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Christopher Smith

@christophersmith.bsky.social

3.8K followers 1.4K following 960 posts

University of St Andrews; Executive Chair, Arts & Humanities Research Council; International Champion and Creative Industries Sector Champion UK Research and Innovation All views my own, but none of the poetry.

Videos

Christopher John Smith, FRSE, FSA, FRHistS, is a British academic and classicist specialising in early Ancient Rome.

Source: Wikipedia

History 56%

Art 25%

Posts Media Videos Starter Packs

Reposted by Christopher Smith

Godwin_lives @pamelaclemit.bsky.social · 7d

R. S. Thomas, ‘The Bright Field’, from Laboratories of the Spirit (1975) #NationalPoetryDay

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Reposted by Christopher Smith

Bloodaxe Books @bloodaxebooks.bsky.social · 12d

We are immensely saddened by news of the death of Tony Harrison, aged 88, who had been unwell for some years. A tribute has been published on our website.
www.bloodaxebooks.com/news?article...

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Christopher Smith @christophersmith.bsky.social · 17d

💯right!!!!

David Henig @davidheniguk.bsky.social · 17d

Incidentally, and following up some posts yesterday, can we get away from universities v manufacturing, as the assumed choice? Both, and lots more, as part of a modern mixed economy. This shouldn't need to be so difficult, stop being dragged down by the culture war. bsky.app/profile/davi...

David Henig @davidheniguk.bsky.social · 18d

Oh great, just reading that a key part of Labour's next relaunch will be "reindustrialisation". Because the manufacturing fetish has worked so well elsewhere.

Demonstrate you don't understand a modern economy in one easy step.

Reposted by Christopher Smith

David Henig @davidheniguk.bsky.social · 17d

David Henig @davidheniguk.bsky.social · 18d

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Christopher Smith @christophersmith.bsky.social · 18d

I get it @richardaljones.bsky.social @athenedonald.bsky.social I really do, but creative arts teaching is disappearing altogether from schools as we watch

Is it maybe time to stop talking about subjects and start talking urgently about #education?

www.artsprofessional.co.uk/news/va-east...

V&A East director: My biggest ask is for government to reinvest in creative education - Arts Professional

The director of V&A East has said it is "a shock" to comprehend how creative education has been "set back a generation" in British schools. Gus Casely-Hayford, the inaugural director of the V&A's fort...

www.artsprofessional.co.uk

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Reposted by Kevin J. Anchukaitis, Rosie A. Fisher, Christopher Smith , and 1 more Kevin J. Anchukaitis, Rosie A. Fisher, Christopher Smith, Juan Cole

Ben Sanderson @benmsanderson.bsky.social · 18d

Sorry, but disagree with @hausfath.bsky.social here. You open Pandora's box, you ain't closing it again. We've already seen with Paris that well intentioned international agreements do not translate into physical reality and SRM governance is a much harder problem. Zero is the only safe level. /1

Zeke Hausfather @hausfath.bsky.social · 18d

I have a new @nytimes.com guest essay w/ @davidkeith.bsky.social about sunlight reflection. We note its not a solution for climate change and at best a band aid to treat systems, and suggest if its ever done it should only be to replace the cooling from air pollution today:

Opinion | A Responsible Way to Cool the Planet

A small, carefully scaled geoengineering program could compensate for the loss of cooling as we eliminate sulfur pollution.

www.nytimes.com

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Christopher Smith @christophersmith.bsky.social · 18d

“I think [economists] have mathematics envy... They just want to prove theorems. That’s my main peeve about economists. They seem more interested in solving logical problems and aesthetic puzzles rather than a deep desire to understand what the real driving forces are.”
@financialtimes.com

Financial Times @financialtimes.com · 20d

Investor Jean-Philippe Bouchaud: ‘The whole bull run is because of an influx of money’ on.ft.com/4pwbmM0

Investor Jean-Philippe Bouchaud: ‘The whole bull run is because of an influx of money’

The physicist and hedge fund manager on why the efficient markets theory is ‘all wrong’, economists with ‘mathematics envy’ — and what Camus can teach us about compromise

on.ft.com

Reposted by Christopher Smith

Jeremy Noel-Tod @jntod.bsky.social · 18d

Every so often I find seven short poems from new books in my reading pile and put them together with the idea that people might like to read one a day over the week (binge reading is also fine, of course). Here's the latest selection:

Pinks #36: A Box of Leaves

A week of poems from books I'm enjoying

someflowerssoon.substack.com

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Reposted by Christopher Smith

Justin A. Burnett @justinburnett.bsky.social · 19d

So I’ve begun a Substack where I keep detailed reading notes on #Schattenfroh, a new novel from #DeepVellum claimed by some to be a masterpiece (I tend to agree so far). Read or spread it around, if you can. I’m working hard on this.

open.substack.com/pub/schatten...

