You know I was mostly wondering about lactose intolerance, but thanks Google for letting me know my biggest risk. I’ll keep an eye out for symptoms.

Every now and then, I dabble in Gen Z activities to see what all the hype is about. Here is a list of things that I have use that are certainly better than what I was doing before as a millenial:

Unfortunately, my nervous system cannot tell the difference between looking at article page proofs and being chased by a grizzly bear.

I promised myself that I would not read my teaching evaluations this semester for my 400-person course, but I did. Received 4.85/5 across all metrics and feeling quite proud. I still think that classes of this size should not exist, but it’s nice to see that students enjoyed the course.

Enshitification has become such a normal part of our lives that it’s hard to even notice it. Polyester fast fashion. Ads on every webpage. AI everything. Predatory publishers. Scam phone calls, texts, emails. Fees on every purchase. None of the fees benefit employees — you tip separately for that.

NEW — My first true foray into AI haterdom is about how those of us not convinced by AI’s inevitability are a real constituency worthy of a voice. Give it a read:

danah boyd recently argued that social media (as we knew it) is mostly dead; what we have now is parasocial media: journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/... I agree. Networked social media is disappearing, replaced by a new logic/structure of content creator, creator-centered community, & algorithm.

Marriage is amazing because sometimes you beat your husband in scrabble.

One of our good friends is pregnant, and my husband and I are doing Olympic levels of preparation to bring fun and helpful aunt/uncle energy to every situation. Please share any and all things that friends and family did while you were pregnant/new parents that helped you feel relaxed and happy.

Of all the harm this administration has done to US science, today's proposed changes to the way federal grants are awarded and administered is the most damaging yet. The text of the federal register document is impenetrably tedious by design, so here's an excellent summary of what it says.

I am generally not afraid of air travel, but I do believe that if I take my phone off airplane mode before the wheels of the plane touch the ground, the aircraft will immediately drop from the sky and kill us all. This post was written in my notes app and posted once we were safely on the ground.

I have bad news about what happens to a fetus if your murder a woman at the typical stage of pregnancy she would be getting an abortion...

A body of literature seemed suspicious to me, and I went to check the journals in which the research was published… the studies are published mostly in the same journal. All open access. Surely, nothing fishy about this… surely the best-selling book on the topic is grounded in sound evidence…

Lawsuits and investigations like this are ROUTINELY used to silence, shame, and cast doubt on the testimony of survivors. They can’t accuse her of defamation (which is, as I understand it, the most common way this happens), so perjury it is.

I was interviewed on a podcast about body image and sexuality — my favorite topic! This was a facilitated conversation between me (a “scientist”) and Heidi Sproull (a practitioner). We talk about all things embodiment, interoceptive awareness, and body image across populations (including men).

Oh wow, a special issue of a journal on a topic that fits my/my students’ research interests. What a great opportunity. Let me check — MANDATORY $3000 APC. This is becoming a weekly occurrence. It seems like special issues in open access journals are on the rise. It feels a bit predatory to me.

YAY! After many months of back and forth with the IRB, we just got approval to start our study about body image and sexual communication among couples in which one or more members grew up within Evangelical purity culture. Very excited to start recruitment soon!

Mamdani takes office and not even six months later the Knicks are going to the finals. Hardly a coincidence.

Academic publishing is, in many ways, irrevocably and irredeemably broken.

They did this in LA when they expanded the D Line 🎉

Between the Nova Knicks and the Chicago Pope, it’s a very exciting time to be returning to Villanova this fall \V/

Every summer I repost this article on how to spot drowning. Please read it and pass on. In the last few years I’ve had SIX messages from people who saved a kid’s life after clicking on the link from my feed. slate.com/technology/2...

Going on tour this summer! I’ll be near UIUC, UNC Charlotte, and in Philadelphia this June. Would love to grab coffee with folks in the area!

For folks who are not in SoCal, this is something that is actively happening: “There are only two ways the situation could possibly unfold… The tank could either fail and spill thousands of gallons of toxic chemicals, or it could explode... this is a ‘crisis situation’” abc7.com/amp/post/tan...

