This autumn, I had the opportunity to attend the Cutting EEG Worldwide Summit for the first time. During the transition to my upcoming position, I had the privilege of visiting UGent, my future host university, which was one of the 20 Cutting Gardens featured in this impressive 2023 edition.
On the menu : MNE (python package) tutorial, introduction to Bayesian Hidden-Markov models (HMM <3) and many interesting methodological talks. I was particularly absorbed by Jelmer Borst and Gabriel Weindel’s latest work on HMM solutions. They adapted these models to decompose cognitive stages of single event-related potentials and developped a python-friendly package adapted to ERPs analyses. Their slides and package are available on their Github repository.
A month ago, the team and I were happy to welcome Rozelin Vurgun for her internship in the Moral and Social Brain lab! Rozelin is doing her Master at Kadir Has University (Turkey) and is currently doing an Erasmus internship as part of her training. In our lab, she is using EEG to measure moral conflict under social presence (so much time spent in the UGent basement :’) and in parallel is preparing a new study on surveillance effects (stay tuned for the results!).
PS. Don’t hesitate to contact us if you are interested in an internship in our team :)
A few days ago, my friend Yulong Huang, PhD at UGent came to me with this idea: What if we organised a scientific and social event in our department to share thoughts, results and ideas about research in social cognition ? 1, 2, 3, on Monday the invitation letter was sent to the department!
This is a slightly unusual post, that has been close to my heart for a long time.
As both a researcher and an internet user, data privacy and data storage have become increasingly crucial over the years. This concern is not only about protecting my own data (never forget: your online data are valuable), but also about ensuring the safety and confidentiality of research participants and collaborators.
There is no such world where you have ‘nothing to hide’, because our world is constantly changing, both culturally and politically. Spread the word.
Without commenting further on the current global situation, I simply wanted to share a few practical solutions that can help maintain at least some control over personal data.
⚠️ This list is of course non exhaustive as I am not an IT engineer and because everyone must consider which practices and tools are best for their own situation. My idea is to provide suggestions that might be useful or inspiring for your own setup. This post is a living document, intended to evolve over the years. Feedback and additional suggestions are very welcome
Communication Tools
🛡️ iPhone iMessage
One of the messaging services with very limited governmental access
Designed and controlled by Apple
Blocking iMessage would require blocking entire telecommunications systems, making it practically infeasible
🛡️ Email — Proton Mail
Strong focus on privacy and encryption
Allows the creation of temporary security keys when sending emails to non-Proton users (e.g., Gmail)
Example:
You send an email from Proton to a Gmail address
The recipient receives a secure link
The message is opened directly on Proton’s servers, not Google’s
🛡️ Instant Messaging
Olvid (Highly Recommended)
Unlike WhatsApp, Telegram, or Signal:
Each conversation establishes a direct link between users
No reliance on a centralized server nor cloud
Strong identity-based cryptography
Signal (Fallback Option)
Preferable to Meta-owned services
Important note:
Not linked to a phone number
Smaller ecosystem and better privacy guarantees than most mainstream alternatives
🛡️ Data Storage
Personal NAS (Network Attached Storage)
Strongly recommended for:
Personal file storage
Photos and videos
Secure file sharing
Advantages:
Full control over your data
No third-party cloud dependency
Can be set up in half a day
Final Thoughts
Privacy-respecting tools are not about paranoia, they are about responsibility, especially in research contexts. Small choices, when combined, can significantly reduce unnecessary data exposure.
This autumn, I had the opportunity to attend the Cutting EEG Worldwide Summit for the first time. During the transition to my upcoming position, I had the privilege of visiting UGent, my future host university, which was one of the 20 Cutting Gardens featured in this impressive 2023 edition.
A few days ago, my friend Yulong Huang, PhD at UGent came to me with this idea: What if we organised a scientific and social event in our department to share thoughts, results and ideas about research in social cognition ? 1, 2, 3, on Monday the invitation letter was sent to the department!