I’m reading Graham Greene for the first time and I’m hooked. The Ministry of Fear is set in WWII and the observation of people carrying on their everyday lives in the middle of the blitz is so rich and subtle. 2026 may be the year of bingeing Graham Greene #Books #bookstodon

Read myself and Anna Butters on distributed peer review https://wonkhe.com/blogs/a-new-model-moves-research-in-a-more-democratic-direction-it-could-be-faster-and-fairer-too/ We enjoyed writing this, and I think it gives a good, albeit very short, review of the context of funders having to make […]

Wrapped all the children's gifts last evening. They are getting rectangles, so we spruced them up by adding various volumes, loo roll tubes etc. Much more exciting, I think.

RE: https://mamot.fr/@pluralistic/115741101886219666 This is a cracking article. Informative and infuriating in equal measure

Partner left the house wearing red trousers and a green, purple and yellow printed dress shirt, accessorised with yellow belt. I must love him because I was not horrified by this look.

I have cleared my writing block by throwing everything away and starting again. 1000 words done today. Result. #academicchatter #Writing

This one is going to be big. Coaches will be provided from most cities to get to London. More details will follow nearer the time. ✊🏼

This comment on the "resonant computing manifesto" really nails it. The job of that manifesto was to capture the growing trend of "fuck this tech landscape" vibe und direct it in a way that the same people who profited of the last decades will continue to profit. Off of us […]

I've been getting up earlier this week, a well known productivity hack, and I think it's just ensured I hit the procrastination wall before lunch instead of after.

We watched an 80s Nic Cage film last night, Vampire's Kiss, and it's brilliant. Laughed the whole way through. Young Nic Cage is unhinged.

A new member arrived at a group event yesterday, saying he'd never done anything like this before. He proceeded to interrogate me about all the things he felt we were doing wrong or not enough, and telling me about what we should be doing. I don't expect we'll ever see him again.

Extraordinary close-up of spider thread wins Royal Society Publishing Photography Competition 2025 | Discover Wildlife #photography https://www.discoverwildlife.com/photography/royal-society-publishing-photography-competition-2025-winners

The Conservative Reform Alliance Party is back https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2025/dec/03/reform-uk-aiming-for-reverse-takeover-of-tories-nigel-farage

Amazon might not notice that you stopped shopping with them* but if you take that same modest bit of disposable income and spend it on art bought directly from artists, the small electronics projects of your friends, helping people in dire financial situations and the the local theater all of […]

Hours later, I remain profoundly annoyed by the researchers I spoke to today and all the dumb stuff they said about AI, like "it's inevitable". Is it? Inevitable like blockchain? Like NFTs? Like the Metaverse? These people are so credulous it beggars belief.

At an event for ECRs and yet again a load of academics are uncritically talking about how you can ethically use #AI to do research and it’s so depressing that they are employed #academicchatter

I'm coordinating writing of a document with multiple authors and my god some people just cannot write a coherent sentence.

I've ordered a new #fountainpen ink and cannot wait for it to arrive. I try to be sensible and not buy inks all the time, so this is a treat which I've been eyeing up for long time. Waiting is impossible.

Penelope always knows when it’s #Caturday and she finds a place to shy away from her adoring public. I’ve sought her out and blooped her pretty nose

@Eatsbluecrayon They seem to want something like this. 😂 I don't know who the original creator is.

Goodbye mushroom leather! #fashion has leaned far too heavily on the idea that new materials will solve all their #sustainability problems. The media and academics bought into the hype, but reality is biting - this stuff is not competitive in the current market. The key point of this article […]

Sometimes I just get an idea and it won't go away

I've been offered a lecturer role, which should be great news. But I'm going to turn it down. It's two days a week (not consecutive), teaching only, with expectation of research output on the side unpaid. Add to that an impossible commute (5 hours each way) and an inflexible schedule. It's […]

I’ve heard about someone who viewed a house, and it turned out all the listing photos were “enhanced” with #AI 😳

fuck me Word is bloody awful.

