It's like "Ooh, Colin did this" and "Ooh, Colin did that", 00:08 S01E05 Chaos October 22 1999

This time we're talking Terry Pratchett! but more importantly: are we genetically weaker than you? YouTube video by Eleanor Morton

We read Johnny and the Bomb! And more importantly we ask: are we genetically weaker than you?

youtube.com/shorts/RaVY6...

Sound the alarm! A new episode of Eleanor & Alasdair Read That is out! We read Johnny and the Bomb and asked, "what's wrong with Eleanor?"

linktr.ee/readthat

a small white dog with an egg on his head

Where is it? —Where's what? 06:51 S02E04 Help March 23 2001

The more that Microsoft try to integrate AI into applications that _do not_ need it, the more I'm pleased that I swapped to Ubuntu ~14 years ago; it has insulated me from a lot of this invasive new tech.

Why are we aiming for the homogenisation of creativity? Especially in universities. Using an LLM for any aspect of my research takes the creativity out of it (yes it's possible to be creative and objective at the same time) and would be hugely disrespectful to my participants. And unethical.

Google Starts Scanning All Your Photos As New Update Goes Live Google wants its AI to see all the photos of "you and your loved ones." Billions of users must now decide.

“Take a moment to think before you dive in. That’s the best advice for Google Photos users, as the company confirms its latest update can scan all your photos to “use actual images of you and your loved ones” in AI image generation.”

www.forbes.com/sites/zakdof...

I really hope I can forget that he is referencing Bank's Culture novels when I next read one... Urg, I don't want him to ruin yet another thing.

This stuff always just smacks of a deep, seething jealousy of others’ achievements.
The robot won nothing. Just as, if I got in my car and drove the length of the half marathon faster than 50 minutes, the car would also have won nothing.

A photo of the book in hardcover against a Persian-style carpet with the words 'Giveaway!' and some party emojis. The cover is a very light peach colour and has illustrations by Adam Beer of: a café in orange, a seagull and a girl with a kite in blue, a green pigeon, pink cow parsley and plastic bags and a yellow origami boat and leaves. The title is The place I’m in ‘WHAT I SEE WHEN I STOP TO NOTICE’ in black letters. It has this quote at the bottom ‘This Book is lovely’ by Philip Pullman.

A photo of a double-page spread from the chapter ‘Popping In’. The colour of the pages is white. There are observations by me (the black text is too small for most people to read) and a black-and-white illustration on the left-hand page by Adam Beer, of a little girl balancing a broom on her hand.

A photo of a double-page spread from the chapter ‘AT THE SEASIDE’. The colour of the pages is peach. There are observations by me (the black text is too small for most people to read) and black-and-white illustrations by Adam Beer, of a brick wall with graffiti (saying I live here), a front door, a key in a lock, some keys and a cat sitting on a mat.

A photo of a double-page spread from the chapter ‘COMING HOME’. The colour of the left-hand pages is white, and the colour of the right-hand page is peach, and the book is against a Persian-style carpet. There are observations by me (the black text is too small for most people to read) and a black-and-white illustration on the left-hand page by Adam Beer, of a few seashells and on the right of a tattoo star.

Giveaway! 🥳🤩🎉 I’ve got a very special offer!! Two signed copies of my latest book, and I’ll write a message inside to you, or someone of your choice!

To enter: repost this post, reply with what you like about April, and tag one other person you’d like to get a copy. 😀📚

@quartobooksuk.bsky.social

AND THEY SAID I'D NEVER BE AN INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALIST

I was reading the first post in this thread and thinking 'this must be the inspiration for that guy in The Pursuit of Love'! Thanks for clearing that up so quickly for me. 😁

My pet theory on the accent in the East Midlands accent is that its a hangover from the Danelaw.

But I'm always adamant that the Midlands exists and is not subject to the North/South argument. Now, if were talking East/West...

Today marks the 44th anniversary of the single most sanity-warping print error ever committed to print.

The gnawing, eldritch, Lovecraftian horror of this Peterborough Standard society page from April 18, 1980.

Theremony at tremony at the liremony indeed.

A reminder that we did this.

(And had to pay Mirror Group Newspapers for the copyright of the text, one of the finest rights payments I’ve ever approved.)

The Shrine of Anubis (c. 1323 BC), as discovered within Tutankhamun’s tomb, with original linen wrappings & garlands still present. #Photography by Harry Burton, 1926.

1. I could buy a tape/cd/vhs/DVD and know I could use it whenever, wherever forever. I OWNED my media.

2. My walkman/boombox/vhs/dvd player never had a tier system where I had to pay to skip built in ads.

3. Ai wasn't built into my old tech. I could turn clippy off and never deal with him again.

reddit: "I visited my identical twin brother at his college where a lot of his floor didn't know he was a twin. That night he had some people over in his apartment and I hid in the bedroom. Note, he has a beard and I don't. While they were hanging out (and me hiding), he announces to the group that he's tired of his beard and is gonna shave it off, so he escapes to the bedroom where I'm hiding as if to shave. We switch clothes and I walk back out to the group with my bare face. Everyone takes note and, while it's generally an unusual thing to do at a party, nobody thinks much of it. After a bit I announce, "ya know, I kinda miss my beard. I think I'm gonna grow it back". At which point I go to the other room where my bearded twin was hiding. We switch clothes back and he walks back out to the group immediately rebearded. People lost their freaking minds."

Essex unions declare ‘no confidence’ in v-c over job cuts University apologises after some staff wrongly told they were at risk of redundancy but insists overall process has been ‘fair’

'Up to 400 roles are being lost at the south-east institution owing to financial pressures as part of moves that will also see the closure of its Southend campus.' 1/3

Teenager looking at her phone: He doesn’t fancy me.
Her friend: How do you know?
Teenager: He says, ‘Hey bro.’

The Disney Doctor Who deal continues to be so funny to me. Imagine being Disney and having negotiated an agreement with one of the enduring classics of sci-fi and kids entertainment and your reward being 'a lore-dense introduction and fish erotica'.

Oh, this has just reminded me of random jazz guy (Sam Lindo)
... We were not good at nicknames. 😅

The episode of The Secret Millionaire that didn't finish being filmed!

Oh, I hadn't thought about him in years, but now I can picture him doing a little flourish at the end of a tune or as someone walks by.

A baffling new twist in the long-running saga of Aberdeen’s lost artworks and artefacts. As we reported in 2023, some of the 1,330 items identified in 2021 as missing from Aberdeen’s museum and art gallery collections were found. But the council would not confirm which, nor how many.

🧵1/2

Chaos theory. 08:03 S01E05 Chaos October 22 1999

We’re so pleased to announce a lovely preorder incentive for the upcoming paperback release of AND THEN THERE WAS YOU by Sophie Cousens 💛

Pre-order with us by 7th May to receive an exclusive bookmark + matching #signed bookplate!

Order here: www.foxlanebooks.co.uk/product-page...