Nearly four years ago we asked ourselves, "what would it look like to have a field-leading, completely free reference work for cognitive science"? It's been so fun editing OECS with @asifamajid.bsky.social and @hbaum.bsky.social. I can't believe we have published 200 (!!) articles! oecs.mit.edu

Philip Laughlin@philiplaughlin.bsky.social · 2w ago

Today's #OA spotlight is extra special. Just this week, @mitpress.bsky.social published the 200th article in our OPEN ENCYCLOPEDIA OF COGNITIVE SCIENCE. Congrats to @mcxfrank.bsky.social & @asifamajid.bsky.social! We've come far since the 2023 @cogscisociety.bsky.social in Rotterdam! oecs.mit.edu

Really excited about this new preprint spearheaded by @vboyce.bsky.social w/ @mcxfrank.bsky.social and the Peekbank team. It's a deep-dive into a large looking-while-listening dataset (>3000 children!), evaluating what analytic and design choices really matter for measurement osf.io/preprints/ps...

Just a reminder that there's only about a week left to leave comments on the OMB proposal that will cripple federally funded research. Here's my attempt to convince you that you should, along with info on how to do so effectively.

Ars Technica@arstechnica.com · last mo.

official ad to follow soon but heads up: 1-2 postdocs slots in my lab, hopefully w/fall start! reposts welcome, details to follow. babies! word learning! cognitive & linguistic skills! #CogSciSky #DevPsychSky 🐦🐦 (lab info: bergelsonlab.fas.harvard.edu/prospectives) also recruiting grads this fall!

New paper with @rebeccasaxe.bsky.social "Expectations of reciprocal generosity are specific to equal relationships," in @openmindjournal.bsky.social. Thread below! Article: doi.org/10.1162/opmi... MIT News: news.mit.edu/2026/would-y...

Would you return a favor? Scientists say it depends on the relationship

People generally only engage in reciprocal generosity with others of equal or unknown status, MIT researchers experimentally demonstrated. During repeated interactions between people of different soci...

news.mit.edu

I loved this. It reminded me of @shariliu.bsky.social's research on how people think about minds and bodies.

Anna Ciaunica PhD@annaciaunica.bsky.social · 2mo ago

aeon.co/essays/why-y...

Hi everyone! My paper on cognitive representations of relationships and their developmental origins is finally out! I had a blast responding to the commentary and was honored to be able to engage with people who laid the foundation for my research program. www.cambridge.org/core/journal...

Hiring! Athulya Aravind and I are looking for a full-time Postgraduate Associate at Yale (Linguistics/Psychology). The position is designed as preparation for PhD applications in linguistics, cog sci, or psychology, including structured mentoring and research training. tinyurl.com/mrxjya5t

Job Alert 🚨 - please share! My brilliant friend and collaborator, Fumihiro Kano, is launching a new Ecological & Collective Cognition lab at Kyushu University, and has postdoc, grad, and tech openings! Lab video: youtu.be/rXT-yjQzJxU More details: docs.google.com/document/d/1...

groupdemo kyushu 04132026

YouTube video by 狩野文浩

youtu.be

Thrilled to have @rbzsparks.bsky.social joining us!!

Bobby Sparks@rbzsparks.bsky.social · 4mo ago

After 9 (!!) incredible years at Stanford I’m excited to be swapping coasts this fall to start my PhD at Harvard working with @ashleyjthomas.bsky.social Endless appreciation for @mcxfrank.bsky.social @hyogweon.bsky.social @brialong.bsky.social & all my wonderful mentors + friends that got me here 🫶🏻

Looking forward to #CDS2026! Come learn about the work that my students and I are doing @emmayu23.bsky.social @cogdevsoc.bsky.social

Come see the Thomas Lab's work at @cogdevsoc.bsky.social conference! #CDS2026

🚨🚨 My lab is hiring a Pre-doc Researcher/Lab Manager! 🚨🚨 Full-time pre-doc research opening in my lab at Harvard Psych (start: Summer/Fall 2026). Review begins April 10 Apply: jobs.smartrecruiters.com/HarvardUnive... Please repost + tag folks who might be a good fit! 👇

Research Assistant II

Company Description: By working at Harvard University, you join a vibrant community that advances Harvard's world-changing mission in meaningful ways, inspires innovation and collaboration, and builds...

jobs.smartrecruiters.com

I'm hiring a new lab manager for my lab @ UCSD! For more info on the lab, check out our website: lillab.ucsd.edu Target start date is June 1 (flexible) and application deadline is March 26. Please share with anyone you think might be a good fit! Apply here: employment.ucsd.edu/laboratory-c...

