Fernanda Ferreira
@fernandaedi.bsky.social
Psycholinguist @UCDavis. Made in Portugal, raised in Canada, living in California. Author of "Psycholinguistics: A Very Short Introduction" from Oxford University Press, coming out January 23, 2025.
Pinned
With lots of new people and followers, thought I’d give my bio:
I’m 2-times an immigrant (🇵🇹—>🇨🇦, 🇨🇦—>🇺🇸), grew up in Winnipeg, 1st-gen. I’m a prof at UCDavis where I study language processing and teach amazing students. Love progressive politics, science, commuter cycling, running, and Jane Austen.
I’m 2-times an immigrant (🇵🇹—>🇨🇦, 🇨🇦—>🇺🇸), grew up in Winnipeg, 1st-gen. I’m a prof at UCDavis where I study language processing and teach amazing students. Love progressive politics, science, commuter cycling, running, and Jane Austen.
What a stupid take on the part of Jon Stewart and his buddies. An alternative assumption they could make about a person wearing a mask (and what goes through my head) is that they’re super courteous - they’re getting over a cold or flu and want to make sure they don’t give it to you.
Disappointed to see Jon Stewart & co joke about masking in public. I do it for my medically fragile daughter (Batten Disease). People not masking properly led to her getting pneumonia, which led to her being on life support, which led to me getting price quotes on her cremation just in case.
December 29, 2025 at 3:16 PM
What a stupid take on the part of Jon Stewart and his buddies. An alternative assumption they could make about a person wearing a mask (and what goes through my head) is that they’re super courteous - they’re getting over a cold or flu and want to make sure they don’t give it to you.
Reposted by Fernanda Ferreira
Paper alert! (1/2) We examined brain activation for each content word in a podcast relative to incrementally larger ngrams (1-word, 5-words, 10-words) that precede each word with a focus on semantic distance. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Measuring brain sensitivity to semantic distance in spoken narrative comprehension
Discourse comprehension requires simultaneous integration of local and global constituents. When hearing a narrative, for example, listeners must link…
www.sciencedirect.com
December 22, 2025 at 1:56 PM
Paper alert! (1/2) We examined brain activation for each content word in a podcast relative to incrementally larger ngrams (1-word, 5-words, 10-words) that precede each word with a focus on semantic distance. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
My mom used to make these - in my family we call them "filhoses", but I think they're also known as "malassadas". Sadly, she can't make them anymore, so I figured it was up to me to maintain the tradition of filhoses at Christmas. Here's my very first batch. Not too bad!
December 21, 2025 at 1:52 AM
My mom used to make these - in my family we call them "filhoses", but I think they're also known as "malassadas". Sadly, she can't make them anymore, so I figured it was up to me to maintain the tradition of filhoses at Christmas. Here's my very first batch. Not too bad!
Reposted by Fernanda Ferreira
Very excited to share the first empirical paper from LEVANTE: we describe the LEVANTE core tasks, a set of nine open source tasks for measuring learning and development in kids ages 5-12 years.
osf.io/preprints/ps...
🧵
osf.io/preprints/ps...
🧵
December 18, 2025 at 10:20 PM
Very excited to share the first empirical paper from LEVANTE: we describe the LEVANTE core tasks, a set of nine open source tasks for measuring learning and development in kids ages 5-12 years.
osf.io/preprints/ps...
🧵
osf.io/preprints/ps...
🧵
"And this is a right angle"
December 18, 2025 at 4:32 PM
"And this is a right angle"
And it is a truth universally acknowledged that sometimes you should use passive voice.
Jane Austen used 'however' at the beginning of a sentence, and so can you.
December 16, 2025 at 7:50 PM
And it is a truth universally acknowledged that sometimes you should use passive voice.
Have to keep reminding myself that now that I’ve submitted all grades for my 300+ students this term, it’s safe to check email in the morning
December 16, 2025 at 2:59 PM
Have to keep reminding myself that now that I’ve submitted all grades for my 300+ students this term, it’s safe to check email in the morning
They say in any organization 5% of people create 95% of the problems. In teaching, that sort of tracks. But at this time of year, when some students take the time to send thoughtful notes about your course, I'm reminded that indeed most are just terrific: curious, motivated, and a pleasure to teach.
