Alex Mendelsohn, PhD

@alexmendelsohn

Physicist who writes about the mental health system. Currently in long-term recovery from generalised anxiety disorder. Substack:

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Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· 2d

Footnotes from the Margins I love footnotes, so I'm sharing some of my favourites. While exploring what makes a threat credible, @paulbloomatyale.bsky.social explains the usefulness of irrationality, with caveats... smallpotatoes.paulbloom.net/p/empty-thre...

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· 7d

Footnotes from the Margins I love footnotes, so I'm sharing my favs. Back in 1958, an aviation incident reporting system was proposed but never implemented. It took nearly 20 years for an almost identical program to be introduced... psychiatricmultiverse.substack.com/p/fear

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· 9d

Footnotes from the Margins I love footnotes, so I'm sharing my favs Steve Hyman (writing in @awaisaftab.bsky.social Psychiatry at the Margins) introduces a delightfully succinct word describing a complex idea. www.psychiatrymargins.com/p/a-note-fro...

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· 18d

Underthinkers thought process: N/A Underthinkers output: "The footnote is good" Overthinkers thought process and Output: (Attached as image) #FootnotesFromTheMargins rawandferal.substack.com/p/linkedin-s... by Danielle

Slide numbered 4 reading: "This is only a good approach for overthinkers; SOME of you are underthinkers and need to be thinking more fr."

A humorous long-winded internal monologue titled "Overthinkers thought process" showing escalating overanalysis about writing a footnote that ultimately concludes with the simple output: "The footnote is good."

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· 21d

I love footnotes, so I’m sharing my favs While writing about moth's amazing antennae, I somehow ended up talking about smog filled exoplanets, and what that mean for our insatiable quest to discover alien life... #FootnotesFromTheMargins psychiatricmultiverse.substack.com/p/psyverse-1...

5 Interestingly, looking for smog in exoplanets has been proposed as a method for finding
extraterrestrial life.
By observing the light that passes through an exoplanet’s atmosphere as it transits across
the system’s star, we can see which wavelengths of this light have been absorbed. Called
Transmission Spectroscopy, different particles in the planet’s atmosphere will absorb
different wavelengths.
By looking at the amplitude of the absorption “dips” in intensity, it may be possible to pick
up “technosignatures” of other planets -_ basically pollutants like CFC’s. The idea being that
other intelligent life might also produce pollution which we could detect.
Whether it is possible to differentiate “alien-made” pollution from naturally occurring
processes remains up in the air (pun unintended).

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· 21d

Safety culture in medicine is not a modern phenomenon. This footnote contains an excerpt from a thesis written in the 1950s #FootnotesFromTheMargins psychiatricmultiverse.substack.com/p/surprising...

Reviewer comments noting a thesis referencing “Hospital X” and observing nurses’ intuitive development of a “supporting culture,” with a highlighted quote saying faculty feared students’ psychological trauma from errors, used an “Unusual Occurrence Form,” and destroyed reports at graduation.

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· 23d

From the world of the seahorse emoji... #FootnotesFromTheMargins www.argmin.net/p/the-object... by @beenwrekt.bsky.social

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· 25d

Death, Taxes and Procrastination. #FootnotesFromTheMargins www.woman-of-letters.com/p/liberties by @naokan.bsky.social

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· 28d

Margene Faddis truly was a nurse ahead of her time... #FootnotesFromTheMargins psychiatricmultiverse.substack.com/p/surprising...

Reproduced page showing a 1939 essay titled "A Plea to the Doctor" urging better nurse–doctor communication, criticizing unclear verbal or written medication orders and mixed measurement systems, and emphasizing patient welfare and clear instructions for administering drugs.

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· Jul 20

Only humans could build a system where it is safer to fly in a heavy tin can with wings, than roll around in a heavy tin can with wheels. #FootnotesFromTheMargins stephnakhleh.substack.com/p/a-love-aff... by Stephanie Nakhleh

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· Jul 18

Out of all the footnotes I have read on Substack, I think this one is my favourite. I also think Saunderisms should become a thing, e.g. "A footnote is a way for feet to feel included in notes" #FootnotesFromTheMargins www.the-hinternet.com/p/an-ai-scal... by @thehinternet.bsky.social

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· Jul 15

I love footnotes, so I’m sharing my favs To understand the history of aviation incident reporting, I had to learn aviation rules. I think it is safe to say that in the early 1950s, some rules were out of date... #FootnotesFromTheMargins psychiatricmultiverse.substack.com/p/when-plane...

2 The situation is a little more complicated than this, and I've found myself confused as to
what the actual procedures were at the time. The following is my current understanding (any
pilot readers out there, please do correct me)

There are two sets of rules pilots abide by when flying a plane. Visual Flight Rules (VFR) and
Instrument Flight Rules (IFR).

VFRis in place when there are Visual Meteorological Conditions (VMC). From the VMC
wiki, it is “defined by: visibility, cloud ceilings (for takeoffs and landings), and cloud
clearances.” Pilots are responsible for maintaining separation from other aircraft (see and be
seen) and terrestrial obstructions like mountains. Pilots can fly along any route they please
(within reason). I think this is mainly for general aviation nowadays.