Laboratory Coordinator - 138788

Laboratory Coordinator - 138788 | Careers at UC San Diego

employment.ucsd.edu

The number of children in ICE detention on an average day has skyrocketed 6x since Trump took an office. Families complain of poor medical care and worm-infested food. "It’s only a matter of time before we see a child die," one advocate said. www.themarshallproject.org/2026/01/29/i...

Children in ICE Detention Skyrocket in Trump’s Second Term

With a six-fold jump in children in detention, advocates allege harrowing conditions are putting kids’ lives at risk.

themarshallproject.org

One small thing you can do today: ICE is ramping up in Maine. Food For All is delivering meals to 300 families that can't leave their homes. They need $7k a day to continue operations. The Culture Study community is raising enough to cover a day—join us? Donate directly: givebutter.com/Scx87A or

Food Delivered With Dignity

In the current environment we need to raise a $7,000 a day to sustain our operations

givebutter.com

Wow. This is devastating. www.science.org/content/arti...

U.S. government has lost more than 10,000 STEM Ph.D.s since Trump took office

A Science analysis reveals how many were fired, retired, or quit across 14 agencies

science.org

Oops -- we should have included a pre-print, but here it is! osf.io/preprints/ps... Abstract core knowledge may shape the basins of cultural attraction: romantic kissing as a case study

Ashley Thomas@ashleyjthomas.bsky.social · 7mo ago

Hossein was supposed to come to my lab as a grad student but couldn’t because of the travel ban. I had a blast writing this paper with him, but it was bittersweet knowing he should have been in person with us. ❤️ check out 🧵below. part of a special issue on kissing led by Deb Lieberman.

Yale Psychology is accepting applications for the Susan Nolen-Hoeksema postdoctoral fellowship! Open to a broad range of areas in psychology, and applicants should identify 1 or more potential faculty mentors. Apply by Feb 1, 2026: apply.interfolio.com/178435

Hossein was supposed to come to my lab as a grad student but couldn’t because of the travel ban. I had a blast writing this paper with him, but it was bittersweet knowing he should have been in person with us. ❤️ check out 🧵below. part of a special issue on kissing led by Deb Lieberman.

Hossein Samani@hsamani.bsky.social · 7mo ago

This paper is like a souvenir of one of the most frantic and meaningful periods of my life — started during a war and travel bans and now published amid social protests in my home country. Many thanks to @ashleyjthomas.bsky.social for her amazing warmth and support throughout this journey!

This is a fundraising post! An anonymous donor is matching contributions to Children Helping Science up to 100K through the end of the year - if it's in your giving budget, please consider supporting open science infrastructure! giving.mit.edu/search/node/... Details below...

Thank you to Christina Steele for sharing her work with @ashleyjthomas.bsky.social in lab meeting today! Christina shared neat findings on implicit attitudes toward interracial couples, building on her prior work on development of understanding about relationships. Interesting & important project!

Fully funded #PhDposition in Comparative Cultural Psychology @mpi-eva-leipzig.bsky.social. We will use touchscreen experiments & eyetracking to study mental simulations in nonhuman apes & human children across different cultures. All info here: www.eva.mpg.de/career/posit... Please share / apply!🙏

Positions available - Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology

eva.mpg.de

Interested in understanding how young humans think about social relationships? I am reading PhD applications this year! **Please note**, that Harvard now requires the GRE. More information here: www.ashleyjthomas.com/workwithme

Are humans really the only rational animals? Our NEW PAPER 🎉 out in @science.org suggests otherwise! In a large collaboration led with my joint first author @hanna-schleihauf.bsky.social, we show that “Chimpanzees rationally revise their beliefs” 🧵

Chimpanzees rationally revise their beliefs

The selective revision of beliefs in light of new evidence has been considered one of the hallmarks of human-level rationality. However, tests of this ability in other species are lacking. We examined...

science.org

Interested in understanding how young humans think about social relationships? I am reading PhD applications this year! **Please note**, that Harvard now requires the GRE. More information here: www.ashleyjthomas.com/workwithme

Interested in applying to graduate programs or research positions in psychology? Want more information and feedback on your submission materials? Then Harvard’s Prospective Ph.D. & RA Event in Psychology (PPREP) Is for you!! psychology.fas.harvard.edu/pprep More info in the link!! Please retweet!

🚨Out in PNAS🚨 with @joshtenenbaum.bsky.social & @rebeccasaxe.bsky.social Punishment, even when intended to teach norms and change minds for the good, may backfire. Our computational cognitive model explains why! Paper: tinyurl.com/yc7fs4x7 News: tinyurl.com/3h3446wu 🧵