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Alex Torrance

@alextorrance.co.uk

510 followers 470 following 720 posts

The Idiot

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Alex Torrance @alextorrance.co.uk · Jun 26

I was looking at some English placenames recently and thought they all sounded made up, and thought it would be fun to make a thing that makes up English place names — so that's exactly what I did.

Introducing: A place in England
places.projects.alextorrance.co.uk

A place in England.

places.projects.alextorrance.co.uk

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Alex Torrance @alextorrance.co.uk · 2d

This video about the history of synthesisers and how they work by Chris Miller (aka Gunnar Haslam) is really fascinating.

Has a great retro look reminiscent of Look Around You and Carl Sagan. Recommended if you are interested in synths, physics or just learning things.

youtu.be/waN4owHeyaQ?...

Synthesizing with Moog | Lesson 1: Listening

YouTube video by Moog Music

youtu.be

Reposted by Alex Torrance

Keith W. Dickinson @keithwdickinson.bsky.social · 4d

Today is a day when arts degrees are worthless, but the product of those degrees is so valuable it would kill an entire industry if they were made to pay for it.

The Verge @theverge.com · May 26

Nick Clegg says asking artists for use permission would ‘kill’ the AI industry

Paul McCartne, Elton John and others signed an open letter.

buff.ly

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Alex Torrance @alextorrance.co.uk · 5d

I had totally forgotten about this band before I read that last night.

Speaking of Haringey-based records — did you know Southern Studios was based in a terraced house in Wood Green? Crass, Big Black, Fugazi, etc have all recorded there. willyoumeetmeonclareisland.wordpress.com/2022/05/13/t...

The Studios of London – Southern Studio.

“I used to be somebody, I repeat; I used to be somebody.” Southern Studios: 10, Myddleton Road, Wood Green N22 8NS Nearest Tube: Wood Green John Loder died on 12th August 2005, aged just 59. H…

willyoumeetmeonclareisland.wordpress.com

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Reposted by Alex Torrance

The Spaceshipper 🚀 @thespaceshipper.com · 5d

Mission patches

↖Aliens (1986): Dropship crew
↗Mission to Mars (2000): Mars Recovery
↙The Martian (2015): Ares III
↘Deliver Us the Moon (2019): Fortuna I

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Alex Torrance @alextorrance.co.uk · 6d

Show us the last four albums you listened to.

Polygon Window — Surfing on Sine Waves (expanded edition)

Oren Ambarchi, Johan Berthling, Andreas Werlin — Ghosted III

Alex Torrance @alextorrance.co.uk · 6d

I find it interesting how articles like this* don’t include service design, civic design and people using tech to improve society. Is not relevant?

* I would say design criticism in general but also I’m not that well versed overall

Edwin Heathcote @edwinheathcote.bsky.social · 8d

on.ft.com/46M9mXI Why designers abandoned their dreams of changing the world. Free to Read.

Why designers abandoned their dreams of changing the world

Design was once seen as a tool to improve lives — but as modernism has become marketing, that sense of social purpose has drifted away

on.ft.com

Reposted by Alex Torrance

Edwin Heathcote @edwinheathcote.bsky.social · 8d

on.ft.com/46M9mXI Why designers abandoned their dreams of changing the world. Free to Read.

Why designers abandoned their dreams of changing the world

Design was once seen as a tool to improve lives — but as modernism has become marketing, that sense of social purpose has drifted away

on.ft.com

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Alex Torrance @alextorrance.co.uk · 8d

I got reading glasses this week

Alex Torrance @alextorrance.co.uk · 8d

I assumed “of the decade” meant 2020-2029

Alex Torrance @alextorrance.co.uk · 9d

Of Shuttleworthian proportions

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Alex Torrance @alextorrance.co.uk · 9d

But it can't. Not with out your help. But you're not helping. Why is that, Paul?

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Alex Torrance @alextorrance.co.uk · 9d

You're in a forest, walking along in the leaves when all of a sudden you look down and see a squirrel. It's crawling toward you. You reach down and flip the squirrel over on its back, Paul. The squirrel lays on its back, its belly baking in the hot sun, beating its legs trying to turn itself over.

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Alex Torrance @alextorrance.co.uk · 9d

Really want to come to this, trying to persuade a friend or 2 to join

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Alex Torrance @alextorrance.co.uk · 10d

Just dropped 3/4 of a rich tea biscuit into my cup of tea. Tried to fish it out with the remaining 1/4 and that fell in too.

Now drinking a biscuity tea smoothie I guess.

Alex Torrance @alextorrance.co.uk · 10d

@thequietus.com it would be great if your monthly subscriber playlist pages included a tracklist with links to the relevant articles/reviews — hard to find what you've written about some tracks/artists as they don't show up in your search. 👍

Reposted by Alex Torrance

Dan Neidle @danneidle.bsky.social · 10d

Douglas Barrowman and Michelle Mone's company, PPE Medpro, has just been ordered to refund the Government £122m from a PPE contract.

There are two very odd things about PPE Medpro that may affect the odds of the Government ever getting that £122m...

Thread:

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Alex Torrance @alextorrance.co.uk · 10d

μ wot mate?

Alex Torrance @alextorrance.co.uk · 10d

That’s how I read it

Alex Torrance @alextorrance.co.uk · 11d

How?

Alex Torrance @alextorrance.co.uk · 11d

Has anyone ever made a responsive comic design that adapts to the width of the screen?

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Reposted by Alex Torrance

Who Targets Me @whotargets.me · 11d

Google just wiped EU data from its political ad library. Meta’s ban on political ads in the EU starts soon and we're worried they might do the same.

We need a backup of the EU Meta Ad Library now. If you have data (2018–present) or skills to help, let us know:
ir96l7a6vsf.typeform.com/to/fIk9XMZT

Save the EU Ad Libraries

Meta may soon switch off ad libraries in the EU and remove data going back to 2018. Help ensure this data is archived for research.

ir96l7a6vsf.typeform.com

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Reposted by Alex Torrance

Rachel Coldicutt @rachelcoldicutt.bsky.social · 16d

Between 13 and 19m adults in the UK experience some kind of digital poverty - more than a million don't have a smartphone or a laptop. There are promises for consultation with digitally excluded groups, but from a build perspective this means backwards compatibility - needs to work on old phones

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Alex Torrance @alextorrance.co.uk · 16d

I’m pretty sure the LA are responsible for supplying gov.uk with a list of URLs via the Local Links Manager. www.gov.uk/guidance/how...

How to publish on GOV.UK - Local transaction pages - Guidance - GOV.UK

How to create and edit local transaction pages.

www.gov.uk

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Reposted by Alex Torrance

James Wright @jpwarchaeology.bsky.social · 16d

A while back Historic England asked for my opinion on which was the oldest pub in London. The result is a new online article that outlines the variables, busts some myths, and points to a couple of genuinely ancient pubs in and around the city...

heritagecalling.com/2025/09/25/w...

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Alex Torrance @alextorrance.co.uk · 17d

Silo S3?