Ben Feakins
@feakster.bsky.social
Epi, stats, R, Linux & FOSS enthusiast. Trying to get into photography, so expect various badly taken photos of birds and landscapes.
Reposted by Ben Feakins
Relentless "improvement" of the countryside leaves no space for nature.
But ever more people are now helping the wild return, through *rewilding*.
No matter who you are or where you live, you too have a part to play in the fight.
There is no better New Year's resolution.
But ever more people are now helping the wild return, through *rewilding*.
No matter who you are or where you live, you too have a part to play in the fight.
There is no better New Year's resolution.
January 1, 2026 at 7:14 AM
Relentless "improvement" of the countryside leaves no space for nature.
But ever more people are now helping the wild return, through *rewilding*.
No matter who you are or where you live, you too have a part to play in the fight.
There is no better New Year's resolution.
But ever more people are now helping the wild return, through *rewilding*.
No matter who you are or where you live, you too have a part to play in the fight.
There is no better New Year's resolution.
Reposted by Ben Feakins
🎄 Hope you’ve got all your presents ready 💝
Google search interest shows a stable pattern:
🎅 “Christmas gift wife” peaks just before Christmas Eve
🎅 “Christmas gift husband” peaks much earlier
#MerryChristmas to all of you! 🎁
📈 Google Trends (Nov 18–Dec 24, 2020–2024)
#dataviz #ggplot2
Google search interest shows a stable pattern:
🎅 “Christmas gift wife” peaks just before Christmas Eve
🎅 “Christmas gift husband” peaks much earlier
#MerryChristmas to all of you! 🎁
📈 Google Trends (Nov 18–Dec 24, 2020–2024)
#dataviz #ggplot2
December 24, 2025 at 10:16 AM
🎄 Hope you’ve got all your presents ready 💝
Google search interest shows a stable pattern:
🎅 “Christmas gift wife” peaks just before Christmas Eve
🎅 “Christmas gift husband” peaks much earlier
#MerryChristmas to all of you! 🎁
📈 Google Trends (Nov 18–Dec 24, 2020–2024)
#dataviz #ggplot2
Google search interest shows a stable pattern:
🎅 “Christmas gift wife” peaks just before Christmas Eve
🎅 “Christmas gift husband” peaks much earlier
#MerryChristmas to all of you! 🎁
📈 Google Trends (Nov 18–Dec 24, 2020–2024)
#dataviz #ggplot2
Reposted by Ben Feakins
It’s the run up to the holidays so there can only be one #MethodologyMonday topic - the scientific way to cut your Christmas cake. Published c1906 in Nature by the statistician Francis Galton 🎂🎄🔪😊 Enjoy!
galton.org/essays/1900-...
galton.org/essays/1900-...
December 22, 2025 at 7:57 AM
It’s the run up to the holidays so there can only be one #MethodologyMonday topic - the scientific way to cut your Christmas cake. Published c1906 in Nature by the statistician Francis Galton 🎂🎄🔪😊 Enjoy!
galton.org/essays/1900-...
galton.org/essays/1900-...
Reposted by Ben Feakins
Today, the UK Government’s Planning Bill became law – a big blow for wildlife.
Thousands of you fought for nature as the Bill passed through Parliament.
Now, this isn’t the time to stay silent – nature needs us more than ever.
Join us & speak up 👇
action.rspb.org.uk/page/180990/action/1
Thousands of you fought for nature as the Bill passed through Parliament.
Now, this isn’t the time to stay silent – nature needs us more than ever.
Join us & speak up 👇
action.rspb.org.uk/page/180990/action/1
December 18, 2025 at 3:25 PM
Today, the UK Government’s Planning Bill became law – a big blow for wildlife.
Thousands of you fought for nature as the Bill passed through Parliament.
Now, this isn’t the time to stay silent – nature needs us more than ever.
Join us & speak up 👇
action.rspb.org.uk/page/180990/action/1
Thousands of you fought for nature as the Bill passed through Parliament.
Now, this isn’t the time to stay silent – nature needs us more than ever.
Join us & speak up 👇
action.rspb.org.uk/page/180990/action/1
Reposted by Ben Feakins
What a total disgrace that Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael, and, above all, Sinn Féin voted this down.
Very few want this terribly cruel colonial sport, which sees hordes of horses, riders, and dogs rampage across the countryside.