IFR is in place when there are Instrument Meteorological Conditions (IMC). Where there is
poor weather or poor visibility (e.g. flying at night). Pilots fly through reference to aircraft
instruments and electronic signals (like radar). Flights must travel down predetermined
flight plans.

1 think “corridors” were introduced in the 1950s where aircraft must be under IFR between
(or above) certain altitudes, irrespective of the weather. Quite what the altitudes were and
the timelines seems a bit of a mess. But I think it ended up as over 18,000 feet. The problem
during the 1950s was that some aircraft, such as military, would be operating under VFR,
and civilian aircraft would be operating under IFR, with only a separation of 1000 ft between
these two corridors. The error in pilots altimeters during this time meant it was plausible a
military aircraft and a civilian aircraft altimeters could display very different values, but
both could be flying at the same altitude.

During the 1950s, there was a push towards more “positive control” or “positive separation”
of aircraft. This is where Air Traffic Control (ATC) has the location data of every flight.
Regardless of whether flights were under VFR or IFR, they would monitor every flight, and
ensure through communication with pilots that each maintained separation from cach
other. Within controlled airspace (e.g. near airports), this was achievable. However, the radar
coverage was insufficient for positive control of the entire country, and some planes did not
have radar transponders at that time. The US needed to build the long-range radar
infrastructure first.
Itwas all a bit of a mess, summed up by this quote from a pilot in the Gadsden Times on
April 25th 1958:
Man, we're using Wright brothers rules and regulations and airways for supersonic
planes.
Sources:
1. For 1950s definition of VFR, and altitude corridor details, see pg 22 of Legislative
History of the FAA Act
2. For inaccuracy of Altimeters: pg 1266 Review of FAA Act
3. For problems of radar and transponders for tracking in 1950s, see pg 375 Review of
FAA Act

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· Jul 15

In the 1950s, at the dawn of the jet age, safety practices weren't quite the same as they are today... #FootnotesFromTheMargins psychiatricmultiverse.substack.com/p/fear

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· Jul 13

@metacognishane.bsky.social in his article about pseudoscience communicators describes the core method of Michio Kaku, and the spam emailers who sent me emails as a PhD student. #FootnotesFromTheMargins bullshitology.substack.com/p/the-death-...

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· Jul 11

For someone with the powers of observation to discover the fallopian tubes, Fallopio sure didn't use those powers to understand how his own private parts worked #FootnotesFromTheMargins by Russell Sprout sproutstack.substack.com/p/does-james...

Historical note explaining Fallopio’s original condom idea: men were told to put chemically soaked condoms on after sex and leave them for hours; people later found wearing condoms during sex was more effective.

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· Jul 8

I love footnotes, so I’m sharing my favs. While arguing for more effective reporting systems, I borrow a quote from @carlmacrae.bsky.social, who vividly describes the current state of patient safety progress... #FootnotesfromtheMargins psychiatricmultiverse.substack.com/p/the-error-...

5 Some authors have argued that there have been success stories when it comes to healthcare reporting

systems, and patient safety overall. E.g. Pronovost et al. (2016)

But Carl Macrae (2025) perhaps sums up the state of patient safety best:
Despite enormous effort and considerable investment over the past several decades, frustrations are
rising at the limited progress that has been made. Even in healthcare systems that have developed a
significant strategic and policy focus on patient safety, such as England’s National Health Service
(NHS), major failures of care continue to occur with distressing regularity and large numbers of
patients are still harmed each year in patient safety incidents.

See Illingworth et al. (2022), Illingworth et al. (2023) & Panagioti et al. (2019) for the prevalence of patient

harm.

See Barach and Small (2000) for the relation of non-medical reporting systems to healthcare.

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· Jul 8

While arguing for inclusive patient safety reporting systems, I provide the following example to show how different healthcare interaction is from many other services... #FootnotesFromTheMargins psychiatricmultiverse.substack.com/p/the-error-...

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· Jul 6

In this piece, Amy Mrotek reflects on why authoritarians are drawn to Catholicism. Midway through, a footnote makes clear the Church isn't without controversy. #FootnotesFromTheMargins sillymagic8ball.substack.com/p/the-author... by Amy Mrotek

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· Jul 4

This is perhaps one of the most horrific ways to learn about other cultures. But, if we are to understand each other better, I am glad to have had this opportunity to learn. #FootnotesFromTheMargins by @cathyyoung63.bsky.social www.persuasion.community/p/in-britain...

Paragraph explaining that Sikhs must carry a small kirpan, usually worn under clothing; members of the Nihang may carry a second, larger blade—Digwa carried two knives and the larger, law‑exempt blade was the murder weapon.

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· Jul 1

James Bond is known for being a slick operator. Langhorne Bond, US FAA administrator, was not. #FootnotesFromTheMargins psychiatricmultiverse.substack.com/p/developmen...

