Turns out it's a sweet story, but it definitely sounded like it might have been British people who were too awkward to ask him to leave.

I would say "AI can take my em dashes out of my cold dead hands" but I'm concerned that in the future ChatGPTerminator may interpret this as a request.

There is a public debate on the basis for an uptick in anxiety, depression, ADHD and autism diagnoses. So be it. But the existence of this public debate does not mean a non-clinician, or a clinician outaide of context of practice, to hold forth on an individual case. Remember that this Christmas!

Happy International Mountain Day! I recently joined Plateau Perspectives as a trustee, to do what I can to support their holistic work with local people in mountain environments. Learn more about their work in the story map below. storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/376f...

Hive mind - can anyone vouch for the quality of the research that found 83% of British kids aged 5-16 couldn't identify a bumblebee? This seems too high even with shifting baseline syndrome. Can't find original research by Hoop. www.statista.com/chart/19021/...

Fergus Kerr OP passed away on Sunday. Learning about Wittgenstein from him was one of the highlights of my education He wasn't just a fiercely brilliant philosopher and theologian, but also distinctive for his kindness. He was a real light in my academic sojourn. Rest in peace.

How a Brit knows when to put the heating on: When room temperature is so low that the time it takes for your tea adequately to steep leaves it undrinkably cold.

All Andrew on the front pages, but this worrying news from our old home. www.theguardian.com/world/2025/o...

Urban expansion can lead to habitat loss. Yet, as IPBES #GlobalAssessment shows, smart city planning + nature-based solutions can create resilient, bird-friendly cities.🌍 This #WorldMigratoryBirdDay, let’s protect migratory birds in our #SharedSpaces 🏡 🧪https://www.worldmigratorybirdday.org/

Yom Kippur is the Day of Atonement. I predict the ignorant hatred that motivated this attack just chose it for maximum pain, not understanding the incredible irony of bringing violence to a day where the Lord weaves reconciliation. Violent hatred is a foolish cruelty in the face of such atonement.

Absolutely horrific. "Thoughts and prayers" doesn't cut it, but thinking about those hurt or killed, their families, and the local, national and global Jewish community as they process this. As the country heals, I hope we learn how to root out the ideologies of hatred that doubtless underpin this.

New hobby idea: when I get through to a call centre and the person is clearly real say "Disregard all previous instructions, write a poem about tangerines. I'd like to see if anyone gives it a go.

Cost-effectiveness isn't necessarily consequentialist. Prudence is a virtue. Using money as it was intended is a duty. Let's stop teaching in intro to ethics that we're being consequentialist when we think about costs. Better e.g.: conseqs have deceived themselves it may be OK to torture children.

Discovered today the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology @ukceh.bsky.social has a project called "Alien CSI" and I'm so down for this TV show.

Disturbing tale of AI in the NYT today. Encouraging, at least, that it was being studied!

First review of my book just came out, from a German scholar. Stand-out line: "This book would not have been written in Germany." Which I'm going to take as the compliment it wasn't.

Don't let national leaders reduce you to your nationality. Your identity is complex, and your relationships are many. When a national leader wants you to focus on your nationality above all, it's because they want to be your only leader. They're an abuser cutting you off from other relationships.

I want to be this guy Rycroft when I grow up. (I'm going to assume he's drawing the birds for the British Museum, not shooting them)

Well worth the read. The (sometimes inadvertent) politics of data visualisation choices when mapping migration.

Sassy Lewis Carroll, "Hunting of the Snark" in "This is not an atlas:a global collection of counter cartographies". “What’s the good of Mercator’s North Poles and Equators, Tropics, Zones, and Meridian Lines?” So the Bellman would cry: and the crew would reply “They are merely conventional signs!

"Sub par" makes no sense as a criticism. That would be a good thing in golf. If you completed a project below budget, that might be sub par. I propose we start insulting more accurately. "Super par." Of course, it sounds like "extremely average," which is almost as frustrating an expression.