The wishes of the majority were ignored. Again.
share.google/GFZMEYpIfSe0...
Very few want this terribly cruel colonial sport, which sees hordes of horses, riders, and dogs rampage across the countryside.
The wishes of the majority were ignored. Again.
share.google/GFZMEYpIfSe0...
Bill to ban fox hunting defeated in Dáil
The bill to ban fox hunting in Ireland, proposed by People Before Profit-Solidarity TD Ruth Coppinger, has been defeated in the Dáil.
share.google
December 18, 2025 at 9:06 AM
What a total disgrace that Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael, and, above all, Sinn Féin voted this down.
Very few want this terribly cruel colonial sport, which sees hordes of horses, riders, and dogs rampage across the countryside.
The wishes of the majority were ignored. Again.
share.google/GFZMEYpIfSe0...
Very few want this terribly cruel colonial sport, which sees hordes of horses, riders, and dogs rampage across the countryside.
The wishes of the majority were ignored. Again.
share.google/GFZMEYpIfSe0...
Reposted by Ben Feakins
Morning all. Allow me to show you the perfect burn 🔥
December 18, 2025 at 9:42 AM
Morning all. Allow me to show you the perfect burn 🔥
Reposted by Ben Feakins
🚨 Toxic pesticides are poisoning our soils, water, and biodiversity. Now the EU wants to weaken rules.
Last week, the EU Commission published the environment omnibus + the grids package. This “simplification omnibus” is a dangerous shift.
👉 Take Action: www.environmentalpillar.ie/end-the-toxi...
Last week, the EU Commission published the environment omnibus + the grids package. This “simplification omnibus” is a dangerous shift.
👉 Take Action: www.environmentalpillar.ie/end-the-toxi...
December 15, 2025 at 10:51 AM
🚨 Toxic pesticides are poisoning our soils, water, and biodiversity. Now the EU wants to weaken rules.
Last week, the EU Commission published the environment omnibus + the grids package. This “simplification omnibus” is a dangerous shift.
👉 Take Action: www.environmentalpillar.ie/end-the-toxi...
Last week, the EU Commission published the environment omnibus + the grids package. This “simplification omnibus” is a dangerous shift.
👉 Take Action: www.environmentalpillar.ie/end-the-toxi...
Reposted by Ben Feakins
I dream of a day that another scientist will be so fed up with my bullshit that they go on to great things just out of spite. *This* is my road to impact.
October 12, 2023 at 1:40 PM
I dream of a day that another scientist will be so fed up with my bullshit that they go on to great things just out of spite. *This* is my road to impact.
Reposted by Ben Feakins
"Our waters are crying out for a break from the pollution, Irish people [want] clean water, but our voices are drowned out in a world of political wrangling and vested interest.
[But] you can’t drink politics."
Excellent piece by
@elainemcgoff.bsky.social
www.irishexaminer.com/opinion/comm...
[But] you can’t drink politics."
Excellent piece by
@elainemcgoff.bsky.social
www.irishexaminer.com/opinion/comm...
Most Irish people want clean water, not a nitrates derogation
Has the Government ever asked the people of Ireland if they agree with pulling on the green jersey to convince Europe to give us another derogation?
www.irishexaminer.com
December 9, 2025 at 7:53 AM
"Our waters are crying out for a break from the pollution, Irish people [want] clean water, but our voices are drowned out in a world of political wrangling and vested interest.
[But] you can’t drink politics."
Excellent piece by
@elainemcgoff.bsky.social
www.irishexaminer.com/opinion/comm...
[But] you can’t drink politics."
Excellent piece by
@elainemcgoff.bsky.social
www.irishexaminer.com/opinion/comm...
Reposted by Ben Feakins
Very common to ask patients to rate pain from "no pain" (0) to "worst pain imaginable / possible" (10). Here is a randomized trial showing anchor for pain score of 10 should be "extreme pain" (TL;DR: we want to evaluate pain, not imagination) pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...
Client Challenge
jpro.springeropen.com
October 13, 2025 at 3:08 PM
Very common to ask patients to rate pain from "no pain" (0) to "worst pain imaginable / possible" (10). Here is a randomized trial showing anchor for pain score of 10 should be "extreme pain" (TL;DR: we want to evaluate pain, not imagination) pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...
