Things that make this photographer happy part five... Finding Animals On The London Underground Network

This graph says it all: instead of starting to go down, the *annual increase* of atmospheric CO2 is setting new records. We're making climate change worse at a record rate. Turning this around should be our top priority, and it's not. From: www.carbonbrief.org/met-office-a...

We talk about tipping points a lot. But it is truly devastating to see that we are in the midst of one. The end of warm water corals? www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9pq... with @tinymaddie.bsky.social

It never even occurred to me that anyone from this expedition could still be alive! (Well, now nobody is, I guess…)

Time and time again, the United Kingdom’s robins will literally dance right up to you and shake out a bag containing all zero of the fucks they possess directly in front of your face.

Of all the places to pilot driverless cars in Europe, who decided that LONDON was a good idea? There's no way(mo) this will work with the weird streets. And why would we step in a driverless car when we have cabbies with scientifically proven big brains? (citation:) www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-...

This morning I accidentally pocket dialled the Penguin Random House Accounts Department while on the tube, but then it went to voicemail (even though I called?), so now I have a voicemail of a confused staff member picking up the phone. Sorry...

Next week! Pitching across borders. Sign up if you're interested in hearing how editors work with international science writers and hear from freelancers how they got their science reporting heard beyond their own country. www.absw.org.uk/events/pitch...

One in six bacterial infections worldwide are now resistant to antibiotics, WHO warns www.bmj.com/content/391/...

This is VERY interesting, and I am 100% gonna try it for myself with other things than music:

Musician researchers in Japan did a study to find out how to not let nerves affect performance so much. They found that remembering times when they played well made a difference. 🧪🎶 www.forbes.com/sites/evaams...

This is a powerful account from a PhD student whose fellowship was terminated by NIH because it was part of a "diversity" program without any other considerations or understanding of what the program or the students were actually doing. undark.org/2025/10/09/o... 1/2

ICYMI, here is the press release for my study with @drjuliawester.bsky.social - we surveyed over 800 scientists who use social media. They overwhelmingly agree that Twitter is no longer useful or pleasant, and that for all professional online scientist goals, Bluesky is superior. 🧪 #SciComm 🌍

This headline is especially painful for anyone who has ever studied immunology in any way. It's the hardest subject within biology! Even with a biochemistry PhD I struggle to make sense of immunology and it just KEEPS CHANGING. www.newscientist.com/article/2497...

New Mixture! I wrote about my typhoon observations when I arrived in Hong Kong just hours before Typhoon Ragasa, and why super typhoons/cyclones/hurricanes are becoming more common. open.substack.com/pub/mixture/...

If only there was a word for one entity owns everything www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle...

LET THE GOURDS HEAL YOUR PAIN.

I discovered today that I have been quoted in @merriam-webster.com not once but twice! They include examples of word use and my articles are used as examples of the words "tempera" and "washed off".

Amazon's pricing of my book is so completely random. It's currently on the UK site for £2.24 and on the Canadian site for $32.75 One is about a quarter of the regular price and the other about double. Anyway, if you're in the UK, get yourself a deal! www.amazon.co.uk/Hey-Theres-S...

Did you know that recent model iPhone Pros have a LiDAR sensor? You can use it to measure distances, and scientists in Spain used it to recreate a digital version of a cave filled with ancient cave art. 🧪 #scicomm www.forbes.com/sites/evaams...

It's #WorldOctopusDay! These beauties from our collection are both by French pharmacist and naturalist Jean Baptiste Vérany (1800-65). Octopus vulgaris - the common octopus, which can grow to 9kg and change colour to match its surroundings.

“They taste like metal, but in a good way.” Me, describing the taste of walnuts and pecans to someone who already doesn’t like nuts and this is nor helping.

Very sad news, John Gurdon has died. A developmental biologist's developmental biologist, Nobel prize winner His work is the foundation of much of today's dev & stem cell bio. An inspiration to many, including me. Always asking questions & wanting the answers www.magd.cam.ac.uk/news/profess...

Boxes also work on bobcats

K-Pop Demon Hunters is legitimately the global cultural phenomenon of 2025 and honestly there are far worse things to be a cultural touchstone this year than a trio of young women fighting literal soul-sucking hegemony through the power of their art

In one of her final interviews before she died, Jane Goodall emphasized that we know what’s killing the planet: industrial agriculture, including livestock, and burning fossil fuels. She also reminded us that we don't have much time to save our planet.

I taught the cat to high-five by rewarding him with food, but now he keeps initiating high-fives every time he wants to eat.

I don’t know how anyone can be anti-science in a world in which we have science to thank for scratch and sniff technology.

This is why we fund scientists to study things like oyster slobber even if you don’t think it sounds important

Post a fictional comedian who definitely would accept an invitation to the Riyadh Comedy Festival.

Back from holiday and having a catch-up day today before I go back to work. So far I’m caught up on groceries and the Riyadh Comedy Festival drama but not on sleep or clean clothes yet.

Still on holiday, but here are some photos. Not shown: how hot and muggy it is.

I eventually fell back asleep and slept through the whole morning and part of the afternoon but the typhoon is on its way out now

Cathay Pacific aircraft evacuating their Hong Kong base earlier today ahead of the arrival of Super Typhoon #Ragasa.

It’s 3AM and I woke up from the rain on the window, so level 10 sounds about right.

Typhoon update: the rain has now started but there are still cars driving by and it’s not abnormally windy just yet. I’m already bored of being inside.

So this wasn’t the best week to visit Hong Kong… We managed to walk around a bit when we arrived last night and this morning, but now we’re stuck in the hotel for the next day and a half. We’re only here for 5 days! www.bbc.com/news/live/c0...

Made it to Hong Kong and arrived to a typhoon warning. An immediate crash course in understanding the Hong Kong typhoon warning levels and what will close when over the next few days…

Very sharp parody of future Disney movies you never knew existed! 😁

Women, non-native English speakers & those form low-income countries are disadvantaged in science but by how much? We found that women with non-English first languages from low-income countries publish up to 70% fewer in English than their counterparts. 1/5 doi.org/10.1371/jour... #languagebarriers

I *want* to see Spinal Tap II, but the theatres nearest to me are only showing it at 9AM on a Saturday or on Monday afternoon. These are not times I want to go up to eleven.

But can you rewind it with a pencil?

I got a press release titled "Why Dentistry Needs Disruptors". I haven't opened it yet, but here are my guesses for what it could mean: 1)Your teeth are online and you pay a monthly fee to use them 2)"NFTeeth". Someone else owns the idea of your teeth but you can still use them.

Respond to the UK government's consultation on late payments & poor practices for freelancers. The National Union of Journalists has template responses to help. This is an important opportunity for every freelance journalist #StopTheFreelanceRipOff nuj.org.uk/resource/stop-the-freelance-rip-off.html

I often think about this study that shows ducklings swimming in a single-file formation behind their parent conserve energy through wave-riding, where trailing ducklings gain forward push, and wave-passing, where energy transfers efficiently along the line. Get your ducks in a row.

New Mixture! mixture.substack.com/p/can-creati...

Months ago, I was working on a feature article that in the end did not make it to publication for the magazine I wrote it for. I then reworked it into two new stories, and one of them is now published on BOLD. It discusses how creativity is measured in education. boldscience.org/why-children...

If you're a science journalist hoping to write for international publications, join this @absw.bsky.social webinar on October 23rd! Two editors and two freelancers will share how to make local news relevant to international audiences. #scicomm #journalism www.absw.org.uk/events/pitch...

Now that it’s light, let’s see where the foxes left their tennis balls last night. (There are two in the photo)