Jake Embrey
@jakeembrey.bsky.social
Postdoc at Chicago Booth.
Researching cognitive costs and cognitive effort aversion.
www.jakeembrey.com
Researching cognitive costs and cognitive effort aversion.
www.jakeembrey.com
I’m still holding out hope that, one day, critics of Universal Grammar (and the minimalist program more broadly) actually bother to read the literature instead of blindly citing Everett ‘05 and moving on.
November 7, 2025 at 9:17 PM
I’m still holding out hope that, one day, critics of Universal Grammar (and the minimalist program more broadly) actually bother to read the literature instead of blindly citing Everett ‘05 and moving on.
Exactly. Incentives matter and if we properly incentivised high level public service jobs we would have better minds vying for these positions, instead of the best graduates routinely flocking towards finance. Yeah, intrinsic value matters in a job, but less so if you're being paid 1/4 the salary
people hate hearing this but it's 100% true, creating a huge pay gap between political leaders, their staffs, and other elites is a recipe for corruption. of course the flip side of that is taxes on the rich should be jacked way the hell up
The Mayor of New York only makes $260k. I bet there are police that make more than that in NY with overtime.
We need to pay elected leaders more money and stop pretending it's some sort of calling. They're managing hundreds of billions of dollars in investments and millions of people's lives.
We need to pay elected leaders more money and stop pretending it's some sort of calling. They're managing hundreds of billions of dollars in investments and millions of people's lives.
November 7, 2025 at 4:59 PM
Exactly. Incentives matter and if we properly incentivised high level public service jobs we would have better minds vying for these positions, instead of the best graduates routinely flocking towards finance. Yeah, intrinsic value matters in a job, but less so if you're being paid 1/4 the salary
Reposted by Jake Embrey
The Mayor of New York only makes $260k. I bet there are police that make more than that in NY with overtime.
We need to pay elected leaders more money and stop pretending it's some sort of calling. They're managing hundreds of billions of dollars in investments and millions of people's lives.
We need to pay elected leaders more money and stop pretending it's some sort of calling. They're managing hundreds of billions of dollars in investments and millions of people's lives.
November 6, 2025 at 4:39 PM
The Mayor of New York only makes $260k. I bet there are police that make more than that in NY with overtime.
We need to pay elected leaders more money and stop pretending it's some sort of calling. They're managing hundreds of billions of dollars in investments and millions of people's lives.
We need to pay elected leaders more money and stop pretending it's some sort of calling. They're managing hundreds of billions of dollars in investments and millions of people's lives.
I think some people have overcorrected in their scepticism towards psychology. There is plenty of dodgy stuff out there, but I too often see people willing to burn down entire fields after reading a tweet about another non-replication. Seems obvious cognitive dissonance is a real phenom.
There’s growing evidence that something was going seriously wrong in the classic early work on cognitive dissonance
Latest revelation: The story in When Prophecy Fails seems to have been fabricated in the most egregious way
But this is not the only one…
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1...
Latest revelation: The story in When Prophecy Fails seems to have been fabricated in the most egregious way
But this is not the only one…
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1...
Debunking “When Prophecy Fails”
In 1954, Dorothy Martin predicted an apocalyptic flood and promised her followers rescue by flying saucers. When neither arrived, she recanted, her group dissolved, and efforts to proselytize ceased....
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
November 6, 2025 at 4:28 PM
I think some people have overcorrected in their scepticism towards psychology. There is plenty of dodgy stuff out there, but I too often see people willing to burn down entire fields after reading a tweet about another non-replication. Seems obvious cognitive dissonance is a real phenom.
Reposted by Jake Embrey
People are lazy--except when they're watching other people work hard.
My student Emily Zohar just published her first first-authored paper, and it reveals something surprising about effort and social norms. /1
osf.io/preprints/ps...
My student Emily Zohar just published her first first-authored paper, and it reveals something surprising about effort and social norms. /1
osf.io/preprints/ps...
OSF
osf.io
November 5, 2025 at 12:54 AM
People are lazy--except when they're watching other people work hard.