December 13, 2025 at 6:31 PM
They say in any organization 5% of people create 95% of the problems. In teaching, that sort of tracks. But at this time of year, when some students take the time to send thoughtful notes about your course, I'm reminded that indeed most are just terrific: curious, motivated, and a pleasure to teach.
Reposted by Fernanda Ferreira
most people, left and right, treat traffic violence like the weather and not a specific policy choice
December 12, 2025 at 8:41 PM
most people, left and right, treat traffic violence like the weather and not a specific policy choice
Reposted by Fernanda Ferreira
Just finished my last class of the semester🎉Reminded of how much I love teaching this academic writing class for grad students. We focus on improving our writing but also reducing anxiety and becoming a more consistent & productive writer
Some of the students favorite writing tips/learnings below:
Some of the students favorite writing tips/learnings below:
December 5, 2025 at 5:33 PM
Just finished my last class of the semester🎉Reminded of how much I love teaching this academic writing class for grad students. We focus on improving our writing but also reducing anxiety and becoming a more consistent & productive writer
Some of the students favorite writing tips/learnings below:
Some of the students favorite writing tips/learnings below:
Reposted by Fernanda Ferreira
We're hiring! We have 2 jobs advertised: Library Engagement Lead and Operations Manager, deadline Tues 6 January 2026. Links:
openjournalscollective.org/static/engag...
openjournalscollective.org/static/opera...
Come work for a major new international organisation funding #openaccess publishing!
openjournalscollective.org/static/engag...
openjournalscollective.org/static/opera...
Come work for a major new international organisation funding #openaccess publishing!
openjournalscollective.org
December 5, 2025 at 2:25 PM
We're hiring! We have 2 jobs advertised: Library Engagement Lead and Operations Manager, deadline Tues 6 January 2026. Links:
openjournalscollective.org/static/engag...
openjournalscollective.org/static/opera...
Come work for a major new international organisation funding #openaccess publishing!
openjournalscollective.org/static/engag...
openjournalscollective.org/static/opera...
Come work for a major new international organisation funding #openaccess publishing!
Reposted by Fernanda Ferreira
The Open Journals Collective is growing! If you're interested in helping shape the future and sustainability of Diamond Open Access publishing, then check out these roles at OJC.
👇
👇
We're hiring! We have 2 jobs advertised: Library Engagement Lead and Operations Manager, deadline Tues 6 January 2026. Links:
openjournalscollective.org/static/engag...
openjournalscollective.org/static/opera...
Come work for a major new international organisation funding #openaccess publishing!
openjournalscollective.org/static/engag...
openjournalscollective.org/static/opera...
Come work for a major new international organisation funding #openaccess publishing!
openjournalscollective.org
December 5, 2025 at 3:16 PM
The Open Journals Collective is growing! If you're interested in helping shape the future and sustainability of Diamond Open Access publishing, then check out these roles at OJC.
👇
👇
Reposted by Fernanda Ferreira
Great question!
1) First and foremost, we evaluate a candidate based on the departmental guidelines and expectations provided. We don't hold the candidate to arbitrary standards, or even to those of our own institution unless asked to do so. We assess the materials against the guidelines provided.
1) First and foremost, we evaluate a candidate based on the departmental guidelines and expectations provided. We don't hold the candidate to arbitrary standards, or even to those of our own institution unless asked to do so. We assess the materials against the guidelines provided.
Dear senior profs who have written tenure letters.
Can you help demystify the process for some junior profs up for tenure soon?
What do you look for? How do you make your evaluation?
We are told that the letters are the most important part of the file, but not what letter writers look for.
1/
Can you help demystify the process for some junior profs up for tenure soon?
What do you look for? How do you make your evaluation?
We are told that the letters are the most important part of the file, but not what letter writers look for.
1/
December 4, 2025 at 9:17 PM
Great question!
