Gabor Brody
@gaborbrody.bsky.social
Exploring language, concepts, and perception @ Yale
www.gaborbrody.com
www.gaborbrody.com
Reposted by Gabor Brody
Now out in an issue! ~~ www.cell.com/trends/cogni...
November 6, 2025 at 2:29 PM
Now out in an issue! ~~ www.cell.com/trends/cogni...
Reposted by Gabor Brody
1. We ( @jbakcoleman.bsky.social, @cailinmeister.bsky.social, @jevinwest.bsky.social, and I) have a new preprint up on the arXiv.
There we explore how social media companies and other online information technology firms are able to manipulate scientific research about the effects of their products.
There we explore how social media companies and other online information technology firms are able to manipulate scientific research about the effects of their products.
October 24, 2025 at 12:47 AM
1. We ( @jbakcoleman.bsky.social, @cailinmeister.bsky.social, @jevinwest.bsky.social, and I) have a new preprint up on the arXiv.
There we explore how social media companies and other online information technology firms are able to manipulate scientific research about the effects of their products.
There we explore how social media companies and other online information technology firms are able to manipulate scientific research about the effects of their products.
Reposted by Gabor Brody
Faculty colleagues, please let your students know about our PhD program in Developmental and Brain Sciences at UMass Boston! Online info session coming up on 10/22 at 4.30 pm. Applications are due 12/1/25
www.umb.edu/academics/pr...
#devpsych #devsky #AcademicSky
www.umb.edu/academics/pr...
#devpsych #devsky #AcademicSky
Developmental & Brain Sciences PhD
UMass Boston's Developmental and Brain Sciences (DBS) PhD is a research-intensive program focused on understanding cognition, perception, and behavior when underlying neural and hormonal mechanisms ar...
www.umb.edu
October 10, 2025 at 5:22 PM
Faculty colleagues, please let your students know about our PhD program in Developmental and Brain Sciences at UMass Boston! Online info session coming up on 10/22 at 4.30 pm. Applications are due 12/1/25
www.umb.edu/academics/pr...
#devpsych #devsky #AcademicSky
www.umb.edu/academics/pr...
#devpsych #devsky #AcademicSky
Reposted by Gabor Brody
New paper: the ‘Double Ring Illusion’!
Does the visual system integrate *intuitive physics*? This new illusion developed by Brent Strickland and I offers a straightforward demonstration – one that you can experience yourselves!
Demos in thread👇
[1/6]
Does the visual system integrate *intuitive physics*? This new illusion developed by Brent Strickland and I offers a straightforward demonstration – one that you can experience yourselves!
Demos in thread👇
[1/6]
October 3, 2025 at 2:28 PM
New paper: the ‘Double Ring Illusion’!
Does the visual system integrate *intuitive physics*? This new illusion developed by Brent Strickland and I offers a straightforward demonstration – one that you can experience yourselves!
Demos in thread👇
[1/6]
Does the visual system integrate *intuitive physics*? This new illusion developed by Brent Strickland and I offers a straightforward demonstration – one that you can experience yourselves!
Demos in thread👇
[1/6]
Reposted by Gabor Brody
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
WANT TO WORK WITH ME? | Mysite
www.ashleyjthomas.com
October 6, 2025 at 8:55 PM
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
Reposted by Gabor Brody
New paper with @romanfeiman.bsky.social's lab, special to me given the inspiration from a parenting observation, when my then-2yo would regularly (and sensibly) confuse "anything" with "nothing"; turns out she was not alone and we can learn something about negative concord and semantic variation too
When some kids say "any", they seem to mean no. Huh?
We show they really do, and why. The key idea: kids figure out what "any" means from the sentences it's in. But a concord negator in the same spots can look the same ("I don't want anything" vs. "I don't want nothing") doi.org/10.16995/glo...
We show they really do, and why. The key idea: kids figure out what "any" means from the sentences it's in. But a concord negator in the same spots can look the same ("I don't want anything" vs. "I don't want nothing") doi.org/10.16995/glo...
When the syntactic bootstrap breaks: Some children think <em>any</em> means <em>no</em>
Children can use distributional information about where words occur to figure out their meanings. But what happens when two very different words not only have most of their distribution in common, but...
doi.org
September 30, 2025 at 8:11 PM
New paper with @romanfeiman.bsky.social's lab, special to me given the inspiration from a parenting observation, when my then-2yo would regularly (and sensibly) confuse "anything" with "nothing"; turns out she was not alone and we can learn something about negative concord and semantic variation too
Reposted by Gabor Brody
When some kids say "any", they seem to mean no. Huh?
We show they really do, and why. The key idea: kids figure out what "any" means from the sentences it's in. But a concord negator in the same spots can look the same ("I don't want anything" vs. "I don't want nothing") doi.org/10.16995/glo...
We show they really do, and why. The key idea: kids figure out what "any" means from the sentences it's in. But a concord negator in the same spots can look the same ("I don't want anything" vs. "I don't want nothing") doi.org/10.16995/glo...
When the syntactic bootstrap breaks: Some children think <em>any</em> means <em>no</em>
Children can use distributional information about where words occur to figure out their meanings. But what happens when two very different words not only have most of their distribution in common, but...
doi.org
September 30, 2025 at 5:06 PM
When some kids say "any", they seem to mean no. Huh?
We show they really do, and why. The key idea: kids figure out what "any" means from the sentences it's in. But a concord negator in the same spots can look the same ("I don't want anything" vs. "I don't want nothing") doi.org/10.16995/glo...
We show they really do, and why. The key idea: kids figure out what "any" means from the sentences it's in. But a concord negator in the same spots can look the same ("I don't want anything" vs. "I don't want nothing") doi.org/10.16995/glo...
Reposted by Gabor Brody
Thrilled to announce a new paper out this weekend in
@cognitionjournal.bsky.social.
Moral psychologists almost always use self-report scales to study moral judgment. But there's a problem: the meaning of these scales is inherently relative.
A 2 min demo (and a short thread):
1/7
@cognitionjournal.bsky.social.
Moral psychologists almost always use self-report scales to study moral judgment. But there's a problem: the meaning of these scales is inherently relative.
A 2 min demo (and a short thread):
1/7
September 28, 2025 at 9:45 PM
Thrilled to announce a new paper out this weekend in
@cognitionjournal.bsky.social.
Moral psychologists almost always use self-report scales to study moral judgment. But there's a problem: the meaning of these scales is inherently relative.
A 2 min demo (and a short thread):
1/7
@cognitionjournal.bsky.social.
Moral psychologists almost always use self-report scales to study moral judgment. But there's a problem: the meaning of these scales is inherently relative.
A 2 min demo (and a short thread):
1/7
Reposted by Gabor Brody
New publication forthcoming in BBS, co-authored with John Krakauer: a commentary on @smfleming.bsky.social & @matthiasmichel.bsky.social's groundbreaking target article.
We critique widespread assumptions in cognitive neuroscience about the role of internal models in implicit cognition. (1/7)
We critique widespread assumptions in cognitive neuroscience about the role of internal models in implicit cognition. (1/7)
September 22, 2025 at 4:49 PM
New publication forthcoming in BBS, co-authored with John Krakauer: a commentary on @smfleming.bsky.social & @matthiasmichel.bsky.social's groundbreaking target article.
We critique widespread assumptions in cognitive neuroscience about the role of internal models in implicit cognition. (1/7)
We critique widespread assumptions in cognitive neuroscience about the role of internal models in implicit cognition. (1/7)
Reposted by Gabor Brody
really enjoyed this. h/t to @ashleyjthomas.bsky.social for the pointer.
I considered writing a long carefully constructed argument laying out the harms and limitations of AI, but instead I wrote about being a hater. Only humans can be haters.
I Am An AI Hater
I am an AI hater. This is considered rude, but I do not care, because I am a hater.
anthonymoser.github.io
September 11, 2025 at 1:11 PM
really enjoyed this. h/t to @ashleyjthomas.bsky.social for the pointer.
Reposted by Gabor Brody
📣 🚨 Yale Psychology has 3 searches this year!
Links below:
Quantitative link: apply.interfolio.com/171903
Social link: apply.interfolio.com/171989
Clinical link: apply.interfolio.com/171970
Links below:
Quantitative link: apply.interfolio.com/171903
Social link: apply.interfolio.com/171989
Clinical link: apply.interfolio.com/171970
Apply - Interfolio
{{$ctrl.$state.data.pageTitle}} - Apply - Interfolio
apply.interfolio.com
September 3, 2025 at 9:35 PM
📣 🚨 Yale Psychology has 3 searches this year!
Links below:
Quantitative link: apply.interfolio.com/171903
Social link: apply.interfolio.com/171989
Clinical link: apply.interfolio.com/171970
Links below:
Quantitative link: apply.interfolio.com/171903
Social link: apply.interfolio.com/171989
Clinical link: apply.interfolio.com/171970
Reposted by Gabor Brody
The human visual system has specialized modular processing for multiple distinct categories of causal events.
My new paper with my lab manager Katharina Wenig in Cognitive Science, "Causal Perception(s)"
Free open access: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10....
#CogSci #PsychSciSky
🧵(1/22)
My new paper with my lab manager Katharina Wenig in Cognitive Science, "Causal Perception(s)"
Free open access: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10....
#CogSci #PsychSciSky
🧵(1/22)
Causal Perception(s)
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
August 31, 2025 at 7:18 AM
The human visual system has specialized modular processing for multiple distinct categories of causal events.
My new paper with my lab manager Katharina Wenig in Cognitive Science, "Causal Perception(s)"
Free open access: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10....
#CogSci #PsychSciSky
🧵(1/22)
My new paper with my lab manager Katharina Wenig in Cognitive Science, "Causal Perception(s)"
Free open access: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10....
#CogSci #PsychSciSky
🧵(1/22)
Reposted by Gabor Brody
A paper with Vic Ferreira and Norvin Richards is now out
(1) Speakers syntactically encode zero complementizers as cognitively active mental object.
(2) No evidence LLMs capture cross constructional generalizations about null complementizers.
nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com?url=https%3A...
(1) Speakers syntactically encode zero complementizers as cognitively active mental object.
(2) No evidence LLMs capture cross constructional generalizations about null complementizers.
nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com?url=https%3A...
nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com
August 3, 2025 at 10:21 PM
A paper with Vic Ferreira and Norvin Richards is now out
(1) Speakers syntactically encode zero complementizers as cognitively active mental object.
(2) No evidence LLMs capture cross constructional generalizations about null complementizers.
nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com?url=https%3A...
(1) Speakers syntactically encode zero complementizers as cognitively active mental object.
(2) No evidence LLMs capture cross constructional generalizations about null complementizers.
nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com?url=https%3A...
Reposted by Gabor Brody
Returning science to the status quo is inadequate. They’ll print the harms of funding cuts while it gets clicks, but if their wealth is on the line, they’ll mangle our work as badly as RFK Jr does.
This is what “depoliticized” science looks like. We should politicize science as much as possible.
This is what “depoliticized” science looks like. We should politicize science as much as possible.
My favorite WaPo fact-check is the one where they gave Bernie three Pinocchios for accurately citing a study.
www.washingtonpost.com/politics/201...
www.washingtonpost.com/politics/201...
July 30, 2025 at 5:12 PM
Returning science to the status quo is inadequate. They’ll print the harms of funding cuts while it gets clicks, but if their wealth is on the line, they’ll mangle our work as badly as RFK Jr does.
This is what “depoliticized” science looks like. We should politicize science as much as possible.
This is what “depoliticized” science looks like. We should politicize science as much as possible.
Reposted by Gabor Brody
Substack is back in the news again for the wrong reason: this time, the platform sent a push notification to a neo-Nazi newsletter featuring a swastika logo. Here's Substack cofounder and CEO Chris Best on Decoder two years ago struggling to answer a question about moderating hate speech.
July 30, 2025 at 4:03 PM
Substack is back in the news again for the wrong reason: this time, the platform sent a push notification to a neo-Nazi newsletter featuring a swastika logo. Here's Substack cofounder and CEO Chris Best on Decoder two years ago struggling to answer a question about moderating hate speech.
Reposted by Gabor Brody
Happy to announce that my lab @ Yale Psychology (actcompthink.org) will be accepting PhD applications this year (for start in Fall '26)!
Come for the fun experiments on human learning, memory, & skilled behavior, stay for the best 🍕 in the US.
Please reach out if you have any questions!
Come for the fun experiments on human learning, memory, & skilled behavior, stay for the best 🍕 in the US.
Please reach out if you have any questions!
Homepage of the Action, Computation, & Thinking (ACT) Lab, Yale department of psychology
actcompthink.org
July 24, 2025 at 1:29 PM
Happy to announce that my lab @ Yale Psychology (actcompthink.org) will be accepting PhD applications this year (for start in Fall '26)!
Come for the fun experiments on human learning, memory, & skilled behavior, stay for the best 🍕 in the US.
Please reach out if you have any questions!
Come for the fun experiments on human learning, memory, & skilled behavior, stay for the best 🍕 in the US.
Please reach out if you have any questions!
Reposted by Gabor Brody
New from me and @esranur.bsky.social! In two exps with 3-4-year-olds, we find no differences in kids' reasoning about possible outcomes of an event in different temporal contexts; kids perform the same under physical and epistemic uncertainty psycnet.apa.org/record/2026-... #devpsy #psychscisky
APA PsycNet
psycnet.apa.org
July 21, 2025 at 4:17 PM
New from me and @esranur.bsky.social! In two exps with 3-4-year-olds, we find no differences in kids' reasoning about possible outcomes of an event in different temporal contexts; kids perform the same under physical and epistemic uncertainty psycnet.apa.org/record/2026-... #devpsy #psychscisky
Reposted by Gabor Brody
Come see my lab at the Cognitive Science Society Conference #cogsci2025
July 19, 2025 at 2:30 AM
Come see my lab at the Cognitive Science Society Conference #cogsci2025
Reposted by Gabor Brody
PostDoc position (3.5y) available in interdisciplinary Collaborative Research Center "Common Ground".
