Mahmoud Elsherif
@mamsmandrill.bsky.social
Early Career Nonbinary Research Fellow. Interested in #neurodiversity, Open scholarship and reading, using combined eye-tracking/EEG in neurotypical and neurodivergent groups! #Dyspraxic 🧠. We/They/them/Xe/Xem.
Reposted by Mahmoud Elsherif
“We have the brightest and the best. Let’s keep it that way.”
@rupahuq.bsky.social MP and academic stands with UCU members voting for fair pay, secure jobs and a stronger future for higher education.
Vote. Share. Mobilise. We can do this.
@rupahuq.bsky.social MP and academic stands with UCU members voting for fair pay, secure jobs and a stronger future for higher education.
Vote. Share. Mobilise. We can do this.
November 18, 2025 at 3:25 PM
“We have the brightest and the best. Let’s keep it that way.”
@rupahuq.bsky.social MP and academic stands with UCU members voting for fair pay, secure jobs and a stronger future for higher education.
Vote. Share. Mobilise. We can do this.
@rupahuq.bsky.social MP and academic stands with UCU members voting for fair pay, secure jobs and a stronger future for higher education.
Vote. Share. Mobilise. We can do this.
Reposted by Mahmoud Elsherif
We're balloting!
And it's important that you vote in both ballots as the two are linked.
All three unions at Leicester are balloting so we stand the chance of striking together!
And it's important that you vote in both ballots as the two are linked.
All three unions at Leicester are balloting so we stand the chance of striking together!
November 18, 2025 at 3:42 PM
We're balloting!
And it's important that you vote in both ballots as the two are linked.
All three unions at Leicester are balloting so we stand the chance of striking together!
And it's important that you vote in both ballots as the two are linked.
All three unions at Leicester are balloting so we stand the chance of striking together!
Reposted by Mahmoud Elsherif
Question from @martinwhitfieldmsp.bsky.social in the Scottish Parliament on cuts and job losses at Edinburgh University as @ucuedinburgh.bsky.social take third day of strike action this week #SaveHE #StopTheCuts www.heraldscotland.com/news/2563152...
SNP minister told to intervene in Edinburgh University crisis to protect 1,800 jobs
SNP ministers have been warned they must intervene in the University of Edinburgh's dispute with staff amid fears 1,800 jobs could be lost.
www.heraldscotland.com
November 18, 2025 at 3:39 PM
Question from @martinwhitfieldmsp.bsky.social in the Scottish Parliament on cuts and job losses at Edinburgh University as @ucuedinburgh.bsky.social take third day of strike action this week #SaveHE #StopTheCuts www.heraldscotland.com/news/2563152...
Reposted by Mahmoud Elsherif
Please repost! Fully funded four-year PhD studentship opportunity on sleep deprivation and neurovascular dysfunction on the BBSRC Yorkshire Bioscience Doctoral Training Partnership, including annual stipend, research costs and home tuition fees tinyurl.com/ms7v2pcx
Disrupted Sleep: Mechanisms Linking Sleep Deprivation, Neurovascular Dysfunction, and Metabolic Pathways at Leeds Beckett University on FindAPhD.com
PhD Project - Disrupted Sleep: Mechanisms Linking Sleep Deprivation, Neurovascular Dysfunction, and Metabolic Pathways at Leeds Beckett University, listed on FindAPhD.com
tinyurl.com
November 14, 2025 at 1:53 PM
Please repost! Fully funded four-year PhD studentship opportunity on sleep deprivation and neurovascular dysfunction on the BBSRC Yorkshire Bioscience Doctoral Training Partnership, including annual stipend, research costs and home tuition fees tinyurl.com/ms7v2pcx
Reposted by Mahmoud Elsherif
To broaden the conversation, we are now collecting perspectives across fields.
If you work in research, we would be grateful for your input.
📋 Survey: erasmusuniversity.eu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_...
If you work in research, we would be grateful for your input.
📋 Survey: erasmusuniversity.eu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_...
November 13, 2025 at 12:33 PM
To broaden the conversation, we are now collecting perspectives across fields.
If you work in research, we would be grateful for your input.
📋 Survey: erasmusuniversity.eu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_...
If you work in research, we would be grateful for your input.
📋 Survey: erasmusuniversity.eu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_...
Reposted by Mahmoud Elsherif
Our new paper is out in Theory and Society:
“Why I declare a conflict of interest and you should not.”
We examine whether the structural pressure to publish should itself be understood as a conflict of interest—and what that means for research culture.