Reposted by Ben Feakins
Machine learning has developed remarkable new ideas about how to develop prediction algorithms. But always baffled me why the field had to reinvent how to evaluate models. Here we show F score should not be used to evaluate medical prediction models link.springer.com/epdf/10.1186...
The F score ranks diagnostic tests and prediction models inconsistently with their clinical utility
link.springer.com
December 8, 2025 at 6:53 PM
Machine learning has developed remarkable new ideas about how to develop prediction algorithms. But always baffled me why the field had to reinvent how to evaluate models. Here we show F score should not be used to evaluate medical prediction models link.springer.com/epdf/10.1186...
Reposted by Ben Feakins
Your universe is a photocopy of a photocopy of a…
on.ft.com/4ahkNKa
on.ft.com/4ahkNKa
November 27, 2025 at 10:36 PM
Your universe is a photocopy of a photocopy of a…
on.ft.com/4ahkNKa
on.ft.com/4ahkNKa
Reposted by Ben Feakins
December 5, 2025 at 6:41 AM
Reposted by Ben Feakins
A review article concluding the weed killer Roundup--aka glyphosate--“does not pose a health risk to humans” has been retracted 8 years after documents released in a court case revealed employees of Monsanto, the company that developed it, wrote the article but were not named as coauthors.
Glyphosate safety article retracted eight years after Monsanto ghostwriting revealed in court
Credit: Mike Mozart/Flickr (CC BY 2.0) A review article concluding the weed killer Roundup “does not pose a health risk to humans” has been retracted eight years after documents released in a court…
retractionwatch.com
December 4, 2025 at 4:19 PM
A review article concluding the weed killer Roundup--aka glyphosate--“does not pose a health risk to humans” has been retracted 8 years after documents released in a court case revealed employees of Monsanto, the company that developed it, wrote the article but were not named as coauthors.
Reposted by Ben Feakins
A new Ireland Thinks poll, commissioned by An Taisce, reveals Irish public appear at odds with Government’s application for a derogation from EU Nitrates Directive.
It comes days before a crucial EU vote on the derogation expected on December 9th.
Full results:
www.antaisce.org/news/public-...
It comes days before a crucial EU vote on the derogation expected on December 9th.
Full results:
www.antaisce.org/news/public-...
December 4, 2025 at 11:24 AM
A new Ireland Thinks poll, commissioned by An Taisce, reveals Irish public appear at odds with Government’s application for a derogation from EU Nitrates Directive.
It comes days before a crucial EU vote on the derogation expected on December 9th.
Full results:
www.antaisce.org/news/public-...
It comes days before a crucial EU vote on the derogation expected on December 9th.
Full results:
www.antaisce.org/news/public-...
Reposted by Ben Feakins
In 1647, self-taught astronomer and brewer Johannes Hevelius created the first detailed map of the Moon 🌕
Nearly four centuries later, @bodleian.ox.ac.uk have brought his Selenographia into the digital age – letting anyone explore the world’s first lunar atlas.
Learn more ⬇️
Nearly four centuries later, @bodleian.ox.ac.uk have brought his Selenographia into the digital age – letting anyone explore the world’s first lunar atlas.
Learn more ⬇️
Mapping the Moon: the world’s first lunar atlas goes digital |
www.ox.ac.uk
December 2, 2025 at 2:42 PM
In 1647, self-taught astronomer and brewer Johannes Hevelius created the first detailed map of the Moon 🌕
Nearly four centuries later, @bodleian.ox.ac.uk have brought his Selenographia into the digital age – letting anyone explore the world’s first lunar atlas.
Learn more ⬇️
Nearly four centuries later, @bodleian.ox.ac.uk have brought his Selenographia into the digital age – letting anyone explore the world’s first lunar atlas.
Learn more ⬇️
Original post: mastodon.social/@nixCraft/11...
December 3, 2025 at 9:29 PM
Original post: mastodon.social/@nixCraft/11...
Reposted by Ben Feakins
Kerry slug, native only to some parts of western Ireland, Spain, and Portugal, so one of our Lusitanian species.
Evidence that the biological colonisation of Ireland was largely from a western, Iberian origin? Or just later introductions by prehistoric people?
Truth is, we still don't know.
