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Reposted by Adrian Bowyer

Joanna Bryson @j2bryson.bsky.social · 10h

I wasted way to much time reading this this morning. There's nothing there except evidence that concentrated wealth/capital/leverage just disintegrates coherence. I got more out of a side trip into reading the Book of Daniel (NRSV) which is also incoherent but at least a bit poetic. 1/2

Purge Palantir @purgepalantir.bsky.social · 1d

"'I’m a libertarian, or a classical liberal, who deviates in one minor detail, where I’m worried about the antichrist,' Thiel said during his third lecture."

Okay, dude.

From The Guardian: www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

Inside tech billionaire Peter Thiel’s off-the-record lectures about the antichrist

The political svengali and investor has been giving lectures on ‘an evil king or tyrant … who appears in the end times’

www.theguardian.com

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Adrian Bowyer @adrianbowyer.bsky.social · 9h

The NHS has paid £2.57 billion to Pfizer for 100 million doses of Covid-19 vaccine.That's about £25 a shot. In addition they pay pharmacies etc. about £7 to administer them.

The cost of production is about £8 per shot, so Pfizer is applying a 300% markup...

www.globaljustice.org.uk/news/pfizers...

Jason Hazeley @jasonhazeley.bsky.social · 10h

It’s dispiriting that this is what getting a COVID vaccination now looks like to this chronic asthmatic.

Reposted by Adrian Bowyer

Adrian Bowyer @adrianbowyer.bsky.social · 1d

The World is going to Hell in a handcart.

Kath Coyle @mrscoyle.bsky.social · 1d

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Adrian Bowyer @adrianbowyer.bsky.social · 1d

The World is going to Hell in a handcart.

Kath Coyle @mrscoyle.bsky.social · 1d

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Adrian Bowyer @adrianbowyer.bsky.social · 1d

Bugger! Autocomplete. Will be fixed.

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Adrian Bowyer @adrianbowyer.bsky.social · 1d

I think some birds can recognise their own shell patterns, but that and the ability to fake it are obviously in an arms race with the cuckoo.

Adrian Bowyer @adrianbowyer.bsky.social · 1d

Sortition. Still have elections with constituency representatives. But the representatives can't vote. They just propose and argue like barristers. Have a random-100-jury citizen's assembly to do the voting. Retire and replace four jurors every week.

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Adrian Bowyer @adrianbowyer.bsky.social · 1d

Never occurred to me before (bit dim) but brood parasitism is quite a strong Darwinian selection pressure towards viviparous birth and away from egg laying.

New Scientist @newscientist.com · 1d

Several species of birds from different continents use and understand similar alarm calls when they see an invader that might lay an egg in their nest – this shared call hints at the origin of language

20 bird species can understand each other’s anti-cuckoo call

Several species of birds from different continents use and understand similar alarm calls when they see an invader that might lay an egg in their nest – this shared call hints at the origin of language

www.newscientist.com

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Reposted by Adrian Bowyer

Adrian Bowyer @adrianbowyer.bsky.social · 2d

Come on everyone! If we all pull together as a team we can make this rhyming slang internationally universal.

Adrian Bowyer @adrianbowyer.bsky.social · 2d

Jackson Lamb heading to the bog: "Methinks a Donald is in order."

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Reposted by Adrian Bowyer

Adrian Bowyer @adrianbowyer.bsky.social · 2d

Thymol tastes and smells like thyme (hence the name). Most people, even if not very interested in gastronomy, can distinguish quite a few herbs and spices by their smell and taste. This could lead to a chewing gum that would diagnose any ENT infection.

BK. Titanji @boghuma.bsky.social · 3d

Just published, a study describing a taste-based flu test yes, chewing gum that could tell you if you have influenza. The gum contains a sensor that detects the flu enzyme neuraminidase & releases a compound called thymol that changes taste when the virus is present.
pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...

A Viral Neuraminidase-Specific Sensor for Taste-Based Detection of Influenza

Influenza has caused the deadliest pandemics in history, thereby prompting advances in our ability to ensure vigilance at all stages of future outbreaks. Quarantining patients early is crucial when it...

pubs.acs.org

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Adrian Bowyer @adrianbowyer.bsky.social · 1d

Be rude.
Get viewed.

