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playingwithdust.bsky.social
Brian O'Halloran
@playingwithdust.bsky.social
2K followers 360 following 4K posts
Die hard Cruyffian. Ex astrophysicist. QPR devotee, for my multiple sins. Single parent.
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playingwithdust.bsky.social
Brian O'Halloran @playingwithdust.bsky.social · Nov 7
Time for a (re) introduction for my new followers! I'm Brian, a fallen astrophysicist living on the Copper Coast in Waterford, Ireland. Most of my feed will be photos of this gorgeous part of the world, plus my astrophotography.

Oh, plus terrible football takes.
Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS Northern lights Sunrise over the Copper Coast
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Reposted by Brian O'Halloran
matthighton.bsky.social
Matthew Highton @matthighton.bsky.social · 1d
You know what, it’s one of those days, have Cookie Monster kaiju again.
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Reposted by Brian O'Halloran
bikecyan.bsky.social
M‎ I‎ K‎ E‎ ‎ R‎ Y‎ A‎ N @bikecyan.bsky.social · 3h
The funniest thing about the Catherine Connolly smear campaign is that the establishment seems to be following Ivan Yates' advice, despite his impressive record of getting things spectacularly wrong, as highlighted on this old but evergreen tweet from @prayforpatrick.bsky.social
The tweet reads: Ivan Yates, he's the guy who went bankrupt running a fucking bookies in Ireland.
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Reposted by Brian O'Halloran
jasonfurman.bsky.social
Jason Furman @jasonfurman.bsky.social · 3h
The other day a student asked me about the prevalence of insider trading in prediction markets. I now have an answer.
7 150 550
Reposted by Brian O'Halloran
zx23.bsky.social
Richard Dalton @zx23.bsky.social · 3h
I like Omid Djalili, but I don’t like his take here.

Claiming that bringing comedy over there can help open it up.

You went under the terms of their government. Don’t criticise or make fun of their government.

That’s not showing Saudi how we do things. That’s confirming that their way is best.
juliusgoat.bsky.social
A.R. Moxon @juliusgoat.bsky.social · 3h
I don't think for me it is so much "criticism" as "if you were a comic I still listened to before you went this thing, that's not what you are anymore, so long and thanks but no thanks."

There are plenty of other funny people out there to listen to.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
I have been criticised for being part of the Riyadh comedy festival. This is why I did it | Omid Djalili
The headlines focus on money, but the gigs were great and I think there are different ways to achieve progress. Art, especially comedy, can be part of that, says stand-up comedian, Omid Djalili.
www.theguardian.com
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Reposted by Brian O'Halloran
cinemashoebox.bsky.social
Ben @cinemashoebox.bsky.social · 4h
Israel highlighting how many 100s of aid trucks they will now allow into Gaza is a tacit admission that they were using aid as a weapon of war, by the way. seems weird not to talk about this
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playingwithdust.bsky.social
Brian O'Halloran @playingwithdust.bsky.social · 4h
If it was good enough for Kirk and Spock, it was good enough for me.
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Reposted by Brian O'Halloran
simonpegg.bsky.social
Simon Pegg @simonpegg.bsky.social · 5h
For fellow Pub Quiz enthusiasts, the name to remember for upcoming Picture Rounds is: Maria Corina Machado
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Reposted by Brian O'Halloran
mariafarrell.bsky.social
Maria Farrell @mariafarrell.bsky.social · 6h
😆👏😂
profannawatts.bsky.social
Prof Anna Watts @profannawatts.bsky.social · 19h
Lol the Nobels can't even acknowledge women's contribution to discovery. But sure let's acknowledge The Machines.
Headline from an article in Nature this week that states "Prizes must recognize machine contributions to discovery. The future of science will be written by humans and machines together. Awards should reflect that reality."
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playingwithdust.bsky.social
Brian O'Halloran @playingwithdust.bsky.social · 6h
It was briefly clear in the west as I drove home last night: fingers crossed the clouds break again after dusk.
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playingwithdust.bsky.social
Brian O'Halloran @playingwithdust.bsky.social · 7h
The laws of thermodynamics are going to give the likes of Martin a gigantic punch in the balls.
joenoonan.bsky.social
Joe Noonan @joenoonan.bsky.social · 15h
“I don’t think we can mitigate for climate change.”

- Mícheál Martin, Taoiseach.

www.independent.ie/business/tec...
Taoiseach says some climate projects will not be fulfilled because they risk polarising society
Taoiseach Micheál Martin has rowed back on climate change commitments, saying Ireland may not be able fulfil all current initiatives due to the polarising effect it could have on society.
www.independent.ie
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Reposted by Brian O'Halloran
stephanenny.bsky.social
Steph @stephanenny.bsky.social · 7h
Resource wars are famously very uniting though.
joenoonan.bsky.social
Joe Noonan @joenoonan.bsky.social · 15h
“I don’t think we can mitigate for climate change.”

