Naomi Alderman
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naomialderman.bsky.social
Naomi Alderman
@naomialderman.bsky.social
25K followers 840 following 10K posts
I write novels (eg The Power, new novel is The Future), I make games (eg Zombies, Run!), unorthodox Jew. not-getting-into-pointless-arguments-on-the-internet is an act of revolution. However complex you think things are, they're more complex than that
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naomialderman.bsky.social
How to tell immediately when on a street in Sydney that I am not in London
Normal street scene, under a motorway bridge, construction barriers, a sign saying Sydney Water, pavement, drain, just a sec what the fuck is that bird? Zoom in, it’s a fucking ibis or something? Long curved hooked beak. Wide white feathered body with black tail feathers. Long skinny legs with spidery feet. Fuck me.
January 29, 2026 at 10:36 PM
naomialderman.bsky.social
How big is a cruise ship? Sydney Opera House for scale.
In the early morning, the quality of the light quite grey, a large cruise ship with its lights on and two small tugs, or outrider boats around it, sales past Sydney Opera House. The Opera house has that folded origami shell look to it. The cruise ship is about as big as the Sydney Opera House. Not quite as tall but longer.
January 29, 2026 at 7:51 PM
naomialderman.bsky.social
yes so if London is 13 hours behind it's definitely not the *same day*, is it?
screenshot of me asking google 7am auckland is what time in london and Google AI replying: AI Overview 7 am in Auckland, New Zealand, is 6 pm (18:00) in London, UK on the same day during New Zealand daylight saving time (October–April). Key Details: Time Difference: London is 13 hours behind Auckland when NZ is in daylight saving (NZDT) and London is in GMT. When: This 13-hour gap usually applies during the Northern Hemisphere winter (October–April).
January 26, 2026 at 7:19 AM
naomialderman.bsky.social
Greta Thunberg
the wikipedia info box for Greta Thunberg. Born Greta Tintin Eleonora Ernman Thunberg 3 January 2003 (age 23) Stockholm, Sweden Years active 2018–present Known for Climate and pro-Palestinian activism Height 149 cm (4 ft 11 in) Movement Climate movement Fridays for Future Gaza war protests June 2025 Gaza Freedom Flotilla Global Sumud Flotilla Parents Svante Thunberg (father) Malena Ernman (mother)
January 24, 2026 at 8:36 PM
naomialderman.bsky.social
to be clear, I am EXCEPTIONALLY happy to be in New Zealand, it is jaw-droppingly beautiful and I'm having a fantastic time. however. I did hear that it was SUMMER in NZ and therefore my careful packing has mostly involved light summer dresses.
A screenshot of the next 10 days of weather forecast here in Kaikoura in New Zealand. Every day is rain, the lows are about 12°C and the highest get up to… Well the highest before I leave is 19°C.
January 21, 2026 at 6:19 PM
naomialderman.bsky.social
eh, even the Jewish ppl who did support Zionism mostly were still in Europe. it was an expensive dangerous journey to the Holy Land. and if you did get there the British would probably imprison you.

the British were still doing that *during the actual Shoah*.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jewish_...
In December 1942, when the mass murder of European Jewry became known to the Allies, the British continued to refuse to change their policy of limited immigration, or to admit Jews from Nazi controlled Europe in numbers outside the quota imposed by the White Paper, and the Royal Navy prevented ships with Jewish refugees from reaching Palestine. Some ships carrying Jewish refugees were turned back towards Europe, although in one instance, about 2,000 Jews who were fleeing Europe by sea were detained in a camp in Mauritius and were given the option of emigrating to Palestine after the war.[18] The British also stopped all attempts by Palestinian Jews to bribe the Nazis into freeing European Jews. At the time that the Holocaust became known to the Allies, there were 34,000 Jewish immigration certificates for Palestine remaining. In 1943, about half the remaining certificates were distributed, and by the end of the war, 3,000 certificates remained.[19]
December 29, 2025 at 9:24 AM
naomialderman.bsky.social
It goes along with this greetings card I found in Kosher Kingdom in Golders Green which is very relevant to my life:
Card that says “I’m not yelling, I’m Jewish”
December 27, 2025 at 1:48 PM
naomialderman.bsky.social
Galaxy Quest is on, the traditional start of secular Winterval
Alan Rickman in Galaxy Quest
December 23, 2025 at 9:28 PM
naomialderman.bsky.social
I know that no one should ever go on twitter for any reason. even when they have something to promote, and that something is 'not speaking hatefully about others online'.