My student Emily Zohar just published her first first-authored paper, and it reveals something surprising about effort and social norms. /1
osf.io/preprints/ps...
My student Emily Zohar just published her first first-authored paper, and it reveals something surprising about effort and social norms. /1
osf.io/preprints/ps...
Reposted by Jake Embrey
Private Eye nailing it.
October 29, 2025 at 12:52 PM
Private Eye nailing it.
A reply to our letter (@minzlicht.bsky.social and I) questioning the need for metabolic costs to explain control induced cognitive fatigue. I worry we're talking past each other here. We're not denying that cognitive fatigue has a metabolic basis (I'm not a dualist) 1/N
No need to oppose metabolic and motivational theories
After a long and intense day at work, you find yourself so exhausted that you refuse
to drive and join your friends at their dinner party; instead, you indulge in fast
food and easy entertainment at h...
www.cell.com
October 19, 2025 at 10:06 PM
A reply to our letter (@minzlicht.bsky.social and I) questioning the need for metabolic costs to explain control induced cognitive fatigue. I worry we're talking past each other here. We're not denying that cognitive fatigue has a metabolic basis (I'm not a dualist) 1/N
Reposted by Jake Embrey
Pritzker winning a million dollars at the blackjack tables is so pimp. That man has my vote for life.
October 17, 2025 at 1:32 AM
Pritzker winning a million dollars at the blackjack tables is so pimp. That man has my vote for life.
Out of all the things Americans do that shock me, nothing compares to seeing people wear marathon medals more than 24 hours after the race. You would be (rightfully) excoriated for that back home.
October 13, 2025 at 10:15 PM
Out of all the things Americans do that shock me, nothing compares to seeing people wear marathon medals more than 24 hours after the race. You would be (rightfully) excoriated for that back home.
Reposted by Jake Embrey
#preprint 📢
Effort usually boosts performance - but not always. We discuss 4 domain-general factors that modulate effort-performance (de)coupling: osf.io/preprints/ps...
TL;DR: A framework on when and why effort-performance links appear to change across domains, timescales & measures.
🧵
Effort usually boosts performance - but not always. We discuss 4 domain-general factors that modulate effort-performance (de)coupling: osf.io/preprints/ps...
TL;DR: A framework on when and why effort-performance links appear to change across domains, timescales & measures.
🧵
OSF
osf.io
October 13, 2025 at 1:26 PM
#preprint 📢
Effort usually boosts performance - but not always. We discuss 4 domain-general factors that modulate effort-performance (de)coupling: osf.io/preprints/ps...
TL;DR: A framework on when and why effort-performance links appear to change across domains, timescales & measures.
🧵
Effort usually boosts performance - but not always. We discuss 4 domain-general factors that modulate effort-performance (de)coupling: osf.io/preprints/ps...
TL;DR: A framework on when and why effort-performance links appear to change across domains, timescales & measures.
🧵
Reposted by Jake Embrey
Forthcoming in JBEF: “Undefined benefit: Projections and anchors as guides to retirement decumulation” by B. R. Newell, H. Bateman, L. Dobrescu, J. Embrey, R. Nian, and S. Thorp. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Undefined benefit: Projections and anchors as guides to retirement decumulation
Most defined contribution retirement income systems assume that retiring participants have the know-how and confidence to turn their lump sum savings …
www.sciencedirect.com
October 6, 2025 at 10:13 PM
Forthcoming in JBEF: “Undefined benefit: Projections and anchors as guides to retirement decumulation” by B. R. Newell, H. Bateman, L. Dobrescu, J. Embrey, R. Nian, and S. Thorp. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Those that save adequate amounts for retirement often spend much less than they can afford once they actually retire. We investigate the effects different anchors and projections have on people's retirement spending behaviour in this new paper.
Undefined benefit: Projections and anchors as guides to retirement decumulation
Most defined contribution retirement income systems assume that retiring participants have the know-how and confidence to turn their lump sum savings …
www.sciencedirect.com
October 7, 2025 at 8:36 PM
Those that save adequate amounts for retirement often spend much less than they can afford once they actually retire. We investigate the effects different anchors and projections have on people's retirement spending behaviour in this new paper.
