Hester Duffy
@wordlessreader.bsky.social
She/Her
Associate Professor at Warwick. Interested in developmental psycholinguistics, neuroscience, research methods, bee-keeping, Gaeilge, vintage clothing, dressmaking. Pinko lefty woke type but not that fond of tofu. Can't see DMs.
Associate Professor at Warwick. Interested in developmental psycholinguistics, neuroscience, research methods, bee-keeping, Gaeilge, vintage clothing, dressmaking. Pinko lefty woke type but not that fond of tofu. Can't see DMs.
Pinned
Get to know your mutuals! List 10 random things you enjoy.
Beekeeping
Gaeilge
Dressing like Miss Marple
Sad boys with guitars
Baking without a recipe
A nice notebook
Neolithic sites
Angry girl singers
Cosy murder mystery
Malbec
Beekeeping
Gaeilge
Dressing like Miss Marple
Sad boys with guitars
Baking without a recipe
A nice notebook
Neolithic sites
Angry girl singers
Cosy murder mystery
Malbec
Get to know your mutuals! list 10 random things you like #promosky
knitting
Peter Cushing
lomo digital and analogue photography
hot water bottles
nineteenth century sensation fiction
Boulet Brothers
Kneecap
film noir
skulls
robins
knitting
Peter Cushing
lomo digital and analogue photography
hot water bottles
nineteenth century sensation fiction
Boulet Brothers
Kneecap
film noir
skulls
robins
Get to know your mutuals! list 10 random things you like #promosky
Milk
Brokenwood Mysteries
Nina Simone
Garlic
Nanny Ogg
Vivienne Westwood
Beardy Silver Fox Pierce Brosnan
AIP Corman/Price/Poe movies
Zubat
Dogs with inside out ears
Milk
Brokenwood Mysteries
Nina Simone
Garlic
Nanny Ogg
Vivienne Westwood
Beardy Silver Fox Pierce Brosnan
AIP Corman/Price/Poe movies
Zubat
Dogs with inside out ears
November 11, 2025 at 3:39 PM
Get to know your mutuals! List 10 random things you enjoy.
Beekeeping
Gaeilge
Dressing like Miss Marple
Sad boys with guitars
Baking without a recipe
A nice notebook
Neolithic sites
Angry girl singers
Cosy murder mystery
Malbec
Beekeeping
Gaeilge
Dressing like Miss Marple
Sad boys with guitars
Baking without a recipe
A nice notebook
Neolithic sites
Angry girl singers
Cosy murder mystery
Malbec
This applies equally well in the UK as in the US; gotta laugh so as not to cry...
I've noticed the opposing team's fans only cheer when the opponents score on us. To win those fans over, I recommend we score on ourselves repeatedly; that will surely make them so happy they'll start supporting us. And I'm sure all our fans will keep cheering for us—who else is there to cheer for?
November 11, 2025 at 8:58 AM
This applies equally well in the UK as in the US; gotta laugh so as not to cry...
Watching #GameOfWool and I'm honestly confused; we're told these are some of UK's most talented knitters but half of seem to be pretty much beginners. Also, knitting and crochet are two separate things.
November 9, 2025 at 8:40 PM
Watching #GameOfWool and I'm honestly confused; we're told these are some of UK's most talented knitters but half of seem to be pretty much beginners. Also, knitting and crochet are two separate things.
BlueSkyers, please tell me your most niche and specialist joke. Mine, which I dreamt during my PhD;
Why are rhotic accents cool?
They just rrrr.
Why are rhotic accents cool?
They just rrrr.
November 4, 2025 at 6:49 PM
BlueSkyers, please tell me your most niche and specialist joke. Mine, which I dreamt during my PhD;
Why are rhotic accents cool?
They just rrrr.
Why are rhotic accents cool?
They just rrrr.
Literally no-one asked for this. (I have now disabled the AI settings, but it should never have been opt out!)
October 31, 2025 at 11:03 PM
Literally no-one asked for this. (I have now disabled the AI settings, but it should never have been opt out!)
I'm considering making báirín breac for the first time this weekend, but I have a dilemma; the internet seems divided on whether it should include yeast or just baking soda/powder. #speirgorm, cad a gceapann sibh?
October 31, 2025 at 4:33 PM
I'm considering making báirín breac for the first time this weekend, but I have a dilemma; the internet seems divided on whether it should include yeast or just baking soda/powder. #speirgorm, cad a gceapann sibh?
It's Halloween, and my roses are still in bloom. It's lovely but it also feels wrong; a beautiful portent of doom.
