Lauren Hersch Nicholas

@lhnicholas.bsky.social

1.9K followers 1.4K following 160 posts

health economist, climber, biker, looking for my #econtwitter, #econsky, #surgtweets, #healthpolicyvalentines communities

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Lauren Hersch Nicholas is an American health economist. She is a professor at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus and an adjunct associate professor in the Department of Health Policy and Management at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. .. more

Economics 35%

Public Health 33%

Posts Replies Media Videos

Lauren Hersch Nicholas @lhnicholas.bsky.social · 8d

great article about AI vending machine failure, except for when it introduces "a revolution in snack economics"

Patrick Hickey, MD @pwhickey.bsky.social · 8d

Must read gift article below for my fellow AI luddites. These same companies want AI involved in healthcare 😵‍💫

Josh Sternberg @joshsternberg.com · 8d

"Profits collapsed. Newsroom morale soared."

Amazing piece from @joannastern.bsky.social

www.wsj.com/tech/ai/anth...

Reposted by Lauren Hersch Nicholas

Patrick Hickey, MD @pwhickey.bsky.social · 8d

Must read gift article below for my fellow AI luddites. These same companies want AI involved in healthcare 😵‍💫

Josh Sternberg @joshsternberg.com · 8d

"Profits collapsed. Newsroom morale soared."

Amazing piece from @joannastern.bsky.social

www.wsj.com/tech/ai/anth...

We Let AI Run Our Office Vending Machine. It Lost Hundreds of Dollars.

An AI agent ran a snack operation in the WSJ newsroom. It gave away a free PlayStation, ordered a live fish—and taught us lessons about the future of AI.

www.wsj.com

Lauren Hersch Nicholas @lhnicholas.bsky.social · 22d

I'm a co-I on an R01 that was funded at the end of the fiscal year, definitely don't want to talk about my submissions with fundable scores...

Lauren Hersch Nicholas @lhnicholas.bsky.social · 23d

scary possibility

Liz Szabo @lizszabo.bsky.social · 23d

If new proposals detailed in an FDA memo are put into place, experts told me it would mean the end of annual flu shots. And end of most vaccines for pregnant people. And maybe the end of updates to pneumonia vaccines. And more.

www.cidrap.umn.edu/childhood-va...

FDA official proposes ‘impossible’ standards for vaccine testing that could curtail access to immunizations

www.cidrap.umn.edu

Reposted by Joe R. Feagin, Brendan Nyhan, Scott L. Greer , and 4 more Joe R. Feagin, Brendan Nyhan, Scott L. Greer, Rosemary A. Joyce, Robert C. Richards, Lauren Hersch Nicholas, Richard M. Carpiano

Liz Szabo @lizszabo.bsky.social · 23d

FDA official proposes ‘impossible’ standards for vaccine testing that could curtail access to immunizations

www.cidrap.umn.edu

Reposted by Lauren Hersch Nicholas

Prof Dynarski @dynarski.bsky.social · 24d

To quote Joe Biden, this is a big fucking deal.

www.aeaweb.org/news/aea-sta...

Statement from the American Economic Association

www.aeaweb.org

Reposted by Rosemary A. Joyce, Robert C. Richards, Lauren Hersch Nicholas , and 2 more Rosemary A. Joyce, Robert C. Richards, Lauren Hersch Nicholas, Christina Pagel, Farah Mendlesohn

Eric Topol @erictopol.bsky.social · 24d

Multiple large natural experiments have documented Shingles vaccine is linked with ~20-25% reduced risk of dementia and Alzheimer's disease. A new report today adds to that and extends the to slowing the progression of dementia @cellcellpress.bsky.social
www.cell.com/cell/fulltex...

Reposted by Lauren Hersch Nicholas, Todd Pugatch, Bianca K. Frogner

Anne Fitzpatrick @annefitz13.bsky.social · Nov 20

🚨Attention! AshEcon call for papers! 🚨
www.ashecon.org/2026-minneap...

Due date for abstracts: December 10, 2025

I'm the Program Chair for Health and Development, so would like to encourage global health scholars in particular

Some tips for prospective authors in thread below

2026 Call for Abstracts – ASHEcon

www.ashecon.org

Reposted by Cas Mudde, Katharine Hayhoe, Stéphane Hallegatte , and 20 more Cas Mudde, Katharine Hayhoe, Stéphane Hallegatte, Brad R. Humphreys, Tim Bale, American Library Association, Éric Verdeil, Dawn J. Wright, Cathy N. Davidson, Valerie Mueller, Alan Richardson, David R. Miller, Lauren Hersch Nicholas, Andrew Jacobs, William A. Allen, Christine Kooi, Glenn H. Shepard, Étienne Ollion, Dana R. Fisher, David Murakami Wood, Aurélien Mondon, Catriona Seth, Olúfẹ́mi Táíwò

Monica Valentinelli is buried in snow ❄️🏔️⛄ @booksofm.com · Nov 20

If you use GMail, AI (Gemini) was turned on yesterday by default and now scans all of your content for machine learning. To turn off, go to Settings>General and scroll down. Uncheck the box for "Smart features."