This kid is bound for Booth
jumpscare on instagram @dandekadt.bsky.social
October 7, 2025 at 11:51 AM
This kid is bound for Booth
Reposted by Jake Embrey
300 paywall jumps for Robin's MainFT lunch with Jean-Philippe Bouchaud. Get one before someone else does.
on.ft.com/3K7Or9T
on.ft.com/3K7Or9T
Investor Jean-Philippe Bouchaud: ‘The whole bull run is because of an influx of money’
[FREE TO READ] The physicist and hedge fund manager on why the efficient markets theory is ‘all wrong’, economists with ‘mathematics envy’ — and what Camus can teach us about compromise
on.ft.com
September 19, 2025 at 1:36 PM
300 paywall jumps for Robin's MainFT lunch with Jean-Philippe Bouchaud. Get one before someone else does.
on.ft.com/3K7Or9T
on.ft.com/3K7Or9T
Reposted by Jake Embrey
i think it's probably right that a lot of the bluster from the state about cracking down on liberals and free expression belies a rather limited capacity to actually do so at scale, but 1. a lot of the chilling of free expression can be achieved just by the threat, making an example out of a
September 16, 2025 at 3:35 PM
i think it's probably right that a lot of the bluster from the state about cracking down on liberals and free expression belies a rather limited capacity to actually do so at scale, but 1. a lot of the chilling of free expression can be achieved just by the threat, making an example out of a
>"Free speech is being stifled by 'The Left' and we must ensure there is adequate debate on campus"
> "We must simultaneously pursue the firing of professors, managers, and anyone else who dares exercise the freedoms provided them by the first amendment"
www.ft.com/content/b1c5...
> "We must simultaneously pursue the firing of professors, managers, and anyone else who dares exercise the freedoms provided them by the first amendment"
www.ft.com/content/b1c5...
US campuses seek a safe space for debate after Charlie Kirk’s murder
The assassination comes as universities are under pressure to expose students to a more diverse range of views
www.ft.com
September 15, 2025 at 8:47 PM
>"Free speech is being stifled by 'The Left' and we must ensure there is adequate debate on campus"
> "We must simultaneously pursue the firing of professors, managers, and anyone else who dares exercise the freedoms provided them by the first amendment"
www.ft.com/content/b1c5...
> "We must simultaneously pursue the firing of professors, managers, and anyone else who dares exercise the freedoms provided them by the first amendment"
www.ft.com/content/b1c5...
New paper! Different to my usual schtick concerning cognitive costs. We analysed differences in learning between depressed and healthy students and whether Pavlovian biases differed between them. We found mixed evidence... have a read!
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
September 11, 2025 at 2:53 PM
New paper! Different to my usual schtick concerning cognitive costs. We analysed differences in learning between depressed and healthy students and whether Pavlovian biases differed between them. We found mixed evidence... have a read!
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Reposted by Jake Embrey
The TiCS issue featuring our paper on "A timeline of cognitive costs in decision-making" is now available online 😄
Honored to have been a part of this awesome interdisciplinary mega-collab led by Christin Schulze (UNSW Sydney)
www.cell.com/trends/cogni...
Honored to have been a part of this awesome interdisciplinary mega-collab led by Christin Schulze (UNSW Sydney)
www.cell.com/trends/cogni...
A timeline of cognitive costs in decision-making
Recent research from economics, psychology, cognitive science, computer science, and
marketing is increasingly interested in the idea that people face cognitive costs
when making decisions. Reviewing ...
www.cell.com
September 3, 2025 at 12:15 AM
The TiCS issue featuring our paper on "A timeline of cognitive costs in decision-making" is now available online 😄
Honored to have been a part of this awesome interdisciplinary mega-collab led by Christin Schulze (UNSW Sydney)
www.cell.com/trends/cogni...
Honored to have been a part of this awesome interdisciplinary mega-collab led by Christin Schulze (UNSW Sydney)
www.cell.com/trends/cogni...
