iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 22/09/2026

On Oct 7, the @rug.nl organizes a mini conference on #AI and the #digitalsociety more broadly. 🤳👨‍💻🤖 I will close the day with a keynote about human intelligence in times of AI. 🧠 Join us! www.rug.nl/jantina-tamm... @rug-gmw.bsky.social

rug.nl

Tammes Talks (7 Oct)

Tammes Talks is a new initiative at the JTS. In short, they are shared Theme Coordinator events, during which we bring the JTS (sub)communities together no...

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Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 19/09/2026

🔦 Story Spotlight 🌼 Never of the Past or The Future 🌼 "He caught fragments of the buttercups' whispered conversations. They spoke mostly of the sun." (reading time ±15 min) www.suchwasnot.com/never-of-the... #fiction #reading #writing #booksky

A screenshot of the first page of Never of the Past or the Future

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Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 14/09/2026

Ik kijk hier erg naar uit!

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Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 14/09/2026

Here's another figure that combines a few authoritative datasets/ meta-analyses about IQ and PISA (scholastic aptitude) scores over time (partly the same as the ones I posted a few days ago). All of these are based on very large samples, so measurement error is very low. What to make of this?

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Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 10/09/2026

🔦 Story spotlight 🌟 Silverback Empire 🌟 “Just look at those tiny wings covered in down. So soft and white. Who could blame parents for wanting one?” (reading time ±1h15m) suchwasnot.com/silverback-empire #sciencefiction #writing #reading #booksky

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Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 09/09/2026

#PISA data confirms that adolescents' cognitive abilities, as indicated by standardized test scores, continue to decline. This has been happening gradually for over a decade (i.e. not just COVID-related) and holds for most areas and most EU countries (figure show NL data). #education 1/4 🧵

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Susana Monsó @susanamonso.com · 07/09/2026

Interested in doing a PhD in philosophy of animal minds in lovely Murcia? We have just published a call for expressions of interest to do a PhD as part of our research project on ecological validity in comparative cognitive science. Please consider applying if this is up your street!

ecologicalvalidity.wordpress.com

Call for expressions of interest: PhD position

The Spanish Ministry for Science and Innovation is about to publish a call for pre-doctoral scholarships (FPI) adhered to scientific projects that have been approved for funding in 2026. We invite …

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The Arthur C. Clarke Award @clarkeaward.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Some scams are easier to spot than others. That said, we get these semi-regularly and they are only getting more focused and custom-tailored, so be careful writers! And, no, we didn’t reply, but it was super-tempting.

Text from a scam email message which reads:

Hi Arthur C. Clarke,

I recently came across 2001: A Space Odyssey, the 25th Anniversary Edition, and wanted to reach out.

I’ve been connecting with authors whose books are available to readers but may not be reaching as many new audiences as they could.

I’m curious how has your experience been with book visibility and reaching new readers? And have you considered exploring new ways to promote your book or expand its reach to additional platforms?

I’d genuinely be interested in hearing your thoughts and experience.

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Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 03/09/2026

Very excited to visit Hangzhou, #China! This afternoon in the 14:00 session, @veerahelmisofia.bsky.social @anavili.bsky.social and I will talk about pupil size, attention, and retinal responses. 👁️ ⭐ #escopcopm2026

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Ana Vilotijević @anavili.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

Arrived to Hangzhou to attend ESCoP CoPM 2026 @escop.bsky.social ! I’ll be talking tomorrow at 14.30 (Room 4) about the pupil size and attention! 👁️

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Veera Ruuskanen @veerahelmisofia.bsky.social · 20/08/2026

Super excited to see our review out in TiCS! Here me & @cogsci.nl present the first comprehensive framework of the mechanisms driving relationships between spontaneous pupil-size fluctuations, neural activity, and behavior 👀🧠👩🏻‍💻 Spoiler: arousal is only one of at least four 😶‍🌫️ doi.org/10.1016/j.ti...

