Paul Smaldino
@psmaldino.bsky.social
Paradigmatically promiscuous scientist. Ankylosaur enthusiast. Modeler of cultural evolution and related topics. Professor at UC Merced and the Santa Fe Institute.
Web: https://smaldino.com/wp/
Web: https://smaldino.com/wp/
Reposted by Paul Smaldino
This is…outstanding. If I may, I urge us to read it carefully, and appreciate the details, the shape, the picture it paints.
A Sharon Begley byline, almost 5 years after her death.
Upon hearing the news James Watson had died, a STAT reporter said in our Slack, "I wish I could read what Sharon would have written."
Incredible news: Sharon in fact did pre-write a Watson obit. And it is masterful and excoriating.
🧪🧬🧫
Upon hearing the news James Watson had died, a STAT reporter said in our Slack, "I wish I could read what Sharon would have written."
Incredible news: Sharon in fact did pre-write a Watson obit. And it is masterful and excoriating.
🧪🧬🧫
James Watson, dead at 97, was a scientific legend and a pariah among his peers
James Watson, the co-discoverer of the structure of DNA who died Thursday at 97, was a scientific legend and a pariah among his peers.
www.statnews.com
November 9, 2025 at 2:46 AM
This is…outstanding. If I may, I urge us to read it carefully, and appreciate the details, the shape, the picture it paints.
Reposted by Paul Smaldino
Thinking this level of inequality is unsustainable isn’t radical, thinking it isn’t is
November 6, 2025 at 11:11 PM
Thinking this level of inequality is unsustainable isn’t radical, thinking it isn’t is
Reposted by Paul Smaldino
why has no-one written a book on the evolution of cooperation titled "Decent with Modification"?
#evolution #culturalevolution
#evolution #culturalevolution
November 6, 2025 at 11:13 PM
why has no-one written a book on the evolution of cooperation titled "Decent with Modification"?
#evolution #culturalevolution
#evolution #culturalevolution
Reposted by Paul Smaldino
Four (!) three-year postdoc positions available at @au.dk: international.au.dk/about/profil...
Join an incredible team & help understand the psychological & political implications of the clash between high-speed society & slow-speed democracy.
Please share! @tboeggild.bsky.social can help with Qs
Join an incredible team & help understand the psychological & political implications of the clash between high-speed society & slow-speed democracy.
Please share! @tboeggild.bsky.social can help with Qs
Four three-year postdoctoral positions in the project Slow-Motion Democracy - Vacancy at Aarhus University
Vacancy at Department of Political Science, Aarhus University
international.au.dk
November 6, 2025 at 2:14 PM
Four (!) three-year postdoc positions available at @au.dk: international.au.dk/about/profil...
Join an incredible team & help understand the psychological & political implications of the clash between high-speed society & slow-speed democracy.
Please share! @tboeggild.bsky.social can help with Qs
Join an incredible team & help understand the psychological & political implications of the clash between high-speed society & slow-speed democracy.
Please share! @tboeggild.bsky.social can help with Qs
Reposted by Paul Smaldino
This week we talk to @babeheim.bsky.social about culture, change, modeling, running red lights, and the game of go.
youtu.be/nqTkSK-qtJM
www.podbean.com/eas/pb-hrn9v...
youtu.be/nqTkSK-qtJM
www.podbean.com/eas/pb-hrn9v...
Cultural Dynamics with Bret Breheim
YouTube video by Evolutionary Psychology (The Podcast)
youtu.be
November 4, 2025 at 2:59 PM
This week we talk to @babeheim.bsky.social about culture, change, modeling, running red lights, and the game of go.
youtu.be/nqTkSK-qtJM
www.podbean.com/eas/pb-hrn9v...
youtu.be/nqTkSK-qtJM
www.podbean.com/eas/pb-hrn9v...
In 1970, Hunter S Thompson ran for sheriff of Aspen, CO, under the progressive “Freak Power” party platform. He lost by 31 votes despite receiving more votes than the previous winner, largely because the Dems and Republicans colluded to run a single candidate.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Bat...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Bat...
November 4, 2025 at 6:29 PM
In 1970, Hunter S Thompson ran for sheriff of Aspen, CO, under the progressive “Freak Power” party platform. He lost by 31 votes despite receiving more votes than the previous winner, largely because the Dems and Republicans colluded to run a single candidate.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Bat...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Bat...
Reposted by Paul Smaldino
They just gutted Teen Vogue which had top notch political journalism. The media is continuing to purge any sort of political dissent to Trump and the oligarchs.
www.vogue.com/article/teen...
www.vogue.com/article/teen...
