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Reposted by Lena Strid

Fishbourne Roman Palace @romanpalace.bsky.social · 55m

Looking for an old post (that time we sent a Gareth Southgate Christmas decoration to @merchantshallyork.org if you're interested), and we stumbled on that time we TWANG-ed a bunch of stuff on our west wing.

Hope you enjoy the memory as much as we did.

(Follow the 🧵)

bsky.app/profile/roma...

Fishbourne Roman Palace @romanpalace.bsky.social · Dec 17

Right, it's #TWANG* day, so we're going to twang a load of stuff with our mini-catapult. Pay attention it's science.

First, a tennis ball. By way of calibration, if you will.

But we know what you're all asking... What would happen if we filled that tennis ball with concrete?

*Not a thing.

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Alison Fisk @alisonfisk.bsky.social · 7h

Marvellous Minoan clay vessels made by creative potters on the island of Crete during the Aegean Bronze Age around 3,500 years ago! 🤩

Heraklion Archaeological Museum 📷 by me

#Archaeology

From the Aegean Bronze Age, Minoan clay vessels with black handpainted decoration.on a pale biscuity-coloured slip

Top left - clay flask decorated in Minoan ‘Marine Style’’ with an octopus with tentacles writhing around the body of the vase. Additional motifs such as seaweed and rocks represent the seabed. From Palaikastro, 1500-1450 BC

Top right - clay rhyton in the shape of a bull’s head. A rhyton is a type of pouring vessel used for filling cups or making liquid offerings. There is a pouring hole at the bull’s mouth. From Knossos Little Palace, 1450-1375 BC

Bottom left - Nautilus vessel - clay rhyton depicting the seabed with nautili, corals and seaweed. From Phaistos Palace, 1500-1450 BC

Bottom right - Basket shaped rhyton decorated with double-axe motif. There is a small pouring hole in one of the bottom corners. From Pseira, 1500-1450 BC

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Sarah McAnulty, Ph.D. @sarahmackattack.bsky.social · 1d

Here I am. Once again. I'm out of archaeologists.

We matched 576 groups w/archaeologists, leaving 13 groups unmatched. This brings me pain! We've never run out of scientists like this before. 598 requests for one category is A LOT. But still.

Archaeologists 🥺
www.skypeascientist.com/sign-up.html

Sign Up

Skype a Scientist gives you the opportunity to connect with students and the public around the world.

www.skypeascientist.com

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Lena Strid @lenamstrid.bsky.social · 9h

Do it! It really sounds like an amazing exhibition!

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Ursula K. Le Guin @ursulakleguin.com · 1d

Today, The Word for World: The Maps of Ursula K. Le Guin opens at AA Gallery in London! Curated by Sarah Shin and Harriet Jennings, the exhibition presents a selection of Ursula's maps, including some that have never been exhibited before.

A photo of the entrance to The Word for World exhibition, with two banners hanging vertically down outside the doorway to a brick building with white-paned windows. A row of bicycles are parked in front. The banners are purple and white and say the name of the exhibition and Ursula K. Le Guin's name.

A cord-wrapped rock rests on a vivid blue background next to a map of and program for The Word for World exhibition.

A stack of copies of The Word for World book, which shows the title in vivid blue against a black cloth cover.

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Count Binface @countbinface.bsky.social · 10h

I hereby declare war on premature Christmassing.

Any shop caught doing this before 1st December must be shut down and turned into affordable housing.

Choose sanity. Vote Binface.

(Photo dated 9th October 2025)

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Aidan O'Sullivan @aidanosullivan.bsky.social · 9h

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Jonathan Healey @jonathanhealey.bsky.social · 1d

It was two OUP books.

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Rebekah Higgitt @rhiggitt.bsky.social · 1d

Attempting to deal with the 'digital dark age' 📜 - interesting project linked to the Hawking collection at Cambridge #histSTM

joshuatj @joshuatj.digipres.club.ap.brid.gy · 1d

Woohoo! Great #digipres story @makethecatwise
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20251009-rescuing-knowledge-trapped-on-old-floppy-disks

A digital dark age? The people rescuing forgotten knowledge trapped on old floppy disks

From lectures by Stephen Hawking to the letters of British politician Neil Kinnock – it's a race against time to save the historical treasures locked away on old floppy disks.

www.bbc.com

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Lauren MacIvor Thompson @lmacthompson1.bsky.social · 1d

I am writing this because it has swiftly become crystal clear to me that many people have no idea what is happening or how this works. Here is a thread for non-academics to put into context what just happened to Dr. Mark Bray, a fellow historian.

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Peter Tarras @petertarras.bsky.social · 1d

Now I'm interested: Who else had to undo 'AI' in academic texts? What were your experiences with this?

Kristel Zilmer @kristelzilmer.bsky.social · 1d

My experience earlier this year: I had to spend a few days rescuing a text that I myself had written and which had then been sent through LLM by a colleague and turned into something completely different. Such a huge waste of time and mental energy.