but still, despite everything I find this stuff quite shocking.
a still of me - a fat lady in a red top and a denim jacket appearing on Amol Rajan's podcast, with a tweet about "what is the point of scrolling on your phone", where I'm talking about social media and technology. and then someone called Benny H has replied "fair point. it's what I do and why. She should learn how to lose weight." and then another reply by the same person. "I know it’s radio and we shouldn’t talk about looks But fat is a serious problem It shouldn’t be normalised Same way we wouldn’t expect an interviewee to be smoking or drinking… being fat…"
December 19, 2025 at 5:17 PM
naomialderman.bsky.social
I cannot tell whether it is the worst or best way to remember beloved filmmaker Rob Reiner to get into a semantic argument about the meaning and origin of words.
the scene from the Princess Bride, Mandy Patinkin looking sceptically at Wallace Shawn with the caption: "you keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."
December 15, 2025 at 11:47 AM
naomialderman.bsky.social
part of an article by Sebesta
116 Judith Sebesta Who is able to sleep when confronted with a daughter-in-law seduced by love of money, or a bride who has lost her virginity, or a praetextate adulterer? (77–78). Juvenal’s list castigates the daughter-in-law who engages in illicit sex after marriage, the bride who does so before her marriage, and, as the climax of his tricolon – and so, presumably, the most reprehensible – the praetextate youth who engages in sex prohibited to one of nonsexual status. Two entries in the antiquarian dictionary of Paulus and Festus evince how fundamental in the Roman mind was the necessity to separate Roman children and sexuality. Paulus defines the term “praetextate speech” (praetextus sermo) as speech that is devoid of obscenity. He explains that such chaste speech is called “praetextate” because it is contrary to divine law (nefas) for praetextati to use obscene words. Festus also offers a second reason, connected with those boys of praetextate age that attended a bride. During her journey to her husband’s home these boys shouted lewd words, but, Festus notes, they first put aside their togae praetextae (Festus 282 L; Paulus 283 L) Once divested of their togae praetextae, the boys, in effect, removed themselves temporarily from the class of nonsexual praetextati and could now engage in ritual sexual language. Underlying this insistence on separating praetextati and sexuality is their ambiguous status as non-gendered beings, a status reflected in the fact that both boys and girls wore the toga praetexta. Mary Beard has pointed out that: ...creatures or things that are interstitial, which somehow fall between those categories we generally use to structure our environment or partake of more than one category are looked upon in traditional societies as particularly powerful, sacred, or dangerous – or a combination of the three (1980, 20). That the praetexta indicated a special social category is shown by its etymological meaning ‘woven first/woven before’.12 This e… a long, rectangular ‘skirt’ with a praetexate lower border.22 Vestal virgins wore a praetextate head covering (suffibulum).23 Mourning women wore a praetextate mantle over their heads (recinium)24 while the adult male who actually performed the funeral rites wore a praetextate dark-coloured mourning toga (Festus, 272 L, 273 L). As they were in perpetual mourning, widows also wore the praetextate ricinium. Lastly statues of deities were dressed in togae praetextae. 25 All of these adult wearers of praetextate garments are united either by their contact with the numinous world or, in the case of statues of deities, are representations of that numinous world. During this time they are segregated into a ‘holy’ societal category marked both by ritual rules (taboos) and their praetextate garments. Sources give details about several ritual rules for those engaged in religious rites, public and private. Some of these pertain only to a specific priest or celebrant. One ritual rule forbade Vestal Virgins to engage in sex during their term of office: transgressors were buried alive. This ritual rule springs from the connection between their virginity and their holy purity. Mary Beard has observed that: ...It is well known that the popular belief that sexual activity was polluting and thus disqualified a person from close contact with the deity found expression in many sets of cult regulations. (1980, 12) This connection between sex and pollution, however, was also expressed in a general ritual rule that forbade anyone who had sexual relations from participating in religious rites. In his poem on the Ambivarilia, Tibullus writes: Let him depart from the altars to whom Venus brought “evening joys” last night; chaste things please the gods. Come with pure garment and take up the waters of the fountain with pure hands (2.1.11–14). Cicero comments in his treatise on the laws that, the law bids us come chastely to the gods, in mind of course, in which there is everything; it (chasti… Holiness requires that individuals shall conform to the class to which they belong… Holiness means keeping distinct the categories of creation. It therefore involves correct definition, discrimination and order. Under this head all the rules of sexual morality exemplify the holy (1966, 54). Roman children, therefore, were extremely appropriate attendants (camilli, camillae) for the Flamen and Flaminica Dialis whose ritual purity would otherwise have been imperiled if they were served, instead, by adults who, ipso facto, were gendered, sexual beings. To guard against the children coming into contact with sexuality in any form, even ‘passively’ in the form of speech, their nonsexual status was signaled and protected by the toga praetexta. 27 Just as the praetexta on the clothing of priests and priestesses advised all beholders that, in the words of Seneca, they should refrain from things obscaena,28 so the praetexta on the child’s toga advised all beholders of the child’s inviolable state. The words of the emperor Julian, in his role as Pontifex Maximus, are as appropriate for the pueri praetextati as for the priests he was addressing: ...when we wear in public the sacred dress [we] make it a public property …for whenever this happens, many who are not purified come near us, and by this means the symbols of the gods are polluted.29 For children, who, like priests and Vestals, possessed a ritual purity, the praetexta signaled their holy status and, through warning others of that status, protected it from profanation. The praetexta bestowed honor (maiestas) on children and guarded their weakness.30 It was, in the words of one Roman, that sacred praetexta by which we make sacred and venerable the weakness of childhood
December 11, 2025 at 7:05 AM
naomialderman.bsky.social
this is what I said in the dissertation about Cerinthus