1) First and foremost, we evaluate a candidate based on the departmental guidelines and expectations provided. We don't hold the candidate to arbitrary standards, or even to those of our own institution unless asked to do so. We assess the materials against the guidelines provided.
1) First and foremost, we evaluate a candidate based on the departmental guidelines and expectations provided. We don't hold the candidate to arbitrary standards, or even to those of our own institution unless asked to do so. We assess the materials against the guidelines provided.
Reposted by Fernanda Ferreira
Gerd Gigerenzer on the legacy of Daniel Kahneman
statmodeling.stat.columbia.edu/2025/12/03/g...
statmodeling.stat.columbia.edu/2025/12/03/g...
Gerd Gigerenzer on the legacy of Daniel Kahneman | Statistical Modeling, Causal Inference, and Social Science
statmodeling.stat.columbia.edu
December 3, 2025 at 2:50 PM
Gerd Gigerenzer on the legacy of Daniel Kahneman
statmodeling.stat.columbia.edu/2025/12/03/g...
statmodeling.stat.columbia.edu/2025/12/03/g...
Reposted by Fernanda Ferreira
Volume 62, Issue 10 of Discourse Processes is now available online! Find more details here: www.tandfonline.com/toc/hdsp20/6...
Discourse Processes
Volume 62, Issue 10 of Discourse Processes
www.tandfonline.com
December 1, 2025 at 6:46 PM
Volume 62, Issue 10 of Discourse Processes is now available online! Find more details here: www.tandfonline.com/toc/hdsp20/6...
And why stop at universities? A murder's been committed, and the investigator, a Christian fundamentalist, declares it was an act of God. End of investigation. If you say, uh, don't you want to look at some evidence, know that you're challenging the investigator's religious freedoms.
Oklahoma University has placed a grad student instructor on admin leave for failing a psychology paper on gender for citing *the Bible* as a source of empirical evidence.
In response, OU has placed on instructor on admin leave citing, get this, the FIRST AMENDMENT.
Universities are cooked.
In response, OU has placed on instructor on admin leave citing, get this, the FIRST AMENDMENT.
Universities are cooked.
December 1, 2025 at 3:28 PM
And why stop at universities? A murder's been committed, and the investigator, a Christian fundamentalist, declares it was an act of God. End of investigation. If you say, uh, don't you want to look at some evidence, know that you're challenging the investigator's religious freedoms.
Good news: voters are clearly disenchanted with the current regime. Bad news: if Dems get elected, they’ll have to take measures to clean up this mess, and those will make them unpopular. Result: voters will return to electing Republicans based on absurd promises they can’t keep. Rinse, repeat.
December 1, 2025 at 3:03 PM
Good news: voters are clearly disenchanted with the current regime. Bad news: if Dems get elected, they’ll have to take measures to clean up this mess, and those will make them unpopular. Result: voters will return to electing Republicans based on absurd promises they can’t keep. Rinse, repeat.
This situation is extreme but it’s one we’re all dealing with to some extent. If a student complains about a grade or even a comment, you can’t be confident the university will back you up no matter how in the right you are. The incentive structure says give them what they want and make it go away.
Condolences to the students at OU who *were* working hard, doing the course work and earning good grades long before the administration there decreed that you only need to say "as the Bible teaches" and be done with it.
I'm sorry your university hates you and hope you can transfer somewhere good.
I'm sorry your university hates you and hope you can transfer somewhere good.
If I was working at OU, I would just start handing out 100's to every student and stop writing comments.
December 1, 2025 at 12:05 AM
This situation is extreme but it’s one we’re all dealing with to some extent. If a student complains about a grade or even a comment, you can’t be confident the university will back you up no matter how in the right you are. The incentive structure says give them what they want and make it go away.
Better yet - eliminate letters of rec altogether. They’re biased, largely uninformative, and nowadays, often written by AI.
Begging PhD programs to agree on a common app with only letters of rec that writers upload once. These inane likert scales when students are applying to 15-20 programs is destroying my soul
November 28, 2025 at 4:55 PM
Better yet - eliminate letters of rec altogether. They’re biased, largely uninformative, and nowadays, often written by AI.
