Parsing Science: The unpublished stories behind the world’s most compelling science, as told by the researchers themselves.

How much can you trust people's retelling of information the've read? In episode 95, Shiri Melumad from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business discusses her research showing that when – much like the children’s game “telephone” – news is repeatedly retold, it undergoes a stylistic transformation through which the original facts are increasingly replaced by opinions and interpretations, with a slant toward negativity. Her article “The dynamics of distortion: How successive summarization alters the retelling of news”, was published with Robert Meyer and Yoon Duk Kim, on January 7, 2021 in the Journal of Marketing Research.

Positively Negative - Shiri MelumadPositively Negative - Shiri MelumadPositively Negative - Shiri Melumad Positively Negative - Shiri MelumadPositively Negative - Shiri MelumadPositively Negative - Shiri Melumad {{svg_share_icon}}Click bottom of waveform to add your commentsSubscribe: iTunes | Google Podcasts | Google Play | Spotify | RSS jQuery(document).ready(function ($){var settings_ap7679 = { design_skin: "skin-wave" ,autoplay: "off",disable_volume:"default" ,loop:"off" ,cue: "on" ,embedded: "off" ,preload_method:"metadata" ,design_animateplaypause:"default" ,skinwave_dynamicwaves:"off" ,skinwave_enableSpectrum:"off" ,skinwave_enableReflect:"on",playfrom:"off",default_volume:"default",disable_scrub:"off",soundcloud_apikey:"" ,skinwave_comments_enable:"on",settings_php_handler:window.ajaxurl,skinwave_mode:"alternate",skinwave_wave_mode:"canvas",pcm_data_try_to_generate: "on","pcm_notice": "off","notice_no_media": "on",design_color_bg: "111111",design_color_highlight: "FF4C65",skinwave_wave_mode_canvas_waves_number: "3",skinwave_wave_mode_canvas_waves_padding: "1",skinwave_wave_mode_canvas_reflection_size: "0.25",skinwave_wave_mode_canvas_mode:"normal",preview_on_hover:"off",skinwave_comments_playerid:"7679",embed_code:""

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Websites and other resources

Shiri's website and Twitter

Shiri on Knowledge @ Wharton  

Vox article on Shiri's research into the effect space constraints have on what people share

News and Media

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Hosts / Producers

Doug Leigh & Ryan Watkins

How to Cite

Leigh, D., Watkins, R., & Melumad, S.. (2021). Parsing Science - Positively Negative. doi: 10.6084/m9.figshare.14207465

 

Music

What’s The Angle? by Shane Ivers

Transcript

Shiri Melumad: What is I think kind of scary is that, with each new retelling, it also becomes increasingly more opinionated and increasingly negative.

How much can you trust people's retelling of information the've read? In episode 95, Shiri Melumad discusses her research showing that when – much like the children’s game “telephone” – news is repeatedly retold, it undergoes a stylistic transformation through which the original facts are increasingly replaced by opinions and interpretations, with a slant toward negativity.

Why do mosquitoes prefer us over other animals? In episode 94, we talk with Zhilei Zhao and Lindy McBride from Princeton about their research into how mosquitoes that can carry dangerous diseases - such as Zika, dengue https://www.team-medic.com, West Nile virus and malaria - are able to track us down so quickly while ignoring other warm-blooded animals; an ability they’ve developed in just the past few thousand years. Their preprint manuscript  “Chemical signatures of human odour generate a unique neural code in the brain of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes,” was posted to BioRXiv with multiple other co-authors on November 2, 2020. 