doi.org

Redirecting

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Helen Blank @helenblank.bsky.social · 20/08/2026

👀

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Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 21/08/2026

Very proud of @veerahelmisofia.bsky.social ! This thorough review, in which she sheds new light on the meaning of spontaneous #pupilsize fluctuations, now out in Trends! This is also the latest publication and opening chapter of her #PhD thesis – impressive work! 🥳 #psychology #neuroscience #vision

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Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 14/08/2026

Griffinfly was inspired by a trip to Florida, where I stayed for a few days after a conference (VSS). Everyday I walked to the beach through a wealthy but desolate neighborhood. Empty streets without sidewalks. Scorching heat. And at dusk a fog of insects, mostly dragonflies. #writing #booksky

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Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 13/08/2026

📖🔦 Story spotlight: Griffinfly (±1h⌛) “This is how a man came to enter my practice without either of us knowing why.” suchwasnot.com/griffinfly #sciencefiction #fantasy #writing #reading #booksky 🧵1/2

suchwasnot.com

Such Was Not the Way Things Were

Speculative fiction by Sebastiaan Mathôt.

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Brian Nosek @briannosek.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

Over the next several months, we will phase out some popular OSF features. These changes do not affect current public content, which remains safe and accessible. We have prepared support material to help users adapt. I am very sorry for the disruption to your work. Please read this post for details.

cos.io

OSF Changes | Center for Open Science

We are preparing substantial changes to OSF that will reduce its functionality, focus OSF on its unique strengths, and move toward an integrated model with complementary services. As part of that shif...

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Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 11/08/2026

👉 In this new #pupillometry #preprint 👈 @veerahelmisofia.bsky.social shows that correlations between visual detection performance and pupil size may often be due more to optics than (as often assumed) arousal. #psychology #perception #neuroscience

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Zehan Ye @zehanye.bsky.social · 08/03/2026

My first paper on episodic memory with Elkan&Mark☺️. Sometimes, think one then get all of them. I call it as one of magics in our brains🍇🍇

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ContempraInn 🌹 @contemprainn.bsky.social · 08/08/2026

The perfect moment when a hummingbird shares a water fountain with four bees on a hot California summer day. [📸 Toshiyasu Morita]

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Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 24/07/2026

Sigmund Analyst (connected to sigmundai.eu on Z.ai GLM 5.2) checks the integrity of its own software by first introspecting what it can do, writing detailed test scenarios, executing them, and finally checking the outcome. Completely autonomously. #AI #opensource

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Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 17/07/2026

Over the last few years, we've been developing #Heymans, an AI-tutor for higher education. In-house AI that reflects our own vision on education, as opposed to that of US/China tech companies. I'm especially excited about Chat Quizzes. 1/3 #education @rug.nl @rug-gmw.bsky.social @citrug.bsky.social

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Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 13/07/2026

Here's something odd 👇🧐 When enabling #Z.ai #GLM5.2, Sigmund became convinced it's #Anthropic #Claude (and it's honestly not). I wonder if this reflects Z training their models on Anthropic output, as some people have suggested. Can also just be a random confabulation. But it's weird.

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Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 10/07/2026

Het fascinerende (en complexe) gedrag van hommels 🐝 speelt in een grote rol in Een Wereld Vol Denkers. Leuk om te zien dat hier nu ook aandacht voor is bij @nieuws.nos.nl. Zie het artikel voor een filmpje. nos.nl/l/2622285 #biologie #psychologie

nos.nl

Blije hommels onthullen meer over innerlijk leven insecten

De diertjes reageren instemmend, likkend op suikerwater, maar schudden hun hoofd als ze bitter of zout proeven.

