Joel Pick
@joelpick.bsky.social
Evolutionary ecologist and open science advocate. Interested in social evolution, population dynamics, statistics, and open science. Parent x2. Incompetent but enthusiastic naturalist
Reposted by Joel Pick
Come and join us here in Cambridge! Applications open for a new faculty position, for a researcher in computational and/or theoretical biology, based jointly in Genetics and Mathematics. Happy to answer questions about research, teaching and working here.
www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/faculty...
www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/faculty...
Faculty Position in Computational Biology
Applications are invited for an Assistant/ Associate Professorship in Computational Biology to commence on 1 April 2026 or shortly thereafter. This is a joint post between the Department of Applied
www.cam.ac.uk
November 11, 2025 at 9:05 PM
Come and join us here in Cambridge! Applications open for a new faculty position, for a researcher in computational and/or theoretical biology, based jointly in Genetics and Mathematics. Happy to answer questions about research, teaching and working here.
www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/faculty...
www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/faculty...
Reposted by Joel Pick
What expert editors do is they assess information and critically discard* bad information. They can get it wrong, sure. But they're a hell of a lot better than the average take on a scientific study. Their value proposition is clear, and we need journals.
They should just be non-profit.
7.5/n
They should just be non-profit.
7.5/n
November 11, 2025 at 11:52 AM
What expert editors do is they assess information and critically discard* bad information. They can get it wrong, sure. But they're a hell of a lot better than the average take on a scientific study. Their value proposition is clear, and we need journals.
They should just be non-profit.
7.5/n
They should just be non-profit.
7.5/n
Reposted by Joel Pick
The one thing journals can do to add to scientific conversation is to provide expert assessment. I'm really not sure when AI will be able to meaninfully contribute to that conversation. It sure ain't now, and intrinsic limits of how we train AI, and what we train it on, make me skeptical.
7.4/n
7.4/n
November 11, 2025 at 11:52 AM
The one thing journals can do to add to scientific conversation is to provide expert assessment. I'm really not sure when AI will be able to meaninfully contribute to that conversation. It sure ain't now, and intrinsic limits of how we train AI, and what we train it on, make me skeptical.
7.4/n
7.4/n
Reposted by Joel Pick
But let's make sure those journals are owned by and serve the interests of the scientific community and funding bodies paying for the research.
One thing AI can do is copyediting. If @openrxiv.bsky.social added a glossy PDF generator, journals are left with one job: quality control.
7.3/n
One thing AI can do is copyediting. If @openrxiv.bsky.social added a glossy PDF generator, journals are left with one job: quality control.
7.3/n
November 11, 2025 at 11:52 AM
But let's make sure those journals are owned by and serve the interests of the scientific community and funding bodies paying for the research.
One thing AI can do is copyediting. If @openrxiv.bsky.social added a glossy PDF generator, journals are left with one job: quality control.
7.3/n
One thing AI can do is copyediting. If @openrxiv.bsky.social added a glossy PDF generator, journals are left with one job: quality control.
7.3/n
Reposted by Joel Pick
We authors all have nuanced views on this topic.
A tangent: journals DO add value to the system. But there is absolutely no reason that for-profit journals should exist. You can already pay EiCs $500k salaries at non-profits. Why would we allow journals to skim even more off the top?
7.1/n
A tangent: journals DO add value to the system. But there is absolutely no reason that for-profit journals should exist. You can already pay EiCs $500k salaries at non-profits. Why would we allow journals to skim even more off the top?
7.1/n
November 11, 2025 at 11:52 AM
We authors all have nuanced views on this topic.
A tangent: journals DO add value to the system. But there is absolutely no reason that for-profit journals should exist. You can already pay EiCs $500k salaries at non-profits. Why would we allow journals to skim even more off the top?
7.1/n
A tangent: journals DO add value to the system. But there is absolutely no reason that for-profit journals should exist. You can already pay EiCs $500k salaries at non-profits. Why would we allow journals to skim even more off the top?