How Mosquitoes Target Us - Zhilei Zhao & Lindy McBrideHow Mosquitoes Target Us - Zhilei Zhao & Lindy McBrideHow Mosquitoes Target Us - Zhilei Zhao & Lindy McBride How Mosquitoes Target Us - Zhilei Zhao & Lindy McBrideHow Mosquitoes Target Us - Zhilei Zhao & Lindy McBrideHow Mosquitoes Target Us - Zhilei Zhao & Lindy McBride {{svg_share_icon}}Click bottom of waveform to add your commentsSubscribe: iTunes | Google Podcasts | Google Play | Spotify | RSS jQuery(document).ready(function ($){var settings_ap7680 = { design_skin: "skin-wave" ,autoplay: "off",disable_volume:"default" ,loop:"off" ,cue: "on" ,embedded: "off" ,preload_method:"metadata" ,design_animateplaypause:"default" ,skinwave_dynamicwaves:"off" ,skinwave_enableSpectrum:"off" ,skinwave_enableReflect:"on",playfrom:"off",default_volume:"default",disable_scrub:"off",soundcloud_apikey:"" ,skinwave_comments_enable:"on",settings_php_handler:window.ajaxurl,skinwave_mode:"alternate",skinwave_wave_mode:"canvas",pcm_data_try_to_generate: "on","pcm_notice": "off","notice_no_media": "on",design_color_bg: "111111",design_color_highlight: "FF4C65",skinwave_wave_mode_canvas_waves_number: "3",skinwave_wave_mode_canvas_waves_padding: "1",skinwave_wave_mode_canvas_reflection_size: "0.25",skinwave_wave_mode_canvas_mode:"normal",preview_on_hover:"off",skinwave_comments_playerid:"7680",embed_code:""

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Websites and other resources

Zhilei's Twitter, website & Twitter thread on this research

Lindy's Twitter & lab website

Podcast interview with Lindy on Pew's Scientists at Work

Image gallery:

 

News and Media

CNN | Head Topics

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Clips available include ...

Full episode with available download

More coming soon

🔊 Access bonus content here.

Make a one-time or ongoing donation via PayPal.

Or support us for as little as $1 per month at Patreon. Cancel anytime.

We’re not a registered tax-exempt organization, so unfortunately gifts aren't tax deductible.

Hosts / Producers

Ryan Watkins & Doug Leigh

How to Cite

Watkins, R., Leigh, D., Zhao, Z., & McBride, L.. (2021). Parsing Science - How Mosquitoes Target Us. doi: 10.6084/m9.figshare.14110274 

 

Music

What’s The Angle? by Shane Ivers

In episode 94, we talk with Lindy McBride and Zhilei Zhao from Princeton about their research into how mosquitoes that can carry dangerous diseases such as Zika, dengue, West Nile virus and malaria are able to track us down so quickly while ignoring other warm-blooded animals.

What can a video game teach us about our epistemic philosophy? In episode 93, Luke Cuddy from Southwestern College’s philosophy program talks with us about the video game The Witness, which presents players with a multitude of increasingly sophisticated and frustrating puzzles that perhaps result from the theory of knowledge it reflects. His chapter "The Witness as Philosophy: How Knowledge Is Constructed," was published on July 21, 2020 in The Palgrave Handbook of Popular Culture as Philosophy.

Epistemic Puzzles in 'The Witness' - Luke CuddyEpistemic Puzzles in 'The Witness' - Luke CuddyEpistemic Puzzles in 'The Witness' - Luke Cuddy Epistemic Puzzles in 'The Witness' - Luke CuddyEpistemic Puzzles in 'The Witness' - Luke CuddyEpistemic Puzzles in 'The Witness' - Luke Cuddy {{svg_share_icon}}Click bottom of waveform to add your commentsSubscribe: iTunes | Google Podcasts | Google Play | Spotify | RSS jQuery(document).ready(function ($){var settings_ap7678 = { design_skin: "skin-wave" ,autoplay: "off",disable_volume:"default" ,loop:"off" ,cue: "on" ,embedded: "off" ,preload_method:"metadata" ,design_animateplaypause:"default" ,skinwave_dynamicwaves:"off" ,skinwave_enableSpectrum:"off" ,skinwave_enableReflect:"on",playfrom:"off",default_volume:"default",disable_scrub:"off",soundcloud_apikey:"" ,skinwave_comments_enable:"on",settings_php_handler:window.ajaxurl,skinwave_mode:"alternate",skinwave_wave_mode:"canvas",pcm_data_try_to_generate: "on","pcm_notice": "off","notice_no_media": "on",design_color_bg: "111111",design_color_highlight: "FF4C65",skinwave_wave_mode_canvas_waves_number: "3",skinwave_wave_mode_canvas_waves_padding: "1",skinwave_wave_mode_canvas_reflection_size: "0.25",skinwave_wave_mode_canvas_mode:"normal",preview_on_hover:"off",skinwave_comments_playerid:"7678",embed_code:""