Reposted by Fernanda Ferreira
Happy to share the first version of my textbook "Quantitative Data Analysis for Linguists in R".
stefanocoretta.github.io/qdal/
Comments and suggestions welcome! (on the GitHub repo: github.com/stefanocoret...)
The textbook takes you from 0 to basic stat modelling with Bayesian regression.
stefanocoretta.github.io/qdal/
Comments and suggestions welcome! (on the GitHub repo: github.com/stefanocoret...)
The textbook takes you from 0 to basic stat modelling with Bayesian regression.
Quantitative Data Analysis for Linguists in R
stefanocoretta.github.io
November 26, 2025 at 10:56 AM
Happy to share the first version of my textbook "Quantitative Data Analysis for Linguists in R".
stefanocoretta.github.io/qdal/
Comments and suggestions welcome! (on the GitHub repo: github.com/stefanocoret...)
The textbook takes you from 0 to basic stat modelling with Bayesian regression.
stefanocoretta.github.io/qdal/
Comments and suggestions welcome! (on the GitHub repo: github.com/stefanocoret...)
The textbook takes you from 0 to basic stat modelling with Bayesian regression.
This is so true, and it highlights how annoying it is that outlets like the New York Times and The Atlantic obsessively fixate on the Ivies. Most U.S. students attend public universities, and those institutions change lives at a scale the Ivies can’t touch.
Really important to stress that the Crown Jewels of the US higher education system were never the Ivies or elite SLACs (other countries have equivalents of these) but the well-funded, large, cheap, and excellently staffed public state university systems bringing high quality education to the masses.
November 23, 2025 at 5:44 PM
This is so true, and it highlights how annoying it is that outlets like the New York Times and The Atlantic obsessively fixate on the Ivies. Most U.S. students attend public universities, and those institutions change lives at a scale the Ivies can’t touch.
Reposted by Fernanda Ferreira
Really important to stress that the Crown Jewels of the US higher education system were never the Ivies or elite SLACs (other countries have equivalents of these) but the well-funded, large, cheap, and excellently staffed public state university systems bringing high quality education to the masses.
November 23, 2025 at 5:18 PM
Really important to stress that the Crown Jewels of the US higher education system were never the Ivies or elite SLACs (other countries have equivalents of these) but the well-funded, large, cheap, and excellently staffed public state university systems bringing high quality education to the masses.
Psych dept hiring is SO trend-based. In the 80s, connectionism was all the rage; in the early naughts, you had to do cognitive neuroscience; and today it’s all AI. Some of this is our own attraction to methods over theory, and a lot of it is a response to administration-defined financial priorities.
psych departments post a faculty job that has nothing to do with AI challenge
November 21, 2025 at 3:16 PM
Psych dept hiring is SO trend-based. In the 80s, connectionism was all the rage; in the early naughts, you had to do cognitive neuroscience; and today it’s all AI. Some of this is our own attraction to methods over theory, and a lot of it is a response to administration-defined financial priorities.
Reposted by Fernanda Ferreira
psych departments post a faculty job that has nothing to do with AI challenge
September 10, 2025 at 11:02 AM
psych departments post a faculty job that has nothing to do with AI challenge
”He will continue teaching.”
This tells you all you need to know about how little universities—even ones that are considered elite—care about their teaching mission.
This tells you all you need to know about how little universities—even ones that are considered elite—care about their teaching mission.
Larry Summers tells @theharvardcrimson.bsky.social
he’s stepping back from all public commitments in light of his messages with Epstein, saying he is “deeply ashamed” and hopes “to rebuild trust and repair relationships.”
He will continue teaching.
www.thecrimson.com/article/2025...
he’s stepping back from all public commitments in light of his messages with Epstein, saying he is “deeply ashamed” and hopes “to rebuild trust and repair relationships.”
He will continue teaching.
www.thecrimson.com/article/2025...
November 18, 2025 at 2:59 PM
”He will continue teaching.”
This tells you all you need to know about how little universities—even ones that are considered elite—care about their teaching mission.
This tells you all you need to know about how little universities—even ones that are considered elite—care about their teaching mission.