Sheina Lew-Levy
@sheinalew.bsky.social
Associate Professor at @durhampsych.bsky.social. I look at how culture influences children's learning, and how learning makes us human.
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
Very excited that this paper is out!
www.science.org/doi/full/10....
Led by the fabulous @dorsaamir.bsky.social with invaluable contributions from many awesome collaborators.
www.science.org/doi/full/10....
Led by the fabulous @dorsaamir.bsky.social with invaluable contributions from many awesome collaborators.
The emergence of cooperative behaviors, norms, and strategies across five diverse societies
Children’s cooperative behaviors and norms develop along distinct cultural pathways shaped by local norms.
www.science.org
February 6, 2026 at 10:25 PM
Very excited that this paper is out!
www.science.org/doi/full/10....
Led by the fabulous @dorsaamir.bsky.social with invaluable contributions from many awesome collaborators.
www.science.org/doi/full/10....
Led by the fabulous @dorsaamir.bsky.social with invaluable contributions from many awesome collaborators.
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
🚨WINNER ANNOUNCEMET🚨
EHBEA wants to congratulate @drboothroyd.bsky.social and @sheinalew.bsky.social on earning the 2026 EHBEA Award in Excellence in Public Communication and Outreach👏
@durhampsych.bsky.social
@durham.ac.uk
EHBEA wants to congratulate @drboothroyd.bsky.social and @sheinalew.bsky.social on earning the 2026 EHBEA Award in Excellence in Public Communication and Outreach👏
@durhampsych.bsky.social
@durham.ac.uk
February 3, 2026 at 4:18 PM
🚨WINNER ANNOUNCEMET🚨
EHBEA wants to congratulate @drboothroyd.bsky.social and @sheinalew.bsky.social on earning the 2026 EHBEA Award in Excellence in Public Communication and Outreach👏
@durhampsych.bsky.social
@durham.ac.uk
EHBEA wants to congratulate @drboothroyd.bsky.social and @sheinalew.bsky.social on earning the 2026 EHBEA Award in Excellence in Public Communication and Outreach👏
@durhampsych.bsky.social
@durham.ac.uk
...when social contexts regularly expose children to out-group collaboration, inter-ethnic norms are acquired at similar timelines to intra-ethnic ones, as part of children’s broader cooperative repertoire.
As always, we thank the BaYaka and Bandongo communities who welcomes us!
As always, we thank the BaYaka and Bandongo communities who welcomes us!
January 29, 2026 at 10:36 AM
...when social contexts regularly expose children to out-group collaboration, inter-ethnic norms are acquired at similar timelines to intra-ethnic ones, as part of children’s broader cooperative repertoire.
As always, we thank the BaYaka and Bandongo communities who welcomes us!
As always, we thank the BaYaka and Bandongo communities who welcomes us!
🚨 New Paper Alert!
We investigated the developmental trajectories of intra-ethnic and inter-ethnic social norm acquisition among BaYaka and Bandongo in northern Rep. Congo, a community where inter-ethnic cooperation is common. We found that...
journals.plos.org/plosone/arti...
We investigated the developmental trajectories of intra-ethnic and inter-ethnic social norm acquisition among BaYaka and Bandongo in northern Rep. Congo, a community where inter-ethnic cooperation is common. We found that...
journals.plos.org/plosone/arti...
The social learning and development of intra- and inter-ethnic sharing norms in the Congo Basin
Compared to other species, the extent of human cooperation is unparalleled. Such cooperation is coordinated between community members via social norms. Developmental research has demonstrated that ver...
journals.plos.org
January 29, 2026 at 10:36 AM
🚨 New Paper Alert!
We investigated the developmental trajectories of intra-ethnic and inter-ethnic social norm acquisition among BaYaka and Bandongo in northern Rep. Congo, a community where inter-ethnic cooperation is common. We found that...
journals.plos.org/plosone/arti...
We investigated the developmental trajectories of intra-ethnic and inter-ethnic social norm acquisition among BaYaka and Bandongo in northern Rep. Congo, a community where inter-ethnic cooperation is common. We found that...
journals.plos.org/plosone/arti...
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
My time at @durhampsych.bsky.social has ended on a massive high - so grateful to @zannaclay.bsky.social and @drboothroyd.bsky.social for their supervision, and to Prof Tina Malti and @sheinalew.bsky.social for making my viva experience so positive 😊
Exciting day in the lab - Dr @georgiamt.bsky.social passed her viva in record time with only 2 corrections!
@zannaclay.bsky.social and I are proud academic mamas indeed.
@zannaclay.bsky.social and I are proud academic mamas indeed.
