Andrew L. Hufton

Opinion is a flexible format at @cp-patterns.bsky.social and was chosen in this case, in part, because of the brevity and the broad societal relevance of the piece. Code and data supporting the piece are available here doi.org/10.5281/zeno...

Just jumping in here to make a clarifying point (I am the Editor-in-Chief of the journal that published this Opinion). This paper from Liang et al was peer-reviewed at the journal and does report original research.

If you’re going to write a tutorial paper describing a tool or method, it makes a world of difference showing the paper to someone unfamiliar with the tool and asking them to recreate the examples. Some of these papers can be really tricky to follow

Sharing a blog post from the #DukeNUS team about a talk I gave last month: www.duke-nus.edu.sg/newshub/our-...

It was great visit with some really engaging discussions. Thanks to @nliulab.bsky.social for the invitation!

I'm looking forward to attending #AAAI next week in Singapore!

For anyone that is interested in meeting-up and learning about Patterns or @cellpress.bsky.social, or just wants to chat about #openscience, please DM me. Glad give tips and early advice on potential submissions.

On the cover: The central brain in this image represents IoT-LLM, a framework for processing real-world sensor data with large language models, which is described by An et al. in this issue of Patterns. IoT-LLM provides a central reasoning core that connects and interprets heterogeneous sensor inputs grounded in the physical world such as electrocardiography, temperature, motion, camera images, and robotic system sensors. In the image, these data streams converge on the central model, highlighting how IoT-LLM performs retrieval-augmented fusion and structured reasoning across different data types. Systems like IoT-LLM are laying a foundation for future embodied robots operating in real-world environments. Image credit: An Tuo, Nanyang Technological University.

Our first issue of 2026 is now live!
www.cell.com/patterns/iss...

This month's cover image highlights a framework, IoT-LLM, for applying large language model driven reasoning to real-world sensor data www.cell.com/patterns/ful...

Text on image reads: Patterns, A Cell Press journal, Editors' Pick, Best of 2025, Explore the collection

Check out some of our best papers from 2025, as selected by the journal's editors info.cell.com/collection-r...

My tools for generating data citations and exploring journal citation distributions are running again. Thanks @dreamhost.bsky.social for supporting #Perl!

alhufton.com/tools/

Absract of the Patterns Perspective: "The carbon and water footprints of data centers and what this could mean for artificial intelligence"

"The carbon and water footprints of data centers and what it could mean for artificial intelligence" spkl.io/63320AiLLe

Alex de Vries-Gao, @digiconomist.bsky.social
@cp-patterns.bsky.social

Unbelievable. This would be a terrible blow to American science, writ large. It would decimate not only climate research, but also the kind of weather, wildfire, and disaster research that has underpinned half a century of progress in prediction, early warning, and increased resilience.

On the cover: The image, related to the work by Fernandez Bonet et al., shows a series of spatially coherent networks, explored with breadth-first search to differing depths. The emerging predictable scaling pattern revealed by the progression is indicative of geometric consistency, and this feature can be detected in networks as an indication of how “spatial” a network is. Image credit to Ian Hoffecker and David Fernandez Bonet.

Our December issue is live!
www.cell.com/patterns/iss...

On the cover this month is an image highlighting the work by David Fernandez Bonet and co-authors, which introduces a set of geometry-based metrics for assessing the quality of DNA barcode networks
www.cell.com/patterns/ful...

All our reviews are published open access, like all content at @cp-patterns.bsky.social. Our article processing charge (APC) is usually waived for invited reviews. Authors who want to submit but find our APC a barrier should contact us at patterns@cell.com. 9/n

Regarding length, we usually advise that reviews stay under 10,000 words and 150 references, but we are willing to make exceptions. See this survey of multilingual LLMs for an example of a longer, survey-style review paper published at the journal: www.cell.com/patterns/ful... 8/n

Authors are permitted to use tools to help automate paper selection. AI tools, when used at any stage in manuscript preparation, must be declared per Elsevier policies. Use of open source tools is encouraged (see e.g. the recent paper on ASReview 2.0 www.cell.com/patterns/ful...). 7/n

