Yin lab (@HenryYin19) / X

Yin lab

2,044 posts

Yin lab

@HenryYin19

Student of the brain. Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience, Duke University

Duke University, Durham, NC

Joined October 2019

Yin lab
@HenryYin19
Nov 12, 2025
There was a meeting with Duke med school leadership and they allowed anonymous questions to be submitted by faculty. One question was, given all the budget cuts and layoffs why are there so many vice deans and what exactly do they do? Awkward. But apparently many faculty members
501K
Yin lab
@HenryYin19
Aug 7, 2022
I'm often asked to recommend neuroscience books for 1st year grad students or those with limited background in neuroscience. Here are a few books I know.
Yin lab
@HenryYin19
Jan 31, 2025
As a PI, most of my lab skills have deteriorated. I barely know how to do anything in the lab, but I'm pretty good at multi-factor authentication, paperwork, electronic signatures... I also tell myself that I'm good at thinking about the big picture, whatever that means.
200K
Yin lab
@HenryYin19
Feb 27, 2022
advice for grad students: ignore what your advisor tells to do once in a while. My own students should ignore this advice though.
Yin lab
@HenryYin19
Oct 21, 2021
I recently told lab members to ask me any question they wanted and many of their questions were about money. How much do assistant professors make? Difference between soft and hard money positions? etc. 1/5
Yin lab
@HenryYin19
Nov 8, 2022
Hate to admit this, but after over a decade as a PI, the only equipment in my lab that I still know how to operate comfortably is the microwave.
Yin lab
@HenryYin19
Aug 9, 2023
Surprisingly, many have been puzzled by how happy I appear to be--apparently unusual for a PI. Now I share my recipe for happiness: Don't worry about others scooping you, where you publish, how much funding you get. and get 8 hrs of sleep every night. Simple but demanding.
171K
Yin lab
@HenryYin19
Oct 24, 2024
The vocabulary of systems neuroscience may appear daunting to many. Here's a short dictionary of common terms. BTW if you use them in your papers and grants you will have greater success
110K
Yin lab
@HenryYin19
Feb 22, 2022
Advice for students of systems neuroscience: read old literature, learn new techniques
Yin lab
@HenryYin19
Jul 22, 2022
the 'big paper' in systems neuroscience has a certain formula: combination of latest techniques for recording and manipulating neural activity in different cell types, a few behavioral measures somehow related to reward, a lot of money. Real scientific question optional
Yin lab
@HenryYin19
Oct 8, 2025
I've been writing grants non-stop for ~40 days. While it's far from an enjoyable experience it forced me to examine a huge amount of our unpublished data carefully, and I actually learned a lot. I'm beginning to understand some things (though this understanding won't show up in
52K
Yin lab
@HenryYin19
May 17, 2022
Many neuroscientists are anal about measurements of neural signal but extremely sloppy with task designs and behavioral measures. But great signals combined with poor behavioral measures will yield garbage, often misleading garbage. don't ask me to elaborate.
Yin lab
@HenryYin19
Sep 23, 2023
Some are surprised that I don't require my lab members to read anything, even my publications. I think research is something you do, like playing musical instruments or sports. Requires many tries and many errors, and of course attention.
110K
Yin lab
@HenryYin19
Sep 6, 2021
1/4 With profound sadness I share the news that Ryan Hughes passed away suddenly last week. Ryan joined my lab as a graduate student in 2017 and graduated a few months ago.