A slide from the Digital Health session, outling how patient arrhythmias could be better managed using a range of interlinked technologies and patient data.
Congratulations and thank you to the organisers of today's #CardiomyopathyUK patient conference. I cannot emphasise how uplifting it is to hear about latest research and to speak to other patients. Great to see @thehearthive.bsky.social there too.
I have just missed my face and poured water all down myself whilst trying to take a tablet.
People put me in charge of explosives, you know.
Rocks'y, the Lancashire Heeler, on her back. She is being tummy-tickled by Matthew’s hand. The dog is looking straight at the camera.
Huge thanks to everyone who made the Festival such a brilliant night. Here’s to the sparks — big and small — that keep us going. Whether you’re outdoors amongst nature or finding a quiet moment at home, I hope you discover something today worth celebrating. Here's one of mine! ✨
For me, it was hearing the crowd’s energy and seeing fireworks light the night sky. For you, it might be a walk outside, a chat with a friend, or simply resting when you need to. Whatever shape they take, those small victories deserve to be celebrated.
Looking out over a calm sea at Burnham-on-Sea beach at dusk. A bit of the beach is visible in the foreground. I love watching the sea and this image always makes me smile.
If you’re having a rough day, please know this: progress isn’t about “carrying on as normal”. It’s about noticing and celebrating the little wins — a moment of laughter, finishing a task, enjoying a view. Small sparks of joy matter and can change the feel of a whole day.
A section of an ECG trace showing abnormal rhythms (a premature ventricular contraction couplet).
What you don’t always see behind the microphone is that I live with a progressive heart condition. It’s unpredictable, exhausting and mentally challenging. Yet standing there on Saturday, part of the atmosphere and joy, reminded me how powerful it is to keep finding things that lift you up.
A dark sky filled with spectacular golden brocade (glitter) shell bursts, over the top of 11 pink and gold mines erupting from the ground, with 22 45-degree gold-glitter comet punctuations.
A photo of my announcer's script, showing the start of my 4pm announcement.
The control point, with four individual firing systems (all FireOne in this photo). They are set up on trestle tables, with laptop screens visible and the lids of the hard-plastic cases of the control panels open. Some of the crews can be seen in the background chatting in small groups.
🔥 What a weekend at the Festival of Fireworks, Catton Hall! Thousands gathered under the night sky for a spectacle of colour, sound and shared awe — and I had the privilege of being host. 🎤 Nights like these remind me why live events matter.
👇 [Thread]
Thank you - they were great, weren't they? Yes, that's exactly the kind of thing we are hoping to do. 🙂
The absolute winner of the day: Seeing lab-grown human heart cells beating together in a dish...absolutely mind-blowing! I saw the very cells that drive every heartbeat, all contracting in unison. 🫀 Even with my science background, this felt magical and deeply moving. #CureHeart #research
Thanks to @thebhf.bsky.social funding, #CureHeart Labs progress is real - though breakthroughs take time. Genuine partnership between patients and enthusiastic scientists is building practical hope for better treatments. #CureHeart #BHF #PatientEngagement #PPIE #GeneTherapy
We also heard about BOLD #MRI, which measures heart muscle oxygen use and could detect early changes before standard echo or #CMR. I was really excited by this (typical physicist 😄). This imaging technique could help diagnose and monitor #cardiomyopathy earlier and more accurately.👇
CureHeart is developing ASOs - molecules that “switch off” faulty genes at the RNA stage. 🤯 Their effects can be reversed if needed, adding safety. Delivery systems are becoming more targeted, making heart-specific therapy more realistic.👇
CureHeart logo featuring a stylised red heart and DNA strand within a circular icon, alongside the word “CureHeart” in bold red lettering.
Earlier this week, I was fortunate to be part of a #Cardiomyopathy UK visit to #CureHeart Labs @ox.ac.uk . We went behind the scenes to see cutting-edge work on inherited heart conditions. Lots of uplifting conversations between researchers and patients giving real hope for progress.👇
So today's decision by the UK's Supreme Court is difficult to absorb. I fear it will empower those taking aim at #trans folk.
