James Grama
@dalaigrama.bsky.social
Sociophonetician in the Sociolinguistics Lab at the University of Duisburg-Essen. Interested in language variation and change, phonetics, dialect (typology), ethnolects, life-span change, Hawaiʻi, creoles, and prehistoric fauna. Proud papa. he/him
Reposted by James Grama
November 12, 2025 at 12:32 AM
Reposted by James Grama
Democratic party leadership has been on autopilot for ten years, they weren't losing to fascism, fascism isn't popular enough for them to lose to fascism, they were allowing it to fill the void where their leadership should have been. Tonight we're seeing that we have other options. They should too.
November 5, 2025 at 5:14 AM
Democratic party leadership has been on autopilot for ten years, they weren't losing to fascism, fascism isn't popular enough for them to lose to fascism, they were allowing it to fill the void where their leadership should have been. Tonight we're seeing that we have other options. They should too.
Reposted by James Grama
German study shows how far right sets agenda thanks to mainstream parties reshaping their communications to respond to what are initially fringe issues, boosting the spread of these ideas and signalling to voters that these ideas and stances were legitimate
shorturl.at/OFfig
shorturl.at/OFfig
German far right setting agenda as opponents amplify its ideas, study finds
Normalisation of far-right stances likely to affect success of such parties at ballot boxes across Europe, say researchers
www.theguardian.com
October 18, 2025 at 7:48 AM
German study shows how far right sets agenda thanks to mainstream parties reshaping their communications to respond to what are initially fringe issues, boosting the spread of these ideas and signalling to voters that these ideas and stances were legitimate
shorturl.at/OFfig
shorturl.at/OFfig
Reposted by James Grama
Reposted by James Grama
Hopefully everyone in CA already knows this, but just in case someone doesn’t - there’s a special election happening right now. It’s REALLY important that you vote, and it’s REALLY important that you vote YES on Prop 50.
October 4, 2025 at 2:42 PM
Hopefully everyone in CA already knows this, but just in case someone doesn’t - there’s a special election happening right now. It’s REALLY important that you vote, and it’s REALLY important that you vote YES on Prop 50.
Spell your name with movie titles
Jurassic Park
Arrival
My Neighbor Totoro
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-verse
Jurassic Park
Arrival
My Neighbor Totoro
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-verse
Spell your name with movie titles
Jaws
Arrival
Rounders
Everybody Wants Some
Dazed and Confused
Got three of my ~five favorite movies in there. Hell yeah.
Jaws
Arrival
Rounders
Everybody Wants Some
Dazed and Confused
Got three of my ~five favorite movies in there. Hell yeah.
Spell your name with movie titles 🍿
Sicario
There Will Be Blood
Evil Dead
Vertigo
Eddington
Sicario
There Will Be Blood
Evil Dead
Vertigo
Eddington
October 4, 2025 at 4:09 PM
Spell your name with movie titles
Jurassic Park
Arrival
My Neighbor Totoro
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-verse
Jurassic Park
Arrival
My Neighbor Totoro
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-verse
Reposted by James Grama
Can large language models stand in for human participants?
Many social scientists seem to think so, and are already using "silicon samples" in research.
One problem: depending on the analytic decisions made, you can basically get these samples to show any effect you want.
THREAD 🧵
Many social scientists seem to think so, and are already using "silicon samples" in research.
One problem: depending on the analytic decisions made, you can basically get these samples to show any effect you want.
THREAD 🧵
The threat of analytic flexibility in using large language models to simulate human data: A call to attention
Social scientists are now using large language models to create "silicon samples" - synthetic datasets intended to stand in for human respondents, aimed at revolutionising human subjects research. How...
arxiv.org
September 18, 2025 at 7:56 AM
Can large language models stand in for human participants?
Many social scientists seem to think so, and are already using "silicon samples" in research.
One problem: depending on the analytic decisions made, you can basically get these samples to show any effect you want.
THREAD 🧵
Many social scientists seem to think so, and are already using "silicon samples" in research.
One problem: depending on the analytic decisions made, you can basically get these samples to show any effect you want.
THREAD 🧵
Reposted by James Grama
I am opposed to AI products and services because of the extra power they require... IN A CLIMATE CRISIS. I am opposed to AI results - texts and illustrations - because they've been created unethically, via theft and non-consensual use of the work of others. Share if you agree.
September 7, 2025 at 10:16 AM
I am opposed to AI products and services because of the extra power they require... IN A CLIMATE CRISIS. I am opposed to AI results - texts and illustrations - because they've been created unethically, via theft and non-consensual use of the work of others. Share if you agree.
Reposted by James Grama
Nyctosaurus ~ night lizard 🌌🦎
.
4/5 complete!
.
I looked at a lot of modern day sea birds for inspiration of this design and I noticed a lot had simple colour palettes or strong lines so I felt this would be suitable for this pterosaur…but I couldn’t resist a flourish of colour on the crest tips!
