Anna J Finley, PhD

Happy to share this tenure-track job ad for a social/personality psychologist at Texas A&M. It's a great department. Apply today!
apply.interfolio.com/178880

There *are* legitimate use cases for this kind of stuff! Simulation studies! Synthetic data for a preregistered analysis plan prior to an actual study!

But this isn't being marketed as that. It's advertised as a cheaper, faster alternative to humans. Temu we-have-results-at-home survey results.

This might be my favorite so far!

Which is easy to overlook given all the chaos happening today…

A job I love, but ultimately “just” a job. I feel lucky to be in a department that embodies this, with very successful colleagues who do what they love AND have lives outside of work.

My Neighbor Totoro stroboscope YouTube video by smokeyrodgers

Uniting your December theme of 3D zoetropes and Studio Ghibli, behold the massive zoetrope at the Studio Ghibli Museum in Tokyo! m.youtube.com/watch?v=WC6k...

a pig wearing goggles and a scarf is flying a red plane Alt: Porko Rosso in a red plane giving a thumbs up

Or if that is too…much, then a Porko Rosso will suffice

a bunch of cartoon characters are flying in the air Alt: GIF of the Japanese raccoon dogs from Pompoko flying with their enlarged testicles

Cameron and I request a Pompoko snowflake.

If you use GMail, AI (Gemini) was turned on yesterday by default and now scans all of your content for machine learning. To turn off, go to Settings>General and scroll down. Uncheck the box for "Smart features."

There's other "Smart" add-ons as well, but that's the one that reads your content.

I read that ad and my head nearly exploded trying to fathom the example topics of research/expertise

We went just over 30 minutes outside of town, the pictures didn’t do it justice 🤩

Well ok ND! Absolutely stunning show tonight, pictures don’t do the explosion of reds and pinks overhead justice!

You sure it wasn’t the bars? 😅

You better be bringing those bad boys to the office tomorrow

AI Surrogates and illusions of generalizability in cognitive science Recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI) have generated enthusiasm for using AI simulations of human research participants to generate new know…

Can AI simulations of human research participants advance cognitive science? In @cp-trendscognsci.bsky.social, @lmesseri.bsky.social & I analyze this vision. We show how “AI Surrogates” entrench practices that limit the generalizability of cognitive science while aspiring to do the opposite. 1/

@clarsonsbrain.bsky.social underscoring the importance of context and lived experience in trauma - make that in all our research really. Presidential Address @therealspr.bsky.social

Genius

Oh great, a new way for excel to turn numbers into dates unasked

Casually dropping the job posting here, and happy to answer questions about NDSU and life in Fargo, @erinwestgate.bsky.social might say I’m an ”expert” now 😆 tinyurl.com/3sjknmxn

If you applied to North Dakota State Unjversity’s job in developmental psych, you too could eat your (delicious) way across Fargo!!!

(Downside: I’m told it gets cold here?)

Might even be cold enough turn on the heat!

🤣 we’ve got a hot tub to thaw you out in. And lots of extra blankets

Leaves are turning up here and looks like the high is projected to be in the 60s when you visit. Get ready for some Fargo fall! 🍂🎃☕️

We are HIRING! The Department of Psychology at NDSU is seeking a tenure-track Assistant Professor in Developmental Psychology (broadly defined) to begin August, 2026. Full details here: tinyurl.com/3sjknmxn
Questions can be directed to me.
Please share widely!

BREAKING: Scientists are staging a “science fair” in the lobby of a Congressional building to tell elected officials about the critical knowledge the US will lose because their research grants have been canceled.

My student's funding just got axed How the administration's attacks on science are hurting trainees

I posted this article about my student's grant cancellation this morning. A few minutes ago, I learned that another very talented student in my lab had their funding cancelled too. I'm heartbroken -- not just about my students, but the future of science.
darbysaxbe.substack.com/p/my-student...