November 3, 2025 at 8:01 PM
They just gutted Teen Vogue which had top notch political journalism. The media is continuing to purge any sort of political dissent to Trump and the oligarchs.
www.vogue.com/article/teen...
www.vogue.com/article/teen...
Reposted by Paul Smaldino
I was laid off from Teen Vogue today along with multiple other staffers, and today is my last day.
certainly more to come from me when the dust has settled more, but to my knowledge, after today, there will be no politics staffers at Teen Vogue.
certainly more to come from me when the dust has settled more, but to my knowledge, after today, there will be no politics staffers at Teen Vogue.
November 3, 2025 at 7:52 PM
I was laid off from Teen Vogue today along with multiple other staffers, and today is my last day.
certainly more to come from me when the dust has settled more, but to my knowledge, after today, there will be no politics staffers at Teen Vogue.
certainly more to come from me when the dust has settled more, but to my knowledge, after today, there will be no politics staffers at Teen Vogue.
Reposted by Paul Smaldino
This thicc 71-chapter book (academic.oup.com/edited-volum...) arrived just in time to use as the textbook for my new "Cultural Evolution" class I've just started teaching!
Featuring this chapter from @cailinmeister.bsky.social @psmaldino.bsky.social & Jingyi Wu as well as much more including...
Featuring this chapter from @cailinmeister.bsky.social @psmaldino.bsky.social & Jingyi Wu as well as much more including...
October 29, 2025 at 11:35 AM
This thicc 71-chapter book (academic.oup.com/edited-volum...) arrived just in time to use as the textbook for my new "Cultural Evolution" class I've just started teaching!
Featuring this chapter from @cailinmeister.bsky.social @psmaldino.bsky.social & Jingyi Wu as well as much more including...
Featuring this chapter from @cailinmeister.bsky.social @psmaldino.bsky.social & Jingyi Wu as well as much more including...
Reposted by Paul Smaldino
Congrats to all involved in the production of the massive Oxford Handbook of cultural evolution. You can read our paper The Cultural Evolution Of Science here: cailinoconnor.com/wp-content/u...
October 14, 2025 at 7:11 PM
Congrats to all involved in the production of the massive Oxford Handbook of cultural evolution. You can read our paper The Cultural Evolution Of Science here: cailinoconnor.com/wp-content/u...
Reposted by Paul Smaldino
Screensnapshot of our times. Corporate pressure to use AI creates bad outcomes with real-life consequences; seeking to unpack the problem yields more pressure to indulge in the very thing causing the problem.
October 26, 2025 at 5:48 PM
Screensnapshot of our times. Corporate pressure to use AI creates bad outcomes with real-life consequences; seeking to unpack the problem yields more pressure to indulge in the very thing causing the problem.
Reposted by Paul Smaldino
I know it’s too much to expect them to know their history, but if the American Revolution had a motto, it definitely would not have been “immigrants go home.”
It would have been “get your fucking soldiers out of our cities.”
It would have been “get your fucking soldiers out of our cities.”
October 28, 2025 at 1:48 PM
I know it’s too much to expect them to know their history, but if the American Revolution had a motto, it definitely would not have been “immigrants go home.”
It would have been “get your fucking soldiers out of our cities.”
It would have been “get your fucking soldiers out of our cities.”
Re-posting this because I really like it and I think we need to understand identity from a functionalist perspective more than ever.
osf.io/preprints/ps...
osf.io/preprints/ps...
I wrote a chapter on a functionalist account of social identity.
IMO, thinking about identity in an instrumental way helps explain a lot of behavior that seems otherwise baffling.
osf.io/preprints/ps...
IMO, thinking about identity in an instrumental way helps explain a lot of behavior that seems otherwise baffling.
osf.io/preprints/ps...
October 27, 2025 at 8:11 PM
Re-posting this because I really like it and I think we need to understand identity from a functionalist perspective more than ever.
osf.io/preprints/ps...
osf.io/preprints/ps...
Revision posted! An evolutionary model of identity signaling with nested/overlapping/intersectional identities, complex multidimensional signaling capabilities, and a primer on ancient Mesopotamia. What more could you ask for?
osf.io/preprints/so...
osf.io/preprints/so...
New preprint w/ Nathan Gabriel & @avbell.bsky.social: The Evolution of Identity Signals for Coordination in Diverse Societies
The model tackles multiple nested/overlapping identities and complex signaling structure. Recovers lots of old results and adds several new ones osf.io/preprints/so...
The model tackles multiple nested/overlapping identities and complex signaling structure. Recovers lots of old results and adds several new ones osf.io/preprints/so...
