Back into Cornwall, then.

Not sure about this lift tbh

On a flying visit to that London.

I see that my previous employer, Mich. State U., are seeking their 8th President in 10 years. After careful consideration I've decided not to apply for the job.

Being a non-driver in a remote part of Cornwall isn't always advantageous, but it does release you from certain social obligations.

Appropriate reading for this Bank Holiday Monday.

@bsbibotany.bsky.social The humble cuckoo flower (Cardamine pratensis), wet meadow, north Cornwall. #wildflowerhour

Sun’s out in Cornwall. A thought, please, for my neighbour, who’s cladding his house with slate this afternoon.

This is (literally and figuratively) very cool. Prokaryotes are smart.

Just noticed that BBC4 are repeating A Very Peculiar Practice next week klaxon. Last broadcast in 1986.

@bsbibotany.bsky.social The minty field balm (also known as ground-ivy) for #wildflowerhour

In other news my kettle has expired, so I'm reduced to boiling water on the stove, like some character in an Alan Sillitoe novel.

New RVW just dropped.

Postdoc position available to join my team in Turku, Finland to explore light-activated extracellular electron uptake in microorganisms. Application open until end of June, position starts August-when suitable for best candidate. Please share/apply ats.talentadore.com/apply/tutkij...

£147 for a ‘super off-peak return’ between Bodmin and Paddington at the end of the month. Needless to say the non-super offerings are considerably more expensive.

Larkin still good for a blurb, apparently.

Fascinating new @nature.com paper: a Pluto moment for biology. It introduces the concept of 'peptideins' - a new category for dark translated ORFs that produce detectable microprotein-like products with unknown biological roles.

Good evening. Turned out nice, then.

Come on then, let's see your top ten lieder.

Afternoon.

Not a bunch of characters you want to meet walking* home after a night out at the theatre. *swimming

Afternoon.

@bsbibotany.bsky.social Garlic mustard for tonight’s #wildflowerhour #cabbagechallenge. I suspect we’ll be seeing a lot of this tonight! (I have a soft spot for Crucifers; my first project as a grad student investigated the enzymology of Cruciferous cytochrome f).

The bespoke packaging from @nicholasroyle.bsky.social is very much part of the Nightjar Press experience. This evening’s reading sorted.

A very beautiful high resolution (2.44 Å) Arabidopsis PSII cryo EM structure from Messinger's group. Look at those water molecules!

As a scruffy gardener I’m particularly pleased with this corner of the orchard.

Grandpa Ginger, who has been with me for two years now. I think he’s an old farm cat who wanted a quieter life in retirement. I do wonder if somebody is missing him, though.

From Plant Sciences Part II to painting the road verges of Britain – in the latest of our alumni stories, award-winning botanical painter Nessie Ramm shares how her time at @cam.ac.uk inspired her art & community work. tinyurl.com/3ucac5eh @yourscambridge.bsky.social @cambridgebiosci.bsky.social

The bramley in fine form at the moment.

I'm old enough to remember when botany degrees were a thing (I did one for a year myself), so very pleased to see this.

Happy Easter!

The University of Greenwich have seen fit to renew my visiting fellowship for an additional three years, so hoorah for that (and to them). There'll be an extra fish finger for dinner tonight.

A glorious depiction of Heathy Hill (Bryher, Isles of Scilly) by Hester Berry, waiting for someone at @theharbourgallery.bsky.social. Unfortunately I lack the wall space (and funds!) for it, but we can all enjoy it here.

Very pleased to have been invited to write a science and nature column in the parish mag. No page charges and sympathetic referees, what's not to like?

I had to have one of the cats euthanised yesterday. He became very poorly very quickly. Just a matter of hours. He was 3 years old. A quiet day in the garden today; at least the sun is out.

Delighted to receive this hand-bound edition of J O Morgan’s ‘Pupa’. It’s a lovely thing. Thanks to @davidcollard.bsky.social for the tip off.

I have a joke about Maxwell's demon, but it violates the second law of thermodynamics.

I have a John Cage joke, but

@bsbibotany.bsky.social Blackthorn for the white flower #wildflowerhour challenge this week. North Cornwall. (Very similar to cherry plum, but the sepals aren’t reflexed in blackthorn).

This is cool. The Government is set to allow plug-in solar, low cost solar panels that families can buy at supermarkets and put on their balconies or outdoor space. "In Germany over a million have been sold, helping households with energy costs and reducing dependence on fossil fuels."

CB editions February newsletter - it's been a bad month - as archived on the blog: sonofabook.blogspot.com/2026/02/cbe-...

Morning.

I arrive home, and the village is awash with the sound of lawnmowers. Madness. Anyway, here’s Izzy.

See that ginkgo? I prepared plastocyanin from it in 1994. ANYWAY. Great job opportunity for someone.

New Editorial: "Celebrating photosynthesis" rdcu.be/e6oTm Photosynthesis is both an elegantly simple and dazzlingly complex process. The year 2026 marks anniversaries of the discoveries of both of these layers.

“You don’t seriously suggest that they’re talking when they make that rattling noise?”

Good to see the c6 story developing. My PhD supervisor, Derek Bendall, always had a soft spot for this cytochrome.

Fauré's Requiem from the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra & Choir on R3 right now. There'll be no work done here while this is on.

JOB ALERT! We are excited to announce that we are recruiting three new academics at lecturer level! Click the link below for more info on how to apply, and don’t forget to explore our research themes too! We look forward to receiving your applications! www.bristol.ac.uk/jobs/find/de...

Some fascinating associations here. I wouldn't necessarily have expected Norwegian Progressive Intellectuals, the British Wildlife and Birding Community, Everton Football Club Supporters, & Queer Leftist Artists and Shitposters to group together, but doubtless the world is a better place for it.