There's other "Smart" add-ons as well, but that's the one that reads your content.

Reposted by Heather Boushey, Steven N. Durlauf, Yana van der Meulen Rodgers , and 10 more Heather Boushey, Steven N. Durlauf, Yana van der Meulen Rodgers, Joshua Goodman, Valerie Mueller, Climent Quintana‐Domeque, Lauren Hersch Nicholas, Todd Pugatch, Daniel Kuehn, David A. Jaeger, Laura Hospido, Kathryn A. Edwards, Ezra Golberstein

CSWEP @aeacswep.bsky.social · Nov 19

CSWEP strongly condemns Larry Summers’ behavior as revealed in the email correspondence with the late Jeffrey Epstein. While abuse of power in the economics profession is not new, rarely has the intent behind such abuse been so clearly stated.

Lauren Hersch Nicholas @lhnicholas.bsky.social · Nov 18

I like them for extensions (another way to reference something longer with methods) and new facts that don't need full paper, don't like when people try to use them to get a paper out of something that should be a footnote or appendix in something else and -> more reviewer burden

Reposted by Caroline Krafft, Lesley A. Hall, Kris Inwood , and 7 more Caroline Krafft, Lesley A. Hall, Kris Inwood, Miles Corak, Shelly Lundberg, Aaron Sojourner, Lauren Hersch Nicholas, Scott A. Imberman, Todd Pugatch, Lisa A. Kramer

Elizabeth (Beth) Dhuey @bdhuey.bsky.social · Nov 13

I know that the job market is rough this year for Econ PhDs. @utoronto.ca has expanded its postdoc funding. If you are on the market and work on school finance or early childhood education and are interested in a PostDoc, let me know! #econsky #educsky postdoc.sgs.utoronto.ca/current-post...

Postdoctoral Talent Initiative – School of Graduate Studies Postdoctoral Fellows

postdoc.sgs.utoronto.ca

Reposted by Lauren Hersch Nicholas, Daniel Kuehn, Jason Williams

Michael Baym @baym.lol · Nov 11

PSA for people with NIH grant periods starting January 1st (including most NIGMS MIRAs): your RPPR is due Saturday, but they haven’t sent out the usual automated reminders, presumably due to the shutdown

Lauren Hersch Nicholas @lhnicholas.bsky.social · Nov 7

Me!

Reposted by Aaron Sojourner

Lauren Hersch Nicholas @lhnicholas.bsky.social · Nov 4

Yes to all of these! And don‘t crowd tables with meaningless extra digits just because they are software defaults!

Jessica Leight @leightjessica.bsky.social · Nov 4

Short 🧵 on boring but imp topic: how to format tables! First, + most imp point: table in an econ paper should be comprehensible w/o any cross-reference to text. Variables should be clearly defined (not "lnconsexp"; write "Consumption)"; + specification described in notes

Reposted by Aaron Sojourner, Lauren Hersch Nicholas, Todd Pugatch

Jessica Leight @leightjessica.bsky.social · Nov 4

Reposted by Lauren Hersch Nicholas

Mark Hayward @mdhayward.bsky.social · Nov 4

My research team has published research showing that malnutrition and hunger in childhood are long-term risk factors for dementia decades later in life. Makes me think about the long-term health consequences of withholding SNAP benefits from families.

Reposted by Frank Verboven, Lauren Hersch Nicholas

Erzo F.P. Luttmer @erzoluttmer.bsky.social · Oct 24

Some authors have contacted AEA editors about an unexpected loss of data access that affects their ability to respond to an R&R. If this affects you, please explain the circumstances in your cover letter. Or reach out to the coeditor if you need guidance before resubmitting. @aeajournals.bsky.social

Lauren Hersch Nicholas @lhnicholas.bsky.social · Oct 22

Sometimes I wonder why the editor didn’t have the same reaction, but maybe easiest to tell when it’s your immediate area?

Reposted by Joanna Bryson, Steven L. Salzberg, Lisa W. Fazio , and 49 more Joanna Bryson, Steven L. Salzberg, Lisa W. Fazio, Nicholas A. Christakis, Will Jennings, Ben Bond‐Lamberty, John De Vos, Gavin A. Schmidt, Delphine K. Farmer, Joshua S. Weitz, Richard Price, Michael A. Clemens, Jonathan Wolff, Steven S. Smith, Jamie Morgan, Diane Ravitch, Philip N. Cohen, Elizabeth Stokoe, Evelyne Schmid, Charles West, Peter Campbell, Michael D. Green, Paul E. Smaldino, Juan Cole, Alison Phipps, Joshua Goodman, Gema Zamarro, Maya Sen, Felicity Callard, Silvia Secchi, McKenzie Wark, Trevor A. Branch, Lauren Hersch Nicholas, Andrew Jacobs, Jacob T. Levy, Margot C. Finn, Scott A. Imberman, Brian Keegan, Thomas Hegghammer, Mark Rice, Brian Weatherson, Susan Strasser, David L. Anderson, Georg Weizsäcker, Alice Marwick, Juan Ramón, Daxton R. Stewart, Nicole Guenther Discenza, Pádua Fernandes, Nick Fisher, Lisa A. Kramer, Kristina McElheran