If we were honest in peer review...

Two R&Rs in 16 hours??? Feeling like a grown up today.

Folks who have done multinational data collection, did you use a survey research center (e.g., AIR, NORC, RAND, IPSOS)? What was your experience like?

We just got an R&R on a ~controversial~ but very timely and exciting paper in an “I can’t believe they didn’t desk reject this” journal, and I am over the moon!!! 🌙

How are people feeling about no-tech policies in university classrooms (with exceptions for documented accommodations)? I am familiar with the research in this area. But curious about what others are doing.

No 🫶

In academia, we don’t say, “I love you.” We say, “Let’s write a paper together.”

We just got approved to hire a teaching professor in Quantitative Methods! This is the *very* rare tenure track teaching position at Berkeley. I'll be chairing the search committee. Official job ad coming later this summer!

What’s that smell? It’s the smell of FRESH, NEW DATA on the pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum experiences of women in larger bodies — very excited to dig in and share the findings once we’ve got them!!

Stop making people move for contract positions that offer less than 2 years of job security and that pay less than 60K/year. It is disruptive to people’s lives, relationships, and financial stability.

Again, this Trump IRS thing is not a “settlement” or a “deal” or something with any legal basis at all. It’s pure corruption; colluding with his Acting AG to loot the Treasury; pay off his mob; and preemptively immunize himself and his heirs against investigation for fraud.

I was interviewed for Jimmy Kimmel Live! yesterday about my most embarrassing stories from college. More embarrassingly, I have very few because I was extremely boring in college. Not sure if they will air my segment (see: extremely boring), but it was very fun!

My brother is a fly fishing guide, and he fishes with Don Junior, too (this is unfortunately true). The idea that this alone could make him a candidate for a position like this is tripping me up.

GRADES POSTED. SUMMER.

ALL ASSIGNMENTS GRADED!!! FINAL EXAM WINDOW CLOSED!!! ENTERING FINAL GRADES!!!!!!!! FREEDOM!!!!!

Grant submitted with @ryanlinnbrown.bsky.social, @danmirea.bsky.social, and @steverathje.bsky.social!! Dream team!

Presently living through a proofing nightmare for someone with extreme anxiety about this stage of the process. Paper includes 7 tables with weighted data and supplementary material with 7 tables with unweighted data. Received my first page proofs with none of the tables included in the proof.

Today, the United States Supreme Court ordered that mifepristone remain available via telehealth and the mail while the Louisiana court case continues. ACOG will continue our efforts to protect patients’ access to evidence-based reproductive health care, which includes mifepristone.

Antidepressants in pregnancy do not raise children’s risk of autism or ADHD, study finds

SOMETHING GOOD HAPPENED www.nytimes.com/2026/05/14/u...

Everyone online is talking about 75 Hard for the summer. I’d like to propose 75 soft. Complete two 45-minute sessions doing something you love. Talk to a friend everyday. Eat something delicious at every meal. Get outside in the morning and evening. If you can! :)

My colleagues and I are launching a new study this week about weight-stigmatizing experiences during pregnancy and post-partum, and I am SO excited. Lots of planning. Lots of RQs. Qualitative and quantitative data incoming. A dream!

Men are using Meta AI glasses to secretly film women at beaches, shops, on the street & on nights out. They then post these clips online where they receive a barrage of misogynistic abuse. I’m campaigning to make this behaviour an offence. Women deserve to feel safe in public spaces.

I am visiting UNC Charlotte for a week in June. My days are packed, but I have a little free time and would be interested in meeting other academic folks in the area if time permits. Not sure if I have any colleagues or collaborators in NC :)

My colleagues often ask how I write so quickly. I dictate the first draft of everything that I write, from emails to literature reviews. This doesn’t work for everything, but when I’m starting something, talking through my ideas and having notes is very helpful for building on my initial thoughts.

One year ago, I quit my job with no plan for what I would do next. It was one of the most out-of-character things I have ever done, as a person who values security and achievement. However, I knew that I was unfulfilled, and I knew that I could be happier. The last year has been a wild ride.