Dan Lockton
@danlockton.com
Utrecht, Netherlands + Norwich, UK
Institute for Sustainable Worlds, Norwich University of the Arts ⦿ Design—imagination—climate—futures ⦿ Imaginaries Lab http://imaginari.es ⦿ New Metaphors http://newmetaphors.com ⦿ he/him ⦿ Not my employer's views
Institute for Sustainable Worlds, Norwich University of the Arts ⦿ Design—imagination—climate—futures ⦿ Imaginaries Lab http://imaginari.es ⦿ New Metaphors http://newmetaphors.com ⦿ he/him ⦿ Not my employer's views
Pinned
Dan Lockton
@danlockton.com
· Oct 14
Join us online on Wed 22 Oct for 'Creative Futures in Education'. We have three amazing speakers: educator-researchers engaging with #futures:
↠ Grace Turtle (Monstrous Futurities, Sandberg Inst)
↠ Christian Petersen (Norwich University of the Arts)
↠ shobhan s (Purdue University & slowstudio)
↠ Grace Turtle (Monstrous Futurities, Sandberg Inst)
↠ Christian Petersen (Norwich University of the Arts)
↠ shobhan s (Purdue University & slowstudio)
Reposted by Dan Lockton
There are so many knock-on effects of degrading US regulatory standards, which will inevitably drive down standards everywhere else. I don't know about you, but I want the next plane I get on to be a lot better than "good enough".
The @usdot.bsky.social, which oversees the safety of airplanes, cars and pipelines, plans to use Google Gemini to draft new regulations. “We don’t need the perfect rule,” said DOT’s top lawyer. “We want good enough.”
Government by AI? Trump Administration Plans to Write Regulations Using Artificial Intelligence
The Transportation Department, which oversees the safety of airplanes, cars and pipelines, plans to use Google Gemini to draft new regulations. “We don’t need the perfect rule,” said DOT’s top lawyer....
www.propublica.org
January 26, 2026 at 9:03 PM
There are so many knock-on effects of degrading US regulatory standards, which will inevitably drive down standards everywhere else. I don't know about you, but I want the next plane I get on to be a lot better than "good enough".
Reposted by Dan Lockton
And there’s the irony: in the attempt to avoid inserting itself into the argument, a news organisation which fails to distinguish empty statements from evidenced ones is doing exactly that.
You cannot, in 2026, report passively and hope to be truthful.
/ends
You cannot, in 2026, report passively and hope to be truthful.
/ends
January 25, 2026 at 10:21 AM
And there’s the irony: in the attempt to avoid inserting itself into the argument, a news organisation which fails to distinguish empty statements from evidenced ones is doing exactly that.
You cannot, in 2026, report passively and hope to be truthful.
/ends
You cannot, in 2026, report passively and hope to be truthful.
/ends
Reposted by Dan Lockton
To my eye, some reporting also conflates the rather Victorian notion of truthfulness as “offering primary sources without attempting to interpret them“ with reporting any government statement as a primary source.
January 25, 2026 at 9:48 AM
To my eye, some reporting also conflates the rather Victorian notion of truthfulness as “offering primary sources without attempting to interpret them“ with reporting any government statement as a primary source.
Many thoughts about this, but as
@apiln.bsky.social has detailed so well over the years, "fury at X" has become the default pattern for what was once proper local journalism.
Also, imaginaries of real places as slogans/utopias/dystopias are fascinating to see in practice, from NL to Baltimore.
@apiln.bsky.social has detailed so well over the years, "fury at X" has become the default pattern for what was once proper local journalism.
Also, imaginaries of real places as slogans/utopias/dystopias are fascinating to see in practice, from NL to Baltimore.
January 25, 2026 at 10:25 AM
Many thoughts about this, but as
@apiln.bsky.social has detailed so well over the years, "fury at X" has become the default pattern for what was once proper local journalism.
Also, imaginaries of real places as slogans/utopias/dystopias are fascinating to see in practice, from NL to Baltimore.
@apiln.bsky.social has detailed so well over the years, "fury at X" has become the default pattern for what was once proper local journalism.
Also, imaginaries of real places as slogans/utopias/dystopias are fascinating to see in practice, from NL to Baltimore.