7.1/n
Reposted by Joel Pick
Because everything is shit, I give you ... Puggles. #Platypus #AustralianWildlife
November 9, 2025 at 6:42 AM
Because everything is shit, I give you ... Puggles. #Platypus #AustralianWildlife
Reposted by Joel Pick
I am recruting a #postdoc for a project investigating the evolution of avian heat tolerance in @erc.europa.eu project #HotLife. Fieldwork over broad latitudinal gradients, common-garden experiments, and more. Read more and apply👇
shorturl.at/WA1Qa
Would appreciate a re-post!
@evoldir.bsky.social
shorturl.at/WA1Qa
Would appreciate a re-post!
@evoldir.bsky.social
November 5, 2025 at 8:38 AM
I am recruting a #postdoc for a project investigating the evolution of avian heat tolerance in @erc.europa.eu project #HotLife. Fieldwork over broad latitudinal gradients, common-garden experiments, and more. Read more and apply👇
shorturl.at/WA1Qa
Would appreciate a re-post!
@evoldir.bsky.social
shorturl.at/WA1Qa
Would appreciate a re-post!
@evoldir.bsky.social
Reposted by Joel Pick
I'd like to re-up this paper we published last year bec I believe it makes a fundamental contribution to theoretical metascience but it is woefully underappreciated. We address a key challenge in estimating the reproducibility of a result: The distance of a replication study from the original. 1/n
November 5, 2025 at 7:07 PM
I'd like to re-up this paper we published last year bec I believe it makes a fundamental contribution to theoretical metascience but it is woefully underappreciated. We address a key challenge in estimating the reproducibility of a result: The distance of a replication study from the original. 1/n
Reposted by Joel Pick
🚨 Come join the fantastic long-tailed tit team 🚨
🐦We are recruiting a field technician to collect behavioural data on a long-term studied population of wild long-tailed tits (passerine birds).
🪶20 months contract in Sheffield, UK.
🌲Deadline: 23/11/2025.
jobsite.sheffield.ac.uk/job/Technici...
🐦We are recruiting a field technician to collect behavioural data on a long-term studied population of wild long-tailed tits (passerine birds).
🪶20 months contract in Sheffield, UK.
🌲Deadline: 23/11/2025.
jobsite.sheffield.ac.uk/job/Technici...
November 5, 2025 at 9:32 AM
🚨 Come join the fantastic long-tailed tit team 🚨
🐦We are recruiting a field technician to collect behavioural data on a long-term studied population of wild long-tailed tits (passerine birds).
🪶20 months contract in Sheffield, UK.
🌲Deadline: 23/11/2025.
jobsite.sheffield.ac.uk/job/Technici...
🐦We are recruiting a field technician to collect behavioural data on a long-term studied population of wild long-tailed tits (passerine birds).
🪶20 months contract in Sheffield, UK.
🌲Deadline: 23/11/2025.
jobsite.sheffield.ac.uk/job/Technici...
Reposted by Joel Pick
📣 Save the date for the 13th PCI webinar on December 1st, 2025, at 4 PM CET!! Simine Vazire (University of Melbourne, Australia) will present "Recognizing and responding to a replication crisis: Lessons from Psychology". For more details and registration, visit: buff.ly/wZNoD2v
PCI Webinar Series - Peer Community In
The PCI webinar series is a series of seminars on research practices, publication practices, evaluation, scientific integrity, meta-research, organised by Peer Community In
peercommunityin.org
November 5, 2025 at 10:49 AM
📣 Save the date for the 13th PCI webinar on December 1st, 2025, at 4 PM CET!! Simine Vazire (University of Melbourne, Australia) will present "Recognizing and responding to a replication crisis: Lessons from Psychology". For more details and registration, visit: buff.ly/wZNoD2v
Reposted by Joel Pick
My lab at Indiana University is searching for a *postdoc* and *technician* to contribute to our work studying the evolution of social behavior using fruit flies as a model system. Details below, feel free to email me with any questions! More info on our research: saltzlab.com
November 5, 2025 at 4:56 PM
My lab at Indiana University is searching for a *postdoc* and *technician* to contribute to our work studying the evolution of social behavior using fruit flies as a model system. Details below, feel free to email me with any questions! More info on our research: saltzlab.com
Reposted by Joel Pick
Note to folks getting into meta-analysis... when extracting data from studies extract it EXACTLY as reported by the authors. Don't do any calculations outside of analysis scripts. This means have a column for units, mean/median/SD/SE/IQR/lower range/upper range or whatever else you might need...
