X-rays were discovered in 1895, then people pointed them at everything: diseases, pregnancies, frogs... until the danger became obvious. Now we only use them carefully & safely for essential & brilliant purposes. I reckon we're at the 1899 stage for "AI": throw it at everything & claim no downsides.

Life on earth isn't just nice or cute or interesting... it's DOING things that are critical for the way our planet works. In my Gresham Lecture at 6pm today (free to watch), I'll be talking about the big picture of life on Earth & how an interconnected world works. www.gresham.ac.uk/whats-on/liv...

Life on earth isn't just nice or cute or interesting... it's DOING things that are critical for the way our planet works. In my Gresham Lecture at 6pm today (free to watch), I'll be talking about the big picture of life on Earth & how an interconnected world works. www.gresham.ac.uk/whats-on/liv...

A bit of Saturday dog physics... have you ever wondered why dogs are such messy drinkers? They're actually using quite a clever mechanism to overcome a fundamental difficulty. (And cats, to no-one's surprise are a bit tidier) Yay for the ingenious physics in the natural world! 🐕🐾

USA news in the past year has been dramatic, confusing, & very hard to keep up with. But will it have a huge effect on climate & environment, or is the world just working around the disruption? In this week’s Rare Earth, @tomheap.bsky.social & I find out. Listen now: www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...

This is in my lecture about design this pm, but it could usefully be applied to so much: “Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius — and a lot of courage — to move in the opposite direction.” - E.F. Schumacher, Small Is Beautiful

This is the number of scientific grants made by the US National Science Foundation in recent years. 2026 is... different. On Friday's Rare Earth, we'll be discussing the impact of US events on the climate/environment. How bad is it & will global progress just reshape itself, leaving the US out?

A fun fact, uncovered while preparing for my next Gresham Lecture (23rd March): "Whereas the size ratio of humans to the Great Pyramid of Giza is 1: 69 million, the ratio is 1: 5800 million for ants and in relation to the largest of their mounds." Go ants!

STILL seeing this at my local garden centre. Arrrgh! Peat needs to stay in the ground. It's an essential store of carbon, critical for biodiversity & under threat. Demand peat-free compost! And complain if you see peat on sale. The Royal Horticultural Society agrees: www.rhs.org.uk/advice/peat

The Trump administration has removed the chapter on climate change from the "Reference manual on scientific evidence", an essential handbook for judges as they weigh evidence in court. The response of the American Meteorological Society has just been published (below). And...[1/2]

On this week's Rare Earth (www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...), we're talking about Lakes, Lochs and Loughs. Do they force us to confront our bad habits because nature isn't washing the problem away? One of our guests @rachelsalvidge.bsky.social talks about the superbugs she found in Lough Neagh here:

Ever wondered why you can see underwater bubbles: invisible air in invisible water? It's because light bends slightly at the boundary between air & water, so light coming from behind the bubble is diverted away from your eye. The resulting dark line shows you the bubble must be there. Beautiful!

A new ocean research ship is a rare and exciting event, but today the Netherlands said an official hello to its brand new ship RV Anna Weber-van Bosse. 🌊🌊 80 metres long, 47 berths and with high sustainability ambitions. Hello Anna! www.nioz.nl/en/facilitie...

I learned about a brilliant project yesterday to support British Sign Language (BSL) users, creating new signs for scientific terms in chemistry, oceanography, data science & more. And they're fabulously descriptive. Do have a look and share! www.ssc.education.ed.ac.uk/BSL/index.ht...

At a women in STEM event today, someone bemoaned the lack of women doing computer science. At tea, a young women who had left the AI/tech world told me this: “it’s just full of men lying about how good they are & constantly competing”. Just maybe the problem is with tech culture & not the women… 🤔

Sadly, this is absolutely necessary and I welcome it for at least 2 reasons: Books are personal, about sharing experience & exploring ideas - if you’ve read my books, you’ve met me. And a human author is *accountable* for what they/we write: we take responsibility & influences/money are traceable.