Two excerpts from a congressional hearing transcript showing exchanges between congressional representatives and the FAA administrator about a 1974 TWA crash and NASA reporting, formatted as indented block quotes with teal left borders.

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· Jun 29

I'm usually a grinch when one word is used for two separate meanings in medicine – but the poetic, yet logical, simplicity of adjuvant has won me over. #FootnotesFromTheMargins by Abhishaike Mahajan www.owlposting.com/p/how-to-bui...

'Adjuvant' used two ways: an immunostimulatory chemical given with an antigen, and treatment after primary therapy to eliminate residual disease; from Latin adiuvāre "to help" — the chemical helps the antigen, the therapy helps the surgery.

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· Jun 27

Communication has never been one of Keir Starmer's strong points... #FootnotesFromTheMargins by @jamesomalley.co.uk takes.jamesomalley.co.uk/p/omg-ndl-wt...

Footnoted sentence saying the project is called a "kickstarter" but the author used "pilot" to avoid implying a politician is trying to crowdfund support for thousands of kids.

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· Jun 24

Can't talk! Gotta get to the footnote! #FootnotesFromTheMargins psychiatricmultiverse.substack.com/p/thin-line-...

Explains "plan continuation bias"—nicknamed "Get‑there‑itis"—where pilots stick to a flight plan despite warnings, and notes that in flight 946 the pilots instead changed the plan without telling ATC.

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· Jun 22

On some days, you stumble into interesting information that brightens up your day. On others, you stumble into interesting information that makes you realise we are all doomed. #FootnotesFromTheMargins by @jdickerson.bsky.social www.johndickerson.com/p/presidenti...

Text describing the continued-influence effect: misinformation continues to shape memory, inferences, and decision-making even after people acknowledge corrections, citing researchers Stephan Lewandowsky, Colleen Seifert, and John Cook.

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· Jun 20

Away from the limelight of the main text, footnotes are places where we can be refreshingly honest. I'm with you Ari - I wish I knew the history of science better too... (guest post in @eurydicelives.blogsky.venki.dev) #FootnotesFromTheMargins eurydicelives.substack.com/p/big-large-...

5 Iwish I knew the history of science more better. This is such
a bad example; I'm so ashamed...I only even thought of the
Foucault Pendulum because the Chicago Museum of Science
and Industry has one, and I found it so freaking cool when I
was younger.

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· Jun 18

Footnotes from the Margins I love footnotes so I'm sharing my favs @eurydicelives.blogsky.venki.dev couldn't find a place for this fact in her excellent article about the evolution of pain – but I for one am glad she included it in a footnote! eurydicelives.substack.com/p/evolutiona...

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· Jun 17

Back in the 1950s, near misses between aeroplanes were a significant problem. Quesada, head of the FAA, blamed the pilots. He didn't take the inevitable backlash well... #FootnotesFromTheMargins psychiatricmultiverse.substack.com/p/fear

8 Quesada, in his response, wrote an incredibly long letter. Well, more like a rant really (in my
opinion). It is the type of thing you write to your ex, which you know you really shouldn't,
but man, you have feelings you need to get out! Then, when you re-read the letter years later,
you feel embarrassed while thinking, “Why on earth did I write that?” Note: definitely not
something the author did...

Sayen, in a statement, called it “a sad letter”, accusing Quesada of missing the point of the
original reply:
The Administrator has completely missed the point of the safety problems raised by the
airline pilots. He has attempted to convey to the public that the airline pilot is
conducting himself irresponsibly by filing a complaint with the administrator. If Mr.
Quesada is to be so thin-skinned, he has rough days ahead.
During the FAA hearing, Senator Engle, in reference to a different letter, also had some
advice for Quesada:
I would like to suggest, General, that if you had been in public as long as some of us have,
a mean editorial now and then is in due course. You ought to expect it, and ought not to
be too thinskinned about it.

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· Jun 15

@awaisaftab.bsky.social sits between the critical and commendatory aspects of psychiatry, much to the annoyance of some of his new (ex-)subscribers... #FootnotesFromTheMargins www.psychiatrymargins.com/p/reflection...

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· Jun 13

While explaining the importance of emotional regulation, Rose Tyler is reminded of a line from a famous philosopher... #FootnotesFromTheMargins rosetyler.substack.com/p/unflappabi...

1 In preparing for this article, I was reminded of David Hume's famous line “Reason is,
and ought only to be, the slave of the passions,” which seems to contradict what I've
laid out here. To Hume, the “passions” are goal-generators; they motivate us, point
our compass in the right direction. To snuff them out would be a grave mistake.

I don’t disagree. Our emotions are vital and can signal very important things. What
I've tried to capture here is the futility of getting swept up in them. Losing control,
flying off the handle, slipping down to their mercy. More to come on the intrinsic
value of healthy, balanced emotion.

Alex Mendelsohn, PhD@alexmendelsohn· Jun 12

Yes! The mighty Canada has drawn against one of the world's football teams, Bosnia and Herzegovina. We looked really good right up to the point we had to shoot. Definitely going to win the world cup now #canada #worldcup