We generally do not consider systematic reviews, but we do make exceptions on a case-by-case basis for highly valuable survey papers. 6/n

The quality & novelty of the review are, of course, also crucial. We prefer reviews that synthesize and highlight the best works in a field, rather than just listing. See some tips on writing a great review from our colleagues at the Trends journals: www.elsevier.com/connect/six-... 5/n

Only a minority of submissions will be chosen for in-depth peer-review. We select for reviews that are on topics that we feel will be of broad interest to our readers and which are written by researchers with experience & authority on the topic. 4/n

Many reviews published at the journal are invited, but spontaneous submissions are welcome. Visit our information for authors page to learn more about submitting to the journal: www.cell.com/patterns/inf... 3/n

First, we are definitely glad to receive submissions of high-quality literature review papers! Past reviews published at the journal can be browsed here: www.cell.com/action/doSea... 2/n

I've received some questions recently about the kinds of literature reviews we consider at @cp-patterns.bsky.social. Given also changes at the CS section of arXiv (blog.arxiv.org/2025/10/31/a...), I thought it would be timely to share some tips on submitting review papers to the journal. 1/n

Is #AI overhyped? We asked five researchers, including three from @cp-patterns.bsky.social's Advisory Board. Here's what they thought:
www.cell.com/patterns/ful...

2️⃣
Researchers tested this idea using a large-scale controlled resume correspondence experiment.
SCARY Result: LLMs consistently preferred resumes written by themselves over human or rival model outputs — even when quality was the same. 2/n

Text presented over a blue and orange background reads: Patterns, a Cell Press journal. Call for papers: Reanalysis. Compelling and creative reanalyses of prior works of high importance and broad impact. August 1, 2026.

New call for submissions!

To help promote critical reassessment of prior work, we are now inviting submissions that present compelling and creative reanalyses.

Learn more: www.cell.com/patterns/spe...

Submit before August 1, 2026

#openscience #datascience

Reposting my 2024 #PeerReviewWeek editorial as it is particularly fitting to this year's theme, "Rethinking Peer Review in the AI Era": www.cell.com/patterns/ful...

The journal's cover image illustrates a futuristic city where all structures are interconnected to support the collective prosperity of the organism. At its center is a highly advanced building that receives comprehensive information from across the city and uses it to evaluate the city’s current status as a global entity, which arises from the interconnected components of such a complex network. Similarly, genes within cells function like dynamic circuits by continuously toggling on and off to generate stable patterns known as “attractors,” which influence and control the behaviour of living organisms. In this issue of Patterns, Rossini et al. present an innovative quantum computing approach that rapidly detects these stable genetic patterns—much like navigating a maze—by harnessing quantum mechanical properties. The integration of quantum computing with biology opens new pathways for better understanding the complexity of life. Image credit: Marietta Hamberger.

Our September issue is now live! www.cell.com/patterns/iss...

This month's awesome cover image highlights a paper from a team of researchers at @uniulm.bsky.social who present a #quantum algorithm for gene regulatory network discovery
www.cell.com/patterns/ful...

1/2 Bacteriophages are among Earth’s most diverse biological entities, but many resist genetic manipulation. This leaves much of their diversity unexplored and constrains efforts to discover new proteins and exploit their potential for biotechnology and therapeutic applications.

Are you an educator in a higher ed setting using generative AI in innovative ways in the classroom? We are currently seeking contributors for a short piece being developed at the journal on the topic. Please DM us if you would be interested in sharing your story.

In an editorial this month at @cp-patterns.bsky.social, I make a simple plea to our authors: cite what you read, and, please, please, read what you cite.

www.cell.com/patterns/ful...

Also, some stuff about #preprints

Our department is seeking applicants for an Assistant Professor position with a focus on affective science. Please apply and/or pass this along to anyone who might be interested! facultypositions.stanford.edu/en-us/job/49...

I‘m looking forward to visiting the Center for Advanced Systems Understanding (#CASUS) tomorrow in Görlitz!

I will be giving a talk to CASUS and other @hzdr.bsky.social researchers at 14:00. Details: www.casus.science?page_id=15608