Oil prices wouldn't be all over the news today if more of our economy was powered by local, secure renewable energy. This isn't an "energy crisis". It's a fossil fuel crisis. 44% of UK electricity came from renewables in 2025. More of that plus an electrified economy => no more oil shocks.

Some thoughts on why I think it's important to remember that the natural and physical world provide joy and curiosity, even though global geopolitics is very mean and horrible right now. Appreciating the world around us gives us joy & agency. Don't forget the bad, but hold on to the good too.

Should zoos still exist? In 2026, how do the arguments about research, conservation and education stack up? This week's Rare Earth was a proper tennis match of ideas, with a brilliant panel. If you fancy some stimulating debate this weekend, listen here: www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...

"So much climate damage comes from assuming that Earth is simple, that it is easy to control and that it will bend to our will. Standing up against those simplifying assumptions is fundamentally a humanist thing to do." From a recent interview I did... here's the rest: humanists.uk/2026/03/06/h...

Sharing a lesson I just learned... I have a Santander cycle membership in London, so I can hire bikes with a key. Someone who appeared to be very distressed was waiting at the station I returned a bike to, and duped me into hiring a bike for them. Of course they didn't return it. [1/n]

Well, look at that. My BBC documentary on the science of sound from years ago has just popped up on the BBC Earth Science channel. If you fancy some cool sound science in your day, here you go: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zp_u...

Climate change and sustainability is part of the context for every school subject, and the brilliant UCL Centre for Climate Change and Sustainability Education is continually creating new resources for teachers. Do share their fabulous new website with any teachers you know: climateeducation.org.uk

We know that AI tools "hallucinate" (they make stuff up, let's not sugar coat it), and that they are not good at being right. The idea of them being used for planning military operations might be the most frightening thing I've heard in a long time. www.theguardian.com/technology/2...

Rare Earth is back on air & today's programme was all about the OCEAN 🌊. What does the future of ocean exploration look like, and why does it matter? And we met a seal (name: "Seal-ia", see pic) modelling the latest in both ocean science & teacakes. Listen online here: www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...

London ppl... University College London is 200 this year & so we have a fabulous evening of science & creativity for you on May 6th. All the UCL-based usual suspects will be there (in the SAME event!), & more to be announced. Join us & bring your friends! www.bloomsburytheatre.com/event/2026/0...

The @cosmicshambles.com Forest of Science and Culture will be BACK at the Latitude festival this year, and we have a fabulous line-up already.🎉🎉🎉 It'll be bigger and even more exciting than last year. If you fancy immersion in some really interesting ideas, plus comedy & music, this is for you

We had a great discussion this lunchtime on the impact of the current US situation on ocean science. Here's the link we shared with some resources for those who want to keep up to date or get involved in taking action: #OSM26 🌊 Do share! cc @davidho.bsky.social @gmacgilchrist.bsky.social

Here with AGU President Brandon Jones just after he told me about the official Ocean Sciences Meeting tartan. It’s apparently got the date of the Challenger expedition woven into it. 🌊🌊 Impressed! #OSM26 www.tartanregister.gov.uk/tartanDetail...

If you’re at #OSM26 in Glasgow, I’m hosting this really important discussion this lunchtime, with fantastic panelists. We’ll discuss how current politics is impacting ocean science, what comes next, how to ensure a healthy future for science & scientists, and sources of hope. 🌊🌊🌊🌊. Do come along.

If you’re at #OSM26 in Glasgow, I’ve just signed lots of copies of Blue Machine that are now on sale in the shop at @glasgowscience.bsky.social 🌊🌊 Share the ocean love!

Yay sleeper trains! Glasgow, here I come. And if you need some ocean science in your Saturday, do come along to the Glasgow Science Centre to this lunchtime event plus a day of ocean exhibits: www.glasgowsciencecentre.org/whats-on/how...

My 4th Gresham Lecture starts at 6pm today (free to stream for everyone), and the topic is "The Ground We Stand On". I'll be talking about how the ground is about more than geology & why it matters. Of course, there's *rock* music playing as people come in. Link here: youtube.com/live/YDEAxWT...