October 29, 2025 at 4:13 PM
Note to folks getting into meta-analysis... when extracting data from studies extract it EXACTLY as reported by the authors. Don't do any calculations outside of analysis scripts. This means have a column for units, mean/median/SD/SE/IQR/lower range/upper range or whatever else you might need...
Reposted by Joel Pick
1-11% success rates for arts, humanities, and social science grant applications in the UK. What a monumental waste of time and energy.
Given that people is asking me for the numbers, here the table provided by UKRI:
October 27, 2025 at 3:59 PM
1-11% success rates for arts, humanities, and social science grant applications in the UK. What a monumental waste of time and energy.
Interesting webinar this afternoon from @sortee.bsky.social!
Still time to register!!!
Still time to register!!!
Happy to announce the next edition of the @sortee.bsky.social Workshop & Webinar series on October 27 at 16:00UTC, ‘The Risks and Rewards of Large Language Models in (open) Scientific Research’ with @tanyadoesscience.bsky.social !! Sign up here:
events.humanitix.com/sortee-webin...
events.humanitix.com/sortee-webin...
SORTEE Webinar: The Risks and Rewards of Large Language Models in (Open) Scientific Research
SORTEE Workshop & Webinar Series
events.humanitix.com
October 27, 2025 at 2:06 PM
Interesting webinar this afternoon from @sortee.bsky.social!
Still time to register!!!
Still time to register!!!
Reposted by Joel Pick
Happy to announce the next edition of the @sortee.bsky.social Workshop & Webinar series on October 27 at 16:00UTC, ‘The Risks and Rewards of Large Language Models in (open) Scientific Research’ with @tanyadoesscience.bsky.social !! Sign up here:
events.humanitix.com/sortee-webin...
events.humanitix.com/sortee-webin...
SORTEE Webinar: The Risks and Rewards of Large Language Models in (Open) Scientific Research
SORTEE Workshop & Webinar Series
events.humanitix.com
October 17, 2025 at 1:21 AM
Happy to announce the next edition of the @sortee.bsky.social Workshop & Webinar series on October 27 at 16:00UTC, ‘The Risks and Rewards of Large Language Models in (open) Scientific Research’ with @tanyadoesscience.bsky.social !! Sign up here:
events.humanitix.com/sortee-webin...
events.humanitix.com/sortee-webin...
Reposted by Joel Pick
Simple maternal effect animal models may provide biased estimates of additive genetic and maternal variation:
doi.org/10.1093/jeb/...
@joelpick.bsky.social et al. 2025
doi.org/10.1093/jeb/...
@joelpick.bsky.social et al. 2025
October 24, 2025 at 2:38 PM
Simple maternal effect animal models may provide biased estimates of additive genetic and maternal variation:
doi.org/10.1093/jeb/...
@joelpick.bsky.social et al. 2025
doi.org/10.1093/jeb/...
@joelpick.bsky.social et al. 2025
Reposted by Joel Pick
I’m seeing some misinformation about pseudo-random number generator best practices going around the internets. Let’s talk about why the pseudo-random number generator seed you use shouldn’t actually have any impact on your results and, consequently, you can choose whatever seed you damn well please.
October 22, 2025 at 7:06 PM
I’m seeing some misinformation about pseudo-random number generator best practices going around the internets. Let’s talk about why the pseudo-random number generator seed you use shouldn’t actually have any impact on your results and, consequently, you can choose whatever seed you damn well please.
