This is a cool idea, and the use case - on board ships - avoids the big problems with wave energy (maintenence and power take-off). But we still need wave energy generators that can work out at sea.

Quite a gap since 1647, but Charles I seems to have been the last before FPA.

I wonder whether Simon Armitage has written anything about this morning's events?

What is misconduct in public office? New explainer, by me at New Statesman www.newstatesman.com/politics/uk-...

I regularly see people wondering how it's possible that there are so many musicians and writers and film makers and artists from a tiny nation like Iceland. And the answer is really simple: State funding for art education and artists. I literally get a salary from the government to write books.

Really interesting. @kikicurious.bsky.social, you'll enjoy this.

I've hated this trend for years.

2026 basically

Re: previous post. Blyton was a terrible person, hugely racist and antisemitic. But George's gender issues were completely accepted and unremarkable.

To give you an idea of how deranged the UK has become about gender stuff, here's Enid Blyton - the absolute avatar of classic English conservatism and a huge fan of racist "gollywogs" - casually describing a gender non-conforming kid in the 1940s and having their friends be totally cool with it.

Is this the most covered song of recent decades? I believe @alkennedy.bsky.social was collecting covers for a while. I once saw Iron and Wine reduce hundreds of people to tears with his version at @endoftheroadfestival.com.

Great pic, which I'd never seen before.

Words to live by, from Primo Levi, who knew exactly what he was talking about.

🧵

I'm sure there are lessons for UK science in here too.

Just added this to my WordPress site, so it's free to read. homunculusmusic.wordpress.com/2026/02/14/e...

In a slight change of tone, it’s also 35 years since Silence of the Lambs

Incidentally, if you want some history of this ridiculous day, you won’t do much better than this, which concludes, inarguably I think, that “a festival that makes one part of the population feel lonely and another part feel pressured is bad”

Fash alert.

I'm selling my vintage Hohner Pianet T electro-mechanical piano as designed by Ernst Zacharius. It's in wonderful condition with it's own custom stand. DM me for details if interested.

A bit folk-horror, this. Something nasty happened here in an MR James story and came back to terrify some poor closed scholar.

I didn't realise there were still Olympic events that have no women's competitions. Women's luge doubles debuts this year and I just watched the Nordic combined, which has no women's event.

TÖDLEIN, THE SILENT ARCHER Move 6” | Wounds 4 | Save 5+ | Bravery 10 MELEE: Bony Grasp (3”, 2 Atks, 4+/4+, -1 Rend, 1 Dmg) RANGED: Deathly Arrow (18”, 1 Atk, 3+/3+, -2 Rend, D3 Dmg) ABILITY: Inevitable Shot - Unmodified 6s to hit auto-wound​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

I enjoyed this and would like this service.

This is happening in the UK, and Farage (and his paymasters) are rubbing their hands with glee over it.

They thought it would give him common ground with Trump, who is the only person who's facing no consequences for associating with Epstein.

Two important things: 1) after tomorrow the sun will not set before 5pm again in the UK…until October 2) if you’re struggling just now *please* be kind to yourself

I really can't be bothered with my birthday this year.

Hat tip to @geraldcoleman.bsky.social for doing The Work.

Appalling.

Can you hear the drums for Nando's? #totp

Colour me unsurprised.

So many of these songs are buried in my subconscious and bubble up at odd moments. I was 7 in 1976. #totp

And speaking of deeply peculiar... #totp

Classic #totp performance here. Deeply peculiar song, but you hardly notice.

These guys have total pub faces. #totp

Time for an Alan Partridge break #totp

Well this sure is some wild promotional content for Amazon’s Melania documentary

No employer in the public or private sector should be encouraging AI use for ordinary tasks. The normalisation effect is powerful.

Very sad. Never saw her give a bad performance, and always distinctive. Always funny. www.theguardian.com/film/2026/ja...

@stuarthoughton.bsky.social You should show this to Nadia.

🧵

Americans: SAVE act is back. Passed the House in April & it looks like the Senate might take it up next week. Call yr Senators & tell them not to make it harder for citizens (especially married women who changed their name & overseas military personnel) to vote. campaignlegal.org/update/what-...

Pretty much everyone at this point, I think.

Any of my chronic illness peeps got recommendations for Marie?

On Chapel Sands by Laura Cumming.

If I see you use this word, I'll block you. If you use it "satirically" I'll block you. Using it at all today is a really fine test of character. I've had some of my books edited because I used it twenty years ago and I'm ashamed today of having used it. www.nytimes.com/2026/01/26/u...

Even a stopped clock...