Reading Schattenfroh, Pg. 19

(Note: I have decided to forgo further preliminary writings and dive into my commentary directly.

open.substack.com

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Reposted by Christopher Smith

Financial Times @financialtimes.com · 20d

Investor Jean-Philippe Bouchaud: ‘The whole bull run is because of an influx of money’ on.ft.com/4pwbmM0

Investor Jean-Philippe Bouchaud: ‘The whole bull run is because of an influx of money’

The physicist and hedge fund manager on why the efficient markets theory is ‘all wrong’, economists with ‘mathematics envy’ — and what Camus can teach us about compromise

on.ft.com

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Reposted by Christopher Smith

Prospect Magazine @prospectmagazine.co.uk · 21d

Acclaimed historian and novelist Marina Warner’s latest book, Sanctuary, is a rich exploration of what it means to make space for the “arrivant”, writes Franklin Nelson.

Marina Warner: ‘I wouldn’t dare write Indigo now’

The historian on her new book, asylum protests, and the culture wars

www.prospectmagazine.co.uk

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Reposted by Christopher Smith

Jonathan Portes @jdportes.bsky.social · 21d

Impassioned plea for more mixed-methods research (quant & qual) from @timharford.ft.com

"The hard data is never as eloquent as a good story. Humboldt would measure the cactus but also sketch it; drag his barometer up a volcano, but spin a yarn about the epic climb."

www.ft.com/content/d419...

The UK’s problems aren’t caused by immigration

It’s not hard to see how so many came to worry about the issue. But the data isn’t there

www.ft.com

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Reposted by Christopher Smith

Gaia Marcus @gaiamarcus.bsky.social · 22d

This is a time of extraordinary geopolitical change & uncertainty, shaping and being shaped by rapid technological change, w/ major shifts in data&AI deployment, capabilities & markets

This risks undoing a period of slow but meaningful steps towards ensuring data and AI work for public benefit.

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Christopher Smith @christophersmith.bsky.social · 22d

www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-v...

@ukri.org

Ian Chapman: ‘I join UKRI at a crucial and exciting time’ - Research Professional News

Funder’s role is amplifying and accelerating the impact of UK researchers, says new chief executive

www.researchprofessionalnews.com

Reposted by Christopher Smith

Justin McGuirk @justinmcguirk.bsky.social · 23d

Nice to see my talk at World Design Congress quoted in this roundup.

“The challenge is that we have to work at two speeds simultaneously: with immediate urgency, and with the vision to begin the slow project of reimagining our relationship with the living world”

www.dezeen.com/2025/09/16/w...

Six key messages from the World Design Congress

The World Design Congress saw the world's leading designers gather to discuss the planet's future. Here we pick the most prominent themes from the event.

www.dezeen.com

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Christopher Smith @christophersmith.bsky.social · 23d

"There is no point growing the economy if it is not done sustainably and with regeneration at its heart"
#design

www.dezeen.com/2025/09/16/w...

Six key messages from the World Design Congress

The World Design Congress saw the world's leading designers gather to discuss the planet's future. Here we pick the most prominent themes from the event.

www.dezeen.com

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Christopher Smith @christophersmith.bsky.social · 23d

Robert Redford, 1936-2025

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Reposted by Christopher Smith

Heather Froehlich @heatherfro.bsky.social · 24d

Call for Applications: www.ukri.org/opportunity/...

Expressions of interest: artificial intelligence humanities sandpits: Canada, UK and US

AHRC and SSHRC invite expressions of interest to attend a humanities-led, interdisciplinary research sandpit looking to put humanities insights and methodologies at the heart of artificial intelligenc...

www.ukri.org

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Reposted by Christopher Smith

RLUK Research Libraries UK @rluk.ac.uk · 24d

We’re delighted to announce the third #RLUK #AHRC @armauk.bsky.social Research Catalyst Cohort #REPRCC for academic libraries.

Over the next year they will develop their research confidence, skills & capabilities

bit.ly/47JXXty

🎉 Congratulations #librariesXresearch cohort! 👇

Research Catalyst Cohort 2025-26 announced

This programme consists of a tailored cohort training programme, open events, case studies, and resources to support colleagues working across the academic library community to develop their research ...

bit.ly

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Christopher Smith @christophersmith.bsky.social · 24d

A deliberate typo, see @jntod.bsky.social 's previous post.