October 27, 2025 at 8:09 PM
Revision posted! An evolutionary model of identity signaling with nested/overlapping/intersectional identities, complex multidimensional signaling capabilities, and a primer on ancient Mesopotamia. What more could you ask for?
osf.io/preprints/so...
osf.io/preprints/so...
Reposted by Paul Smaldino
Wow. Harvard nuking its PhD programs
- Science PhD admissions reduced by more than 75%
- Arts & Humanities reduced by about 60%
- Social Sciences by 50–70%
- History by 60%
- Biology by 75%
- The German department will lose all PhD seats
- Sociology from six PhD students to zero
- Science PhD admissions reduced by more than 75%
- Arts & Humanities reduced by about 60%
- Social Sciences by 50–70%
- History by 60%
- Biology by 75%
- The German department will lose all PhD seats
- Sociology from six PhD students to zero
Harvard FAS Cuts Ph.D. Seats By More Than Half Across Next Two Admissions Cycles | News | The Harvard Crimson
The Faculty of Arts and Sciences slashed the number of Ph.D. student admissions slots for the Science division by more than 75 percent and for the Arts & Humanities division by about 60 percent for th...
www.thecrimson.com
October 21, 2025 at 5:11 PM
Wow. Harvard nuking its PhD programs
- Science PhD admissions reduced by more than 75%
- Arts & Humanities reduced by about 60%
- Social Sciences by 50–70%
- History by 60%
- Biology by 75%
- The German department will lose all PhD seats
- Sociology from six PhD students to zero
- Science PhD admissions reduced by more than 75%
- Arts & Humanities reduced by about 60%
- Social Sciences by 50–70%
- History by 60%
- Biology by 75%
- The German department will lose all PhD seats
- Sociology from six PhD students to zero
Reposted by Paul Smaldino
Fully-funded 4-year #PhD in Cultural Evolution! Join my @erc.europa.eu project exploring how compression & compositionality drive cultural innovation: hmc-lab.com/ERCPhDCultur...
Apply by Nov 12!
Maybe of interest to folks from #COSMOS2025 or @eslr.bsky.social? Please feel free to share! 🙏
Apply by Nov 12!
Maybe of interest to folks from #COSMOS2025 or @eslr.bsky.social? Please feel free to share! 🙏
ERC funded PhD position on Cultural Evolution
ERC funded PhD position on Cultural Evolution
posted on October 16, 2025
We are currently seeking a highly motivated individual for a ful...
hmc-lab.com
October 20, 2025 at 9:32 AM
Fully-funded 4-year #PhD in Cultural Evolution! Join my @erc.europa.eu project exploring how compression & compositionality drive cultural innovation: hmc-lab.com/ERCPhDCultur...
Apply by Nov 12!
Maybe of interest to folks from #COSMOS2025 or @eslr.bsky.social? Please feel free to share! 🙏
Apply by Nov 12!
Maybe of interest to folks from #COSMOS2025 or @eslr.bsky.social? Please feel free to share! 🙏
We don’t need that fascist groove thing. m.youtube.com/watch?v=Q49B...
[We Don't Need This] Fascist Groove Thang (Remastered 2006)
YouTube video by Heaven 17 - Topic
m.youtube.com
October 18, 2025 at 3:58 PM
We don’t need that fascist groove thing. m.youtube.com/watch?v=Q49B...
Reposted by Paul Smaldino
My house cat has stripes in his spots. I modeled it by putting a Turing cell differentiation model *inside* another Turing cell differentiation model.
Here's the model if you're interested:
enfascination.com/htdocs/Cats_...
click Setup, wait 5 seconds, then Go
Here's the model if you're interested:
enfascination.com/htdocs/Cats_...
click Setup, wait 5 seconds, then Go
October 17, 2025 at 5:33 PM
My house cat has stripes in his spots. I modeled it by putting a Turing cell differentiation model *inside* another Turing cell differentiation model.
Here's the model if you're interested:
enfascination.com/htdocs/Cats_...
click Setup, wait 5 seconds, then Go
Here's the model if you're interested:
enfascination.com/htdocs/Cats_...
click Setup, wait 5 seconds, then Go
Reposted by Paul Smaldino
How do humans keep inventing tools and technologies that no single person could create alone?
Our new preprint, led by
@anilyaman.bsky.social & @ts-brain.bsky.social
shows that semantic knowledge guides innovation and drives cultural evolution. 🧠📘 arxiv.org/abs/2510.12837
Our new preprint, led by
@anilyaman.bsky.social & @ts-brain.bsky.social
shows that semantic knowledge guides innovation and drives cultural evolution. 🧠📘 arxiv.org/abs/2510.12837
October 16, 2025 at 1:49 PM
How do humans keep inventing tools and technologies that no single person could create alone?
