One of the cruellest ironies of the climate crisis is that crucial parts of national policy will be de facto led by the financial sector, as mortgages and insurance become unavailable or unaffordable. www.irishtimes.com/business/202...

University of Ghana and Merian Institute of Advanced Studies in Africa (MIASA) had a special treat for the presenters at The “Ageing in Africa: Narratives, Human Rights, and Care”: a visit with the Graceful Greyers, an Accra community group comprised of older people. A great privilege to meet them.

After some visa adventures, I am pleased to be presenting on “Technology, Ageing, and Care” this week at the conference, “Ageing in Africa: Narratives, Human Rights, and Care” hosted by the University of Ghana, Legon and supported by the Merian Institute of Advanced Studies in Africa (MIASA).

A good piece examining Weber’s slippery “enchantment” while keeping a firm eye on the dangerous politics driving the revolt against Modernity. Billionaires are buying a particular kind of Dark Age, one that makes politics impossible and reserves Science for the elite. www.nytimes.com/2026/05/17/o...

A contrast in authoritarian styles. Trump is a Mussolini revenant: theatrical, backwards-looking to an imagined golden age, allergic to bad news, blustering, and chaotic. Xi also hates bad news, but is cautious, textual, deliberate, strategic, and forward looking. www.nytimes.com/2026/05/13/o...

More on declining birth rates. Uncertainty, tho, is more call to research than explanation. One reason US struggles to know itself: per capita income (“average”) of $153k is used to make mysterious birth hesitancy. Median Individual Income ($45k) reduces the mystery. www.nytimes.com/2026/05/07/o...

Dr Litha Magingxa of the Agricultural Research Council, South Africa discusses Resilent Food Futures. A focus on how indigenous knowledge can be used to promote less-grown crops is an area of considerable promise. At the 14th Annual Africa-Europe Science and Innovation Platform. www.aerapscience.org

RIP Chuck Norris. An odd man w/ strange (some unpleasant) ideas, but he entertained audiences for decades with an acting range of a brick. Still, most of us have watched a film of his and been amused by a cartoonish fight scene or a silly plot. He had a good run. www.nytimes.com/2026/03/20/m...

It’s a great privilege (and of great professional interest) as an academic to see Convocations at other. Universities. I’m v pleased to be at the ceremony at Aga Khan University in Nairobi, with a delegation from Maynooth University. Students and staff are preparing for show time.

I am just boarding a domestic Kenyan flight from Malindi to Nairobi. As i entered by the rear door, I had a chance to look at the luggage loading procedure. I was pleased to see my checked bag in the truck patiently waiting its turn. I waved to it and wished it a good flight. 😊

The jungle in Qatar Airport brings to mind Trumbull’s amazing 1972 film, Silent Running. Although, for some reason, in this version, humanity decided to send a huge, shiny, soulless shopping mall into space, along with the plants.

One of the great privileges in a scholar’s life is the opportunity to share your research with colleagues at other universities. Vienna University Department of Anthropology are generous hosts and a v attentive audience. My sincere thanks for their hospitality and feedback. @maynoothuniversity.ie

The intellectual bankruptcy of racial nationalism is not new. “ Venal Moron” is signal not noise for Nazis. Hessy Levinsons Taft, Jewish Baby on Cover of Nazi Magazine, Dies at 91 www.nytimes.com/2026/01/09/w...

Vienna in a snowstorm.

NHS struggles, as foreign-born HCPs shun UK in aftermath of Brexit. This is an object lesson for how fast Far Right nativism can handicap a national institution. Skilled foreign labor is not easily replaced, and the people who suffer most r the most vulnerable. www.theguardian.com/society/2025...

The Anthropology Department and the Centre for Global Development are pleased to celebrate our recent research by launching books that have come out in the last few months. And celebrating the Holidays. @maynoothuniversity.ie

Another school shooting. This time at Brown University. There’s a grim inevitability reading about these atrocities, but the ubiquity of attacks in the US have created a new category of students: ones who were victims at earlier school shootings. Think about that… www.nytimes.com/live/2025/12...

I am not sure whether to be shocked at the theft or grudgingly admiring of the fact that some Irish farmers apparently still read Táin Bó Cúailnge less as myth and more as handbook. NOT something your see everyday. 🤷🏻‍♂️ www.irishtimes.com/crime-law/co...

At the opening of a new show “Seen” at the Lab Gallery by the incomparable Missy Brinkmeyer.

At the opening of a new show “Seen” at the Lab Gallery by the incomparable Missy Brinkmeyer.

Setting up the Anthropology Shop at the @maynoothuniversity.ie Open Day.

This wins today’s internet. The decision is final. Thank you for your attention to this matter.

An important story from NYT, 12 Hours in the Smoke, showing just how toxic the air is in a wildfire, and (as is too common in the USA) how little is being done to protect workers. It’s unconscionable to sacrifice lives for property, when risk mitigation exists. www.nytimes.com/interactive/...

In honor of the spooky season, I’m reposting a @rtebrainstorm.bsky.social piece I produced some years ago on how capitalism, crisis, and appetites can be found in a century of Western speculation about the relationships between the living and the undead. Happy Halloween. www.rte.ie/brainstorm/2...

