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Dylan Connor

@lifechances.bsky.social
290 followers 313 following 44 posts

Computational Social Science | Professor, ASU Geography | CASBS Fellow 24-25, Stanford 🇮🇪 profconnor.github.io x.com/Life__chances

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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
How do our changing cities dictate our ability to build wealth and live enriching lives? At ASU, The Life Chances Lab uses big data & GeoAI to build the infrastructure to study how places shape opportunity over the life course. See our new website: lnkd.in/dnyj5K58
lnkd.in
LinkedIn
This link will take you to a page that’s not on LinkedIn
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
New paper out with @socialpixel.bsky.social linking urban expansion to electoral politics through satellite imagery. Check it out!
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 17/03/2026
Not sure how to celebrate St Patricks Day? ☘️ Listen to my @rtebrainstorm.bsky.social podcast on Irish baby names: www.rte.ie/brainstorm/2...
rte.ie
Where have all the Patricks gone? The rise and fall of a name
The Patricks of Ireland have left a formidable mark, but new parents appear to have moved away from using that name
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 13/03/2026
Where have all the Patrick's gone?
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 27/02/2026
'A good theory is a Picasso painting. Empirical work is more like fixing a tractor - you just need the stupid thing to run.' My podcast with the great labor economist and Nobel Prize laureate David Card is out! Playing from 20:50 open.spotify.com/episode/4nui... @casbsstanford.bsky.social
open.spotify.com
David Card: Behind the Nobel
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Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, Stanford @casbsstanford.bsky.social · 26/02/2026
🎙️ NEW CASBS PODCAST EPISODE 1996-97 CASBS fellow David Card chats w/2024-25 fellow @dyligent.bsky.social on the innovative empirical work on the labor market effects of immigration, minimum wages & education that earned Card the Nobel Prize in economics in 2021 🎧 casbs.stanford.edu/podcast#davi...
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 11/11/2025
Congrats to @garimajain.bsky.social on defending her dissertation on the aquaculture transformation in India! She integrates satellite data, field work & modeling to understand the who/how/where. Committee: Billie Turner, me, Hallie Eakin, @amyfrazier.bsky.social #PhDDefense #Geography
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 04/11/2025
7/7 Link to GEOWEALTH-US data: openicpsr.org/openicpsr/pr...
openicpsr.org
GEOWEALTH-US: Spatial wealth inequality data for the United States, 1960-2020
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 04/11/2025
6/7 This was a big team effort leveraging the new GEOWEALTH-US dataset. Huge thanks to my co-author team & institutions @tkemeny.bsky.social. Special shout out to the team at @ipums.bsky.social and @umnlifecourse.bsky.social for their fantastic work + support of our project.
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 04/11/2025
5/7 The policy takeaway is clear: Place-based investment and wealth building is a powerful public health tool. Our simulation shows that reducing wealth gaps between communities could prevent tens of thousands of cases of cognitive impairment. #policy
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 04/11/2025
4/7 Crucially, the protective effect of community wealth is largest for non-white, non-college-educated, and low-income Americans. This is a story of #HealthEquity.
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 04/11/2025
3/7 How? We argue for the importance of public goods. Wealthier places can invest more in the likes of parks, libraries, safety, sanitation & healthcare—the very things that support brain health. It’s not just about what you own; it's about what your community can provide for everyone.
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 04/11/2025
2/7 The effect size is substantial. A 1-SD increase in local wealth = a 6.7% drop in cognitive impairment risk. In the poorest 10% of communities, risk is 80% higher than in the wealthiest. Wealth matters more than income. Community wealth matters beyond your personal wealth.
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 04/11/2025
1/7 New research: The wealth of your neighbors may protect your brain. Our new WP finds that higher community wealth is linked to a significantly lower risk of cognitive decline in older adults in the USA Link: osf.io/preprints/so... #aging #HealthEquity #geography
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Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, Stanford @casbsstanford.bsky.social · 05/10/2025
We're sad to learn of the passing of 1987-88 CASBS fellow David Berliner, a renowned educational psychologist & public intellectual who influenced generations of scholars ASU obit: news.asu.edu/20251002-art... Berliner's CASBS work: casbs.stanford.edu/people/david...
news.asu.edu
Remembering David C. Berliner: Scholar, gadfly, mentor and defender of public education | ASU News
Two bored 18-year-olds walk into a bar.That is, in fact, almost how the career trajectory of one of the most influential and admired education scholars in America began.Not long after he turned 18, Da...
