Nice choice of Turner for the art (thanks @lrb.co.uk – I am a Turner fanatic).
The book is ocean-sized and oceanic in its atmosphere.
www.lrb.co.uk/podcasts-and...
This link has an excerpt. 2/
Episode 3 of the London Review of Books "Nature in Crisis" podcast, with @meehancrist.bsky.social and myself, is about Helen Czerski's book "The Blue Machine."
I enjoyed this one a lot, both book & conversation.
(@helenczerski.bsky.social, @lrb.co.uk, link below). 1/
Tomorrow at @columbiauniversity.bsky.social, I give the 2026 Nagel Lecture (named after Ernest N, a wise mid-20th century NYC philosopher, rather than Thomas N, equally NYC and equally wise).
A mind-body talk. IRL only.
philosophy.columbia.edu/events/2026-...
A discussion of "biological naturalism" about the mind, and a candidate for biological properties that might matter to consciousness: Oscillations & other large-scale dynamic properties of nervous systems. (Free link for now.)
iai.tv/articles/stu...
More:
This is great.
www.nytimes.com/2026/03/26/c... (free link)
"Notably, half of the whales attending were not related to the mother."
"The calf was rarely left untouched, and it was usually being touched by at least two whales simultaneously."
Yes, that's the problem. Thanks. I'll repost in a day or so. (Wonder why it didn't happen to the link itself?)
Are details of our biological make-up, as opposed to what might be seen as our "software," necessary to consciousness? (Cf recent papers by @neddo.bsky.social & @anilseth.bsky.social).
And if biological properties do matter, which ones and why?
philosophy.columbia.edu/events/2026-... 2/
Next month at @columbiauniversity.bsky.social in NYC, a mind-body talk for the 2026 Nagel Lecture. Philosophy Department. Link below.
I'll look at the debate taking shape between "biological naturalism" and "computational functionalism" (labels that are imperfect but not bad).. 1/
Thank you. Wonderful animals indeed.
On our Close Readings subscription podcast: @meehancrist.bsky.social and @petergs.bsky.social reflect on how Helen Czerski’s 𝘉𝘭𝘶𝘦 𝘔𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘦 has altered their thinking about the ocean, and whether new perspectives can change public policy. Listen to an extract:
podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/n...
Third in a series of short photographic blog posts about octopuses encountered a few weeks ago diving at Fly Point (Australia):
metazoan.net/130-another-...
Much gratitude to @debolinunferth.bsky.social for including 'Other Minds' in her nine 'reset' books.
www.theatlantic.com/books/2026/0...
As @meehancrist.bsky.social says, the book is full of mind-bending material and we much enjoyed discussing it.
Do you know if there is any news on the mimic vine? Are you still in touch with those researchers? Do you know the latest?
Baz Luhrmann has the right idea. I'm not much of an Elvis person, but looking forward to seeing this.
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/20/m... (gift link)
Episode 2 of "Nature in Crisis," the podcast I'm doing with
@meehancrist.bsky.social for the @lrb.co.uk is now up.
We discuss "The Light Eaters" by @zoeschlanger.bsky.social.
Plant intelligence, plant agency, the pace and place of plants.
www.lrb.co.uk/podcasts-and...
This was at Nelson Bay, up the coast from Sydney. It doesn't have unusual concentrations in the way Octopolis (etc) does, but it tends to have a good number of octopuses.
I did a blog post about this one - metazoan.net/128-battlesh...
I'd raised the possibility of having a question-mark in the title – "Nature in Crisis?" – as the aim is to discuss that theme without prior assumptions. But driving through a flood on the way to ep 1 certainly made the title seem apt.
Ep 2 is released this week. 2/
www.lrb.co.uk/podcasts-and...
Photo from my car window on the way to record episode 1 of the podcast series I'm doing with @meehancrist.bsky.social for the @lrb.co.uk (links below).
Mill Valley, California. Highway 1 flooded (November).
The series is called "Nature in Crisis." 1/
Thank you very much.
A very fine octopus encountered at Fly Point (Australia) today. Like an old battleship.
Scope for administrative overreach is scale-dependent?
The problem of AI seems somewhat less acute at these places, too.
Many well-known small US colleges are very expensive, but the model might be applied more broadly?
Australia does not have these institutions. I wish it did. 4/4
.. These features are helpful in many contexts right now. Because these are small communities, interference and power-grabs by administrators also seem less of a problem – or they were when I began reflecting on all this. I hope it's still true. 3/
As @ibogost.com says, the small colleges might be "accidental winners," not just of the overt conflicts but in relation to other crises, including AI.
Small-group interaction, norms of civility and community, the step back from ultra-competitive practices.. 2/
Near the end of my time teaching at US universities I began to wonder if small liberal arts colleges were better set up for the future than the large ones I was accustomed to – this before LLMs, Trump2, & other current crises. Now this looks much more likely. 🧵 1/
www.theatlantic.com/technology/2...
Thank you very much, Ricard.
After reading his previous books (especially Other Minds) I was really looking forward to @petergs.bsky.social new one, and it does not disappoint. A great journey through the evolution of life & cognition and how they have shaped our biosphere. Must-read @brigan.bsky.social @jordiplam.bsky.social
49 degrees Celsius (= 120 F) down in Victoria?
Tomorrow evening @meehancrist.bsky.social and I record episode 3 of "Nature in Crisis," a new podcast series with the @lrb.co.uk.
Episode 1 looked at Rachel Carson's "Silent Spring," and is available now (link in reply).
It's not AI or additive; just a matter telling the camera what to look for and what to dial back.
I am a 'natural light ideologue' - see this blog post.
metazoan.net/126-spun-of-...
(Below is also an image from another blog post – how an adjustment for 12 meters or so looks at the surface.)