The pattern

A few weeks in, noticed a tendency to be slightly performative around Somer specifically — when he stayed late, the instinct was to do the Bayesian methods working party work at a location nearby rather than somewhere hidden, so the effort would register with him rather than simply happen.

The real motive, on reflection

Not generic diligence-signalling. The actual intent was more specific: to make clear the extra hours weren’t office overtime, but the Bayesian work — something Somer already has a positive frame for, having encouraged it in the interview and signalled he values it. Sitting near him late was an attempt to borrow credibility from a narrative that already exists, rather than manufacture a new one from scratch.

Why it still didn’t hold up

• The distinction isn’t actually legible from proximity alone. He’d have to ask, or see the screen, to know it was Bayesian work rather than office work — which means the move only pays off if it provokes exactly the engagement the core guardrails already warn against manufacturing.
• A clean channel for this narrative already exists and doesn’t require physical proximity: he knows about the working party, he’ll ask again, and the standing rule is to be responsive then — not to engineer earlier exposure through where you happen to be sitting. Late-night proximity was a second, riskier channel for a message that already has a lower-risk one.
• The rationalization (“it’s not ingratiation, it’s making sure he knows it’s the legitimate thing”) is worth flagging as a pattern, not dismissing — it’s seductive precisely because it’s partly true. The ick showed up despite having a sympathetic-sounding reason, which is a stronger signal than an ick with no counter-argument at all.

The correction

Went with the bag-and-hide move: the extracurricular work now happens somewhere out of sight when Somer is around late, not near him. The bag and laptop stay at the desk, so the fact of still being in the office is visible without the work itself being staged. Presence is fine to be legible; arranging to be seen working is the part that was creeping into performance and has been cut.