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 05/09/2025
Interviewed by RTE on the past and future trajectory of Irish baby names! Check it out: www.rte.ie/brainstorm/2... Thanks to @rtebrainstorm.bsky.social @casbsstanford.bsky.social
rte.ie
Where have all the Patricks gone?
The Patricks of Ireland have left a formidable mark, but new parents appear to have moved away from using that name
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 22/07/2025
Super news! Honored to win the annual Editors' Choice Award at the Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and Society for our paper "Who gets left behind by left behind places?" @cjres.bsky.social @casbsstanford.bsky.social @tkemeny.bsky.social
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 07/07/2025
My PhD students Yilei Yu and Alex Cliff have defended their dissertations, producing outstanding research at the intersection of spatial data science and flooding! Thanks to committee members @sarameerow.bsky.social (co-advised Alex), Melanie Gall, and Aaron Flores. #PhD #SpatialDataScience
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Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, Stanford @casbsstanford.bsky.social · 26/06/2025
In addition to hosting 1996-97 CASBS fellow & Nobel Prize winner David Card on the CASBS podcast recently (we'll publish the episode in the fall), we took David to the study he occupied during his fellowship - now occupied by his podcast conversation partner, Dylan Connor 📷: @dyligent.bsky.social
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 19/06/2025
A conversation with Nobel Prize-winning economist David Card for the Human Centered podcast. Coming later this year.. @casbsstanford.bsky.social
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 19/06/2025
A conversation with Nobel Prize-winning economist David Card for the Human Centered podcast. Coming later this year..
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Noam Gidron @noamgidron.bsky.social · 09/06/2025
An important piece from the @apsrjournal.bsky.social (by @devorahmanekin.bsky.social and @tmitts.bsky.social) to make sense of ongoing events: it matters not only which tactics are adopted by protesters but also who they are.
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 25/03/2025
The most important paper on democratic backsliding I've read this year
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 04/03/2025
This Thursday (March 6) I'll be speaking at the Department of City & Regional Planning at Berkeley about 𝗦𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 & 𝗥𝗮𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗪𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘁𝗵 𝗜𝗻𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗨𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀. Reach out if you'd like to attend.
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 26/02/2025
Many flood-prone buildings are not currently under the purview of FEMA. These buildings are more likely to be deficient in physical condition, poorly constructed, and underinsured - meaning that their residents can face v high costs due to flooding. Read more Yilei Yu's first paper!
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Jarrett Walker @humantransit.bsky.social · 20/02/2025
This study's title sounds like "US cities are bad because they foster inequality." But they find that the problem began in the mid-20th century, which happens to be when cities started planning for cars. So the problem isn't cities. The problem is cars. academic.oup.com/pnasnexus/ar...
academic.oup.com
Big cities fuel inequality within and across generations
Abstract. Urbanization has long fueled a dual narrative: cities are heralded as sources of economic dynamism and wealth creation yet criticized for fosteri
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Scott Galloway @profgalloway.com · 22/02/2025
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Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, Stanford @casbsstanford.bsky.social · 21/02/2025
Some sweet coverage of recent findings by CASBS fellow @dyligent.bsky.social & collaborators showing that major metropolitan areas have ceased functioning as effective springboards for social & financial mobility since the mid-20th century thedebrief.org/satellite-da...
thedebrief.org
Satellite Data Reveals Concerning Trend in Major Cities That Were Once a Gateway to Opportunity
Satellite data and city records suggest major metropolitan areas have ceased functioning as effective springboards for progress.
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RTÉ Brainstorm @rtebrainstorm.bsky.social · 14/02/2025
Where have all the Patricks gone? New #RTEBrainstorm podcast presented by @ellamcsweeney.bsky.social with @dyligent.bsky.social @arizonastateuni.bsky.social & @clodaghtait.bsky.social MIC Limerick - proudly supported by @researchireland.bsky.social www.rte.ie/brainstorm/2...
rte.ie
Where have all the Patricks gone?
The Patricks of Ireland have left a formidable mark, but new parents appear to have moved away from using that name
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Andrés Rodríguez-Pose @rodriguez-pose.bsky.social · 11/02/2025
Big cities once lifted generations out of poverty. Now, they entrench it. New research by @dyligent.bsky.social, @tkemeny.bsky.social et al. shows that since the mid-20th century, upward mobility has shifted to smaller towns. #Cities must reconnect growth with opportunity. doi.org/10.1093/pnas...
doi.org
Big cities fuel inequality within and across generations
Abstract. Urbanization has long fueled a dual narrative: cities are heralded as sources of economic dynamism and wealth creation yet criticized for fosteri
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Reposted by Dylan Connor
PNAS Nexus @pnasnexus.org · 10/02/2025
Combining remote sensing and administrative data, researchers reveal that since the mid-20th century, growing cities have ceased to be centers of upward social and economic mobility. In PNAS Nexus: academic.oup.com/pnasnexus/ar...
