@nationalacademies.org thank you for having me! See you in March!

👋 Researchers at Gallaudet University and Northeastern University are seeking participants for a study of ASL learning. Our study will ask you to sign about a few different topics. Participation takes about 30 minutes, and you will be paid $15. Part 1/

What an honor to have gone from desperately seeking funding to having a NIH F31 and NAEd/Spencer Dissertation Fellowship two years later. I’m still in shock

The symposium on deaf children with cochlear implants linguistic development was refreshingly not negative! I finally don’t feel guilty about being deaf and appreciative of hearing technology (and weirdly excited about being able to get my CI after I defend?!) #SNL2025

Woohoo! I finally got a conference award ribbon! #SNL2025

Today I found … 👀 @orioles.com

Finding a Labubu is hard. Joining our study? Way easier! Help us understand spatial cognition + get paid for your time! Sign up here: bit.ly/f31_nav #Research #Cognition #PaidStudy

How does language shape the way we think about space? 🧠🦬 Take part in my Ph.D. study on spatial cognition & ASL. ~45 min online (US adults 18+), optional EEG in DC. $25/hour for your time! bit.ly/f31_nav #Neuroscience #ASL #ResearchStudy

Just spend ~16+ hours reworking my dissertation study setup (same tasks just different way to deliver them!) and I think the thing I’m most proud of is that I learned how to add screen reader capabilities to the online version of my behavioral tasks. Accessibility!

Can you travel through space & time?(cognitively, of course 😉) Join our study on language & navigation. Start online now; DC/NoVA/MD folks can add a short EEG visit later. Sign up: bit.ly/f31_nav #Deaf #ASL #PaidStudy #DC #EEG

Hobby collecting baseball cards is more stressful than: 1) Recruiting participants for my dissertation while managing a skull fracture 2) Labubu drops 3) Getting Eras tour tickets It only took 45 minutes of refreshing to get the Bob Ross collectors box. I have now survived several wars.

Just had one of those ‘what-if’ afternoons where a coffee, a Statcast spray chart, and a brain wired for spatial cognition collided. What if every ballpark had a signature landmark (think Home-Run Apple, Green Monster, or the new Camden LF wall) mapped into a player’s mind before they ever took BP?

As a present to myself after fracturing my skull I got a Labubu monster. I somehow ended up with a secret one after a random rest stop purchase!

Spatial cognition? Decision-making under pressure? Ball tracking? That’s Apollo’s job. I just run the models. (Yes, that’s a custom Mets jersey. No, I don’t have chill.) #Mets #MLB #NFL #DataNerds #SpatialCognition #Neuroscience

Paredes path to home was … WHY DID YOU MAKE THAT ARC. I am not a base runner or Astros fan but … that less less than optimal base running dude. Time to recalibrate those grid cells in his hippocampus #neuroscience #LGM

Big thanks to @jasonthemanson.bsky.social for our meeting and helping me think through practical applications of my work beyond traditional grant contexts. Excited to keep pushing forward! Baseball <— spatial cognition <—> NIH

Might run 10k simulations in The Show. Might work on my manuscript. Who knows! (I am doing both. Obviously.)

Just a spatial cognition girly with a dissertation about maps and ASL fluency… getting a reply from Sig Mejdal after asking about batting strategy. Not to be dramatic, but the assistant GM of the Orioles emailing back cognition just might be the highlight of my PhD. I’m fine. (Omg!)

Me: asks ChatGPT to check my writing and find the error in my latex ChatGPT: I will edit it! It will sound robotic! Me: I just wanted you to check my latex brackets… please. I am tired.

Geeking out over someone at @mets.com searching for me on LinkedIn. I need some fresh air. Some peanuts and cracker jacks maybe.

Ever think about how expertise actually changes the brain? I probably spend too much time think about this myself. My dissertation focuses on ASL fluency, spatial cognition, and EEG markers of neural adaptation—but honestly, the same principles apply to sports.

We categorize hitters by power & plate discipline, but what if we used cognition instead? Not all hitters see the game the same way. Some are pattern predictors, others rely on reaction speed, some use spatial navigation. Let's talk about a new way to evaluate hitters. (🧵)

My dissertation 🤝🏻 @jasonthemanson.bsky.social N2 is so cool (but I’m so fascinated with N2pc!) and frontal activity! How do I join you and do this work?!?!?! EEG meet baseball is my dream come true!

Whenever I need a short reprieve from working on my dissertation proposal I do spatial reasoning skill and player decision making in baseball analyses as a side project. I essentially move from one project on navigation to another and wonder why everything blends together. #PhDLife

Thrilled to join the 2025 SABR Analytics Conference (virtual) via MLB’s Diversity Pipeline! Excited for: 🔹 Minnesota Twins Club session (3/6) 🔹 SABR workshop (3/13) Grateful to MLB & Tyrone Brooks for growing my analytics expertise. #SABR2025 #BaseballAnalytics

Having strong Irish ancestry makes me incredibly nervous to share any tentative good news until it is concrete. I just want to share!

I have been single handedly trying to save Joann’s in between writing my manuscript and dissertation proposal and still…

I absolutely love research and it is devastating and stressful beyond compare knowing that day to day things I have worked incredibly hard for over the last 15 years are thought of as wasteful, unnecessary, and up for being cut.