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Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 04/07/2026

When I clean, I always spare the spiders. We have a tenuous relationship, but on the whole I feel we're on the same team, keeping the house insect-free. Crossposted with @openvibe.social

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Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 03/07/2026

Nieuwe doos met exemplaren van Een Wereld Vol Denkers! 🐝🪴🧠 Als je direct bij de auteur (mij) bestelt, krijg je hem gesigneerd en met elegante Ex Libris stempel erin! buy.stripe.com/00w9AUdbW0gz... #boeken #booksky #psychologie #biologie #wetenschap

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Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 02/07/2026

After three days of (partly) grim realities, it's time to close #eadi2026 with a message of hope! Warning: there may be #bumblebees 🐝 ☘️

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Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 01/07/2026

Preparing for the closing plenary at #eadi2026 tomorrow! Over the past few days, I've been learning about the challenges in global-development research. And now my personal challenge is to end with a message of hope from a psychological perspective!

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Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 30/06/2026

This powerful documentary is being screened at #eadi2026. It's about the conditions of workers in cobalt mines in Congo. www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTkG...

youtube.com

Cobalt Rush

YouTube video by University of Bath

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EADI @eadi.bsky.social · 29/06/2026

#EADI2026 opening plenary “Security and Development” just started! Read more here www.eadi.org/eadi-events/...

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Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 29/06/2026

Wherever I am, I always take time to visit the botanic gardens! This time #Antwerp, in-between sessions at #eadi2026 Crossposted with @openvibe.social

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EADI @eadi.bsky.social · 17/06/2026

🌱 Transformation and grounds for hope: How can we rethink development amid climate crisis and global uncertainty? Join the #EADI2026 closing plenary at @iobua.bsky.social —new ways of living and producing, grounded in diverse knowledge systems. 👉 bit.ly/eadi-2026

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Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 28/06/2026

Looking forward to discussing urban biodiversity (and other things!) at the closing plenary of #EADI2026 in Antwerp. And to the conference itself—a very new experience for me as a cognitive neuroscientist! 🌎 ☘️ 🏙️ @eadi.bsky.social

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Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 18/06/2026

🚨 As of later this year, researchers at @rug.nl + all Dutch universities can publish free in Open Research Europe (#ORE), the publication platform from @erc.europa.eu and @cern.bsky.social. A serious move towards sane academic publishing. #openaccess #science #publishing www.rug.nl/library/news...

rug.nl

CERN lanceert dit jaar nieuw publicatieplatform Open Research Europe

CERN is onlangs geselecteerd om een nieuwe fase van Open Research Europe (ORE) te lanceren. Een speciaal financieringsconsortium, waaronder NWO, maakt dit...

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Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 16/06/2026

What a magnificent animal! A violet carpenter bee in the #Prague botanical gardens. A very large solitary #bee. This one was almost 3 cm long.

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Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 16/06/2026

Een Wereld Vol Denkers getipt door Bibliotheek Heerlen! #boeken #wetenschap #nonfictie #biologie #psychologie #AI bibliotheekheerlen.nl

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Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 05/06/2026

#Waarneming ontstaat wanneer de hersenen in aanraking komen met de buitenwereld. Elke denker geeft via waarneming op zijn of haar eigen manier betekenis aan de wereld. #EenWereldVolDenkers #biologie #psychologie #wetenschap

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Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 04/06/2026

Een Wereld Vol Denkers in de top 10 best verkochte #boeken (oké, *op* 10) van Boekhandel De Tribune in Maastricht. 😍 #wetenschap #literatuur #biologie #psychologie #AI

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Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 03/06/2026

A write-up in BCN magazine of a fun evening dedicated to fiction #writing and book making! Interested? 👉 suchwasnot.com #booksky #books

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Sebastiaan Mathôt @cogsci.nl · 28/05/2026

It's not impossible to use AI in ways that enhance creativity. But in practice very few people use it that way. www.nytimes.com/2026/05/27/o...

nytimes.com

Opinion | Writing Is Fundamental to How We Think - The New York Times

A.I. can be a crutch that hurts our ability to think creatively.

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