www.theguardian.com/environment/... #airpollution #woodsmoke

Does bonfire night impact indoor air quality. In my fairly well insulated but probably fairly leaky bungalow, the answer is yes. PM2.5 reached 50ug/m3 last night. They dropped back to <20 indoors overnight. The sensor is now outside at 40 ug/m3.

Well it's a banging tune isn't it but does John Lewis actually sell vinyl?

Leeds folk. Look outside. The sky has gone very Turneresque. Wow.

Proper bonfire gloom this morning. Of course the wood is wearing it well, because the wood wears everything well.

Still time to sign up for our free webinar for World Ventilate Day 2025. We’ll be introducing new research networks and discussing how to deliver better ventilation and IAQ for everyone. 7th Nov 12-1pm, sign up at www.eventbrite.com/e/world-vent...

After 4 hours of lectures this afternoon (including on carbon dioxide removal methods) I had a rather weary trudge back through the autumn tinted grave yard. A useful sign told me that this is a European Beech storing 2577 Kg of carbon. It seems an overly precise number but impressive nevertheless.

Phoah it's a beautiful evening.

More autumn beech vibes. Surprisingly clear after a night of bonfire and firework activity.

It is not true “England cannot effectively subsidise travel costs”. Retired people get free travel. By freezing the fuel duty escalator we are subsidising car drivers, which compounds inequality. See more here: bettertransport.org.uk/media/groups... www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

This is v interesting & maybe explains why I feel like I want to scratch an itch when I hear music like Taylor Swift. Had a recent debate about whether robots could be trained to play samba. I thought not because the swing is variable. A friend thought the variation might be programmed.

Oh dear my phone is full of pictures of trees. Probably all of a similar nature to the ones I took last year. It's just so gorgeous once the beeches start to go. Can't help myself.

Delighted to feature in this @chrisbaraniuk.com piece for the BBC on the imminent rollout of solar to power Great British Railways 🙌 Get on board - here comes the sun! ☀️

Also, forests are so much more beautiful (and diverse) when left alone and not harvested; see my post from earlier today. The fact that we'll leave ourselves in a position to require negative emission technologies that require burning millions of trees is pretty shameful.

Does burning more wood lead to more forests & help the climate? In a new Nature paper, WRI & Yale researchers show such claims rely on flawed accounting and models, and misinterpret underlying studies. Read the papers: rdcu.be/eNkXX RSVP to a webinar 10/31, 9:30 ET: hub.wri.org/events/2025/...

In need of some brain cell regeneration today. What better place than an autumn forest that has been left alone for years. Beautiful on all levels, including the floor.

Minority representation on TV causes outrage From the new Private Eye, in shops now.

Both positive and negative stories here. The rise in solar in the developing world is a real success, also impacting air quality as diesel generators are displaced. But the IEA has halved its forecast for renewables growth by 2030 in US as a result of Trump’s policies - on.ft.com/47tDo2N via @FT

I do hope that he'll turn up in Jamaica tomorrow with his cheque book to help them "deal with it".

It's been a difficult term with lots of classes and students finishing theses and papers to tight deadlines. I must be tired because I just got overly excited at finding a Frys Chocolate Cream in the snack shop. Apparently 8 yrs ago I was here. How did i manage that?

Hurrah! #AwaabsLaw enters into force today (27/10/25) HT @manchestereveningnews.co.uk www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

The leaves in the pond look gorgeous. Although I guess i should remove them.

Been doing a bit of urbex with the collie around Sheffield while the guys sorted something on the van. The Park Hill Estate is a fab example of urban regeneration (still in progress). Makes for a stark before and after. Bet the price has gone up!

Is every policy decision about trying to grab a few votes at an election that is years away? Is that what governance is now? It's so depressing. www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

Northern Soul meets electronica, wasn't this the perfect sound of our youth? RIP Dave Ball. A sad loss. youtu.be/XZVpR3Pk-r8?...

Recently, we switched out the old wood stove in our house for an electric one. ✅️ Heats room quickly ✅️ Not killing my neighbours ✅️ Still hygge ✅️ No ashes to clean Win, win, win, win 🏆

Wow, well, here's a nice metaphor for the dismantling of democracy.

I wrote this piece during a US federal government shutdown in 2013 and everything I said then is just as true today, except I’m even more furious at the people who don’t understand the value of collective systems and universal provision. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Quite enjoying a rain sodden walk through the woods. Atmospheric. Funnily enough it's pretty quiet out here.

Leeds waves to Portland. 👋

What does she even mean by a culturally coherent group of people? I've got nothing in common with the people hanging union flags and far more in common with friends from Spain, Italy, Brazil, Mexico etc. These people have no idea about the diversity of modern British culture or how wonderful it is.

Los Angeles came out in droves. #NoKings

Murky in the peak district today but you can still see Henry Moore in the glorious rocks up there.

Great to speak at the @energy-uk.org.uk conference just now, about the tenuous relationship between many media headlines & reality Here's a taster #eukconf25

There’s not much to say about the solid wall insulation failures that hasn’t already been said. A diabolical policy failure that wasted money and harmed people. But one thing I will add is: I think it highlights the need for more state delivery capacity on warm homes, not just regulation 🧵

Beautiful. If you didn't visit this you're a fool. Or you live too far away i guess...

Enjoyed Riot Women. It's a good job they didn't form a middle-aged, angry, punk rock choir because we already did that. @commonerschoir.bsky.social

I live at the top of the Sunsets. I guess this is how they got their name.

It is gorgeous out.

Good morning. Happy Sunday. Carry on as you are. No need to change your ICE car, gas boiler, diet, gas hob, long distance travel habits just now. There's plenty of time...

A quick trip to Marsden to see a very old Preston pal and the jazz fest. This is the end of Standedge Tunnel, the longest, highest, and deepest canal tunnel in the UK. It's like summer out there.

Good morning from the woods where the current vibe is spiritual jazz and sunlit autumn colours.

I used to wonder who was making the beautiful sounds that came from above the pet shop on my old street. It was these guys, and they've just launched their new album at the Howard Assembly Rooms. Superb gig.

My take on why everyone should come to #Bradford2025 to see #TurnerPrize - even frequent TP visitors are finding something fresh & new in #Bradford - but it’s attracting artistically unseasoned eyes, too. Brilliant art, brilliant setting, all in brilliant Bradford!

The UK emissions inventory for 2023 has been published (naei.energysecurity.gov.uk). Been picking through the numbers and one thing that's reassuring is that it appears that the downward trend in NOx from transport is continuing post-COVID. We've still got a way to go, but it's good news.

(Sorry. I am annoyed by The Guardian's war on ultraprocessed foods, not because an ultraprocessed diet is in your best interests (it isn't. Eat vegetables!), but because the Guardian is making spurious arguments as to why. The main dietary driver of environmental impact is animal products!)

The leaves they are a turning. What a poser. ##getdownshep

Hello America & Canada, it’s publication day for This Slavery! It’s the story of two sisters living in 1910s UK who work in cotton weaving factories. It’s about women’s place in industrial capitalism, and how marriage can be about power & control. It’s also an inch-thick comic with a dog in it