Joris Gillet
@jorisgillet.bsky.social
Senior Lecturer Behavioural Economics at Middlesex University London UK http://www.jorisgillet.nl
Another one for my list of real world examples of the Winner's Curse...
November 25, 2025 at 12:21 PM
Another one for my list of real world examples of the Winner's Curse...
A '2008 global financial crisis' hoodie that costs $180 is sold out www.businessinsider.com/2008-global-...
A '2008 global financial crisis' hoodie that costs $180 is sold out
The financial crisis hoodie is described as "hurt and mangled" with "extreme distressing" by streetwear brand Praying.
www.businessinsider.com
November 24, 2025 at 8:13 PM
A '2008 global financial crisis' hoodie that costs $180 is sold out www.businessinsider.com/2008-global-...
“The sudden appearance of something unexpected — Batman — disrupts the predictability of everyday life and forces people to be present, breaking free from autopilot,” www.zmescience.com/science/news...
The Batman Effect: Even a Glimpse of a Superhero Can Make People Twice As Likely to Help on the Subway
When Batman rides the metro, people become kinder.
www.zmescience.com
November 22, 2025 at 5:26 PM
“The sudden appearance of something unexpected — Batman — disrupts the predictability of everyday life and forces people to be present, breaking free from autopilot,” www.zmescience.com/science/news...
"three members of the election committee act as independent trustees. (...) each trustee holds a third of the cryptographic key material needed to decrypt results. Unfortunately, one of the three trustees has irretrievably lost their private key" arstechnica.com/security/202...
Oops. Cryptographers cancel election results after losing decryption key.
Voting system required three keys. One of them has been “irretrievably lost.”…
arstechnica.com
November 22, 2025 at 1:16 PM
"three members of the election committee act as independent trustees. (...) each trustee holds a third of the cryptographic key material needed to decrypt results. Unfortunately, one of the three trustees has irretrievably lost their private key" arstechnica.com/security/202...
"an AI tool he calls "an autonomous synthetic respondent,” which can answer survey questions and “demonstrated a near-flawless ability to bypass the full range” of “state-of-the-art” methods for detecting bots. " www.404media.co/a-researcher...
A Researcher Made an AI That Completely Breaks the Online Surveys Scientists Rely On
We can no longer trust that survey responses are coming from real people.”
www.404media.co
November 21, 2025 at 12:31 PM
"an AI tool he calls "an autonomous synthetic respondent,” which can answer survey questions and “demonstrated a near-flawless ability to bypass the full range” of “state-of-the-art” methods for detecting bots. " www.404media.co/a-researcher...
"when one looks at splatter paintings made by adults and young children through a fractal lens (...) the children’s work does bear a closer resemblance to Pollock’s than those of the adults. " arstechnica.com/science/2025...
Study: Kids’ drip paintings more like Pollock’s than those of adults
The splatter master was more clumsy than graceful in his movements, which are key to his distinctive style.
arstechnica.com
November 20, 2025 at 9:48 AM
"when one looks at splatter paintings made by adults and young children through a fractal lens (...) the children’s work does bear a closer resemblance to Pollock’s than those of the adults. " arstechnica.com/science/2025...
"The recent Nobel Prize was awarded to three economists (two of whom are Fellows of the British Academy) whose work (...) showed that we should care about the research infrastructures if we care about prosperity" www.cityam.com/the-british-...
The British library is in crisis: why does nobody care?
The widespread indifference to the British Library's crippling cyberattack demonstrates a perilous failure to value the knowledge infrastructure vital for national prosperity
www.cityam.com
November 18, 2025 at 7:21 PM
"The recent Nobel Prize was awarded to three economists (two of whom are Fellows of the British Academy) whose work (...) showed that we should care about the research infrastructures if we care about prosperity" www.cityam.com/the-british-...
“Data centers are like warehouses filled with machines and cables, and there’s little need for workers,” restofworld.org/2025/data-ce...