It's a bizarre and scary state of affairs that we find ourselves in.
I am #pansexual... I don't really "see" a person's sex or gender. I don't mean that in a demeaning way. It's more that throughout my life, I've always seen the person and that's what has attracted me, irrespective of their sex or gender identity.
I've been having a break from social media lately to preserve my mental wellbeing, but today I really need to say this:
However you identify; M, F, MTF, FTM, non-binary, gender-fluid or neutral, YOU ARE VALID. 🏳️⚧️
#Trans friends enrich my world. I can't imagine it without you. xx
A power-time output chart, showing a reduction in output between 10am and midday.
This morning's partial #SolarEclipse, evidenced by my solar panels. 😎 Cool, eh?
Headed meeting papers on a table in the foreground, showing the union name "EQUITY". The content is not visible (cropped out). In the background are union members out of focus.
For the first time ever, I'm actually able to attend an @equitybwm.bsky.social meeting. We've had some amazing speakers today and now we are onto serious union business. Very glad to be part of this. Together we are Stronger.
This was awesome to be a part of! It was a pleasure to work with such a dedicated team too. 😃
www.thehullstory.com/allarticles/...
#ColliderFest #Hull #SciComm #STEAM #Festival
Matthew is on stage in a large Victorian City Hall venue, with a high arched ceiling and theatrical lighting overhead. In the foreground is the audience who are watching the show. A six-metre high wall of pyrotechnic gold and silver sparks is erupting at the front of the stage with dramatic effect.
Bring extra sparkle to your festival with a science and maths infused fire and art mashup.
Drop me a line if you are interested. I adapt the size and scale of the shows for each venue.
#STEAM #STEM #artistry #pyrotechnics #PyroArtistry #safety #SciComm
A theatre lighting truss with colourful paper streamers hanging from it.
A stonking finish to British Science Week at the weekend, with headline shows at #ColliderFest.
I left a little decorative post-show souvenir at City Hall. 😄 #Hull #BSW25
A vertically hanging bellrope with three figure of eight knots in it. A blurred ringer is sitting in the background.
Lovely to join the friendly @benendenbells.bsky.social ringers this evening, although it did require a lot of knots in my rope. Me and my high heels... 😆 #bellringing
A very blue, darkly-lit stage containing a table and some black wooden boxes. The photo is so blue that it is almost not worth posting.
Mid #BSW25 school shows. I was very tempted to shave my head, paint myself blue and hit the table with fluorescent sticks.
Picture of Chilcompton church and tower on a sunny summer day. The tower is Norman style with castlellations around the top.
VIDEO: Bit of chat in the press this weekend about peal ringing. But what actually *is* peal ringing?
vimeo.com/1063590192/d... #bellringing #VoiceOver
Mega! Imagine if you inflated it and then squashed it... whoopus flatusbread maximus.
A plate of ground spices, arranged individually in small piles, including chilli flakes, coriander, cumin, turmeric, cayenne pepper, paprika and cinnamon.
Tosh downtime this afternoon is taking me back to my degree year abroad, when I first discovered Moroccan cuisine.
I suddenly have an urge to fire something in celebration, however my shows aren't until next week.
MUST RESIST.
#ScienceWeek
Happy Science Week to you.
Happy Science Week to you.
Happy Science Week dear Britain.
Happy Science Week to you.
British #ScienceWeek officially starts today. 🥳 #BSW #BSW2025
Screenshot of a mobile device showing an ICD monitoring app. The message on the screen says: "Checking your heart device... This may take several minutes. Keep the app open and your mobile device nearby."
18 months on, and this still feels surreal, even for a clued-up #scicomm pro!
A clinic in another part of the country can access the implant INSIDE my body to check that I am safe. 🤯
Flippin' marvellous! 🫀😀
#ACM #AVC #ARVC #cardiomyopathy
A grassy park, with a line of trees on the horizon - deliberately framed to be ambiguous.
This time of year = Site visits and consultancy. Bit soggy under foot, but lovely sunny spells are a bonus. 🙂