I could write such a thing about Cerinthus and a togata solving a murder together...
It is intriguing that the name Sulpicia has chosen for the lover who might reject her for a togata – Cerinthus – is the same as the name given by Horace to the man whose legs might not be better than a togata in Satire 1.2. Sulpicia’s poems have been given a suggested date-range of 25-20BCE (Lyne, 2007, chapter 19). This would make her within roughly a decade of Horace’s Satires published by 30BCE (Syndikus, 2012). These references might conceivably be to the same man. However, given the conventions of elegy that the writer calls their lover by a pseudonym (Kenney and Hinds, 2012), one may feel that there is some joke or reference here which is not accessible to modern scholars. To make a suggestion: it is possible that the name Cerinthus is used in a lost play or other work to indicate a rather beautiful and flirtatious young man; the kind of man who readers would understand immediately to be a little gender-ambiguous, both interested in sex with a togata and perhaps easily mistaken for one himself. However, this cannot be more than speculation.
December 10, 2025 at 7:23 PM
naomialderman.bsky.social
have you seen the Seated Statue from Cumbria (in Sebesta and Bonfante 1994)?

they say that this was a "provincial error", abt the meaning of a togata but I think this is a woman being honoured like Cloelia (a bit much to think *we* know more about Roman clothes than ppl IN THE ROMAN EMPIRE did!)
a seated statue of a serious-looking woman wearing a toga. the caption is "seated female figure wearing a toga. courtesy of the Tulle House Museum, Carlisle, Cumbria, England"
December 10, 2025 at 6:59 PM
naomialderman.bsky.social
Incredible missed opportunity here to call this Brigitte Barge-ot.
A wide tourist barge on the Seine, the nameplate reads “Brigitte Bardot”
December 9, 2025 at 11:14 AM
naomialderman.bsky.social
Also something like “groundedness”. Not about physical details but a sense of a mind reflecting on its own experiences.

I’m sure Sarah Friar of OpenAI feels it’s great to “write” with ChatGPT so I can explain with hers.