Microsoft, Google say their data centers create thousands of jobs. Their permit filings say otherwise
Chile and tech giants promise economy-wide impact but permits show fewer onsite jobs after construction.
restofworld.org
November 16, 2025 at 8:29 PM
“Data centers are like warehouses filled with machines and cables, and there’s little need for workers,” restofworld.org/2025/data-ce...
"The key takeaway for future success, the scientists conclude, is clear: people who stop overanalysing the past may have a better chance at winning in the future." (if the world was run in endless games rock-paper-scissors...) www.tbsnews.net/offbeat/un-p...
Un-predictable: Scientists show clever trick to help win at rock, paper, scissors everytime
In competitive scenarios where unpredictability is advantageous, this innate tendency to rely on history can be a significant liability
www.tbsnews.net
November 11, 2025 at 4:30 PM
"The key takeaway for future success, the scientists conclude, is clear: people who stop overanalysing the past may have a better chance at winning in the future." (if the world was run in endless games rock-paper-scissors...) www.tbsnews.net/offbeat/un-p...
"Google DeepMind’s Weather Lab (...) performed exceptionally well. By contrast, the Global Forecast System model, which is operated by the US National Weather Service, is based on traditional physics (...) performed abysmally." arstechnica.com/science/2025...
Google’s new hurricane model was breathtakingly good this season
Meanwhile, the US Global Forecasting System continues to get worse.
arstechnica.com
November 5, 2025 at 6:36 PM
"Google DeepMind’s Weather Lab (...) performed exceptionally well. By contrast, the Global Forecast System model, which is operated by the US National Weather Service, is based on traditional physics (...) performed abysmally." arstechnica.com/science/2025...
I'm only allowed a limited percentage of the total grade for the module I am currently teaching to be determined by in-class test. So I have to run a take home version. Average grade 81/100 (in the UK, where everything over 70/100 gets the top mark, a first).
November 4, 2025 at 9:09 PM
I'm only allowed a limited percentage of the total grade for the module I am currently teaching to be determined by in-class test. So I have to run a take home version. Average grade 81/100 (in the UK, where everything over 70/100 gets the top mark, a first).
Reposted by Joris Gillet
Amid many a silly “free speech” panic, here is a genuinely chilling case …
Sheffield Hallam professor accuses the institution of negotiating “directly with a foreign intelligence service to trade my academic freedom for access to the Chinese student market”
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Sheffield Hallam professor accuses the institution of negotiating “directly with a foreign intelligence service to trade my academic freedom for access to the Chinese student market”
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
China intimidated UK university to ditch human rights research, documents show
Sheffield Hallam University apologises to Professor Laura Murphy for restricting her academic freedom.
www.bbc.co.uk
November 3, 2025 at 8:04 AM
Amid many a silly “free speech” panic, here is a genuinely chilling case …
Sheffield Hallam professor accuses the institution of negotiating “directly with a foreign intelligence service to trade my academic freedom for access to the Chinese student market”
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Sheffield Hallam professor accuses the institution of negotiating “directly with a foreign intelligence service to trade my academic freedom for access to the Chinese student market”
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Cass Sunstein lists his favourite colleagues casssunstein.substack.com/p/some-perso...
Some Personal GOATS
A List of Six
casssunstein.substack.com
October 21, 2025 at 6:58 AM
Cass Sunstein lists his favourite colleagues casssunstein.substack.com/p/some-perso...
I find the finding out 'whether it’s better to receive assistance even before disaster strikes' more interesting than the 'ai prediction of floods' bit but I guess the AI is better at predicting restofworld.org/2025/google-...
AI flood forecasting allows aid to reach farmers before disaster strikes
Using Google’s Flood Hub, nonprofit trial program sends early warning and unconditional cash to workers.
restofworld.org
October 14, 2025 at 7:20 PM
I find the finding out 'whether it’s better to receive assistance even before disaster strikes' more interesting than the 'ai prediction of floods' bit but I guess the AI is better at predicting restofworld.org/2025/google-...