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Adrian Bowyer @adrianbowyer.bsky.social · 1d

Also. The decision would have been made months ago...

Reposted by Adrian Bowyer

Standplaats Kraków @standplaatskrk.pl · Jun 7

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Adrian Bowyer @adrianbowyer.bsky.social · 1d

I'm English and I too pronounce both “PRY-mer”.

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Adrian Bowyer @adrianbowyer.bsky.social · 1d

Well, yes. Gas is used in Finland...

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Adrian Bowyer @adrianbowyer.bsky.social · 1d

Thanks @kostyack.bsky.social

Among other things, it's ground distortion round the pipes when the ground freezes, apparently.

John Kostyack @kostyack.bsky.social · 1d

A key part of the story is pipeline damage from freezing temps. www.urbint.com/blog/freezin...

Where Gas Pipelines Are Most at Risk for Damage from Freezing Weather

Urbint analyzed high daily temperature information for 210 U.S. cities for the last five years to find where sustained freezing occurs most frequently.

www.urbint.com

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Adrian Bowyer @adrianbowyer.bsky.social · 1d

The statistics seem to bear this out.

But I've followed the links several deep looking for any technical explanation of the modes of failure. Beyond the phrase "equipment fails in freezing temperatures" I can find nothing.

HOW does it fail?

John Kostyack @kostyack.bsky.social · 1d

Would love to see more analysis of how this behind-the-meter strategy works in light of the gas industry's long track record of outages and its vulnerability to extreme weather events. Gas is arguably more vulnerable than any other power source. www.utilitydive.com/news/gas-pow...

Gas plants ‘disproportionately vulnerable to failure,’ warns Union of Concerned Scientists report

Extreme temperatures threaten gas plants and electric reliability, particularly in regions where grid operators use simple methods to account for resource contributions, according to UCS.

www.utilitydive.com

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Adrian Bowyer @adrianbowyer.bsky.social · 1d

So currently the two best things on TV are...

...on TV.

The Slow Horses is on Episode 3.

The Diplomat starts in a few days.

Reposted by Adrian Bowyer

Tzeporah Berman @tzeporah.bsky.social · 1d

The majority of heat related deaths in European cities this summer were caused by climate change. These figures should terrify us.

This shows us that heat plans not enough – we need strong EU climate targets to cut the emissions causing this dangerous heat.

www.imperial.ac.uk/grantham/pub...

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Reposted by Adrian Bowyer

The Fake History Hunter @fakehistoryhunter.net · 1d

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Adrian Bowyer @adrianbowyer.bsky.social · 2d

And also more dangerous to the children concerned.

The danger has nothing to do with the vaccines themselves, but is because of the greater number of journeys needed to the surgery.

HELLody SchreiBOO @melodyschreiber.com · 2d

The acting director of the CDC called for new, separate MMR shots. That would be "remarkably complicated, time-consuming, costly, but more importantly unnecessary," @jasonlschwartz.bsky.social told me:
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

Alarm as CDC calls for separate MMR vaccines despite measles outbreak

Concerns that three separate shots would be more costly and time-consuming, and keep kids from being vaccinated

www.theguardian.com

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Adrian Bowyer @adrianbowyer.bsky.social · 2d

* Ark

(sigh)

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Reposted by Adrian Bowyer

Michael Carley @drmcarley.bsky.social · 2d

You sure about commitment 4, UKRIO?

The five commitments of the Concordat to Support Research integrity are:
1. Maintaining the highest standards of research integrity-the principles
2. Maintaining the highest standards of research integrity-expectations and compliance
3. Embedding a culture of research integrity
4. Questionable research practices and potential research misconduct
5. Accountability and continuous improvement in research integrity

The Concordat to Support Research Integrity is a framework that sets out key principles and commitments to uphold the highest standards of research integrity with a focus on ethical conduct, transparency, accountability, and good governance throughout the research process.

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Reposted by Adrian Bowyer

T&E @transportenvironment.org · 2d

NEW: Biofuels globally emit more than the fossil fuels they replace, our latest study shows.

The first-of-a-kind study looks at global biofuels production today and the potential impacts of government biofuel targets.
🧵⤵️

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Adrian Bowyer @adrianbowyer.bsky.social · 2d

The piranhas do all the cleaning...