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Websites and other resources

Luke's blog, YouTube channel, and Medium site

Luke's book Legend of Zelda and Philosophy

Jonathan Blow's blog

Adam Ruins Everything: Game Designer Jonathan Blow Unpacks ‘The Witness’

The Witness (official website)

In-game video of The Witness:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xzNh-hdceiU

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aevy5Mv_ImQ

 

Bonus Clips

Clips available include ...

Full episode with available download

More coming soon

🔊 Access bonus content here.

Make a one-time donation via PayPal.

Or support us for as little as $1 per month at Patreon. Cancel anytime.

We’re not a registered tax-exempt organization, so unfortunately gifts aren't tax deductible.

Hosts / Producers

Doug Leigh & Ryan Watkins

How to Cite

Leigh, D., Watkins, R., & Cuddy, L.. (2021). Parsing Science - Epistemic Puzzles in 'The Witness'.  10.6084/m9.figshare.13956419

 

Music

What’s The Angle? by Shane Ivers

Transcript

Coming soon.

In episode 93, Luke Cuddy from Southwestern College’s philosophy program talks about the video game 'The Witness,' which presents players with a multitude of increasingly sophisticated and frustrating puzzles that perhaps result from a theory of knowledge it reflects.

What effect did copying the U.S.'s legal system have on Colombia's incarceration system? In episode 92, Ángela Zorro Medina from the University of Chicago discussed her research into how transitioning to an adversarial model of criminal procedure – one controlled by the prosecutor and defense, rather than by the judge and court – impacted the number of inmates detained before their court trials. Her open-access preprint manuscript "The Failed War on Pre-Trial Detention: Evidence from a Quasi-Experimental Reform," was published to Social Science Research Network (SSRN) on Oct. 23, 2020.

Unintended Consequences of Legal Reforms - Ángela Zorro MedinaUnintended Consequences of Legal Reforms - Ángela Zorro MedinaUnintended Consequences of Legal Reforms - Ángela Zorro Medina Unintended Consequences of Legal Reforms - Ángela Zorro MedinaUnintended Consequences of Legal Reforms - Ángela Zorro MedinaUnintended Consequences of Legal Reforms - Ángela Zorro Medina {{svg_share_icon}}Click bottom of waveform to add your commentsSubscribe: iTunes | Google Podcasts | Google Play | Spotify | RSS jQuery(document).ready(function ($){var settings_ap7677 = { design_skin: "skin-wave" ,autoplay: "off",disable_volume:"default" ,loop:"off" ,cue: "on" ,embedded: "off" ,preload_method:"metadata" ,design_animateplaypause:"default" ,skinwave_dynamicwaves:"off" ,skinwave_enableSpectrum:"off" ,skinwave_enableReflect:"on",playfrom:"off",default_volume:"default",disable_scrub:"off",soundcloud_apikey:"" ,skinwave_comments_enable:"on",settings_php_handler:window.ajaxurl,skinwave_mode:"alternate",skinwave_wave_mode:"canvas",pcm_data_try_to_generate: "on","pcm_notice": "off","notice_no_media": "on",design_color_bg: "111111",design_color_highlight: "FF4C65",skinwave_wave_mode_canvas_waves_number: "3",skinwave_wave_mode_canvas_waves_padding: "1",skinwave_wave_mode_canvas_reflection_size: "0.25",skinwave_wave_mode_canvas_mode:"normal",preview_on_hover:"off",skinwave_comments_playerid:"7677",embed_code:""

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Websites and other resources

Ángela's website and on Twitter

Article highlights, Summary, Quick findings & Flashcards via Scholarcy

Select media and press

 

El Espectador (Spanish)| MSN (Spanish)

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Bonus Clips

Clips available include ...