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Reposted by Christopher Smith

Rachel Coldicutt @rachelcoldicutt.bsky.social · 24d

Morning! Society for Hopeful Technologists newsletter #2 is arriving in inboxes now. A little bit on Musk and X, much more about future plans + organising buttondown.com/society-of-h... and great to have a group of fellow organisers coming together 💪

#2: Hopeful Actions

What's next for the Society for Hopeful Technologists: events, principles, and opportunities to get involved.

buttondown.com

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Christopher Smith @christophersmith.bsky.social · 25d

"it’s not only engineering degrees that inspire invention."
💯

Jeremy Noel-Tod @jntod.bsky.social · 25d

After making a dumb joke on here about the creative side of academic writing as "unfunded hobbit research", I then wrote a serious post about it

Unfunded Hobbit Research

In defence of academic inspiration

someflowerssoon.substack.com

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Reposted by Christopher Smith

Jeremy Noel-Tod @jntod.bsky.social · 25d

After making a dumb joke on here about the creative side of academic writing as "unfunded hobbit research", I then wrote a serious post about it

Unfunded Hobbit Research

In defence of academic inspiration

someflowerssoon.substack.com

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Reposted by Martin Paul Eve, Christopher Smith, Fabián Muniesa , and 1 more Martin Paul Eve, Christopher Smith, Fabián Muniesa, Keith Lilley

Stuart Elden @stuartelden.bsky.social · 25d

Pierre Bourdieu and Erwin Panofsky: Architecture, Scholasticism and the Concept of Habitus
progressivegeographies.com/2025/09/14/p...

Pierre Bourdieu and Erwin Panofsky: Architecture, Scholasticism and the Concept of Habitus

In 1967, Pierre Bourdieu translated Erwin Panofsky’s 1951 book Gothic Architecture and Scholasticism into French. The German-born Panofsky is best known for his work in art history, and f…

progressivegeographies.com

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Reposted by Stuart Elden

Christopher Smith @christophersmith.bsky.social · 25d

@stuartelden.bsky.social is a master of the illuminating microstories of intellectual history; this one on how Bourdieu's translation of Panofsky shaped his and contemporary French thinking is a gem

progressivegeographies.com/2025/09/14/p...

Pierre Bourdieu and Erwin Panofsky: Architecture, Scholasticism and the Concept of Habitus

In 1967, Pierre Bourdieu translated Erwin Panofsky’s 1951 book Gothic Architecture and Scholasticism into French. The German-born Panofsky is best known for his work in art history, and f…

progressivegeographies.com

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Christopher Smith @christophersmith.bsky.social · 25d

This is what love of country looks like to me, and it's all about helping others.
@britishcouncil.bsky.social @scott-mcd-1.bsky.social

Scott McDonald @scott-mcd-1.bsky.social · 25d

I visited the British Council team in Kyiv this week after the bombing of our office. I could feel their anger, defiance and determination to continue with our important work.

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Reposted by Christopher Smith

Scott McDonald @scott-mcd-1.bsky.social · 25d

I visited the British Council team in Kyiv this week after the bombing of our office. I could feel their anger, defiance and determination to continue with our important work.

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Christopher Smith @christophersmith.bsky.social · 26d

After a superb week for #design, with the World Design Congress, a major AHRC investments and the London Design Festival, here are my reflections on what design means to me - a discipline of care, and our laboratory for the future

anatomiesofpower.wordpress.com/2025/09/13/w...

What design means to me

This has been an extraordinary week for design in London. Our friends at Design Council hosted the World Design Congress in then Barbican – over 1000 attendees and many more online, 70 countries re…

anatomiesofpower.wordpress.com

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Christopher Smith @christophersmith.bsky.social · 26d

Summary of an extremely important report on China's investment in the green energy transition

Jonas Nahm @jonasnahm.com · 28d

1/ New report from @bentleyallan.bsky.social's Net Zero Policy Lab: As the US withdraws from green tech industries and pressures allies to follow suit, China is stepping in to power the developing world's energy transition. The scale is staggering.

www.netzeropolicylab.com/china-green-...

China Green Leap Outward — Net Zero Industrial Policy Lab

A new China Low Carbon Technology FDI Database

www.netzeropolicylab.com

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Reposted by Christopher Smith

University of St Andrews @uniofstandrews.bsky.social · 26d

St Andrews top in Scotland and second in the UK in the @theguardian.com University Guide 2026 🎉

Maths, History, and International Relations take the top spot in the new rankings with a further 16 subjects ranking in the top 10 🎉

Read more 👇

ow.ly/hzCj50WWe9R

#EverToExcel

Five smiling students in St Salvator's Quad at the University of St Andrews.

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