On a audio-only call and there was a bit of a kerfuffle in the background. Explanation: his cat has worked out that the most effective way to get his attention is to press the chair lever that makes the seat sink towards the floor, which is my new favourite mental image. Is this a common cat trick?

Just been asked to moderate panels at a big event with a high ticket price. But "sorry, they cannot offer a fee" to the moderators who make it possible. I didn't say no because of the money for me, but because of the exploitative business model (similar to academic publishing). This needs to stop.

Until the 2010s, new tech seemed to be about enabling humans: ideas to celebrate. Now, with AI, synthetic biology etc, many techno-optimists are describing a dehumanised future that makes most of us pawns in someone else’s game. I think the first option is still there, but we have to make it so.

Glasgow! We have an ocean extravaganza for you next Saturday (Feb 21st) with a hands-on exhibition of all sorts of ocean science & robots, plus a lunchtime combo of talk+interactive session+short ocean films. Do join us! And do please spread the word 🌊 www.glasgowsciencecentre.org/whats-on/how...

You can't prove received wisdom wrong if you don't try... and you've got to give China credit for not being afraid to try. A step on the way to serious reduction of shipping emissions by 2050? Or an expensive experiment with niche coastal uses? Time will tell! maritime-executive.com/article/chin...

For those ocean scientists who are coming to Glasgow for OS2026 in a couple of weeks, I'm hosting this debate with *really* great panelists on the Monday, on a really important topic. Please spread the word - I can guarantee insight, ideas and at least some hope. Do join us! 🌊🌊🌊

Last night, I got properly "doored" for the first time. A car in the road to my right paused, and the rear left passenger threw open his door without looking, right into my path. I ended up on the floor, badly winded but ok. If you don't know what the "Dutch reach" is, NOW is the time to learn.

In the background here, behind me and @tomheap.bsky.social there's a gorilla, one of eight in the zoo we visited today. But is keeping captive animals justified by education/conservation/research, and what will the zoos of the future (if they exist) look like? Rare Earth will be investigating soon!

If you have ever doubted that water really *is* blue, here's a photo of a meltwater pond on a glacier in Greenland. The water is pure, and the white background makes the colour obvious. You need a lot of clean water to see it, but the true colour of water is an incredibly striking brilliant blue.

If you were writing an ocean book for children, what would you call it? Unfortunately, Fish and Ships is taken.

Glasgow, Norwich, London and people who like watching stuff online... I'm coming to a venue near you! On Thursday Feb 19th, I'll be giving my 4th Gresham lecture in London, all about solid land. Turn up in person or stream it online: www.gresham.ac.uk/whats-on/gro... [1/3]

In Johannesburg airport on the way home from fieldwork, had a nosy around the gift shop, and was thinking how unusually nice it was. And then I realised that *nothing* on sale was made of plastic. Cotton, metal, wood… SO much nicer and more human. More of this!

Elephants! What a lovely end to the working day. We collected our last hydrophone and made the last measurements upstream, and then on the way back SO MANY elephants had come down to the river to cool off. Do listen with the sound on - there's proper trumpetting. 🐘🐘🐘🐘

Today's science on the Botswana-Namibia border: We've been mapping out the river bed, measuring the water, and listening (underwater) to boats, hippos and many mysterious fish. And mythbusting the local assertion that some parts of this waterway are 40 metres deep. We are such spoilsports...

A good start to the working week! I'm in Botswana with two colleagues to measure underwater sound (both boat noise & animals) in the Chobe river. But before it all started, I did get a run in and found this warning sign. No elephants were seen on the run, but we did see one on the river bank yday.

Just learned about the charity @endsexisminschools.bsky.social who do research on the sexism that is apparently STILL a feature of the curriculum because so many schools choose to teach the same male-dominated books & history. The official lists have alternatives, but they don't get chosen. [1/2]

I'm just about to give my third Gresham College lecture - on the atmosphere - and you can watch it live here at 6pm: www.youtube.com/watch?v=43HS... All Gresham College lectures are freely available online (inc an archive of all past lectures) - do take a look!