Peter Tarras @petertarras.bsky.social · 1d

We see this in other fields too, where skill sets are no longer applied to creating stuff, but to correct ‘AI’ slop. I think this is definitely a huge waste of time, and the idea that ‘AI’ could save time in research is a big lie. But perhaps it’s important to make this experience ... (5/x)

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Lena Strid @lenamstrid.bsky.social · 1d

And just a few days later, we found another spindle whorl in the same pit house! This one is slightly larger and more even. Perhaps the first one was made by a child learning the craft? #FindsFriday 🏺

Dark grey conical spindle whorl held in a slightly muddy hand.

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Chris Seddon @chrisseddon.bsky.social · 1d

There's something quite beautiful about Sir Mortimer Wheeler's box-system excavations at Maiden Castle. Such a fantastic photograph!

Image Rights: Society of Antiquaries (held at Historic England Archive)

#archaeology 🏺 #photography

An historic black & white image of the box excavations at Maiden Castle during Sir Mortimer Wheeler's excavations in 1937. Image Rights: Society of Antiquaries (held at Historic England Archive)

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MedievalWomenSpeak @medievalwomenspeak.bsky.social · 1d

I have discovered that women are more than capable of undertaking any task which requires physical strength or of learning any discipline which requires discernment and intelligence. Books which say otherwise were definitely not written by women.

- Christine de Pizan, b. 1365

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Preservare @preservare.bsky.social · 1d

Greetings from Lund, where Thijs (@thijselfrink.bsky.social) presented his fascinating research on the history and knowledge of curing herring in the early modern Low Countries.

Thijs Elfrink @thijselfrink.bsky.social · 1d

This week I’ve been in Lund for the History of Knowledge conference, presenting on knowledge of salt and curing in the early modern Dutch herring fishery. The inspiring discussions, warm atmosphere, and beautiful autumn colours made this a memorable experience. Many thanks to everyone involved!

The autumn-coloured Lund University Library

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Celine Camps @celinecamps.bsky.social · 1d

Historians of science: any thoughts on this? I'm intrigued by a "recipe" in a 1505 manuscript, which describes what appears to be the Leidenfrost effect, named after Johann Gottlob Leidenfrost, who supposedly was the first to describe the effect in the 18th century 🗃️ #HistSTM #HistSci #EarlyModern 🧪

g.j.hilton @hltn.bsky.social · 1d

The Leidenfrost effect! But wow is this ever an early description of it.

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Dr Francis Young @drfrancisyoung.bsky.social · 1d

I wrote about Latvia’s state-sanctioned endorsement of a modern pagan religion - and what that may mean for Europe’s religious future drfrancisyoung.com/2025/10/10/p...

Pagan dawn: Europe’s first pagan state religion in 638 years?

Members of the Dievturi religion at the Latvian Saeima, 9 October 2025 © Dievturi Sadraudze On Thursday the Latvian Saeima (parliament) passed a rather unusual law that, predictably, has escaped no…

drfrancisyoung.com

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Dr Alex Bond @thelabandfield.bsky.social · 1d

Well, it's official. After our paper last year (onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....), the Slender-billed Curlew is officially declared Extinct today.

Scientists dream of describing new species, not writing their obituary and epitaph, knowing that they are gone forever #ornithology

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Alastor Stuart @alasdairstuart.bsky.social · 1d

Absolutely how you do it. No one wants to be a nazi bar.

Mike Rose @mikerose.bsky.social · 1d

We banned a guy on the Steam forums for repeatedly saying there were “too many women” in our game

So he flipped his positive review to negative

Still totally worth it

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Dr Christopher Monk @medievalmonk.bsky.social · 1d

Free recipe during October: buymeacoffee.com/MonksMMC/e/2...
Based upon a 14th-century recipe for apple, pear, fig and raisin tart. 😋

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Nina Willburger @drnwillburger.bsky.social · 1d

#FindsFriday! A Roman brush found in Bregenz.

Roman brush fragments are sometimes difficult to interpret; in this case, their function may relate to textile production, as suggested for similar finds in Eschenz.The bristled surface is suitable for carding or teasing wool fibers. 🧵1/2

📷 me

🏺

A photo of a well-preserved fragment of a Roman brush in a show case. The object consists of a rectangular base with rounded and scalloped edges, formed from wood into which hundreds of stiff rushes have been densely embedded.

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Kate Elliott @kateelliottsff.bsky.social · 1d

The moral of this story is that WORD OF MOUTH is precious. Talk to people if there is any kind of opening about the books you love that they might also like, the tv shows & films you think are worth watching, the concerns of the day, even slide into a bit of soft political commentary. Open the door.

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Aidan O'Sullivan @aidanosullivan.bsky.social · 2d

Tulips, Dutch

Robert Reich @rbreich.bsky.social · 2d

AI companies are spending billions on deals with each other, which boost their value.

This has helped twenty billionaires tied to AI add $450B to their fortunes in 2025.

Meanwhile, an MIT study found that 95% of companies using AI haven't seen returns on investment.

Be warned.

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Prof Christina Pagel @chrischirp.bsky.social · 2d

We found that the UK’s top scientific institutions, from the Met Office to the UK Health Security Agency, have inadequate institutional defences.

If an incoming government wanted to weaken the role of science and evidence in policy making, it could do so shockingly fast. 2/11

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Terry O'Connor @osteoconnor.bsky.social · 2d

Maples. Harlow Carr garden, Yorkshire.

Large flower beds with maples in yellow, gold, orange and burgundy. Evergreen behind.

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