The lump behind my ear (and ear pain & possible draining from ear & generally not feeling good for a few weeks now) vs the crushing guilt if I don’t go to campus and feeling like everyone thinks I’m making an excuse to do nothing.

I pinky promise I was trying to fix my dissertation EEG task but it somehow became “Can I make this a more fun navigation EEG task?” And now I have one that looks like a baseball field and measures navigational optimization @mets.com hire yourself a spatial cognitive neuroscience expert

After days debugging, my brain’s spatial map is finally aligned with my code. Mu rhythms, frontal coherence, and ASL insights? Check, check, and check! #SpatialCognition #AcademicWin #Neuroscience

Debugging gamepad integration has been my full-time dissertation nightmare. I’m now 99% sure my thesis is written in binary tears. #CodingFrustration #AcademicHumor

Writing my dissertation proposal feels like a horror story: my brain’s amygdala is in overdrive, my prefrontal cortex is MIA, and my references keep haunting me. Cortisol and anxiety rewires how you think, hopefully this doesn’t turn me into a PhD-shaped monster.

Grateful beyond words to those who’ve trusted me with questions, drafts, and big academic dreams. Your courage to reach out is amazing. It is an honor to champion your journey! To anyone navigating PhD applications: My inbox is open, and I’m cheering you on! Let’s keep lifting each other up.

Did you know that using ASL can strengthen visual-spatial skills? Signing recruits multiple brain regions, boosting spatial awareness. Maybe that’s why I can find my way through a maze of research papers without getting lost! #ASL #Neuroscience #SpatialCognition

Channeling my inner Tetris master while organizing the pantry. Who knew stacking cans could be so satisfying? #SpatialOrganization

Joann closing = neuroscience PhD crisis. How will I procrastinate my dissertation now? My crochet hook needs yarn! No Joann = no neuron plushies, no “p < 0.05” scarves, no dopamine from fabric sales. Guess I’ll need a new hobby…. Quantum physics seems promising?

I was asked to recreate a presentation I gave in class sever years ago entitled “Five Holes in the Fence: Swifties - Why they know everything about Taylor Swift and how they use it”. But this time I added the neuroscience of learning. Stay tuned to learn how #neuroscience meets #taylorswift.

Trying my hand at origami. Folding paper into intricate designs is a delightful exercise in spatial visualization. #CreativeHobbies #SpatialArt

In ASL, facial expressions are crucial for conveying meaning, engaging the brain’s emotional and motor circuits. It’s a reminder of how expressive our brains and bodies can be. Maybe that’s why my boyfriend’s exaggerated ‘I’m innocent’ face never convinces me. #ASL #Neuroscience

I pride myself on my spatial skills—mentally rotating objects and visualizing spaces with ease. My boyfriend, on the other hand, still struggles to fit Tupperware lids correctly. Guess we all have our strengths! #SpatialCognition #Neuroscience #EverydayChallenges

Crocheting a brain themed scarf while my goldendoodle side eyes me for not working on my dissertation stimuli. PhD life: where crafts and science collide. What’s your go-to stress hobby? #PhDLife

Hold onto your lab keys —your 2-year grant timeline (Hi fellow F31 awardees!) makes this comparison even more absurd. Let’s recalculate with *your* specifics (because precision matters in science, right?)

Can Data Science Predict NFL Games? Spoiler: Yes. Think predicting football is guesswork? Think again. Before Super Bowl LIX, my data model forecasted Eagles 40-18 vs Chiefs. Real score: 40-22. Only 4 points off in a 62-pt game (93.5% accuracy)! How? Let’s break down the science. 👇

Josh Allen’s MVP year proved how elite athletes use predictive coding—where the brain anticipates movement before it happens. That same system lets batters react to fastballs in under 150ms. Football gave us precision passes—now let’s see if the Mets can predict pitches just as well. #Neuroscience

Ran the numbers last week. Today? Super Bowl predictions looking pretty spot on. 📊🏈 If you’re hiring sports data engineers, let’s talk—I bring predictive modeling, Python/R, and the ability to forecast outcomes with uncanny accuracy. #SportsAnalytics #DataEngineering #HireMe

The NFL’s pre-game extravaganza has my brain’s pattern recognition circuits working overtime. No explicit Taylor Swift nods, but the over-the-top pageantry screams “appealing to the Swiftie demographic.” My neurons aren’t fooled.

This Super Bowl, I’m not here for the Chiefs or Eagles—I’m here for Saquon Barkley’s hypothetical MVP energy. 🏈💥 While we wait for his moment, let’s talk ASL, brains, and why spatial cognition is the real game-changer. #SuperBowl #SaquonBarkley #Neuroscience

Your hippocampus has grid cells that map spaces like a GPS… which is why the Bills’ path to the Super Bowl feels like a toddler scribbled on their neural roadmap. ASL users? Their grids are precision mode. Let’s chat about why spatial cognition > KC’s playbook. #SuperBowl #Neuroscience #BillsMafia

Dopamine? Oxytocin? Serotonin? Whatever the best neurochemical cocktail is, watching the Puppy Bowl with my mini bernedoodle just maxed it out.