- Mícheál Martin, Taoiseach.

www.independent.ie/business/tec...
Taoiseach says some climate projects will not be fulfilled because they risk polarising society
Taoiseach Micheál Martin has rowed back on climate change commitments, saying Ireland may not be able fulfil all current initiatives due to the polarising effect it could have on society.
www.independent.ie
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Reposted by Brian O'Halloran
drmcarley.bsky.social
Michael Carley @drmcarley.bsky.social · 7h
Johnny Cash used to guest star on The Muppet Show. You didn't get to do that if you were uncool.
wsj.com
The Wall Street Journal @wsj.com · 17h
Compared to Dylan and Springsteen, country-music legend Johnny Cash can seem deeply uncool. It took time for me to appreciate his profound, plainspoken strength, writes Jon Fasman.
Essay | Can We Finally Give Johnny Cash His Due?
Compared to Dylan and Springsteen, the country-music legend can seem deeply uncool. It took time for me to appreciate his profound, plainspoken strength.
on.wsj.com
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playingwithdust.bsky.social
Brian O'Halloran @playingwithdust.bsky.social · 7h
Prepping her for the dark underbelly of the province.
playingwithdust.bsky.social
Brian O'Halloran @playingwithdust.bsky.social · 7h
We've got a cloudy anticyclone sitting right on top of us (weather I absolutely detest).

Hoping for at least a clear evening or two, but it's very typical of Irish weather when time critical astronomy events are happening.
comethunter.de
Maik Meyer ☄️ @comethunter.de · 18h
C/2025 A6 (Lemmon) is now also visible in the evening sky - but much lower than in the morning. Estimated it 6.0 mag, probably brighter. Tomorrow evening I will "climb" the local mountain trying to obtain my first view of C/2025 R2 (SWAN), which will be below 10°. It will rise higher day by day.
🔭☄️
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Reposted by Brian O'Halloran
news.rte.ie
RTÉ News @news.rte.ie · 9h
A new museum dedicated to the life of the explorer Ernest Shackleton opens in Athy in Co Kildare today.
New museum on life of Ernest Shackleton opens in Kildare
A new museum dedicated to the life of the explorer Ernest Shackleton opens in Athy in Co Kildare today.
www.rte.ie
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playingwithdust.bsky.social
Brian O'Halloran @playingwithdust.bsky.social · 8h
Good time of year to kick this off, with the Orionids about to begin (and sporadic meteor activity at its highest). Looking forward to seeing the outputs!
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playingwithdust.bsky.social
Brian O'Halloran @playingwithdust.bsky.social · 18h
As someone born at the upper limit, I agree.
beijingpalmer.bsky.social
BeijingPalmer @beijingpalmer.bsky.social · 19h
after careful study, I believe only people born between 1975 and 1995 should be allowed to use the internet
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playingwithdust.bsky.social
Brian O'Halloran @playingwithdust.bsky.social · 18h
Cork, most likely.
1
playingwithdust.bsky.social
Brian O'Halloran @playingwithdust.bsky.social · 18h
I saw the Open AI - Nvidia investments being described as circular trading this week...

fastercapital.com/content/Ponz...
Ponzi schemes: Circular Trading or Ponzi Scheme: Decoding the Link - FasterCapital
Ponzi schemes are a type of financial fraud that have been around for over a century. While they are illegal, they continue to be a popular scheme among fraudsters. One of the ways in which Ponzi sche...
fastercapital.com
1
playingwithdust.bsky.social
Brian O'Halloran @playingwithdust.bsky.social · 18h
Best known as a Tampax ad.

m.youtube.com/watch?v=usNl...
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playingwithdust.bsky.social
Brian O'Halloran @playingwithdust.bsky.social · 18h
"Neil, you bought a laptop with. "AI" on it. You own this too."
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playingwithdust.bsky.social
Brian O'Halloran @playingwithdust.bsky.social · 18h
Homer sums it up.

m.youtube.com/watch?v=A_lO...
Marge, My Friend, I Haven't Learned A Thing
YouTube video by blobbem
m.youtube.com
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playingwithdust.bsky.social
Brian O'Halloran @playingwithdust.bsky.social · 18h
Unfortunately, yes.
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playingwithdust.bsky.social
Brian O'Halloran @playingwithdust.bsky.social · 19h
It absolutely **will** crash. And I say that as someone who works in that world. I have the T-shirts from previous similar episodes.
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Reposted by Brian O'Halloran
junoryleejournalism.com
Juno Rylee Schultz @junoryleejournalism.com · 1d
David Simon, creator of ‘The Wire’, being interviewed by Ari Shapiro (NPR)
SHAPIRO: OK, so you've spent your career creating television without Al, and I could imagine today you thinking, boy, I wish I had had that tool to solve those thorny problems... SIMON: What? SHAPIRO: ...Or saying... SIMON: You imagine that? SHAPIRO: ...Boy, if that had existed, it would have screwed me over. SIMON: I don't think Al can remotely challenge what writers do at a fundamentally creative level. SHAPIRO: But if you're trying to transition from scene five to scene six, and you're stuck with that transition, you could imagine plugging that portion of the script into an Al and say, give me 10 ideas for how to transition this. SIMON: I'd rather put a gun in my mouth.
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