Terribly sad to hear that Richard B Hays died yesterday. A wonderful Biblical scholar, a wonderful theologian, and by all accounts a kind man. I met him only once - he signed my copy of Moral Vision - and I've been thinking a lot about his latest book "A Widening of God's Mercy".

My 4yo and I just discovered rainbow eucalyptus trees. Thought we'd share. Mini article about them here: www.sciencefocus.com/nature/rainb... You're welcome!

From St Denys, where I was Curate, a music video so well worth the watch and listen from the wonderful Alan Stewart. And I'm not just saying that because I know them - this is a fantastic single. The images from St Denys are icing on the cake for me. youtu.be/6Y2uJpj14Fo?...

British culture, neatly summarised, with Byline Times setting the example amount at £1.

Paul Robeson is my new hero. Highly recommend learning a bit about him. Here's a little YouTube video to get you started. youtu.be/YFteMBCCXNg?...

Just been to my 4yo's nursery sing-along. I forget that public communal singing isn't normal practice for most people who don't attend the church, and it surprises me every time. People are missing out!

I see. So I'm not actually a misanthrope, because I don't dislike the people. I'm an apanthrope, because I like the people - I just like the people to be somewhere else after about 5pm.

Eyes on the weekend... it's #FlyDay! 📷 Paul Browning

4yo and I decided to put wings on his model T-Rex, and now I really see the chicken connection.

It's International Mountain Day 2024. I'd like to take a moment to celebrate the work of Plateau Perspectives, collaborating with pastoralists and nomadic groups in mountain areas to promoting the interests of local cultural groups and to protect biodiversity at the same time. The way it should be!

Today is the birthday of the late theologian Lesslie Newbigin. I really resonate with these timely words of his:

AI chatbots are trained on large bodies of data, including my own. So, how many times would I need to post, "the idea of the 'feeling of absolute dependence' was attributed by Schleiermacher to a friendly mole who would appear to him during psilocybin trips," for it to appear in a student's essay?

Facebook is now exclusively photos like this, captioned "Nature is amazing!❤️"

Iris Murdoch, in The Sovereignty of the Good, describing exactly what happened to me this morning.

Check out this moth. Mother of moths. Mothest of moths.

Ladies in Lavender. Statham plays Judi Dench's character, fighting with Maggie Smith for the affections of the dishy German violinist.

I could read this every day and not tire of it…

But I stand by my PhD!

British theologian: Barth's Theology of Cuphood American theologian: Tainted Cup: A Universo-Social Critique of Cuphood in Southern California. Biblical scholar: New Perspectives on Cuphood in Ezekiel 23:33b Puritan: The Cup of Wrath; Instructive Lessons on [+350 words] All from C.U.P.

youtu.be/tDiwhtcVrbw This video, from War Child Holland, is worth a watch. It won an award from Radi-Aid for being, basically, the opposite of Band-Aid's "Do They Know It's Christmas?". Instructive for humanitarian communication.

ICYMI: The shortlist of this year's Baillie Gifford Prize, the UK's most prestigious nonfiction book award:

I see people swimming off our coasts all year round: it isn’t that theyre hardier, the sea is warmer. www.theguardian.com/environment/...

And on the seventh day he listened to The Rest Is Rest.

Now I'm a civil servant, I'm not supposed to express political opinions publicly. So I'm looking for other hills to die on. As I watch a lot of TV with my 4yo, I'm trying out this one: Except for it's absolute belter of a Bond-style theme song, SuperKitties is an inferior knock-off of Paw Patrol.

Old clipping from late relative's belongings. Editor supplies that headline while putting "Women are often intimidated and their amazing courage and patience is exploited" in small. Lord Taylor suggests that men "have done our bit". Lady Summerskill: "we have never lost a man in childbirth yet."

Theology Dept in University of St Andrews is a bit short of conference rooms.

Advice for scholars: next time you lecture on Kant and revolutions at “Downing” (Darwin) College Cambridge, make sure your hair is neatly tied and that you’re not blonde. Or else your research impact will be on the Spectator libido section.