Maps of intergenerational mobility, early and late 20th century. Darker (blue) colors indicate childhood locations that are associated with higher income attainment among children from poorer backgrounds while lighter (yellow) colors show lower levels of upward income mobility.
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 05/02/2025
Thanks to IPUMS (@ipums.bsky.social), NHGIS, Opportunity Insights (@oppinsights.bsky.social), and the National Landcover Database for their wonderful commitment to open data and science, and to @casbsstanford.bsky.social & SGSUP for support. 8/8
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 05/02/2025
Read the full paper: academic.oup.com/pnasnexus/ar... Explore our wealth database: www.nature.com/articles/s41... 7/8
academic.oup.com
Big cities fuel inequality within and across generations
Abstract. Urbanization has long fueled a dual narrative: cities are heralded as sources of economic dynamism and wealth creation yet criticized for fosteri
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 05/02/2025
The most surprising part? This wasn't always true. Historical data shows urban areas once excelled at BOTH wealth creation AND social mobility. The mid-twentieth century marked a shift toward less inclusive urban development. 6/8
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 05/02/2025
The impact isn't uniform. These negative effects hit hardest in: • Low-income neighborhoods • Communities of color, creating a tale of two cities within metros 5/8
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 05/02/2025
Key finding: Big cities have become engines of inequality. While they generate wealth & high incomes, they're increasingly failing at providing opportunities for upward mobility. 4/8
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 05/02/2025
Our approach relies on a first-of-its-kind database combining: • Century of satellite-based image analysis • Population patterns • Economic indicators • Social mobility data to measure how city structure impacts opportunity 3/8
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 05/02/2025
Cities are celebrated as economic powerhouses - but at what social cost? We studied 100 years of data to understand how urban environments shape three key outcomes: • Wealth creation • Income generation • Economic mobility for poor children 2/8
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 05/02/2025
🚨 New Research: The American Dream is Dying in Big Cities Cities used to be ladders of opportunity for their residents. Not anymore. Our new paper shows smaller cities & towns now outperform major metros for kids born into poverty. academic.oup.com/pnasnexus/ar... 1/8
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Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, Stanford @casbsstanford.bsky.social · 25/01/2025
Early-life exposures in regions & communities produce disparities & influence intergenerational mobility, argues @dyligent.bsky.social. In his CASBS fellows seminar, he outlined an ambitious project that synthesizes knowledge & data to identify why, where & (historically) when places shape outcomes
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 16/01/2025
Learn all about our new work on the geography of wealth in Tom's Conversation piece!
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 16/01/2025
Before Devorah Manekin's excellent lecture on nonviolent resistance at @casbsstanford.bsky.social today! @noamgidron.bsky.social as sharp as ever..
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 29/12/2024
😂
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 28/12/2024
My article on baby naming is back on the RTE front page! @rte.ie www.rte.ie/brainstorm/2...
rte.ie
What Irish children's names reveal about us
The single strongest indicator that a couple had a large family was if they picked traditional and common names for their children
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 18/12/2024
Helps with the 'Ghosts in the study'
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 18/12/2024
Graduated my first PhD students in Geography! Dr Siqiao Xie is off to continue his excellent work as an NIH post-doc in spatial population health @cuboulder.bsky.social Siqiao defended his dissertation @casbsstanford.bsky.social @arizonastateuni.bsky.social
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 14/12/2024
Thanks for posting about our work @sweiwang.bsky.social !
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Stephanie Wang @sweiwang.bsky.social · 12/12/2024
It's always Datapalooza at @casbsstanford.bsky.social 1. @annowens.bsky.social has assembled "school segregation data for every state, county, metro area, commuting zone, geo school district, and local educational agency in the US since 1991." edopportunity.org/segregation/... #econsky
edopportunity.org
The Segregation Explorer
Use our interactive map to explore dimensions of segregation in America
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 07/12/2024
My bro before this weekend's cup clash www.fgr.co.uk/news/what-we...
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Dylan Connor @lifechances.bsky.social · 06/12/2024
@sweiwang.bsky.social did you think to run a social interaction experiment at CASBS?
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