January 23, 2026 at 6:09 PM
My time at @durhampsych.bsky.social has ended on a massive high - so grateful to @zannaclay.bsky.social and @drboothroyd.bsky.social for their supervision, and to Prof Tina Malti and @sheinalew.bsky.social for making my viva experience so positive 😊
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
"The relationship between childhood exploration and population-level innovation in cultural evolution" with @ndersen.bsky.social @sheinalew.bsky.social @felixthehauskat.bsky.social out in Proc B
royalsocietypublishing.org/rspb/article...
royalsocietypublishing.org/rspb/article...
The relationship between childhood exploration and population-level innovation in cultural evolution
Abstract. The societal effects of children’s learning in cultural evolution have been underexplored. Here, we investigate using agent-based models how a pr
royalsocietypublishing.org
January 22, 2026 at 1:01 PM
"The relationship between childhood exploration and population-level innovation in cultural evolution" with @ndersen.bsky.social @sheinalew.bsky.social @felixthehauskat.bsky.social out in Proc B
royalsocietypublishing.org/rspb/article...
royalsocietypublishing.org/rspb/article...
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
I was surprised by children's large contribution to family food production in my hunter-gatherer family simulation. Of course, they're eating most of this food, too! From this paper linking the evolution of menopause to family energy balance: menopause-preprint.wisp.place 🧪 #BioAnth
January 21, 2026 at 2:07 PM
I was surprised by children's large contribution to family food production in my hunter-gatherer family simulation. Of course, they're eating most of this food, too! From this paper linking the evolution of menopause to family energy balance: menopause-preprint.wisp.place 🧪 #BioAnth
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
🚨Job alert! The ENDOW project is hiring a Research Officer in Research Database Management, to be based at @lsemethodology.bsky.social.
Oversee & expand our database & contribute to research on social & economic inequality.
Deadline 15 February. Share & reach out!
jobs.lse.ac.uk/Vacancies/W/...
Oversee & expand our database & contribute to research on social & economic inequality.
Deadline 15 February. Share & reach out!
jobs.lse.ac.uk/Vacancies/W/...
January 15, 2026 at 11:13 AM
🚨Job alert! The ENDOW project is hiring a Research Officer in Research Database Management, to be based at @lsemethodology.bsky.social.
Oversee & expand our database & contribute to research on social & economic inequality.
Deadline 15 February. Share & reach out!
jobs.lse.ac.uk/Vacancies/W/...
Oversee & expand our database & contribute to research on social & economic inequality.
Deadline 15 February. Share & reach out!
jobs.lse.ac.uk/Vacancies/W/...
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
A new academic term is ramping up. Have you considered putting our episodes on your syllabi?
Conversations offer an accessible and engaging format—your students will thank you! We have 100+ episodes to choose from, covering many forms of mind from all disciplinary angles.
disi.org/manyminds/
Conversations offer an accessible and engaging format—your students will thank you! We have 100+ episodes to choose from, covering many forms of mind from all disciplinary angles.
disi.org/manyminds/
January 14, 2026 at 5:14 PM
A new academic term is ramping up. Have you considered putting our episodes on your syllabi?
Conversations offer an accessible and engaging format—your students will thank you! We have 100+ episodes to choose from, covering many forms of mind from all disciplinary angles.
disi.org/manyminds/
Conversations offer an accessible and engaging format—your students will thank you! We have 100+ episodes to choose from, covering many forms of mind from all disciplinary angles.
disi.org/manyminds/
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
Latest crop of early online papers at HGR includes some bangers - if I do say so myself. Not just this report on BaYaka Women's autonomy and my own article about cage traps, but also Sterelny on quasi-darwinian mechanisms in cultural evolution.
www.liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk/doi/abs/10.3...
www.liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk/doi/abs/10.3...
January 9, 2026 at 10:14 PM
Latest crop of early online papers at HGR includes some bangers - if I do say so myself. Not just this report on BaYaka Women's autonomy and my own article about cage traps, but also Sterelny on quasi-darwinian mechanisms in cultural evolution.
www.liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk/doi/abs/10.3...
www.liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk/doi/abs/10.3...
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
'Varieties of childhood' with @dorsaamir.bsky.social & @sheinalew.bsky.social
Listen: disi.org/varieties-of...
Listen: disi.org/varieties-of...
December 31, 2025 at 9:03 PM
'Varieties of childhood' with @dorsaamir.bsky.social & @sheinalew.bsky.social
Listen: disi.org/varieties-of...
Listen: disi.org/varieties-of...
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
🎄 New paper! 🎁
Since the 20s it's been said that "the Hadza don't use traps". Except sporadic snaring, none have been reported. So I was excited to find baited cage traps in use. More exciting, this was cross-cultural transmission — seldom seen in action!