I’m at DataFest Africa in Kampala, Uganda, the culmination of regional satellite sessions in Nairobi, Amara and other places, under the theme of “Reclaiming Data Futures.” Today, we discuss “Framing the Data Status Quo, Shifting the Lens.”@maynoothuniversity.ie @agakhanuniversity.bsky.social

Maynooth University (MU) has officially launched its new School of Nursing, marking a significant development for both the University and Irish healthcare. 👏👏 www.maynoothuniversity.ie/news-events/...

My colleague and I @chrisbrunsdon.bsky.social from @maynoothuniversity.ie are at DataFest Africa: Reclaiming Our Data Futures at Aga Khan University, Nairobi. Maynooth University is a proud sponsor of this event.

This is a very disappointing assessment of Irish waterways. We sit on what will be the gold of the 21stC — abundant clean water. The unsustainable agricultural and manufacturing abuse of Irish waterways has got to stop. www.irishtimes.com/environment/...

Norway outplays MangoMussolini. Nobel Peace Prize goes to a woman of color who is the steely-eyed opponent of a leader whom Trump despises and has built up as a strategic threat to the US. Genius. Live Updates: María Corina Machado Is Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize www.nytimes.com/live/2025/10...

📻Listen back: Sean Moncrieff's interview with Brian Pennie where he mentions his upcoming lecture in MU to mark the Department of Psychology's 25th anniversary. www.newstalk.com/podcasts/hig...

US isolation on Public Health matters deepens, as MAHA Wellness Rasputin delivers a nonsensical tirade against reproductive rights and sexual minorities, during what should be an evidence-based discussion of cutting into the Global Health burden of chronic disease. www.nytimes.com/2025/09/25/h...

Trump Is now supporting Cancer along with Putin. The cost of chronic disease in the US is set to plummet after the great die-off. I guarantee, though, that US Robber-Barons will continue to pay for science-based medicine, rather than its “functionalist” equivalent. www.nytimes.com/2025/09/14/m...

📻Listen back: Prof Peter Thorne from ICARUS was on @newstalkfm.bsky.social discussing soaring temperatures affecting mortality rates, and how can it be prevented from increasing. www.newstalk.com/podcasts/hig...

Check out our FREE Chapter Sampler AND 35% #SALE on selected #HealthStudies, #FertilityStudies & ALL #MedicalAnthropology books. Browse: bit.ly/4nzR2aZ @drrobinhadley1.bsky.social @almiddlemiss.bsky.social @evafiks.bsky.social @drtomori.bsky.social @jamie-saris.bsky.social @drsarahp.bsky.social

There’s nothing like a little literate Conrad Brunstrom in the morning. No one is better qualified to take u on excursions to the byways of 18thC literature than he is. 👍

It’s tough to describe the Irish Ploughing Championships to foreigners, but it’s basically the collective effervescence of Rural Ireland. It should really be marketed more heavily as a tourist draw, as, in my experience, there’s nothing quite like it anywhere else. www.irishtimes.com/ireland/2025...

Lifton was a rare psychiatrist with a keen sense of the social, esp how institutions, ideology, and subjectivity were all of a piece in authoritarianism. Atrocity is the child of moral certainty, and such certainty was rooted in institutional authority. RIP. www.nytimes.com/2025/09/11/o...

Maynooth University extends warm congratulations to product design graduate Zoë O’Sullivan, who has been named National Winner for Ireland at this year's prestigious James Dyson Award for her invention Lymphia. 👏👏👏 www.maynoothuniversity.ie/news-events/...

A real treat as part of the Alumni Lunch at @maynoothuniversity.ie: the National Science Museum is open. It houses a wealth of early scientific instruments, going back to the early 19thC. One of the hidden gems on campus.

Tide is out on Dar es Salaam Bay on a beautiful Sunday.

SARAH PALIN: "There are going to be death panels!" RFK JR: "Technically, it's just me."

Zuane’s has some of the best pizza in Dar es Salaam.

The gorgeous Tanzanite Bridge on a lovely morning in Dar es Salaam.

My last day at @agakhanuniversity.bsky.social Nairobi, discussing the alliance with @maynoothuniversity.ie. I am very grateful for all the time shared with (and consideration shown to) me, but I want to especially thank Sally and Pam of the Global Engagement Office.

Lily Lake in the Karura Forest in Nairobi. Hard to believe there’s a city of over 5.5 million right outside.

If Europeans (and folks from other rational societies) want to know WHY USA is unlike other places read about “Christian Influencer”, Jen Hatmaker. From Purity rings to marriage and divorce from a drunken pastor, u find a public religion poisoning persons and society. www.nytimes.com/2025/08/23/m...

Since I landed in Nairobi, I have been craving goat. Thankfully, a friend recommended kienyejis.com. Great meal. You can even get termites in season. 😁

Part 3 of International Cat Day! Today we celebrate our beloved Library Cat as well as shining a spotlight on all the cherished cats of our library staff!🐈‍⬛💕#InternationalCatDay #LibraryCats #MUlibrary

Folks like Gena Heraty make me proud of my adopted country. The courage and fortitude to stay in such a situation bc you are desperately needed gives me hope for humanity. May she be found safe and sound quickly. www.irishtimes.com/ireland/2025...

As a cat-owner, this rings very true to me. 😊