.
4/5 complete!
.
I looked at a lot of modern day sea birds for inspiration of this design and I noticed a lot had simple colour palettes or strong lines so I felt this would be suitable for this pterosaur…but I couldn’t resist a flourish of colour on the crest tips!
July 15, 2025 at 10:41 AM
Nyctosaurus ~ night lizard 🌌🦎
.
4/5 complete!
.
I looked at a lot of modern day sea birds for inspiration of this design and I noticed a lot had simple colour palettes or strong lines so I felt this would be suitable for this pterosaur…but I couldn’t resist a flourish of colour on the crest tips!
.
4/5 complete!
.
I looked at a lot of modern day sea birds for inspiration of this design and I noticed a lot had simple colour palettes or strong lines so I felt this would be suitable for this pterosaur…but I couldn’t resist a flourish of colour on the crest tips!
Reposted by James Grama
is it time to bust out my "bigfoot is bears" photo collection again? if your mental image of a bear is a thick-furred, fat glossy male bear in autumn, you're probably not prepared for how weird their proportions can look in spring, or when walking upright, like they frequently do.
January 20, 2024 at 4:21 PM
is it time to bust out my "bigfoot is bears" photo collection again? if your mental image of a bear is a thick-furred, fat glossy male bear in autumn, you're probably not prepared for how weird their proportions can look in spring, or when walking upright, like they frequently do.
Reposted by James Grama
For this #FossilFriday, I thought l'd share this photo of a Redondasaurus skeleton on display at the New Mexico Museum of Natural History & Science. While it looks like a #crocodile, it’s actually an ancient relative of theirs from the #Triassic - a #phytosaur.
#Paleontology #Science
🧵 1/
#Paleontology #Science
🧵 1/
April 4, 2025 at 9:49 AM
For this #FossilFriday, I thought l'd share this photo of a Redondasaurus skeleton on display at the New Mexico Museum of Natural History & Science. While it looks like a #crocodile, it’s actually an ancient relative of theirs from the #Triassic - a #phytosaur.
#Paleontology #Science
🧵 1/
#Paleontology #Science
🧵 1/
Reposted by James Grama
Just a reminder that "Creoles are the simplest languages of the world" is not an established fact in creolistics but very much a controversial position. Maybe not a statement linguists should uncritically repeat in passing during a lecture on an unrelated topic.
March 25, 2025 at 2:57 PM
Just a reminder that "Creoles are the simplest languages of the world" is not an established fact in creolistics but very much a controversial position. Maybe not a statement linguists should uncritically repeat in passing during a lecture on an unrelated topic.
Reposted by James Grama
One of the coolest parts of this new find? Duonychus comes with a preserved claw sheath, so we can see what the claw really looked like! The researchers estimate the claws could have grabbed vegetation up to about four inches in diameter as the reptile foraged. 🧪
March 25, 2025 at 3:21 PM
One of the coolest parts of this new find? Duonychus comes with a preserved claw sheath, so we can see what the claw really looked like! The researchers estimate the claws could have grabbed vegetation up to about four inches in diameter as the reptile foraged. 🧪
Reposted by James Grama
We get a new dinosaur today! Meet Duonychus, a therizinosaur with only two fingers on each hand. I’ll tell you more at NatGeo.
www.nationalgeographic.com
March 25, 2025 at 3:02 PM
We get a new dinosaur today! Meet Duonychus, a therizinosaur with only two fingers on each hand. I’ll tell you more at NatGeo.
If you do one thing today, read this.
I have been doing entirely too much earnest posting about deep things recently, I need to do a proper thread about hippo testicles or something just to keep myself sane.
Oh by the way hippos have migratory testicles.
Oh by the way hippos have migratory testicles.
a statue of a hippopotamus with its mouth open and teeth showing .
Alt: A hippo being tossed a watermelon, which it crushes in its massive jaws.
media.tenor.com
March 12, 2025 at 12:41 PM
If you do one thing today, read this.
Reposted by James Grama
Once again, the rise of the AfD and its relatively greater popularity in the East has led to yet another round of discussion around the legacy of the GDR and contemporary German politics. A short thread:
February 25, 2025 at 7:38 AM
Once again, the rise of the AfD and its relatively greater popularity in the East has led to yet another round of discussion around the legacy of the GDR and contemporary German politics. A short thread:
Reposted by James Grama
Why does 25% AfD among young men spark a thousand "what is going on with young men?" posts yet Die Linke 34% among young women generates...nothing at all?
Yes, young men voting for the radical right is an important phenomenon. But so is young women going rad left *at even higher rates*.
Yes, young men voting for the radical right is an important phenomenon. But so is young women going rad left *at even higher rates*.
February 24, 2025 at 10:58 AM
Why does 25% AfD among young men spark a thousand "what is going on with young men?" posts yet Die Linke 34% among young women generates...nothing at all?
