the label?
On the difficulty of inferring motivation from behaviour and the risks of inferential biases, e.g., anthropomorphism.
Arakawa, H. (2025). Interpreting mouse’s intention from analysis of prosocial behavior. Lab Animal. doi.org/10.1038/s416...
Arakawa, H. (2025). Interpreting mouse’s intention from analysis of prosocial behavior. Lab Animal. doi.org/10.1038/s416...
Interpreting mouse’s intention from analysis of prosocial behavior - Lab Animal
Recent research provides evidence of potential altruistic social behavior in mice. Laboratory mice appear to attempt to rescue an unconscious cage mate by investigating its mouth and pulling out its t...
doi.org
May 29, 2025 at 9:07 AM
On the difficulty of inferring motivation from behaviour and the risks of inferential biases, e.g., anthropomorphism.
Arakawa, H. (2025). Interpreting mouse’s intention from analysis of prosocial behavior. Lab Animal. doi.org/10.1038/s416...
Arakawa, H. (2025). Interpreting mouse’s intention from analysis of prosocial behavior. Lab Animal. doi.org/10.1038/s416...
People’s ‘moral circle’ sometimes shrinks, including standardly during some stages of development.
Marshall, J., Wilks, M., Caviola, L., & Nelder, K. (2025). When development constricts our moral circle. Nature Human Behavior. doi.org/10.1038/s415...
Marshall, J., Wilks, M., Caviola, L., & Nelder, K. (2025). When development constricts our moral circle. Nature Human Behavior. doi.org/10.1038/s415...
When development constricts our moral circle - Nature Human Behaviour
Although many believe our moral circles expand with age, this Perspective discusses an early-emerging tendency to care for others.
doi.org
May 29, 2025 at 8:46 AM
People’s ‘moral circle’ sometimes shrinks, including standardly during some stages of development.
Marshall, J., Wilks, M., Caviola, L., & Nelder, K. (2025). When development constricts our moral circle. Nature Human Behavior. doi.org/10.1038/s415...
Marshall, J., Wilks, M., Caviola, L., & Nelder, K. (2025). When development constricts our moral circle. Nature Human Behavior. doi.org/10.1038/s415...
Reposted by Tom Farsides
K. Ring, 1967, doi.org/10.1016/0022...
Redirecting
doi.org
May 29, 2025 at 5:18 AM
K. Ring, 1967, doi.org/10.1016/0022...
Reposted by Tom Farsides
"There is also a self-righteous aspect to whistle-blowing, so that some people - even whole university departments or academic sub-fields - seem to relish challenging the integrity of the procedures and conclusions of others."
Abelson (1995/2009, p103) on #p-hacking ("fishiness") and #metascience
Abelson (1995/2009, p103) on #p-hacking ("fishiness") and #metascience
May 29, 2025 at 7:12 AM
"There is also a self-righteous aspect to whistle-blowing, so that some people - even whole university departments or academic sub-fields - seem to relish challenging the integrity of the procedures and conclusions of others."
Abelson (1995/2009, p103) on #p-hacking ("fishiness") and #metascience
Abelson (1995/2009, p103) on #p-hacking ("fishiness") and #metascience
Reposted by Tom Farsides
Since 1954, "The Handbook of Social Psychology" has been the field’s most authoritative reference work, and today is the launch of the 6th edition. Best news? The HSP is now open-access—free to read, download, and share.
the-hsp.com
the-hsp.com
May 19, 2025 at 5:02 PM
Since 1954, "The Handbook of Social Psychology" has been the field’s most authoritative reference work, and today is the launch of the 6th edition. Best news? The HSP is now open-access—free to read, download, and share.
the-hsp.com
the-hsp.com
Supporting news organisations worthy of the name is an option for some. "In 2024, 124 journalists were killed doing their jobs." "Authoritarian ... leaders around the world want to crush the independent press". Happy 204th birthday to @theguardian.com
May 5, 2025 at 9:18 AM
Supporting news organisations worthy of the name is an option for some. "In 2024, 124 journalists were killed doing their jobs." "Authoritarian ... leaders around the world want to crush the independent press". Happy 204th birthday to @theguardian.com
Reposted by Tom Farsides
I think a lot about what Carl Sagan said in one of his final interviews.
May 4, 2025 at 6:21 AM
I think a lot about what Carl Sagan said in one of his final interviews.