Wish I had more time to read books. This looks fascinating. archive.ph/RWbAp
October 11, 2025 at 7:39 AM
Wish I had more time to read books. This looks fascinating. archive.ph/RWbAp
Reposted by Joris Gillet
Immigrant Nobel Prize winners exiting the United States
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
🧵 1/7
October 10, 2025 at 11:24 AM
Immigrant Nobel Prize winners exiting the United States
October 8, 2025 at 7:27 AM
Reposted by Joris Gillet
I wouldn’t normally endorse AI prompts but these are indeed essential for all academics.
Here are your 10 -essential- AI prompts for academics ... make your life easy with help from @profserious.bsky.social profserious.substack.com/p/10-ai-prom...
10 AI Prompts for Academics
making those hard jobs a little easier ...
profserious.substack.com
October 5, 2025 at 10:13 AM
I wouldn’t normally endorse AI prompts but these are indeed essential for all academics.
Reposted by Joris Gillet
*jazz hands* Tyler Cowen!
October 2, 2025 at 8:43 PM
*jazz hands* Tyler Cowen!
Reposted by Joris Gillet
I cannot imagine anyone I know in academia letting this happen. It's utterly appalling. Glasgow uni failed to record the grade he had in fact earned, then refused him a degree, then abandoned him to kill himself.
For utter, enduring shame.
For utter, enduring shame.
Glasgow student took his own life after 'tragic' university error
Ethan Brown, 23, of Coatbridge, was told he didn't have the grades to graduate in December 2024.
www.bbc.co.uk
October 1, 2025 at 7:44 AM
I cannot imagine anyone I know in academia letting this happen. It's utterly appalling. Glasgow uni failed to record the grade he had in fact earned, then refused him a degree, then abandoned him to kill himself.
For utter, enduring shame.
For utter, enduring shame.
"Those are conditions that can make almost any stock-picking strategy look smart." arstechnica.com/information-...
Experts urge caution about using ChatGPT to pick stocks
AI-selected portfolios might perform well in a growing market, but experts warn of downturn risks.
arstechnica.com
September 26, 2025 at 10:37 AM
"Those are conditions that can make almost any stock-picking strategy look smart." arstechnica.com/information-...
"The researchers found that teams who were prompted to select a leader were 38% more likely to finish than those who were not. " hbr.org/2025/09/rese...
Research in Brief: With a Bonus on the Line, Teams Prioritize Leadership
Adapted from our September-October 2025 magazine, this succinct write-up offers insights from a recent study on incentives and group performance. Across 722 escape-room teams in Germany, comprising mo...
hbr.org
September 21, 2025 at 3:00 PM
"The researchers found that teams who were prompted to select a leader were 38% more likely to finish than those who were not. " hbr.org/2025/09/rese...
"In the Choice System, food banks receive shares in proportion to their goal factor – Feeding America’s measure of need – but once they have these shares, food banks can spend them however they choose exclusively through twice-daily online auctions." www.worksinprogress.news/p/how-market...
How market design can feed the poor
America's largest non-profit had a broken distribution system. University of Chicago economists fixed it.
www.worksinprogress.news
September 21, 2025 at 2:54 PM
"In the Choice System, food banks receive shares in proportion to their goal factor – Feeding America’s measure of need – but once they have these shares, food banks can spend them however they choose exclusively through twice-daily online auctions." www.worksinprogress.news/p/how-market...
This sounds like it could be an interesting historical economic case study, about the river Fleet here in London in the early 1700's "the water soon silted up again and under private ownership the canal fell into disrepair." diamondgeezer.blogspot.com/2025/08/flee...
diamond geezer
diamondgeezer.blogspot.com
September 20, 2025 at 9:01 AM
This sounds like it could be an interesting historical economic case study, about the river Fleet here in London in the early 1700's "the water soon silted up again and under private ownership the canal fell into disrepair." diamondgeezer.blogspot.com/2025/08/flee...