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
“Why I declare a conflict of interest and you should not.”
We examine whether the structural pressure to publish should itself be understood as a conflict of interest—and what that means for research culture.
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
Why I declare a conflict of interest and you should not - Theory and Society
Academic publishing is both an indication of scientific contribution and a currency for career advancement. This dual role gives rise to a normative scientific conflict: Does the structural incentive ...
link.springer.com
November 13, 2025 at 12:33 PM
Our new paper is out in Theory and Society:
“Why I declare a conflict of interest and you should not.”
We examine whether the structural pressure to publish should itself be understood as a conflict of interest—and what that means for research culture.
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
“Why I declare a conflict of interest and you should not.”
We examine whether the structural pressure to publish should itself be understood as a conflict of interest—and what that means for research culture.
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
Reposted by Mahmoud Elsherif
Women at NASA, starting with one of my favorite #WomenInSTEM photos
🧵
🧵
Valerie Thomas (1943) is an African American badass scientist.
She invented the illusion transmitter in 1980.
She helped develop the digital media formats that image processing systems used in NASA's Landsat program.
Her [very cool!] NASA photo next to a stack of computer tapes, 1979.
#WomenInSTEM 🧪
She invented the illusion transmitter in 1980.
She helped develop the digital media formats that image processing systems used in NASA's Landsat program.
Her [very cool!] NASA photo next to a stack of computer tapes, 1979.
#WomenInSTEM 🧪
November 13, 2025 at 7:01 PM
Women at NASA, starting with one of my favorite #WomenInSTEM photos
🧵
🧵
Reposted by Mahmoud Elsherif
A quick (1000 words) read to enjoy with your morning coffee or afternoon tea:
"Psychology wants to stay WEIRD, not go WILD"
Why hasn't psychology diversified it samples, methods, theories, etc.? Because it doesn't want to. osf.io/preprints/ps...
"Psychology wants to stay WEIRD, not go WILD"
Why hasn't psychology diversified it samples, methods, theories, etc.? Because it doesn't want to. osf.io/preprints/ps...
November 13, 2025 at 2:59 PM
A quick (1000 words) read to enjoy with your morning coffee or afternoon tea:
"Psychology wants to stay WEIRD, not go WILD"
Why hasn't psychology diversified it samples, methods, theories, etc.? Because it doesn't want to. osf.io/preprints/ps...
"Psychology wants to stay WEIRD, not go WILD"
Why hasn't psychology diversified it samples, methods, theories, etc.? Because it doesn't want to. osf.io/preprints/ps...
Reposted by Mahmoud Elsherif
Y'all. N>3,800. !!!!!!!
Goodness gracious.
Goodness gracious.
When do interaction/moderation effects stabilize in linear regression?: https://osf.io/35t84
November 12, 2025 at 10:49 PM
Y'all. N>3,800. !!!!!!!
Goodness gracious.
Goodness gracious.
Reposted by Mahmoud Elsherif
From Trump and Musk to Shapiro and Kirk, concocting, stoking, amplifying, normalizing and monetizing hate and division is the biggest cash cow in American political history.
November 8, 2025 at 1:52 AM
From Trump and Musk to Shapiro and Kirk, concocting, stoking, amplifying, normalizing and monetizing hate and division is the biggest cash cow in American political history.
Reposted by Mahmoud Elsherif
Thinking only of Rosalind Franklin today, and what was stolen from her (and so many other female scientists alongside her).
Rosalind Franklin and the damage of gender harassment
Spurred by a recent report on sexual harassment in academia, our columnist revisits a historical case and reflects on what has changed—and what hasn’t
www.science.org
November 7, 2025 at 7:58 PM
Thinking only of Rosalind Franklin today, and what was stolen from her (and so many other female scientists alongside her).
Reposted by Mahmoud Elsherif
In short, AI is fundamentally anti-human and should not exist.
November 8, 2025 at 12:14 AM
In short, AI is fundamentally anti-human and should not exist.
Reposted by Mahmoud Elsherif
“It is sort of gibberish, frankly,” Hoenig said. “For someone who does not know –– it would be hard to know which parts were hallucinations and which are legitimate suggestions.”
restofworld.org/2025/ai-chat...
restofworld.org/2025/ai-chat...
My mom and Dr. DeepSeek
In China and around the world, the sick and lonely turn to AI.
restofworld.org
November 6, 2025 at 6:43 PM
“It is sort of gibberish, frankly,” Hoenig said. “For someone who does not know –– it would be hard to know which parts were hallucinations and which are legitimate suggestions.”
restofworld.org/2025/ai-chat...
restofworld.org/2025/ai-chat...