jon ben-menachem @jbenmenachem.com · Oct 21

Wow. Harvard nuking its PhD programs

- Science PhD admissions reduced by more than 75%
- Arts & Humanities reduced by about 60%
- Social Sciences by 50–70%
- History by 60%
- Biology by 75%
- The German department will lose all PhD seats
- Sociology from six PhD students to zero

Harvard FAS Cuts Ph.D. Seats By More Than Half Across Next Two Admissions Cycles | News | The Harvard Crimson

The Faculty of Arts and Sciences slashed the number of Ph.D. student admissions slots for the Science division by more than 75 percent and for the Arts & Humanities division by about 60 percent for th...

www.thecrimson.com

Reposted by Lauren Hersch Nicholas

BK. Titanji @boghuma.bsky.social · Oct 14

Just here to remind everyone that while the federal government is shutdown, all study sections at the NIH are currently on hold. Another blow to science and to early career scientists like myself with young labs and research groups. Very hard to remain positive about this career path.

Reposted by Stephen M. Walt, Jan W. Mueller, John Quiggin , and 7 more Stephen M. Walt, Jan W. Mueller, John Quiggin, Julia Lynch, Lauren Hersch Nicholas, Jacob T. Levy, Henry Farrell, Stephen A. Meserve, Anita Gohdes, Kristina McElheran

Filipe Campante @filipecampante.bsky.social · Oct 10

It might be hard to convey to people outside economics just how seismic this is. The Trump effect has most certainly arrived to US academia.

Florian Scheuer @florianscheuer.bsky.social · Oct 10

I am delighted to share that Nobel laureates Esther Duflo and Abhijit Banerjee will join our Department of Economics @econ.uzh.ch at the University of Zurich on July 1, 2026, as Lemann Foundation Professors of Economics.

🧵 1/7

Reposted by Meredith Broussard, Lisa W. Fazio, James Q. Wilson , and 39 more Meredith Broussard, Lisa W. Fazio, James Q. Wilson, Suresh Venkatasubramanian, Dorothy Bishop, Anna Nagurney, Brigitte Nerlich, Ben Bond‐Lamberty, Gavin A. Schmidt, Jesse H. Kroll, Julie L. Lockwood, Patrick A. Jansen, Joshua S. Weitz, Nicole Dubilier, Jason Stajich, Simon J. Greenhill, Michael A. Clemens, Hugo Mercier, Megan L. Ranney, Rosemary A. Joyce, Philip N. Cohen, Michael J. Allen, Andrew Curry, Jacob Montgomery, Juan Cole, Kris Inwood, Smith, Robert C. Richards, Rebecca Tushnet, Alan Richardson, Lauren Hersch Nicholas, Victor Galaz, Scott A. Imberman, Sebastian Karcher, Brian Keegan, Ann Bartow, Jack Stilgoe, Ted Temzelides, Christina Pagel, Annalee Newitz, David Darmofal, Jesse R. Lasky

Carl Zimmer @carlzimmer.com · Oct 8

Today my @nytimes.com colleagues and I are launching a new series called Lost Science. We interview US scientists who can no longer discover something new about our world, thanks to this year‘s cuts. Here is my first interview with a scientist who studied bees and fires. Gift link: nyti.ms/3IWXbiE

nyti.ms

Reposted by Philip N. Cohen, Valerie Mueller, Karen Benjamin Guzzo , and 1 more Philip N. Cohen, Valerie Mueller, Karen Benjamin Guzzo, Lauren Hersch Nicholas

Jenn Dowd @drjenndowd.bsky.social · Oct 7

The acting CDC director has now approved ACIP recs allowing anyone 6 months+ to receive an updated Covid-19 shot after discussing w/ their provider. If you are on the fence about getting an updated shot, read my in-depth take on the evidence we've accumulated on these vaccines. #publichealth

Do additional COVID vaccines really help?

We've accumulated a lot of scientific evidence in the last few years.

open.substack.com

Reposted by Caroline Krafft, Lindsay M. Tedds, Samuel Bentolila , and 1 more Caroline Krafft, Lindsay M. Tedds, Samuel Bentolila, Lauren Hersch Nicholas

John A. List @johnlist.bsky.social · Oct 7

The econ PhD market will be difficult this year. The exact same thing happened when I went on the market years ago: I sent out 150 applications...and got 1 interview! Then I wrote a paper about it! ideas.repec.org/p/feb/natura...

Both sides of the market responded. Is this happening now too?