Electric cars are not invented to save our cities, societies or the world. They are only invented to save big industry. We have a choice over how we want our future to be... #fuckcars!

I have been struggling for some time to respond to academics who are (overly in my view) attached to pure theory and don't see the value of practice-based research. Finally finally I have come across this jewel, this ray of pure sunlight from Stokes' "Pasteur's […] [Original post on mstdn.social]

It's time we asked a different question about migration: Why are so many British people leaving the UK? inews.co.uk/opinion/immi...

"Procrasti-activity" is one of the most hideously-constructed phrases I've ever seen but holy hell do I relate to it deeply

never encountered anything that spoke to me like his; not in any medium or format

the unhinged irrational insanity being inflicted by a colleague has been distracting me for a week now. Each email is more jaw dropping / face palming than the last. How do these people carry on in life?

There are 3 fundamental freedoms outlined in Dawn of Everything: (1) the freedom to move away or relocate from one’s surroundings; (2) the freedom to ignore or disobey commands issued by others; and (3) the freedom to shape entirely new social realities, or shift back and forth between different […]

Why is the Guardian running this kind of self serving nonsense from arch capitalists who perpetuate the culture they purport to criticise https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/nov/15/burned-out-physics-helped-understand-hard-work-success-science

We've been streaming stuff on (a friend's) amazon prime and the advertisements are unhinged. Far from being targeted, each one is for something we absolutely do not need or want. I have no idea why someone would click to add a £10 tooth whitener to their amazon basket while watching a body […]

Today, the culturally set goal (via capitalism) for every human is to maximize their accumulation of capital. This goal is killing us all. If you could, somehow, set a different goal, what would it be?

They're going to crash the global economy by attempting to create an artificial general intelligence, despite having no idea what that is, no proof they can build it & no hope of doing so. Cunts just read too many sci-fi books.

a new person who volunteered for a responsibility in a community group seems to think that put them in charge of all decision-making. Facing pushback after one meeting and half a dozen emails, they have relinquished the responsibility! I can't help feel it's a lucky escape.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Reeves with not one but 2 imperial flags and the lectern slogan, "Strong Foundations | Secure Future", neither of which can be claimed in any sense, either as the present reality or as the result of whatever 'tough choices' she will […] [Original post on mstdn.social]

"It's becoming increasingly better not to ask, because it's becoming increasingly better not to know. If you know, then you have to do something about it. Thus not knowing has become a virtue among people who would rather not give a shit. Shame dies by atrophy." www.the-reframe.com/the-death-of...

My kid made this meme which I enjoy immensely. #noaiplease

I’ve been reminded me of the Dean of school where I did my masters degree. Every woman in the school knew about him, and to stay out of arms reach. Especially if you were under 30. Andrew’s comeuppance makes me hope there will be consequences for all these men. But for now this particular guy […]

I’ve had some bereavements recently and I hate the insipid sympathy cards. I had a local letterpress studio make these for me. (You can buy stuff from them too - http://marbyandelm.com)

0.119 FTE 0.119 FTE? 0.119 FTE! WTF is 0.119 FTE?!?!?! #academicchatter

I foraged some sloes on the weekend 🤗. Christmas gifts sorted.

Take out the data centre, and use the electricity to heat three hospitals instead Greedy industries offer scraps of their own waste to underfunded and undervalued public services all the time, as a way of greenwashing their public image. You don't have to accept it. www.bbc.com/news/article...

I had a job interview for a lectureship a few weeks ago, and the interview panel pressed me on how I would teach #AI to students. My answer was: I wouldn't bother. The reality is that for a 1st year starting today, the technology will be totally different by the time they graduate. Their […]

We keep seeing startups who want to replace something valuable (therapy, counseling, tutoring, artistic expression) with some tech bullshit under the banner of democratization. But why do we need to invest so much in bad tech that doesn't work instead of just giving people access to what they […]