Reposted by Dan Lockton
In these times of trouble, something a bit niche but also a bit soothing - a post where I dug out some old roots of #metaphor theory that we have largely forgotten makingsciencepublic.com/2026/01/23/f... #histling
From metaphors on market day to metaphors we live by
I was talking the other day with some people about AI metaphors. During that discussion the thorny question came up ‘what are metaphors anyway?’, followed by ‘is there anything in language that’s n…
makingsciencepublic.com
January 23, 2026 at 7:24 AM
In these times of trouble, something a bit niche but also a bit soothing - a post where I dug out some old roots of #metaphor theory that we have largely forgotten makingsciencepublic.com/2026/01/23/f... #histling
I think partly what's dismaying with Airport Book Policymaking (as @ifbookspod.bsky.social @michaelhobbes.bsky.social @notalawyer.bsky.social have demonstrated so well over the years) is just how easy it seems to be to capture the minds of supposedly thoughtful, critical public figures, with what's
Airport book policy making is totally a thing. We have a live case- banning social media for under 16s.
@joxley.jmoxley.co.uk hits the mark.
And as with anything when you look at the actual data the picture is far more complex. Parent brain is not enough.
open.substack.com/pub/joxleywr...
@joxley.jmoxley.co.uk hits the mark.
And as with anything when you look at the actual data the picture is far more complex. Parent brain is not enough.
open.substack.com/pub/joxleywr...
Airport Book Brain
How faddish ideas keep seducing.
open.substack.com
January 23, 2026 at 8:32 AM
I think partly what's dismaying with Airport Book Policymaking (as @ifbookspod.bsky.social @michaelhobbes.bsky.social @notalawyer.bsky.social have demonstrated so well over the years) is just how easy it seems to be to capture the minds of supposedly thoughtful, critical public figures, with what's
Reposted by Dan Lockton
Reminder that it was Young's father who coined the term 'meritocracy’, if you were beginning to doubt that the universe has a sick sense of humour
Welcome to the UK, where today transphobe Tanni Grey-Thompson, transphobe Sharron Davies and transphobe Toby Young have all taken their place in the House of Lords, where they’ll get to help decide our laws until they die, at our expense. Makes you sick, doesn’t it?
January 22, 2026 at 9:28 PM
Reminder that it was Young's father who coined the term 'meritocracy’, if you were beginning to doubt that the universe has a sick sense of humour
Reposted by Dan Lockton
I've had enough.
January 21, 2026 at 2:09 PM
I've had enough.
Imagine what Nigel Kneale could have done with this!
NEW: An Anglo-Saxon burial site with remarkable similarities to Sutton Hoo has been discovered at the development of the Sizewell C nuclear power station
www.thetimes.com/article/1528... #history #archaeology #anglosaxons
www.thetimes.com/article/1528... #history #archaeology #anglosaxons
Burial site ‘akin to Sutton Hoo’ sheds new light on Anglo-Saxons
The extremely rare discovery made during excavations at Sizewell C dates to the 6th or 7th century and includes a princely burial of two people and a horse
www.thetimes.com
January 12, 2026 at 10:36 AM
Imagine what Nigel Kneale could have done with this!
Some interesting ideas here.
Message in a bottle. www.designswarm.com/blog/2026/01...
The next 80 years of the Design Council (a letter from a friend)
The Design Council is selecting its new CEO and as a friend of the organisation (I’ve worked there twice, in 2005 as an intern and in 2022 as an interim Chief Design Officer) here are my thou…
www.designswarm.com
January 11, 2026 at 9:55 PM
Some interesting ideas here.
Reposted by Dan Lockton
According to this FT article, Sir Paul Nurse says: “I’m afraid there’s many bad people around, but they have made scientific advances.”
The ‘but’ in this quote says it all…
So don’t blame us when we lose faith in institutions that regard integrity as irrelevant to designating scientific greatness.
The ‘but’ in this quote says it all…
So don’t blame us when we lose faith in institutions that regard integrity as irrelevant to designating scientific greatness.
Musk should remain member of UK Royal Society, says president ft.trib.al/tC0vaAa
Musk should remain member of UK Royal Society, says president
Paul Nurse tells FT that national science academy should avoid ‘making judgments’ about ‘character’ of fellows
ft.trib.al
January 11, 2026 at 5:14 PM
According to this FT article, Sir Paul Nurse says: “I’m afraid there’s many bad people around, but they have made scientific advances.”
The ‘but’ in this quote says it all…
So don’t blame us when we lose faith in institutions that regard integrity as irrelevant to designating scientific greatness.
The ‘but’ in this quote says it all…
So don’t blame us when we lose faith in institutions that regard integrity as irrelevant to designating scientific greatness.
Reposted by Dan Lockton
removal from app store + google play probably fatally wounds the entire global right wing movement and significantly hinders musk’s own ability to get involved with elections both here and abroad
Honestly think that if you pulled twitter from the App Store and shut it down it would fuck up the entire right wing ecosystem at that point. Like the entire media apparatus would fall apart.