1/5
tinyurl.com/cagetrap
Since the 20s it's been said that "the Hadza don't use traps". Except sporadic snaring, none have been reported. So I was excited to find baited cage traps in use. More exciting, this was cross-cultural transmission — seldom seen in action!
1/5
tinyurl.com/cagetrap
(PDF) First recorded use of cage traps by the Tanzanian Hadza: A case of cross-cultural transmission
PDF | While hunting is a critical subsistence strategy for the Tanzanian Hadza, reports of trapping have traditionally been minimal. Snare trapping of... | Find, read and cite all the research you nee...
tinyurl.com
December 29, 2025 at 1:34 PM
🎄 New paper! 🎁
Since the 20s it's been said that "the Hadza don't use traps". Except sporadic snaring, none have been reported. So I was excited to find baited cage traps in use. More exciting, this was cross-cultural transmission — seldom seen in action!
1/5
tinyurl.com/cagetrap
Since the 20s it's been said that "the Hadza don't use traps". Except sporadic snaring, none have been reported. So I was excited to find baited cage traps in use. More exciting, this was cross-cultural transmission — seldom seen in action!
1/5
tinyurl.com/cagetrap
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
Among those murdered in Sydney is Rabbi Eli Schlanger.
Earlier this year, Rabbi Schlanger’s son Nossen became bar mitzvah, reading from a Torah that tied his family back generations, both to devastating loss and to Jewish resilience. www.australianjewishnews.com/an-incredibl...
Earlier this year, Rabbi Schlanger’s son Nossen became bar mitzvah, reading from a Torah that tied his family back generations, both to devastating loss and to Jewish resilience. www.australianjewishnews.com/an-incredibl...
An incredible story spanning generations
From Poland to Sydney, a bar mitzvah amidst rising antisemitism
www.australianjewishnews.com
December 14, 2025 at 2:31 PM
Among those murdered in Sydney is Rabbi Eli Schlanger.
Earlier this year, Rabbi Schlanger’s son Nossen became bar mitzvah, reading from a Torah that tied his family back generations, both to devastating loss and to Jewish resilience. www.australianjewishnews.com/an-incredibl...
Earlier this year, Rabbi Schlanger’s son Nossen became bar mitzvah, reading from a Torah that tied his family back generations, both to devastating loss and to Jewish resilience. www.australianjewishnews.com/an-incredibl...
I am incredibly proud of my PhD student @amandinevisine.bsky.social who won the Academic Achievement Prize for achieving the highest overall mark in her masters program 🤯 😱🤯 😱🤯 😱🤯 😱🤯 😱 Watch out world, here she comes!!!
a woman wearing sunglasses and a fur coat is holding a magazine and says boss lady .
ALT: a woman wearing sunglasses and a fur coat is holding a magazine and says boss lady .
media.tenor.com
December 4, 2025 at 2:40 PM
I am incredibly proud of my PhD student @amandinevisine.bsky.social who won the Academic Achievement Prize for achieving the highest overall mark in her masters program 🤯 😱🤯 😱🤯 😱🤯 😱🤯 😱 Watch out world, here she comes!!!
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
Indigenous People Were the Heroes of COP30 countercurrents.org/2025/11/indi...
Indigenous People Were the Heroes of COP30 | Countercurrents
Contradictions pervaded the latest UN climate conference (COP30) held in Belem, Brazil. Progressive President Lula da Silva of Brazil proclaimed it would a positive turning point in progress…
countercurrents.org
November 30, 2025 at 12:13 AM
Indigenous People Were the Heroes of COP30 countercurrents.org/2025/11/indi...
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
The 50 wealthiest families own more wealth than the bottom 50% of the population.
How can this Labour Government say this is a "cost of living" budget and refuse to tax the rich?
They care about protecting power and wealth. And cost of living is a buzz phrase for them. Dire.
How can this Labour Government say this is a "cost of living" budget and refuse to tax the rich?
They care about protecting power and wealth. And cost of living is a buzz phrase for them. Dire.
November 26, 2025 at 12:16 PM
The 50 wealthiest families own more wealth than the bottom 50% of the population.
How can this Labour Government say this is a "cost of living" budget and refuse to tax the rich?
They care about protecting power and wealth. And cost of living is a buzz phrase for them. Dire.
How can this Labour Government say this is a "cost of living" budget and refuse to tax the rich?
They care about protecting power and wealth. And cost of living is a buzz phrase for them. Dire.