October 31, 2025 at 9:18 AM
It's Halloween, and my roses are still in bloom. It's lovely but it also feels wrong; a beautiful portent of doom.
Excellent thread here, and there are some bonus recipes in amongst the passionate condemnations!
a second day of the same discourse? no. no thank you.
instead I need you to name your least favorite pasta shape
instead I need you to name your least favorite pasta shape
October 22, 2025 at 3:11 PM
Excellent thread here, and there are some bonus recipes in amongst the passionate condemnations!
Good thread!
I was at my old high school today, for the first time in over twenty years, to talk to the teachers about how their curriculum can better support students. AI came up, and so many teachers were saying "Well it's a tool, they have to know how to use it, it's the future so we have to accept it!"
October 16, 2025 at 7:11 AM
Good thread!
It'll be interesting to see if this research holds up. At a minimum, it would be nice to have a tiny bit of balance against all the guilt-tripping aimed at mothers over every choice they ever make!
Male mice that exercise can pass their newly gained fitness on to male offspring.
If the same holds true in humans, researchers say, fathers could help improve the health of any future children by staying in shape themselves. https://scim.ag/47igpZm
If the same holds true in humans, researchers say, fathers could help improve the health of any future children by staying in shape themselves. https://scim.ag/47igpZm
Well-exercised male mice appear to pass fitness to their male offspring
Surprising epigenetic effect relies on snippets of RNA packaged within sperm
scim.ag
October 13, 2025 at 2:18 PM
It'll be interesting to see if this research holds up. At a minimum, it would be nice to have a tiny bit of balance against all the guilt-tripping aimed at mothers over every choice they ever make!
Superb.
September 11, 2025 at 6:53 AM
Superb.
This seems like a terrible idea. At 18, kids are mostly just about ready to start living somewhat independently, and university is a great way to give them that opportunity but with guardrails. This kid is not ready for that.
Staffordshire boy, 14, set for university after A-level success
Staffordshire boy, 14, set for university after A-level success
Elias, who got four A*s and an A in his exams, will study at Imperial College London this year.
www.bbc.com
September 6, 2025 at 8:31 AM
This seems like a terrible idea. At 18, kids are mostly just about ready to start living somewhat independently, and university is a great way to give them that opportunity but with guardrails. This kid is not ready for that.
Wow! My first thought was, this is incredible, how cool. My second was "OK, but does it come in child sizes please?"
Trinity College unveils 'gamechanger' brain scanner. Watch the full interview with Professor Redmond O'Connell with RTE here:
www.rte.ie/news/ireland...
@redmondoconnell.bsky.social
www.rte.ie/news/ireland...
@redmondoconnell.bsky.social
September 4, 2025 at 10:29 AM
Wow! My first thought was, this is incredible, how cool. My second was "OK, but does it come in child sizes please?"
Suddenly and for no particular reason I'm interested in what happens to a political party or movement when it loses its leader vs what happens to a cult when it loses its leader.
August 30, 2025 at 8:42 AM
Suddenly and for no particular reason I'm interested in what happens to a political party or movement when it loses its leader vs what happens to a cult when it loses its leader.
What cruel mockery is this? I feel like Sisyphus and Tantalus in one.
August 29, 2025 at 1:05 PM
What cruel mockery is this? I feel like Sisyphus and Tantalus in one.
Reposted by Hester Duffy
While defending the luddite argument in Discord, I stumbled into this IMO succinct explanation for opposing generative AI:
At every step in the process, it impoverishes us.
At every step in the process, it impoverishes us.
August 28, 2025 at 7:05 PM
While defending the luddite argument in Discord, I stumbled into this IMO succinct explanation for opposing generative AI:
At every step in the process, it impoverishes us.
At every step in the process, it impoverishes us.
The reports of the death of a teenager after ChatGPT actively encouraged him to end his life, are truly horrific. ChatGPT should be frozen while it is investigated, but I am now wondering, how long until the first criminal trial with AI as the defendant? Not the company but the AI itself?
August 27, 2025 at 8:13 AM
The reports of the death of a teenager after ChatGPT actively encouraged him to end his life, are truly horrific. ChatGPT should be frozen while it is investigated, but I am now wondering, how long until the first criminal trial with AI as the defendant? Not the company but the AI itself?
This is a great, really engaging article. I'll be sharing this with my students!
This week I wrote about how my research on stress, cortisol, and clutter got misinterpreted by the media and ended up in the AI slop factory. darbysaxbe.substack.com/p/cogsplaine...
