John Brown
@johnbrown1325.bsky.social
Post-Brexit Brit, now also Belgian. Pianist, singer & accordionist, occasional pretend Scotsman. Cats, music, gardening, science, birds, etc.
New job opportunities for poets: working with criminal and terrorist organisations to extract information from LLMs. You never thought your English degree would do this for you
AI’s safety features can be circumvented with poetry, research finds
Poems containing prompts for harmful content prove effective at duping large language models
www.theguardian.com
December 1, 2025 at 7:11 AM
New job opportunities for poets: working with criminal and terrorist organisations to extract information from LLMs. You never thought your English degree would do this for you
A fiery morning sky (shepherds’ warning?)
December 1, 2025 at 7:07 AM
A fiery morning sky (shepherds’ warning?)
Posh gig tonight for a St Andrew’s ball.
November 29, 2025 at 11:13 PM
Posh gig tonight for a St Andrew’s ball.
Baby Jesus head stolen from nativity shock
November 29, 2025 at 3:26 PM
Baby Jesus head stolen from nativity shock
This is fun
ZRI play Schubert Quintet into Cristinel wild gypsy tune
YouTube video by ZRI: The Red Hedgehog Tavern Band
youtu.be
November 29, 2025 at 12:02 PM
This is fun
Just saw this beautiful white heron come flapping slowly in and land on my neighbour’s chimney
November 29, 2025 at 10:55 AM
Just saw this beautiful white heron come flapping slowly in and land on my neighbour’s chimney
I would like to report this article for crimes against data visualisation
Fewer one night stands, more AI lovers: the data behind generation Z’s sex lives
Shaped by lockdown and two Trump presidencies, gen Z are grappling with a lot in love, dating and the bedroom
www.theguardian.com
November 29, 2025 at 8:26 AM
I would like to report this article for crimes against data visualisation
What an amazing project!
1/x So the project of constructing 8 tunnel elements of the Oosterweel tunnel, sailing them to Antwerp, Belgium and then sinking them in the right spot, is almost finished.
November 29, 2025 at 8:14 AM
What an amazing project!
A freshly tuned piano: one of the best days of the year
November 27, 2025 at 5:31 PM
A freshly tuned piano: one of the best days of the year
Whoops, Belgian national (French) broadcaster says Brexit is affecting the UK budget
“We thought the Brits had buried Brexit, that they had filed it away with those errors you prefer to forget. But no, Brexit’s back, and it’s back because the bill has arrived…”
“We thought the Brits had buried Brexit, that they had filed it away with those errors you prefer to forget. But no, Brexit’s back, and it’s back because the bill has arrived…”
Un jour, une carte : budget britannique en crise, le Brexit pointé du doigt
https://www.rtbf.be/article/un-jour-une-carte-budget-britannique-en-crise-le-brexit-pointe-du-doigt-11637527
https://www.rtbf.be/article/un-jour-une-carte-budget-britannique-en-crise-le-brexit-pointe-du-doigt-11637527
Un jour, une carte : budget britannique en crise, le Brexit pointé du doigt - RTBF Actus
On pensait que les Britanniques avaient enterré le Brexit, qu'ils l'avaient rangé dans le tiroir des erreurs qu'on...
www.rtbf.be
November 26, 2025 at 7:19 AM
Whoops, Belgian national (French) broadcaster says Brexit is affecting the UK budget
“We thought the Brits had buried Brexit, that they had filed it away with those errors you prefer to forget. But no, Brexit’s back, and it’s back because the bill has arrived…”
“We thought the Brits had buried Brexit, that they had filed it away with those errors you prefer to forget. But no, Brexit’s back, and it’s back because the bill has arrived…”
“The colours are too Flemish”. Such a Belgian news story
The uniforms have been criticised over their non-compliance with Belgian language laws and for colours that are "too Flemish".