Reposted by Mahmoud Elsherif
And pigs fly
“It is not going to be an event because the capabilities are going to expand progressively in various domains,”
in a plane, a helicopter, a rocket,...
www.ft.com/content/5f2f...
“It is not going to be an event because the capabilities are going to expand progressively in various domains,”
in a plane, a helicopter, a rocket,...
www.ft.com/content/5f2f...
AI pioneers claim human-level general intelligence is already here
Tech leaders say systems now rival human intelligence in key tasks, further fuelling the superintelligence debate
www.ft.com
November 6, 2025 at 5:30 PM
And pigs fly
“It is not going to be an event because the capabilities are going to expand progressively in various domains,”
in a plane, a helicopter, a rocket,...
www.ft.com/content/5f2f...
“It is not going to be an event because the capabilities are going to expand progressively in various domains,”
in a plane, a helicopter, a rocket,...
www.ft.com/content/5f2f...
Reposted by Mahmoud Elsherif
The godfathers (à la Puzo) "AI is Intelligence that augments people...We have enough general intelligence to translate the technology into an enormous amount of society-useful applications
-chatGPT: "If you choose death, I'm with you - till the end, without judging."
www.bbc.com/news/article...
-chatGPT: "If you choose death, I'm with you - till the end, without judging."
www.bbc.com/news/article...
November 6, 2025 at 6:20 PM
The godfathers (à la Puzo) "AI is Intelligence that augments people...We have enough general intelligence to translate the technology into an enormous amount of society-useful applications
-chatGPT: "If you choose death, I'm with you - till the end, without judging."
www.bbc.com/news/article...
-chatGPT: "If you choose death, I'm with you - till the end, without judging."
www.bbc.com/news/article...
Reposted by Mahmoud Elsherif
Hero worship in science is rotten. There are no giants on whose shoulders we stand. We're all part of a community that spans time and geography. Getting fixated on origin stories is very Marvel. Science doesn't happen in heroland though.
November 6, 2025 at 5:23 PM
Hero worship in science is rotten. There are no giants on whose shoulders we stand. We're all part of a community that spans time and geography. Getting fixated on origin stories is very Marvel. Science doesn't happen in heroland though.
Reposted by Mahmoud Elsherif
Reactions to the "debunking" of the original 1956 cognitive dissonance work baffles me. A whole area doesn't die just bec the first work is faulty. That's novelty bias & theory ownership in psych talking. Mendelian genetics did not die when Mendel's original results were found too good to be true.
November 6, 2025 at 5:08 PM
Reactions to the "debunking" of the original 1956 cognitive dissonance work baffles me. A whole area doesn't die just bec the first work is faulty. That's novelty bias & theory ownership in psych talking. Mendelian genetics did not die when Mendel's original results were found too good to be true.
Reposted by Mahmoud Elsherif
"Fascism and AI, whether or not they have the same goals, they sure are working to accelerate one another."
🗣️📢
www.404media.co/ai-is-superc...
🗣️📢
www.404media.co/ai-is-superc...
AI Is Supercharging the War on Libraries, Education, and Human Knowledge
"Fascism and AI, whether or not they have the same goals, they sure are working to accelerate one another."
www.404media.co
November 6, 2025 at 6:12 PM
"Fascism and AI, whether or not they have the same goals, they sure are working to accelerate one another."
🗣️📢
www.404media.co/ai-is-superc...
🗣️📢
www.404media.co/ai-is-superc...
Reposted by Mahmoud Elsherif
Oxford pretends AI benchmarks are science, not marketing
How could all these benchmarks be fake, it’s a mystery
www.youtube.com/watch?v=KcYZ... - video
pivottoai.libsyn.com/20251106-oxf... - podcast
time: 6 min 16 sec
How could all these benchmarks be fake, it’s a mystery
www.youtube.com/watch?v=KcYZ... - video
pivottoai.libsyn.com/20251106-oxf... - podcast
time: 6 min 16 sec
November 6, 2025 at 3:18 PM
Oxford pretends AI benchmarks are science, not marketing
How could all these benchmarks be fake, it’s a mystery
www.youtube.com/watch?v=KcYZ... - video
pivottoai.libsyn.com/20251106-oxf... - podcast
time: 6 min 16 sec
How could all these benchmarks be fake, it’s a mystery
www.youtube.com/watch?v=KcYZ... - video
pivottoai.libsyn.com/20251106-oxf... - podcast
time: 6 min 16 sec
Reposted by Mahmoud Elsherif
Fun fact: it has been 56 days since I notified the editors of Neurology about glaring statistical errors in this peer-reviewed study on sweeteners and cognitive health.