Yes, young men voting for the radical right is an important phenomenon. But so is young women going rad left *at even higher rates*.
Yes, young men voting for the radical right is an important phenomenon. But so is young women going rad left *at even higher rates*.
Reposted by James Grama
Don't sit in silence while history repeats itself.
On March 7th, join a #standupforscience2025 protest against political interference in science.
Rallies will take place in DC and capital cities across the US: standupforscience2025.org/local-event-...
🧪
On March 7th, join a #standupforscience2025 protest against political interference in science.
Rallies will take place in DC and capital cities across the US: standupforscience2025.org/local-event-...
🧪
Today's extract from Serving the Reich.
What makes it worse is that I don't even need to add any explanatory comment, do I?
What makes it worse is that I don't even need to add any explanatory comment, do I?
February 22, 2025 at 1:40 PM
Don't sit in silence while history repeats itself.
On March 7th, join a #standupforscience2025 protest against political interference in science.
Rallies will take place in DC and capital cities across the US: standupforscience2025.org/local-event-...
🧪
On March 7th, join a #standupforscience2025 protest against political interference in science.
Rallies will take place in DC and capital cities across the US: standupforscience2025.org/local-event-...
🧪
Reposted by James Grama
Reposted by James Grama
Something that I don't think is discussed enough in #paleontology circles is just how much parental investment is seen in #hadrosaurs. Cause, like, they're doing quite a lot of work compared to what is typical of all other #archosaurs.
#Dinosaurs #Maiasaura
#Dinosaurs #Maiasaura
February 22, 2025 at 11:19 AM
Something that I don't think is discussed enough in #paleontology circles is just how much parental investment is seen in #hadrosaurs. Cause, like, they're doing quite a lot of work compared to what is typical of all other #archosaurs.
#Dinosaurs #Maiasaura
#Dinosaurs #Maiasaura
Reposted by James Grama
41.406 rechtsextreme Straftaten, darunter 1443 Gewalttaten, im Jahr 2024. Ein Rekordhoch. Wo sind die x-Punkte-Pläne? Wo sind die Talk Shows? Wo sind die Debatten zu Gewaltkultur in Deutschland? 1/
February 15, 2025 at 11:24 AM
41.406 rechtsextreme Straftaten, darunter 1443 Gewalttaten, im Jahr 2024. Ein Rekordhoch. Wo sind die x-Punkte-Pläne? Wo sind die Talk Shows? Wo sind die Debatten zu Gewaltkultur in Deutschland? 1/
Reposted by James Grama
Judge rules that Black church in DC, which won a $2.8 million default judgment against the Proud Boys, now gains control over the trademark “Proud Boys.” The far-right group is barred from selling any related merchandise or symbols without the consent of the church. Gift link:
Proud Boys Lose Control of Their Name to a Black Church They Vandalized (Gift Article)
A judge awarded the trademarked name and symbols to a Washington church to help satisfy a $2.8 million judgment against the far-right group.
www.nytimes.com
February 4, 2025 at 4:15 PM
Judge rules that Black church in DC, which won a $2.8 million default judgment against the Proud Boys, now gains control over the trademark “Proud Boys.” The far-right group is barred from selling any related merchandise or symbols without the consent of the church. Gift link:
Reposted by James Grama
🚨BREAKING. From a program officer at the National Science Foundation, a list of keywords that can cause a grant to be pulled. I will be sharing screenshots of these keywords along with a decision tree. Please share widely. This is a crisis for academic freedom & science.
February 4, 2025 at 1:26 AM
🚨BREAKING. From a program officer at the National Science Foundation, a list of keywords that can cause a grant to be pulled. I will be sharing screenshots of these keywords along with a decision tree. Please share widely. This is a crisis for academic freedom & science.
Reposted by James Grama
American science and medicine has been thrown into chaos and uncertainty over the past week. Here are some stories to get up to speed. 1/12
January 28, 2025 at 3:58 AM
American science and medicine has been thrown into chaos and uncertainty over the past week. Here are some stories to get up to speed. 1/12
Reposted by James Grama
"A group of American oligarchs want to undermine European institutions because they don’t want to be regulated."
@anneapplebaum.bsky.social must read on Musk and electoral interference in Europe, and beyond
www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc...
@anneapplebaum.bsky.social must read on Musk and electoral interference in Europe, and beyond
www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc...
Europe’s Elon Musk Problem
He and other tech oligarchs are making it impossible to conduct free and fair elections anywhere.
www.theatlantic.com
January 28, 2025 at 10:11 AM
"A group of American oligarchs want to undermine European institutions because they don’t want to be regulated."
@anneapplebaum.bsky.social must read on Musk and electoral interference in Europe, and beyond
www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc...
@anneapplebaum.bsky.social must read on Musk and electoral interference in Europe, and beyond
www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc...