Jonathan A. Michaels
@jonathanamichaels.bsky.social
How do we move? I study brains and machines at York University (Assistant Professor). Full-time human.
Neural Control & Computation Lab
www.ncclab.ca
Neural Control & Computation Lab
www.ncclab.ca
Pinned
Sensory expectations shape neural population dynamics in motor circuits
Nature - Experiments with human volunteers and macaques show that expectations produced by probabilistic cueing of future sensory inputs shape motor circuit dynamics in order to increase the...
www.nature.com
Thrilled that our paper is out today in Nature!
www.nature.com/articles/s4...
www.nature.com/articles/s4...
Reposted by Jonathan A. Michaels
This kind of messaging is intended to drown moms in research, risk, and responsibility.
The goal is to keep them so anxious and so busy that they can't work for pay--especially not in high-powered "mens" jobs--or get involved in any kind of efforts to push for progressive change.
The goal is to keep them so anxious and so busy that they can't work for pay--especially not in high-powered "mens" jobs--or get involved in any kind of efforts to push for progressive change.
HHS Secretary RFK Jr: "This idea that you should trust the experts, a good mother doesn't do that"
January 16, 2026 at 12:00 AM
This kind of messaging is intended to drown moms in research, risk, and responsibility.
The goal is to keep them so anxious and so busy that they can't work for pay--especially not in high-powered "mens" jobs--or get involved in any kind of efforts to push for progressive change.
The goal is to keep them so anxious and so busy that they can't work for pay--especially not in high-powered "mens" jobs--or get involved in any kind of efforts to push for progressive change.
The Neural Control and Computation Lab is seeking a skilled part-time software engineer in Toronto to lead the development of ATHENA (Automatically Tracking Hands Expertly with No Annotations), our open-source, Python-based toolbox for 3D markerless tracking!
www.yorku.ca/health/resea...
www.yorku.ca/health/resea...
www.yorku.ca
January 13, 2026 at 2:52 PM
The Neural Control and Computation Lab is seeking a skilled part-time software engineer in Toronto to lead the development of ATHENA (Automatically Tracking Hands Expertly with No Annotations), our open-source, Python-based toolbox for 3D markerless tracking!
www.yorku.ca/health/resea...
www.yorku.ca/health/resea...
Reposted by Jonathan A. Michaels
CIAN had the honour of hosting Dr. Takashi Sato last Friday.
#Neuroscience
@jonathanamichaels.bsky.social
@bjorges.bsky.social
@jdcrawford.bsky.social
#Neuroscience
@jonathanamichaels.bsky.social
@bjorges.bsky.social
@jdcrawford.bsky.social
January 12, 2026 at 4:13 PM
CIAN had the honour of hosting Dr. Takashi Sato last Friday.
#Neuroscience
@jonathanamichaels.bsky.social
@bjorges.bsky.social
@jdcrawford.bsky.social
#Neuroscience
@jonathanamichaels.bsky.social
@bjorges.bsky.social
@jdcrawford.bsky.social
Reposted by Jonathan A. Michaels
New: “Fears are growing that the number of protesters killed by Iranian security forces now reaches into the thousands…cell phone footage has emerged of truck-mounted machine guns strafing residential streets, hospitals swamped by shooting victims, and a morgue overwhelmed by hundreds of bodies”
Death Toll in Iran May Already Be in the Thousands
No precise toll can be ascertained, but a group estimates that protester deaths may have reached 6,000 through Saturday.
time.com
January 12, 2026 at 4:02 AM
New: “Fears are growing that the number of protesters killed by Iranian security forces now reaches into the thousands…cell phone footage has emerged of truck-mounted machine guns strafing residential streets, hospitals swamped by shooting victims, and a morgue overwhelmed by hundreds of bodies”
Reposted by Jonathan A. Michaels
I don’t know how the protests in Iran will play out—no one does and be wary of anyone who claims otherwise—but I have absolute respect for the courage of the people participating.
May their bravery and fortitude be an inspiration to us all.
May their bravery and fortitude be an inspiration to us all.
January 11, 2026 at 3:30 PM
I don’t know how the protests in Iran will play out—no one does and be wary of anyone who claims otherwise—but I have absolute respect for the courage of the people participating.
May their bravery and fortitude be an inspiration to us all.
May their bravery and fortitude be an inspiration to us all.
Reposted by Jonathan A. Michaels
With some trepidation, I'm putting this out into the world:
gershmanlab.com/textbook.html
It's a textbook called Computational Foundations of Cognitive Neuroscience, which I wrote for my class.
My hope is that this will be a living document, continuously improved as I get feedback.
gershmanlab.com/textbook.html
It's a textbook called Computational Foundations of Cognitive Neuroscience, which I wrote for my class.
My hope is that this will be a living document, continuously improved as I get feedback.
January 9, 2026 at 1:27 AM
With some trepidation, I'm putting this out into the world:
gershmanlab.com/textbook.html
It's a textbook called Computational Foundations of Cognitive Neuroscience, which I wrote for my class.
My hope is that this will be a living document, continuously improved as I get feedback.
gershmanlab.com/textbook.html
It's a textbook called Computational Foundations of Cognitive Neuroscience, which I wrote for my class.
My hope is that this will be a living document, continuously improved as I get feedback.
First lecture of the winter done. Bring on the chaos 🫠
January 6, 2026 at 7:01 PM
First lecture of the winter done. Bring on the chaos 🫠
Reposted by Jonathan A. Michaels
I'm increasingly of the opinion that we shouldn't give credence to any published result unless it has been subject to a good faith attempt to explain the results by a null model, ideally by an independent group that doesn't believe the result is true, and shown to be robust.
But (shocker) with realistic amounts of noise you recover something that looks exactly like their plot. It even has roughly the same level of discordance, about 40% in total!
January 5, 2026 at 7:51 PM
I'm increasingly of the opinion that we shouldn't give credence to any published result unless it has been subject to a good faith attempt to explain the results by a null model, ideally by an independent group that doesn't believe the result is true, and shown to be robust.
Reposted by Jonathan A. Michaels
This paper had a pretty shocking headline result (40% of voxels!), so I dug into it, and I think it is wrong. Essentially: they compare two noisy measures and find that about 40% of voxels have different sign between the two. I think this is just noise!
Would love to hear expert views on this paper. It appears to show that the operationalization of brain activity the field has relied on for 3 decades—the BOLD response—is not actually a sensible measure of brain activity.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
BOLD signal changes can oppose oxygen metabolism across the human cortex - Nature Neuroscience
Using quantitative brain imaging, the authors show opposite fMRI BOLD signal to metabolic activity due to variable oxygen extraction across the human cortex. This questions the canonical interpretatio...
www.nature.com
January 5, 2026 at 5:22 PM
This paper had a pretty shocking headline result (40% of voxels!), so I dug into it, and I think it is wrong. Essentially: they compare two noisy measures and find that about 40% of voxels have different sign between the two. I think this is just noise!
Reposted by Jonathan A. Michaels
1. Headlines everywhere today read "Grok apologizes."
This is bullshit. A chatbot is not something that can apologize.
Pretending otherwise is simple laundering these companies' bullshit about what AI is, while diffusing blame away from the human beings that developed and released this system.
This is bullshit. A chatbot is not something that can apologize.
Pretending otherwise is simple laundering these companies' bullshit about what AI is, while diffusing blame away from the human beings that developed and released this system.
January 3, 2026 at 12:12 AM
1. Headlines everywhere today read "Grok apologizes."
This is bullshit. A chatbot is not something that can apologize.
Pretending otherwise is simple laundering these companies' bullshit about what AI is, while diffusing blame away from the human beings that developed and released this system.
This is bullshit. A chatbot is not something that can apologize.
Pretending otherwise is simple laundering these companies' bullshit about what AI is, while diffusing blame away from the human beings that developed and released this system.
Reposted by Jonathan A. Michaels
As of today, I am a FULL professor. I do not care much for occupational status markers. Still, it is not lost on me that only 2% of full professors are Black women. This goes beyond personal accomplishment. It is a responsibility to do as much as I can for others. That is exactly what I aim to do.
January 1, 2026 at 9:09 PM
As of today, I am a FULL professor. I do not care much for occupational status markers. Still, it is not lost on me that only 2% of full professors are Black women. This goes beyond personal accomplishment. It is a responsibility to do as much as I can for others. That is exactly what I aim to do.
To share some good vibes going into the new year. I performed some more piano solo music with my orchestra! The music was challenging but rewarding.
December 31, 2025 at 8:34 PM
To share some good vibes going into the new year. I performed some more piano solo music with my orchestra! The music was challenging but rewarding.
Best email you can get from a student –
"I have been re-excited about the brain."
"I have been re-excited about the brain."
December 31, 2025 at 3:58 PM
Best email you can get from a student –
"I have been re-excited about the brain."
"I have been re-excited about the brain."
Reposted by Jonathan A. Michaels
I saw an academic unironically suggest that instead of assessing students’ understanding and competence through their writing of essays, arguments etc., we can assess the “quality” of their prompts, and I feel us slipping further and further into dystopia.
December 28, 2025 at 8:48 PM
I saw an academic unironically suggest that instead of assessing students’ understanding and competence through their writing of essays, arguments etc., we can assess the “quality” of their prompts, and I feel us slipping further and further into dystopia.
Reposted by Jonathan A. Michaels
For several of my friends, this will be the 1st Christmas after losing a loved one. I'm sure there are some of you in the same boat.
I've been there myself, too many times. It's hard in so many ways to deal with a loss like that, especially when ppl all around you are celebrating. This is for you:
I've been there myself, too many times. It's hard in so many ways to deal with a loss like that, especially when ppl all around you are celebrating. This is for you:
December 25, 2025 at 1:06 AM
For several of my friends, this will be the 1st Christmas after losing a loved one. I'm sure there are some of you in the same boat.
I've been there myself, too many times. It's hard in so many ways to deal with a loss like that, especially when ppl all around you are celebrating. This is for you:
I've been there myself, too many times. It's hard in so many ways to deal with a loss like that, especially when ppl all around you are celebrating. This is for you:
Muppet Treasure Island is a fantastic christmas movie. I will not be taking comments.
December 25, 2025 at 2:24 AM
Muppet Treasure Island is a fantastic christmas movie. I will not be taking comments.
Reposted by Jonathan A. Michaels
Context-dependent low-dimensional neural dynamics unfold in distinct subspaces, dimensionality, and dynamical strength for natural walking and reaching https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2025.12.19.695640v1
December 23, 2025 at 7:15 PM
Context-dependent low-dimensional neural dynamics unfold in distinct subspaces, dimensionality, and dynamical strength for natural walking and reaching https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2025.12.19.695640v1
No underground oceans on Titan 😔, but probably some mushy pockets!
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Titan’s strong tidal dissipation precludes a subsurface ocean - Nature
Reanalysis of radiometric data from Cassini indicates that Titan does not contain a subsurface ocean, as strong tidal dissipation observed in its gravity field is not consistent with the presence of a...
www.nature.com
December 22, 2025 at 6:50 PM
No underground oceans on Titan 😔, but probably some mushy pockets!
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by Jonathan A. Michaels
It is utterly catastrophic that RFK Jr. plans to end CDC recommendations for most childhood vaccines.
It’s a betrayal of science, ethics, compassion, and the people of the United States.
And it was also a specific goal of Project 2025 (page 254).
It’s a betrayal of science, ethics, compassion, and the people of the United States.
And it was also a specific goal of Project 2025 (page 254).
December 20, 2025 at 12:50 AM
It is utterly catastrophic that RFK Jr. plans to end CDC recommendations for most childhood vaccines.
It’s a betrayal of science, ethics, compassion, and the people of the United States.
And it was also a specific goal of Project 2025 (page 254).
It’s a betrayal of science, ethics, compassion, and the people of the United States.
And it was also a specific goal of Project 2025 (page 254).
Interested in applying to come to Canada for a fully funded PhD or Postdoc?
Canada Impact+ Research Training Awards: nserc-crsng.canada.ca/en/canada-i...
Reach out if you’re interested in opportunities for using large-scale electrophysiology to understand neural computation and movement.
Canada Impact+ Research Training Awards: nserc-crsng.canada.ca/en/canada-i...
Reach out if you’re interested in opportunities for using large-scale electrophysiology to understand neural computation and movement.
December 20, 2025 at 3:34 AM
Interested in applying to come to Canada for a fully funded PhD or Postdoc?
Canada Impact+ Research Training Awards: nserc-crsng.canada.ca/en/canada-i...
Reach out if you’re interested in opportunities for using large-scale electrophysiology to understand neural computation and movement.
Canada Impact+ Research Training Awards: nserc-crsng.canada.ca/en/canada-i...
Reach out if you’re interested in opportunities for using large-scale electrophysiology to understand neural computation and movement.
I tested ChatGPT and Gemini on explaining this meme. ChatGPT failed pretty hard and started gaslighting me. Gemini’s response was spot on.
December 19, 2025 at 10:59 PM
I tested ChatGPT and Gemini on explaining this meme. ChatGPT failed pretty hard and started gaslighting me. Gemini’s response was spot on.
Reposted by Jonathan A. Michaels
Great to see this paper on sensory expectations in motor control from @jonathanamichaels.bsky.social and @andpru.bsky.social out in Nature today!
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
#neuroscience 🧪
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
#neuroscience 🧪
Sensory expectations shape neural population dynamics in motor circuits - Nature
Experiments with human volunteers and macaques show that expectations produced by probabilistic cueing of future sensory inputs shape motor circuit dynamics in order to increase the efficiency of move...
www.nature.com
December 18, 2025 at 8:26 PM
Great to see this paper on sensory expectations in motor control from @jonathanamichaels.bsky.social and @andpru.bsky.social out in Nature today!
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
#neuroscience 🧪
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
#neuroscience 🧪
Evenings are the time when PIs rattle off dozens of philosophical emails to their collaborators and trainees and then fall asleep.
December 17, 2025 at 3:38 AM
Evenings are the time when PIs rattle off dozens of philosophical emails to their collaborators and trainees and then fall asleep.
Reposted by Jonathan A. Michaels
The rest of the media was totally irresponsible for not running with this headline: novaramedia.com/2025/12/15/n...
Nazi’s Son Wins Chilean Presidency | Novara Media
Ultra-conservative candidate José Antonio Kast, whose father was a member of the Nazi party, has achieved a massive victory in Chile, prompting celebration from the international far right. Phineas Ru...
novaramedia.com
December 16, 2025 at 12:36 PM
The rest of the media was totally irresponsible for not running with this headline: novaramedia.com/2025/12/15/n...
Reposted by Jonathan A. Michaels
LLMs.
They promote suicide and murder, undermine a century of educational practice, drive deskilling, harm the environment, and benefit foreign adversaries spreading disinformation.
But the federal government wants to prohibit states from regulating them.
You'd think they were guns.
They promote suicide and murder, undermine a century of educational practice, drive deskilling, harm the environment, and benefit foreign adversaries spreading disinformation.
But the federal government wants to prohibit states from regulating them.
You'd think they were guns.
Murder-suicide case shows OpenAI selectively hides data after users die
OpenAI accused of hiding full ChatGPT logs in murder-suicide case.
arstechnica.com
December 16, 2025 at 12:36 AM
LLMs.
They promote suicide and murder, undermine a century of educational practice, drive deskilling, harm the environment, and benefit foreign adversaries spreading disinformation.
But the federal government wants to prohibit states from regulating them.
You'd think they were guns.
They promote suicide and murder, undermine a century of educational practice, drive deskilling, harm the environment, and benefit foreign adversaries spreading disinformation.
But the federal government wants to prohibit states from regulating them.
You'd think they were guns.