New #Science of #Chess post up on Lichess - this time I'm writing about a recent study suggesting that examining success may be more important to improvement than examining failures OTB. Enjoy! #PsychSciSky #ChessSky

This week's Centennial Series movie at the Fargo Theatre is ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST! Check out @blaisebalas.bsky.social's essay about it at the High Plains Reader: hpr1.com/index.php/ar...

Damn - my local paper is just going straight for the spoiler in the headline. Sorry you had to find out this way kids! 🎅

Weekend reading: Just finished Patmeena Sabit's GOOD PEOPLE which I found very compelling. Written like a (good!) TV documentary, it presents all the ambiguity, accusation, and compounded tragedy that can result from different cultural perspectives on the same terrible event. #BookSky

SLUGGO’S BEATNIK THURSDAY

My lab's been doing a lot more work with kids' drawings and...yeah. You see stuff. 😆

Hey there #chess players - check out @emrich.bsky.social's study on visual imagery (and share widely!)

Still trying to understand why "become the premier AI institution in ND" would be a meaningful goal. My upper-division students need practice coming up with their own ideas and evaluating them. They need practice reading, writing, and applying quantitative tools. Boring perhaps, but still true.<1/2>

Excellent essay about RE-ANIMATOR for you #HorrorMovie fans out there! #HorrorWriters #FilmSky #MovieSky

A new Science of #Chess post over on my lichess blog! This time, I'm covering a paper that examines the statistical evidence for "change points" in human play related to the AI Chess Revolutions in the 90's and 2010's. Enjoy!

I guess monocular depth cues work on cats just fine. #visionscience

I still think it's remarkable that I can play #chess with people around the world whenever I feel like it & it's esp. cool when my opponent is from the Isle of Man and thus plays under the wildest flag on the planet.

First reaction: WUT. Second reaction: It's weird that I accepted a walking, talking 4-finger hand with a face on the palm in the first place.

If you've got a moment, go leave a comment on the video linked below to let me know which version of the Kanisza square looks strongest to you! youtube.com/shorts/NqXMH...

We are recruiting new students for our NSF-funded Bridge Program at University of Delaware this year. The positions are fully funded for 2 years and the summer bridging those years. To receive funding applicants must be residents of an NSF EPSCOR jurisdiction. Questions? email me [email protected]

Alright #visionscience team, this is a super short YT video I made to see if I can get people to weigh in on a simple illusion via the internetz - take a look and tell me what you think in the comments! youtube.com/shorts/NqXMH...

Hey there sensory #science friends: Anyone out there have some good resources for olfactory demos? Thanks in advance!

There are a million reasons you should read Tove Jansson's Moomin books, but the entirety of Comet in Moominland is one of the best ones!

On my way back from #VSS2026 and glad to have seen so much great #visionscience in just a few days. If you like hands-on perception demos and #scicomm content subscribe to my YT channel! It's esp. helpful if folks leave comments on videos they like so browse, watch, and say hi!

Some photographic evidence of my off-the-books #illusion demo at #VSS2026 last night! Lots of fun showing people some instant neon color spreading with highlighters and sharpies.

Alright #visionscience team: I am not on the official program for Demo Night at #VSS2026, but I have just returned from the Walgreen's with materials for an UNOFFICIAL demo. You can find me just outside the ballrooms tonight - stop by for some bonus visual phenomenology!

I don’t know what you’re doing tonight, but you could be watching two hours of Monsterpiece Theater.

You guys really need to go read this great essay about John Bellairs. I read and re-read all of his books countless times when I was in grade school (and beyond) and they're still exciting, scary, and very human. #HorrorSky #HorrorWriters #books #BookSky

I don't get to #VSS2026 until Saturday but I'm excited to see everyone! I'll be glad to see you at 33.465 to talk about #pareidolia in school-age kids, but I am ESPECIALLY excited for you to come see Emily Westrick at 56.350 so you can hear about our googly-eye study - Might be weird, but it's fun!

Can’t wait to see everyone at #VSS2026! We hope you can make it to our lab’s presentations! (see below) Come and visit us at the talks and posters, and make sure you come to our workshop about the community replication initiative re:vision. Low bar for entry! Details on the day of each presentation!

Son of Tomahawk: A forgotten masterpiece of American comics by Matt Seneca www.tcj.com/son-of-tomah...

Heard a segment on the radio this morning about baby names that are disappearing and now I want to write a short story called "The Last Gary."

More YT #scicomm videos for you, this time about the #science of #chess! I've been writing about this for a few years, but this is my first attempt at a short video on the topic. Enjoy! youtube.com/shorts/KVc58...