I met my AI doppelganger and it got weird
How my clutter cortisol study took on a life of its own
darbysaxbe.substack.com
August 26, 2025 at 7:38 PM
This is a great, really engaging article. I'll be sharing this with my students!
Yep; technology can help to do some tasks, but GenAI threatens to replace _thinking_ (with something that only looks like thinking).
Machine learning can do brilliant things, for example in medical screening, but GenAI... well, if the bubble is about to burst, I shall be relieved.
Machine learning can do brilliant things, for example in medical screening, but GenAI... well, if the bubble is about to burst, I shall be relieved.
Yes, absolutely. I'm also wary of generative "AI" because my job is to help students learn the knowledge and skills that genAI shortcuts and (badly) pretends to do for them.
However, I'm very much in favour of innovative and ethical use of machine learning and expert systems in scientific research.
However, I'm very much in favour of innovative and ethical use of machine learning and expert systems in scientific research.
“You’re so anti “AI””
I’m anti a bunch of filthy rich tech bros stealing my work and all my artist friends work to make even more money than they already have. My question is why are you so happy for this to be happening when you will never be part of their rich techy club?
I’m anti a bunch of filthy rich tech bros stealing my work and all my artist friends work to make even more money than they already have. My question is why are you so happy for this to be happening when you will never be part of their rich techy club?
August 21, 2025 at 8:41 AM
Yep; technology can help to do some tasks, but GenAI threatens to replace _thinking_ (with something that only looks like thinking).
Machine learning can do brilliant things, for example in medical screening, but GenAI... well, if the bubble is about to burst, I shall be relieved.
Machine learning can do brilliant things, for example in medical screening, but GenAI... well, if the bubble is about to burst, I shall be relieved.
This is my very first harvest! Just one frame, as I only got my own bees fairly recently, but I built the frame and my bees drew it out and filled it, and it is delicious; citrussy and floral. I am delighted!
August 6, 2025 at 12:10 PM
This is my very first harvest! Just one frame, as I only got my own bees fairly recently, but I built the frame and my bees drew it out and filled it, and it is delicious; citrussy and floral. I am delighted!
A good article here, worth a read!
Why AI Shouldn't Be the Future of Academia | Psychology Today www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/how-...
Why AI Shouldn't Be the Future of Academia | Psychology Today www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/how-...
Why AI Shouldn't Be the Future of Academia
Personal Perspective: Artificial intelligence in academia appears to be inevitable—but it isn't, and it's worth deep consideration of what its use means for research, teaching, and scholarship.
www.psychologytoday.com
July 22, 2025 at 6:25 PM
A good article here, worth a read!
Why AI Shouldn't Be the Future of Academia | Psychology Today www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/how-...
Why AI Shouldn't Be the Future of Academia | Psychology Today www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/how-...
Gonna need to read this.
The first volume to bring together state-of-the-art studies on language development in Scottish Gaelic, Irish and Welsh.
The Acquisition of Celtic Languages eds. Vicky Chondrogianni, Ciara O'Toole, &Enlli Thomas, Out Now
#Linguistics #CelticLanguages #LangSky
cup.org/4nK7RAS
The Acquisition of Celtic Languages eds. Vicky Chondrogianni, Ciara O'Toole, &Enlli Thomas, Out Now
#Linguistics #CelticLanguages #LangSky
cup.org/4nK7RAS
July 20, 2025 at 11:52 AM
Gonna need to read this.
I love this idea! I shall have a think about how it might be scaled up for larger undergraduate classes; our cohorts are over 200, and even seminar groups can be around 40-50 students, which might make it tricky but it's a great way to engage students.
Want to boost student learning at the end of a unit, week, or semester? Try the engaging and effective Leave One Add One strategy for retrieval practice.
Leave One Add One: An engaging class activity for retrieval practice
One of my favorite activities for retrieval practice: Leave One, Add One. Use this engaging 30-minute activity in your classroom and boost students’ long-term learning.
www.retrievalpractice.org
July 14, 2025 at 11:11 PM
I love this idea! I shall have a think about how it might be scaled up for larger undergraduate classes; our cohorts are over 200, and even seminar groups can be around 40-50 students, which might make it tricky but it's a great way to engage students.
Reposted by Hester Duffy
anybody else’s gyre feel wider lately
July 14, 2025 at 5:28 AM
anybody else’s gyre feel wider lately
Taim ar colaiste na samhradh i Glencolmcille, ar feadh coicise. Ait sasta!
July 13, 2025 at 6:34 PM
Taim ar colaiste na samhradh i Glencolmcille, ar feadh coicise. Ait sasta!