Reposted by Joel Pick
I’m drinking the gorgeous coffee and it occurred to me that my grinder is a decent metaphor for multiverse analyses and theory.
It has a bunch of letters and numbers, which we’ll pretend correspond to predictors we can include in a model. Coffee are the data. Hypothesis: the coffee is good.
It has a bunch of letters and numbers, which we’ll pretend correspond to predictors we can include in a model. Coffee are the data. Hypothesis: the coffee is good.
October 23, 2025 at 9:20 AM
I’m drinking the gorgeous coffee and it occurred to me that my grinder is a decent metaphor for multiverse analyses and theory.
It has a bunch of letters and numbers, which we’ll pretend correspond to predictors we can include in a model. Coffee are the data. Hypothesis: the coffee is good.
It has a bunch of letters and numbers, which we’ll pretend correspond to predictors we can include in a model. Coffee are the data. Hypothesis: the coffee is good.
Reposted by Joel Pick
When there is a random way to do something, there is a less random way that is better but requires more thought. In this case, regression models that make no sense don't belong in a multiverse analysis. An inferential regression without a causal justification is like an opinion without reasons.
October 23, 2025 at 4:34 PM
When there is a random way to do something, there is a less random way that is better but requires more thought. In this case, regression models that make no sense don't belong in a multiverse analysis. An inferential regression without a causal justification is like an opinion without reasons.
Reposted by Joel Pick
Exiting career-boosting opportunity for a a skilled and highly motivated postdoctoral researcher: We're hiring a Post-doctoral fellow in Evolutionary Biology!
Please apply no later than 31 October!
lu.varbi.com/en/what:job/...
Please apply no later than 31 October!
lu.varbi.com/en/what:job/...
October 22, 2025 at 8:29 AM
Exiting career-boosting opportunity for a a skilled and highly motivated postdoctoral researcher: We're hiring a Post-doctoral fellow in Evolutionary Biology!
Please apply no later than 31 October!
lu.varbi.com/en/what:job/...
Please apply no later than 31 October!
lu.varbi.com/en/what:job/...
Reposted by Joel Pick
Do you like quantitative genetics, stats, experiments, and long-term studies? Check out this post doc opportunity with the wonderful Anja Felmy!
Exiting career-boosting opportunity for a a skilled and highly motivated postdoctoral researcher: We're hiring a Post-doctoral fellow in Evolutionary Biology!
Please apply no later than 31 October!
lu.varbi.com/en/what:job/...
Please apply no later than 31 October!
lu.varbi.com/en/what:job/...
October 22, 2025 at 4:16 PM
Do you like quantitative genetics, stats, experiments, and long-term studies? Check out this post doc opportunity with the wonderful Anja Felmy!
Reposted by Joel Pick
Reposted by Joel Pick
We're excited to be recruiting an NIH funded postdoc to work in the Coop lab at UC Davis. We're specifically interested in candidates who are want to work at the intersection of human genetics, GWAS, and population genetics modeling. Please RT
October 15, 2025 at 3:53 PM
We're excited to be recruiting an NIH funded postdoc to work in the Coop lab at UC Davis. We're specifically interested in candidates who are want to work at the intersection of human genetics, GWAS, and population genetics modeling. Please RT
Reposted by Joel Pick
His comment doesn't even work on its own terms. AI can't do everything and what it can do it does unreliably. So you have to develop skills and knowledge yourself. Those have to be tested. And one way to test them is to use them in isolation from AI. Hence excluding AI from certain assessments.
Nice to see that the Chancellor of UNC doesn't understand the value of higher education and why it isn't a job skills training program. But we already knew that.
techcrunch.com/2025/10/20/t...
techcrunch.com/2025/10/20/t...
October 20, 2025 at 4:28 PM
His comment doesn't even work on its own terms. AI can't do everything and what it can do it does unreliably. So you have to develop skills and knowledge yourself. Those have to be tested. And one way to test them is to use them in isolation from AI. Hence excluding AI from certain assessments.