Our new preprint, led by
@anilyaman.bsky.social & @ts-brain.bsky.social
shows that semantic knowledge guides innovation and drives cultural evolution. 🧠📘 arxiv.org/abs/2510.12837
Our new preprint, led by
@anilyaman.bsky.social & @ts-brain.bsky.social
shows that semantic knowledge guides innovation and drives cultural evolution. 🧠📘 arxiv.org/abs/2510.12837
Reposted by Paul Smaldino
A main organizer of VC Defensa in Ventura County was rammed in his vehicle by federal agents and taken into custody this morning. This video is from VC Defensa IG and shows the ramming. Organizers are thinking he’ll be taken to LA MDC—headed there now
October 16, 2025 at 7:40 PM
A main organizer of VC Defensa in Ventura County was rammed in his vehicle by federal agents and taken into custody this morning. This video is from VC Defensa IG and shows the ramming. Organizers are thinking he’ll be taken to LA MDC—headed there now
Reposted by Paul Smaldino
What is sexual selection all about... definitionally and mathematically? A super talented PI, Jussi Lehtonen, is looking for a postdoc to work it all out! Deadline end of this month.
ats.talentadore.com/apply/postdo...
ats.talentadore.com/apply/postdo...
October 16, 2025 at 1:59 PM
What is sexual selection all about... definitionally and mathematically? A super talented PI, Jussi Lehtonen, is looking for a postdoc to work it all out! Deadline end of this month.
ats.talentadore.com/apply/postdo...
ats.talentadore.com/apply/postdo...
Reposted by Paul Smaldino
I am happy to share the conversation I had with @mgurven.bsky.social about the evolutionary aspects of humans living seven decades. Hope everyone enjoys! @princetonupress.bsky.social convergingdialogues.substack.com/p/449-living...
#449 - Living for Seven Decades: A Dialogue with Michael Gurven
Listen now | In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Michael Gurven about humans living for seven decades.
convergingdialogues.substack.com
October 15, 2025 at 7:44 PM
I am happy to share the conversation I had with @mgurven.bsky.social about the evolutionary aspects of humans living seven decades. Hope everyone enjoys! @princetonupress.bsky.social convergingdialogues.substack.com/p/449-living...
Reposted by Paul Smaldino
Thanks Paul for catching that error in our original post! Congratulations to @psmaldino.bsky.social on his ACE Course Design Awards for "Cultural Evolution" and for "Modeling Social Behaviour".
Honored to have won TWO Advancing Cultural Evolution Course Design Awards for my courses “Cultural Evolution” and “Modeling Social Behavior”.
We're pleased to announce and congratulate the winners of the Advancing Cultural Evolution Course Design Awards! This competition recognises leading educators in the field of cultural evolution and their existing efforts to advance its teaching.
We have 7 winners and 2 runners up (listed below):
We have 7 winners and 2 runners up (listed below):
October 14, 2025 at 7:49 AM
Thanks Paul for catching that error in our original post! Congratulations to @psmaldino.bsky.social on his ACE Course Design Awards for "Cultural Evolution" and for "Modeling Social Behaviour".
Honored to have won TWO Advancing Cultural Evolution Course Design Awards for my courses “Cultural Evolution” and “Modeling Social Behavior”.
We're pleased to announce and congratulate the winners of the Advancing Cultural Evolution Course Design Awards! This competition recognises leading educators in the field of cultural evolution and their existing efforts to advance its teaching.
We have 7 winners and 2 runners up (listed below):
We have 7 winners and 2 runners up (listed below):
October 13, 2025 at 2:55 PM
Honored to have won TWO Advancing Cultural Evolution Course Design Awards for my courses “Cultural Evolution” and “Modeling Social Behavior”.
Reposted by Paul Smaldino
What Thiel is saying about tax havens = what Altman is saying about copyright:
"I can't be rich unless you let me steal from you."
This is how Broligarchs differ from oligarchs of yore: the latter tried to hide their thievery; the Broligarchs trumpet their entitlement to steal as a natural right.
"I can't be rich unless you let me steal from you."
This is how Broligarchs differ from oligarchs of yore: the latter tried to hide their thievery; the Broligarchs trumpet their entitlement to steal as a natural right.
October 11, 2025 at 10:50 AM
What Thiel is saying about tax havens = what Altman is saying about copyright:
"I can't be rich unless you let me steal from you."
This is how Broligarchs differ from oligarchs of yore: the latter tried to hide their thievery; the Broligarchs trumpet their entitlement to steal as a natural right.
"I can't be rich unless you let me steal from you."
This is how Broligarchs differ from oligarchs of yore: the latter tried to hide their thievery; the Broligarchs trumpet their entitlement to steal as a natural right.