The kiddo has a new column out today in the High Plains Reader! This time, she's writing about Buster Keaton's THE GENERAL, which is the latest film in the Fargo Theatre's Centennial Classics series. hpr1.com/index.php/ar... #FilmSky #MovieSky

THE OCTOBER GIRL Book Two. May 26th. From me and @maverickogn.bsky.social.

I did get a bunch of work done this morning but the important thing is that there were little bunnies stuck in one of our dept window wells and so we had to organize a rescue. 🐇🐇🐇🐇

TIL why so many white objects glow under black light. There is a whole industry of taking things that are naturally yellowish, and making them appear white by adding compounds that convert UV to Blue. This whole time I thought it was something about white. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Optical...

Another YT short, this time examining whether or not my cat can see the Rotating Snakes Illusion: www.youtube.com/shorts/kJRsY...

Movie night at the Fargo Theatre and tonight's feature was THE THREE AMIGOS. I was really worried it wasn't going to hold up, but it's still completely ridiculous in the best way.

A quick YT short in which we see if my cat shows any indication of seeing illusory contours. #visionscience #psychSciSky Inspired by Gabriella Smith's 2021 "If I fits I sits" paper: www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

OK, I know it's 5/4 and all, but this is an excellent 🧵 about an Enterprise that I never knew about. I love the NCC-1701 (and 1701-D!) but this would have been an awe-inspiring ship to watch, too.

Grabbed this one right away at #FCBD! I was really little when the TV show debuted, but I can (and will) still sing the theme song at the drop of a hat. Gorgeous cover, great start to the story, and I'm excited to see where this goes. #comics #believeitornot

For the 2-year anniversary of her blog, the kiddo's got a new essay unpacking the relationship between @alexhirsh.bsky.social's GRAVITY FALLS & David Lynch's TWIN PEAKS. These are probably her favorite pieces of media, so she's got a LOT to tell you - check it out! #FilmSky #twinpeaks #gravityfalls

New Balas Lab preprint about our NSF-funded #face #pareidolia work with 5-12 y.o. kids and adults. In this study, we examined the tuning of pareidolia to horizontal vs. vertical structure. TL;DR - adults (but not kids) find more faces in horizontal noise vs. vertical. osf.io/preprints/ps...

Weekend reading: Just finished AUTOMATIC NOODLE by @annaleen.bsky.social & now I want nothing more than to try some Biang Biang noodles. This was a great read: Warm and comforting while working through trauma, impostor syndrome, and xenophobia via the best robot crew you could hope to work with.

Film you've watched more than six times with a gif. Hard mode: no Star Trek, Star Wars, LOTR, DC, Marvel, Disney, Pixar, Spielberg, Cameron, Wachowskis, or Ghibli

Just finished this one by @ianmortimer.bsky.social and really enjoyed it. I haven't read Chaucer since high school, but I may have to revisit The Canterbury Tales sometime soon. #BookSky

It's been quite a while, but I've got a new #chess post up over at Lichess! This time I'm talking about a recent paper that investigates whether or not the time players spend thinking about their next move actually reflects the value of spending more time on the position. Enjoy!

Classic movie night at the Fargo Theatre and our feature was NETWORK. The best parts of the movie (esp. Ned Beatty's amazing monologue!) are still wonderfully unhinged even if the last 20 minutes are a bit of a race to get the script out of the corner it's painted itself into.

This was a great event last night and the kiddo also got to meet Peter Stormare in a small group on Monday. He was so much fun during the Q&A and FARGO is still fantastic 30 years later. #MovieSky #FilmSky

The kiddo has a piece out today in our local indie paper about FARGO, which screens tonight (with special guest Peter Stormare) at the Fargo Theatre as part of their Centennial Classics series. Check it out! #movies #coenbrothers #FilmSky #movieSky

Another YT Short with an analog #visionscience demo - this time it's Akiyoshi Kitaoka's wiggly version of the Footsteps illusion! Lots of fun making the paper-and-tape version of this one look it's best (at least w/ my skill set) on camera. Enjoy! youtube.com/shorts/1af1r...

More #horrormovies writing from the kiddo! This time she's taking on the zombie lore established by the eternal classic NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD. Check it out (and subscribe to her newsletter!) for more excellent perspectives on #film and #popculture. 🧠🧟‍♂️🧟‍♀️

This is great! Incredible attention to detailing all kinds of neat optical distortions you'd get from a submerged POV. #visionscience

Kiddo's junior prom is tonight and today was also an open walkthrough for families to visit her elementary school before it's torn down this summer. The Horace-Mann library was a favorite spot for K-2nd grade Blaise, so we thought it was a fun place for some pre-dance photos! 💃📚