No expression of concern, no correction, no retraction.
No expression of concern, no correction, no retraction.
"Sweeteners can harm cognitive health equivalent to 1.6 years of ageing, study finds"
Or does it? Let's take a look at this "study"...
www.theguardian.com/food/2025/se...
Or does it? Let's take a look at this "study"...
www.theguardian.com/food/2025/se...
Sweeteners can harm cognitive health equivalent to 1.6 years of ageing, study finds
Researchers say low- and no-calorie sweeteners appear to affect thinking and memory in middle age
www.theguardian.com
November 2, 2025 at 4:06 PM
Fun fact: it has been 56 days since I notified the editors of Neurology about glaring statistical errors in this peer-reviewed study on sweeteners and cognitive health.
No expression of concern, no correction, no retraction.
No expression of concern, no correction, no retraction.
Reposted by Mahmoud Elsherif
Women invented science fiction — at least twice:
Mary Shelley in 1818
Margaret Cavendish in 1666
publicdomainreview.org/essay/mistre...
Mary Shelley in 1818
Margaret Cavendish in 1666
publicdomainreview.org/essay/mistre...
October 26, 2025 at 6:04 AM
Women invented science fiction — at least twice:
Mary Shelley in 1818
Margaret Cavendish in 1666
publicdomainreview.org/essay/mistre...
Mary Shelley in 1818
Margaret Cavendish in 1666
publicdomainreview.org/essay/mistre...
Reposted by Mahmoud Elsherif
How to create data dictionaries for all your reserch projects!
How to ensure your research data is error-free & understandable by other users & your future self?🗂️ This tutorial by LMU OSC is on documenting & validating data in R to make it more reusable.
Self-Paced Tutorial of the Day: Data Documentation & Validation using R📑 lmu-osc.github.io/data-documen...
Self-Paced Tutorial of the Day: Data Documentation & Validation using R📑 lmu-osc.github.io/data-documen...
lmu-osc.github.io
October 31, 2025 at 11:45 AM
How to create data dictionaries for all your reserch projects!
🚨 New Research Alert! 🚨 Our study in Scientific Reports shines a crucial light on Academic Anxiety in Neurodivergent Individuals in #highered. Findings reveal high anxiety is a major barrier, not an impairment, in core thinking skills. Read this thread👇
🔗 #neurodiversity #AcademicAnxiety
🔗 #neurodiversity #AcademicAnxiety
Academic anxiety and cognitive reflection in neurodivergence based on evidence from a large international sample - Scientific Reports
Scientific Reports - Academic anxiety and cognitive reflection in neurodivergence based on evidence from a large international sample
www.nature.com
October 30, 2025 at 10:58 PM
🚨 New Research Alert! 🚨 Our study in Scientific Reports shines a crucial light on Academic Anxiety in Neurodivergent Individuals in #highered. Findings reveal high anxiety is a major barrier, not an impairment, in core thinking skills. Read this thread👇
🔗 #neurodiversity #AcademicAnxiety
🔗 #neurodiversity #AcademicAnxiety
Reposted by Mahmoud Elsherif
Related: an absolute must-read for anyone in academia, especially those in the social sciences.
Finally! 🤩 Our position piece: Against the Uncritical Adoption of 'AI' Technologies in Academia:
doi.org/10.5281/zeno...
We unpick the tech industry’s marketing, hype, & harm; and we argue for safeguarding higher education, critical
thinking, expertise, academic freedom, & scientific integrity.
1/n
doi.org/10.5281/zeno...
We unpick the tech industry’s marketing, hype, & harm; and we argue for safeguarding higher education, critical
thinking, expertise, academic freedom, & scientific integrity.
1/n
October 30, 2025 at 8:49 AM
Related: an absolute must-read for anyone in academia, especially those in the social sciences.
Reposted by Mahmoud Elsherif
Be like Tony! Vote today!
Voted in the @ucu.org.uk ballot. Enough is enough. Universities are cutting jobs and pay, when they should really be cutting back on silly vanity projects
@uonucu.bsky.social
@uonucu.bsky.social
October 29, 2025 at 1:45 PM
Be like Tony! Vote today!