Reposted by Jake Embrey
Online Now: Are metabolic costs needed to explain cognitive fatigue?
Are metabolic costs needed to explain cognitive fatigue?
When we exercise, our muscles ache, fuel reserves (glucose, ATP) deplete, and the hours that follow are well described by the word ‘fatigue’. Prolonged thinking, too, comes with costs; while we might not gasp for breath during an exam, everyone is familiar with the feeling of exhaustion after a sustained bout of cognitive effort. In their review, Pessiglione et al. [1] formalize this intuition with an integrative model that combines motivational and metabolic mechanisms. Their MetaMotiF framework offers a compelling account of why the exertion of cognitive control becomes increasingly difficult over time.
dlvr.it
August 27, 2025 at 7:03 PM
Online Now: Are metabolic costs needed to explain cognitive fatigue?
Reposted by Jake Embrey
After scrolling Twitter, it will take you a while to get back into “work mode”. Why is this the case? Our new work (out now in Psych Review), led by Ivan Grahek and Xiamin Leng, explores the costs of adjusting cognitive control to meet different goals:
psycnet.apa.org/record/2026-...
🧵 A thread:
psycnet.apa.org/record/2026-...
🧵 A thread:
APA PsycNet
psycnet.apa.org
August 27, 2025 at 4:37 PM
After scrolling Twitter, it will take you a while to get back into “work mode”. Why is this the case? Our new work (out now in Psych Review), led by Ivan Grahek and Xiamin Leng, explores the costs of adjusting cognitive control to meet different goals:
psycnet.apa.org/record/2026-...
🧵 A thread:
psycnet.apa.org/record/2026-...
🧵 A thread:
Out now, in case you prefer to read things (as I do) in journal format
www.cell.com/trends/cogni...
www.cell.com/trends/cogni...
August 27, 2025 at 3:33 PM
Out now, in case you prefer to read things (as I do) in journal format
www.cell.com/trends/cogni...
www.cell.com/trends/cogni...
Reposted by Jake Embrey
Guy In Philosophy Class Needs To Shut The Fuck Up https://theonion.com/guy-in-philosophy-class-needs-to-shut-the-fuck-up-1819568055/
August 25, 2025 at 7:00 PM
Guy In Philosophy Class Needs To Shut The Fuck Up https://theonion.com/guy-in-philosophy-class-needs-to-shut-the-fuck-up-1819568055/
Reposted by Jake Embrey
It's true: This is the first project from our lab that has a "Merch" page!
Get yours @ www.perceptionresearch.org/anagrams/mer...
Get yours @ www.perceptionresearch.org/anagrams/mer...
August 19, 2025 at 7:28 PM
It's true: This is the first project from our lab that has a "Merch" page!
Get yours @ www.perceptionresearch.org/anagrams/mer...
Get yours @ www.perceptionresearch.org/anagrams/mer...
Reposted by Jake Embrey
I want everyone to close their eyes and imagine a world where AI is wildly successful in the next 5 years. Billions use it every day, governments build data centers as fast as they can, millions of lives are saved by its disease cures, and Sam Altman wins a Nobel. Imagine what OpenAI stock would do.
August 19, 2025 at 10:37 PM
I want everyone to close their eyes and imagine a world where AI is wildly successful in the next 5 years. Billions use it every day, governments build data centers as fast as they can, millions of lives are saved by its disease cures, and Sam Altman wins a Nobel. Imagine what OpenAI stock would do.
Reposted by Jake Embrey
"the computational metaphor" in cognitive science is not a metaphor. computational processes are attributed to the mind/brain in the most dead-literal sense. one can disagree with it but (1) it's not as simple as discarding a metaphor and (2) boy is there a lot of data that has to be explained!
August 10, 2025 at 7:41 PM
"the computational metaphor" in cognitive science is not a metaphor. computational processes are attributed to the mind/brain in the most dead-literal sense. one can disagree with it but (1) it's not as simple as discarding a metaphor and (2) boy is there a lot of data that has to be explained!