One of the greatest deceptions of our time is the false narrative that we should be more concerned about a poor person misusing the welfare system or an immigrant being here illegally than we are about cruel people having unprecedented wealth and power over all of us.

“As the Trump administration continues to drastically defund and dismantle basic science in America, the United States is presenting other countries with opportunities to take the lead …” writes H. Holden Thorp in a new #ScienceEditorial. scim.ag/3ZYfA3U

Remarkable: Vulnerable House Republicans are quietly urging Trump to refocus deportations away from noncriminal migrants and only target criminals. With Trump admitted deportations hurt farmers, Rs know this is becoming a big problem for them. 1/ (link) newrepublic.com/article/196817…

The 17 fired members of ACIP, including me, have written an article in JAMA about our experience and our concerns. jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/…

🚨We are hiring an Engagement & Policy Manager at the Penn Center for Media, Technology & Democracy! 🚨 They will lead an event series, run an annual conference, manage research grants and write on the information ecosystem and its impact on society! wd1.myworkdaysite.com/en-US/recruiti…

Penn's Center for Media, Technology and Democracy is looking to hire an Engagement and Policy Manager. Great opportunity for someone wanting to help build this exciting new center! wd1.myworkdaysite.com/en-US/recruiti…

New post in which I reflect on media trends: – Legacy media is in rapid decline – The media environment of 2025 is very different from ten years ago – In some ways, the US media landscape now resembles Brazil more than the UK – X remains highly influential (1/2)

My latest for The New York Times -- please repost so your followers can see this for free. nytimes.com/interactive/20…

I just became president of a scientific society and my first act was to disagree with one of my heroes...Arie Kruglanski gave a keynote arguing social psychology needs MORE Big Beautiful Theories. I think that's exactly backwards. Here's why...

With record-breaking submissions and our most competitive, gender-balanced program on record, #IC2S2’25 has officially started! Please check the updated program and plan your day. #ic2s2

That’s a wrap on IC2S2’25! 🎉 Thank you for an unforgettable week of ideas and discussions. Congratulations to our award winners, and safe travels home. Mark your calendars: #ic2s2 ’ 26 heads to Burlington, Vermont, in the US. See you next year!

Adding my sincere thanks to the organizers for a fantastic conference! It was great to meet so many members of the CSS community this week and looking forward to seeing you again next year in Vermont!

Really important perspective. thehill.com/opinion/techno…

Network Science, and three of its avengers, featured in the latest Veritasium video (one of the largest youtube channels for Science education)!! youtu.be/CYlon2tvywA?si… Steven Strogatz Duncan Watts Albert-László Barabási

Very sensible proposal from Danielle Allen …chronicle-com.proxy.library.upenn.edu/article/trumps…

“Democracy,” said H.L. Mencken, “is the theory that the common people know what they want, and deserve to get it good and hard.” I apply this idea to the democratising character of social media and connect it to the rise of right-wing populism: conspicuouscognition.com/p/is-social-me…

Another entertaining and thought provoking piece from the always perceptive Dan Williams

Several months after a 60-pound pumpkin mysteriously appeared on October 8, 1997, on the peak of the 173-foot McGraw Tower, Lee Kass Ph.D. '75 was inspired to write a poem while conducting research in Kroch Library on Jan. 20, 1998. Exactly how the pumpkin was placed on top of

A fascinating and disturbing read nytimes.com/2025/10/24/opi…

New pod: MICHAEL LEWIS ON HOW THE GLOBAL FINANCIAL CRISIS EXPLAINS THE 2020s FEAT.: - how the GFC launched crypto, the new right, the anti-institutional wave, a new flavor of political anger, and Trump - why the principles of Moneyball conquered sports and entertainment, and