Full episode with available download

More coming soon

🔊 Access bonus content here.

Make a one-time donation via PayPal.

Or support us for as little as $1 per month at Patreon. Cancel anytime.

We’re not a registered tax-exempt organization, so unfortunately gifts aren't tax deductible.

Hosts / Producers

Ryan Watkins & Doug Leigh

How to Cite

Watkins, R., Leigh, D., & Medina, A. Z.. (2021). Parsing Science - Unintended Consequences of Legal Reforms. doi: 10.6084/m9.figshare.13661042 

 

Music

What’s The Angle? by Shane Ivers

Transcript

What effect did copying the U.S.'s legal system have on Colombia's incarceration system? In episode 92, Ángela Zorro Medina discusses her research into how transitioning to an adversarial model of criminal procedure – one controlled by the prosecutor and defense, rather than by the judge and court – impacted the number of inmates detained before their court trials.

How are automated social media bots manipulating our political discourse? In episode 91, Emilio Ferrara from the University of Southern California discusses his research into bots' amplification of conspiracies theories across more than 240 million tweets regarding the 2020 U.S. presidential election. His open-access article "Characterizing social media manipulation in the 2020 U.S. presidential election,” was published in  with Herbert Chang, Emily Chen, Goran Muric, and Jaimin Patel in the University of Illinois at Chicago’s journal First Monday.

Bots' Meddling in the 2020 Presidential Election - Emilio FerraraBots' Meddling in the 2020 Presidential Election - Emilio FerraraBots' Meddling in the 2020 Presidential Election - Emilio Ferrara Bots' Meddling in the 2020 Presidential Election - Emilio FerraraBots' Meddling in the 2020 Presidential Election - Emilio FerraraBots' Meddling in the 2020 Presidential Election - Emilio Ferrara {{svg_share_icon}}Click bottom of waveform to add your commentsSubscribe: iTunes | Google Podcasts | Google Play | Spotify | RSS jQuery(document).ready(function ($){var settings_ap7675 = { design_skin: "skin-wave" ,autoplay: "off",disable_volume:"default" ,loop:"off" ,cue: "on" ,embedded: "off" ,preload_method:"metadata" ,design_animateplaypause:"default" ,skinwave_dynamicwaves:"off" ,skinwave_enableSpectrum:"off" ,skinwave_enableReflect:"on",playfrom:"off",default_volume:"default",disable_scrub:"off",soundcloud_apikey:"" ,skinwave_comments_enable:"on",settings_php_handler:window.ajaxurl,skinwave_mode:"alternate",skinwave_wave_mode:"canvas",pcm_data_try_to_generate: "on","pcm_notice": "off","notice_no_media": "on",design_color_bg: "111111",design_color_highlight: "FF4C65",skinwave_wave_mode_canvas_waves_number: "3",skinwave_wave_mode_canvas_waves_padding: "1",skinwave_wave_mode_canvas_reflection_size: "0.25",skinwave_wave_mode_canvas_mode:"normal",preview_on_hover:"off",skinwave_comments_playerid:"7675",embed_code:""

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Websites and other resources

Emilio's website and Twitter

MIT Technology Review article on Emilio's Botometer

Figure 12: Proportion of users using QAnon hashtags and mean botscore for each news outlet, dot size indicates relative number of tweets.

Indiana University's Hoaxy, a tool to visualize claims and fact-checking

Detecting social bots (2016):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0lyU7J3TalY

 

 

Select media and press

 

Nature | New York Times | USA Today | ScienMag | phys.org | Eurekalert | Defense One

 

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Bonus Clips

Clips available include ...

Full episode with available download

More coming soon

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Make a one-time donation via PayPal.

Or support us for as little as $1 per month at Patreon. Cancel anytime.

We’re not a registered tax-exempt organization,...

Are automated bots on social media having extraordinary influence on our political discourse? In episode 91, Emilio Ferrara from the University of Southern California discusses about his research into the prevalence of bots and the injection of conspiracies theories across more than 240 million tweets regarding the 2020 U.S. presidential election.