Evidence that the biological colonisation of Ireland was largely from a western, Iberian origin? Or just later introductions by prehistoric people?
Truth is, we still don't know.
December 3, 2025 at 8:04 AM
Kerry slug, native only to some parts of western Ireland, Spain, and Portugal, so one of our Lusitanian species.
Evidence that the biological colonisation of Ireland was largely from a western, Iberian origin? Or just later introductions by prehistoric people?
Truth is, we still don't know.
Evidence that the biological colonisation of Ireland was largely from a western, Iberian origin? Or just later introductions by prehistoric people?
Truth is, we still don't know.
Reposted by Ben Feakins
That was the case, for example, when the government granted a private company a licence to rip out *1,860 acres* of wild kelp forest here in Bantry Bay.
Only through judicial review was that prevented. Once this legislation goes through, the only option left to communities will be direct action.
Only through judicial review was that prevented. Once this legislation goes through, the only option left to communities will be direct action.
December 2, 2025 at 9:57 PM
That was the case, for example, when the government granted a private company a licence to rip out *1,860 acres* of wild kelp forest here in Bantry Bay.
Only through judicial review was that prevented. Once this legislation goes through, the only option left to communities will be direct action.
Only through judicial review was that prevented. Once this legislation goes through, the only option left to communities will be direct action.
Reposted by Ben Feakins
Under the guise of 'speeding the delivery of essential infrastructure', the government is going to basically remove the option of taking judicial reviews.
Very often, this is the only legal route communities have to defend local ecosystems against being destroyed.
share.google/0844XAjcdexK...
Very often, this is the only legal route communities have to defend local ecosystems against being destroyed.
share.google/0844XAjcdexK...
Govt to introduce legislation to fast-track key projects
The Government is set to introduce emergency legislation to fast-track key projects through the planning process under a plan Minister for Public Expenditure Jack Chambers will outline to the Cabinet.
share.google
December 2, 2025 at 9:52 PM
Under the guise of 'speeding the delivery of essential infrastructure', the government is going to basically remove the option of taking judicial reviews.
Very often, this is the only legal route communities have to defend local ecosystems against being destroyed.
share.google/0844XAjcdexK...
Very often, this is the only legal route communities have to defend local ecosystems against being destroyed.
share.google/0844XAjcdexK...
Reposted by Ben Feakins
Ever since we started making documents in Quarto and Typst, I've wanted to make EVERYTHING in Quarto and Typst. Curious to learn how make documents like these? Boy, do I have the blog post for you! #rstats
rfortherestofus.com/2025/11/quar...
rfortherestofus.com/2025/11/quar...
December 1, 2025 at 1:36 PM
Ever since we started making documents in Quarto and Typst, I've wanted to make EVERYTHING in Quarto and Typst. Curious to learn how make documents like these? Boy, do I have the blog post for you! #rstats
rfortherestofus.com/2025/11/quar...
rfortherestofus.com/2025/11/quar...
Original post: vis.social/@infobeautif...
December 1, 2025 at 9:46 PM
Original post: vis.social/@infobeautif...
Reposted by Ben Feakins
The evidence required to justify renewal of the derogation simply does not exist. It would be deeply unfair to farmers, as it locks them into a high-input, high-cost system that is environmentally unsustainable & increasingly incompatible with EU law, setting them up for a forced adjustment later.
November 28, 2025 at 4:29 PM
The evidence required to justify renewal of the derogation simply does not exist. It would be deeply unfair to farmers, as it locks them into a high-input, high-cost system that is environmentally unsustainable & increasingly incompatible with EU law, setting them up for a forced adjustment later.
Reposted by Ben Feakins
We tried to tell y'all to stop calling everything "AI" many years ago and you just wouldn't listen and now the poor machine learners must also suffer alongside the statisticians 😜
so I can explain this: it's not generative AI: it's usually deep learning models trained on meteorology tasks and it can be quite effective
I know It would only annoy me, but if you are using weather balloons for data, where does the AI come in?
Because it sounds like they’re just doing meteorology and complicating it with AI.
Because it sounds like they’re just doing meteorology and complicating it with AI.
October 24, 2025 at 4:23 PM
We tried to tell y'all to stop calling everything "AI" many years ago and you just wouldn't listen and now the poor machine learners must also suffer alongside the statisticians 😜