January 8, 2026 at 6:34 PM
removal from app store + google play probably fatally wounds the entire global right wing movement and significantly hinders musk’s own ability to get involved with elections both here and abroad
I sit, silent, cold, and armless, on the edge of my seat as the poltergeist once again levitates the mysterious laptop, book, and headphones all around me
January 8, 2026 at 8:53 AM
I sit, silent, cold, and armless, on the edge of my seat as the poltergeist once again levitates the mysterious laptop, book, and headphones all around me
Reposted by Dan Lockton
While everyone is distracted by Circus Trump, European countries let his far-right sponsor and mentor of JD Vance in via the backdoor. No European government should work with Palantir. None.
Yet another huge contract, awarded without any competitive bidding process, to Wes Streeting's favourite NHS supplier, the Hard Right US surveillance tech specialists Palantir, for military decision making capability.
Palantir lands biggest ever UK defense deal
The £240 million contract with the Ministry of Defence has renewed a debate about Britain’s dependence on American technology.
www.politico.eu
January 6, 2026 at 9:46 AM
While everyone is distracted by Circus Trump, European countries let his far-right sponsor and mentor of JD Vance in via the backdoor. No European government should work with Palantir. None.
Reposted by Dan Lockton
You'll notice that the "hard decisions" politicians are always talking about are always "cutting benefits for poor people" and never "disagreeing with America" or "banning billionaires' CSAM-machines".
January 5, 2026 at 1:14 PM
You'll notice that the "hard decisions" politicians are always talking about are always "cutting benefits for poor people" and never "disagreeing with America" or "banning billionaires' CSAM-machines".
Reposted by Dan Lockton
Reposted by Dan Lockton
A good rule of thumb is that anyone "just asking questions" about any marginalized group already knows the answers they want to hear, and is also a bad person whose opinions mean less than those of the group they're interrogating.
December 19, 2025 at 2:35 AM
A good rule of thumb is that anyone "just asking questions" about any marginalized group already knows the answers they want to hear, and is also a bad person whose opinions mean less than those of the group they're interrogating.
Reposted by Dan Lockton
Went to thesis reviews at Cooper Union, and I’m moved, as always, by how much *everyone* benefits from an international cohort — the comparative perspective, the denaturalization of your own experience, the broader geographical and historical context: all threats to an authoritarian regime
December 18, 2025 at 10:23 PM
Went to thesis reviews at Cooper Union, and I’m moved, as always, by how much *everyone* benefits from an international cohort — the comparative perspective, the denaturalization of your own experience, the broader geographical and historical context: all threats to an authoritarian regime
Reposted by Dan Lockton
artists hold immeasurable storytelling power. well-educated artists are a genuine threat to the establishment, and that's why so much time and money is spent on dissuading people from pursuing a life among the arts
December 18, 2025 at 10:12 PM
artists hold immeasurable storytelling power. well-educated artists are a genuine threat to the establishment, and that's why so much time and money is spent on dissuading people from pursuing a life among the arts
There once was a fire door in Norwich
For which no-one could find a door wedge
But perceiving that this old lighter
Could be rammed in just a bit tighter
Was a little too ironic, I really do allege
For which no-one could find a door wedge
But perceiving that this old lighter
Could be rammed in just a bit tighter
Was a little too ironic, I really do allege
December 18, 2025 at 7:08 PM
There once was a fire door in Norwich
For which no-one could find a door wedge
But perceiving that this old lighter
Could be rammed in just a bit tighter
Was a little too ironic, I really do allege
For which no-one could find a door wedge
But perceiving that this old lighter
Could be rammed in just a bit tighter
Was a little too ironic, I really do allege
Reposted by Dan Lockton
Thinking you have a good idea because the LLM said “good idea!” is identical to thinking your gas pump is grateful because it thanked you
If we are banning cell phones for kids we need to be talking about banning chatbots for boomers
www.persuasion.community/p/my-chatgpt...
www.persuasion.community/p/my-chatgpt...
December 18, 2025 at 12:35 PM
Thinking you have a good idea because the LLM said “good idea!” is identical to thinking your gas pump is grateful because it thanked you
Reposted by Dan Lockton
If the legibility of research is a problem that ACM cares about - and I personally think it should be! - then the author of every ACM publication should be encouraged/supported to write an accessible, layperson's summary of their paper that could be connected to the DL entry for the paper.
December 17, 2025 at 5:43 PM
If the legibility of research is a problem that ACM cares about - and I personally think it should be! - then the author of every ACM publication should be encouraged/supported to write an accessible, layperson's summary of their paper that could be connected to the DL entry for the paper.