🎯 Topic: Pragmatic reasoning about Common Ground
🎓 linguistics | philosophy of language | cognitive science
📅 Deadline: July 14
tinyurl.com/3vd9wa6p
Please share!
@toddthelinguist.bsky.social
🎯 Topic: Pragmatic reasoning about Common Ground
🎓 linguistics | philosophy of language | cognitive science
📅 Deadline: July 14
tinyurl.com/3vd9wa6p
Please share!
@toddthelinguist.bsky.social
Post-Doctoral Researcher (m/f/d, E13 TV-L, 100%)
tinyurl.com
July 1, 2025 at 10:19 AM
PostDoc position (3.5y) available in interdisciplinary Collaborative Research Center "Common Ground".
🎯 Topic: Pragmatic reasoning about Common Ground
🎓 linguistics | philosophy of language | cognitive science
📅 Deadline: July 14
tinyurl.com/3vd9wa6p
Please share!
@toddthelinguist.bsky.social
🎯 Topic: Pragmatic reasoning about Common Ground
🎓 linguistics | philosophy of language | cognitive science
📅 Deadline: July 14
tinyurl.com/3vd9wa6p
Please share!
@toddthelinguist.bsky.social
Reposted by Gabor Brody
Fun new paper led by Sebastian Holt, training adults on artificial number systems. Most work tests only base-10 learning; we trained adults on a range of base systems & manipulated whether numbers were learned as part of a counting system, or unordered words. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Learning a Novel Number System: The Role of Compositional Rules and Counting Procedures
Humans count to indefinitely large numbers by recycling words from a finite list, and combining them using rules—for example, combining sixty with unit labels to generate sixty-one, sixty-two, and so...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
June 6, 2025 at 4:44 PM
Fun new paper led by Sebastian Holt, training adults on artificial number systems. Most work tests only base-10 learning; we trained adults on a range of base systems & manipulated whether numbers were learned as part of a counting system, or unordered words. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Reposted by Gabor Brody
Reposted by Gabor Brody
Our R01 was part of yesterday's "mass termination" at Harvard; 1 of ~1000 NIH grants in Trump's "fight". The irony of how many Jewish (& non-Jewish) researchers/scientists/physicians/patients/students will be harmed in the name of "fighting antisemitism" is sickening.deliberately cruel. #AcademicSky
May 16, 2025 at 5:15 PM
Our R01 was part of yesterday's "mass termination" at Harvard; 1 of ~1000 NIH grants in Trump's "fight". The irony of how many Jewish (& non-Jewish) researchers/scientists/physicians/patients/students will be harmed in the name of "fighting antisemitism" is sickening.deliberately cruel. #AcademicSky
Reposted by Gabor Brody
Reposted by Gabor Brody
What makes people feel entitled to rewards—the effort they put into their work or the outcomes they achieve?
Out now in PNAS; with Jin Kim and Jared Wong:
Achievement.
Effort seems to matter very little (if at all).
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Out now in PNAS; with Jin Kim and Jared Wong:
Achievement.
Effort seems to matter very little (if at all).
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
May 8, 2025 at 9:51 PM
What makes people feel entitled to rewards—the effort they put into their work or the outcomes they achieve?
Out now in PNAS; with Jin Kim and Jared Wong:
Achievement.
Effort seems to matter very little (if at all).
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Out now in PNAS; with Jin Kim and Jared Wong:
Achievement.
Effort seems to matter very little (if at all).
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Reposted by Gabor Brody
Excited to share a new paper accepted to @cogscisociety.bsky.social 2025 on the cognitive representation polysemy and their use in reasoning!
Pre-print here: doi.org/10.31234/osf...
Thread below! (🧵1/9)
Pre-print here: doi.org/10.31234/osf...
Thread below! (🧵1/9)
OSF
doi.org
April 13, 2025 at 2:59 PM
Excited to share a new paper accepted to @cogscisociety.bsky.social 2025 on the cognitive representation polysemy and their use in reasoning!
Pre-print here: doi.org/10.31234/osf...
Thread below! (🧵1/9)
Pre-print here: doi.org/10.31234/osf...
Thread below! (🧵1/9)