Belgium halts rollout of new police uniform deemed ‘too Flemish’
Belgium halts rollout of new police uniform deemed 'too Flemish'
www.brusselstimes.com
November 26, 2025 at 7:08 AM
“The colours are too Flemish”. Such a Belgian news story
@tommckinney.bsky.social love the treecreeper song. My dad used to say that treecreepers only ever go up trees and nuthatches only ever come down. I see a nuthatch almost daily in my garden but the treecreeper much more rarely
November 26, 2025 at 6:36 AM
@tommckinney.bsky.social love the treecreeper song. My dad used to say that treecreepers only ever go up trees and nuthatches only ever come down. I see a nuthatch almost daily in my garden but the treecreeper much more rarely
Golly, a national strike in Belgium makes the headlines on the BBC! Can’t remember when that’s happened before. I guess because of possible disruption to Eurostar and flights.
November 26, 2025 at 6:32 AM
Golly, a national strike in Belgium makes the headlines on the BBC! Can’t remember when that’s happened before. I guess because of possible disruption to Eurostar and flights.
I’ve been hearing people say ‘step foot’ a lot recently, whereas the correct expression is ‘set foot’. And it seems like I’m not the first to notice it
The Grammarphobia Blog: Is your foot out of step?
Do you "set foot" or "step foot" in a place?
grammarphobia.com
November 25, 2025 at 7:24 PM
I’ve been hearing people say ‘step foot’ a lot recently, whereas the correct expression is ‘set foot’. And it seems like I’m not the first to notice it
Evergreen (winter) weather forecast for Belgium
Belgium will face a mixed bag of weather on Tuesday as showers, isolated thunderstorms and sleet move across the country from the west.
Showers, sleet and patchy fog as unsettled weather lingers
Showers, sleet and patchy fog as unsettled weather lingers
www.brusselstimes.com
November 25, 2025 at 8:01 AM
Evergreen (winter) weather forecast for Belgium
He could certainly sing
Les feuilles mortes
YouTube video by Yves Montand - Topic
youtu.be
November 24, 2025 at 9:19 AM
He could certainly sing
A lovely day for working outside this morning
November 22, 2025 at 12:02 PM
A lovely day for working outside this morning
Sabena confused by this water bowl being frozen, this may be the first time she’s experienced it
November 22, 2025 at 7:12 AM
Sabena confused by this water bowl being frozen, this may be the first time she’s experienced it
Happy birthday Björk, 60 today
Bjork - Human behaviour
YouTube video by Cruise Control
youtu.be
November 21, 2025 at 5:11 PM
Happy birthday Björk, 60 today
Black cats are so difficult to photograph
November 21, 2025 at 8:32 AM
Black cats are so difficult to photograph
While it’s a nice idea; the question of whether neanderthals and humans kissed is about as meaningful as debating whether Jesus laughed
Neanderthals and early humans ‘likely to have kissed’, say scientists
Study from University of Oxford looks into evolutionary origins of kissing and its role in relations between species
www.theguardian.com
November 20, 2025 at 6:59 AM
While it’s a nice idea; the question of whether neanderthals and humans kissed is about as meaningful as debating whether Jesus laughed
Off to sing for the king…
November 19, 2025 at 12:11 PM
Off to sing for the king…
I have to learn this (or at least the bass part) off by heart. I love the song but the lyrics, harmonies and rhythm are not easy to get
Laïs - Le Grand Vent (A capella)
YouTube video by Nesa
youtu.be
November 18, 2025 at 10:13 PM
I have to learn this (or at least the bass part) off by heart. I love the song but the lyrics, harmonies and rhythm are not easy to get
@tomchivers.bsky.social Thanks for the latest episode about the wood wide web. I always thought it was tosh and I’m glad there is science to back that up
November 18, 2025 at 10:06 PM
@tomchivers.bsky.social Thanks for the latest episode about the wood wide web. I always thought it was tosh and I’m glad there is science to back that up
Belgium playing an excellent match against Samoa, I just hope they can keep this tempo up for the whole match
November 18, 2025 at 4:06 PM
Belgium playing an excellent match against Samoa, I just hope they can keep this tempo up for the whole match