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
Young chimps play weird with tools and other objects & this can lead to innovation! Moss sponging, doll play, leaf clipping to ask for carrying. If copied and retained, rare kid innovations can contribute to cultural complexity 🧪🔬🐵
My fav article I've ever worked on: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
My fav article I've ever worked on: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
October 21, 2025 at 12:15 PM
Young chimps play weird with tools and other objects & this can lead to innovation! Moss sponging, doll play, leaf clipping to ask for carrying. If copied and retained, rare kid innovations can contribute to cultural complexity 🧪🔬🐵
My fav article I've ever worked on: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
My fav article I've ever worked on: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
CALL FOR PAPERS: UArctic Congress 2026 www.uarcticcongress.fo/programme/ca...
November 24, 2025 at 11:27 AM
CALL FOR PAPERS: UArctic Congress 2026 www.uarcticcongress.fo/programme/ca...
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
"My NHS colleagues & I weren’t willing to let the bodies pile high in their thousands. Boris no longer mentions them at all."
My piece on the responses to the UK Covid-UK Inquiry report that try to airbrush the dead away.
Sincere thanks, @theobserveruk.bsky.social.
observer.co.uk/news/nationa...
My piece on the responses to the UK Covid-UK Inquiry report that try to airbrush the dead away.
Sincere thanks, @theobserveruk.bsky.social.
observer.co.uk/news/nationa...
I’ll never forget the horror of the Covid wards | The Observer
observer.co.uk
November 23, 2025 at 9:18 AM
"My NHS colleagues & I weren’t willing to let the bodies pile high in their thousands. Boris no longer mentions them at all."
My piece on the responses to the UK Covid-UK Inquiry report that try to airbrush the dead away.
Sincere thanks, @theobserveruk.bsky.social.
observer.co.uk/news/nationa...
My piece on the responses to the UK Covid-UK Inquiry report that try to airbrush the dead away.
Sincere thanks, @theobserveruk.bsky.social.
observer.co.uk/news/nationa...
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
Really enjoyed chatting with @michaelhobbes.bsky.social for this episode! In addition to being a delight to talk to, Michael was _extremely_ committed to getting the facts right & engaged very earnestly with our feedback. A scientist's dream.
Episode 46: Sapiens
It's an ambitious goal to write the entire history of humanity in just 400 pages. It's even more ambitious to do it without reading any research.
It's an ambitious goal to write the entire history of humanity in just 400 pages. It's even more ambitious to do it without reading any research.
Sapiens
Podcast Episode · If Books Could Kill · 11/20/2025 · 1h 38m
podcasts.apple.com
November 20, 2025 at 5:11 PM
Really enjoyed chatting with @michaelhobbes.bsky.social for this episode! In addition to being a delight to talk to, Michael was _extremely_ committed to getting the facts right & engaged very earnestly with our feedback. A scientist's dream.
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
At the Budget, the Green Party's message is clear: Cut Bills. Tax Billionaires.
November 19, 2025 at 8:20 AM
At the Budget, the Green Party's message is clear: Cut Bills. Tax Billionaires.
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
Postdoc position in individual-level incentives, social
learning, and payoff-biased imitation shape group-level accuracy in complex prediction and decision-making tasks in Konstanz
files.newsletter2go.com/l3slzozn/s_i...
learning, and payoff-biased imitation shape group-level accuracy in complex prediction and decision-making tasks in Konstanz
files.newsletter2go.com/l3slzozn/s_i...
files.newsletter2go.com
November 17, 2025 at 9:27 AM
Postdoc position in individual-level incentives, social
learning, and payoff-biased imitation shape group-level accuracy in complex prediction and decision-making tasks in Konstanz
files.newsletter2go.com/l3slzozn/s_i...
learning, and payoff-biased imitation shape group-level accuracy in complex prediction and decision-making tasks in Konstanz
files.newsletter2go.com/l3slzozn/s_i...
Reposted by Sheina Lew-Levy
This looks super interesting. I get frustrated by both the weird idealisation of foragers as perfect societies and the opposite simplification. Great to see a prompt for a different way of thinking.
📣 New BBS preprint out now! 📣
"Models casting egalitarian societies as crucibles of equality perpetuate the factually uninformed notion that foragers are somehow more noble. Critiques portray egalitarianism as romantic fantasy. Neither characterization is wholly justified."
doi.org/10.1017/S014...
"Models casting egalitarian societies as crucibles of equality perpetuate the factually uninformed notion that foragers are somehow more noble. Critiques portray egalitarianism as romantic fantasy. Neither characterization is wholly justified."
doi.org/10.1017/S014...
Egalitarianism is not Equality: Moving from outcome to process in the study of human political organisation | Behavioral and Brain Sciences | Cambridge Core
Egalitarianism is not Equality: Moving from outcome to process in the study of human political organisation
doi.org
November 18, 2025 at 9:09 AM
This looks super interesting. I get frustrated by both the weird idealisation of foragers as perfect societies and the opposite simplification. Great to see a prompt for a different way of thinking.