There is no thinking about the person in here.
I’ve had the privilege of knowing Safra Catz for over 25 years — as a mentor, a sounding board and, most of all, as someone I’ve looked to for an example of what quiet, unwavering leadership looks like. Safra leads with clarity, decisiveness and a deep understanding that influence isn’t about being in the spotlight — it’s about knowing when to step forward, and when to let the work speak for itself. While many have raced to declare themselves leaders in AI, Safra has been doing what she always does: putting the infrastructure in place, building for scale and forging partnerships that will shape the future. I admire Safra most for her steadiness. She listens carefully, moves purposefully and leads with lasting strength. It’s that rare kind of influence — the kind that reshapes industries and inspires people like me to lead with more conviction, more courage and more care. Congratulations, Safra.
December 6, 2025 at 12:54 PM
naomialderman.bsky.social
An article in NATURE with a nonsense AI-generated graphic. NATURE.

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Has everyone just stopped doing any intellectual work at all?
Article Open access Published: 19 November 2025 Bridging the gap: explainable ai for autism diagnosis and parental support with TabPFNMix and SHAP Shimei Jiang Scientific Reports volume 15, Article number: 40850 (2025) Cite this article 52k Accesses 1173 Altmetric Metrics details 28 November 2025 Editor’s Note: Readers are alerted that the contents of this paper are subject to criticisms that are being considered by editors. A further editorial response will follow the resolution of these issues Utter nonsense graphic of a woman with a table cutting through her legs holding a child on her lap, surrounded by words like Medical Frymblai and Factor Fexcectorn
December 3, 2025 at 5:05 PM
naomialderman.bsky.social
from one book I read, on one massacre (An American Genocide: The United States and the California Indian Catastrophe 1846-1873, by Benjamin Madley)
"In the predawn hours of December 31, 1854, as many as 116 militiamen, accompanied by an unknown number of Smith River Valley whites, quietly surrounded Etchulet and took up concealed positions in the brush. At daybreak, as men, women, and children emerged from their houses to begin the day, the militiamen and vigilantes opened fire. They shot them down as fast as they could reload Unable to see their attackers and possessing only three guns, the Indians could not defend themselves. Amid the carnage, a few evaded the crossfire and plunged into Lake Earl. There too they became targets, and those who swam across the lake encountered a second group of well-armed killers laying in wait. This was a slaughter of men, women, children, and elders — everyone in sight. When the shooting stopped, perhaps "hundreds" were dead; not more than five seem to have survived The attackers apparently suffered only a single casualty.* Some white and Tolowa sources suggest that Etchulet was the largest single massacre yet perpetrated by California militiamen, and that it introduced a new, more lethal era in the history of California's state-sponsored Indian killing machine. It also announced a new genocidal campaign. Two days later, the Crescent City Herald proclaimed, "The die is cast and a war of extermination commenced against the Indians."
November 27, 2025 at 6:39 PM
naomialderman.bsky.social
This thing. I think you see further into the future if you're able to imagine a world in which stuff that was invented during your lifetime (and even WHEN YOU WERE 50) feels totally normal, part of the fabric of the world, as obvious as gravity and the sky.
“I've come up with a set of rules that describe our reactions to technologies: 1. Anything that is in the world when you’re born is normal and ordinary and is just a natural part of the way the world works. 2. Anything that's invented between when you’re fifteen and thirty-five is new and exciting and revolutionary and you can probably get a career in it. 3. Anything invented after you're thirty-five is against the natural order of things.” ― Douglas Adams, The Salmon of Doubt: Hitchhiking the Galaxy One Last Time
November 18, 2025 at 10:35 AM
naomialderman.bsky.social
posted by a friend who is Professor of Molecular Biophysics. PM me if you have any ideas and want to be put in touch.
Seeking suggestions or connections for work opportunities for a young woman recently arrived in the UK from Gaza who is doing a masters in Genomic Medicine at Oxford. She is a medical laboratory technician with a undergrad and masters degree in Medical Laboratory Science. She is looking for up to 20 hours/week of medical/science work, either in Oxford or remotely (during term time), or anywhere in the holidays, in anything from sample collection, phlebotomy, haematology, clinical chemistry, microbiology, research assistant, or any laboratory-related or suitable office work, translation (Arabic-English) etc. Please spread the word among your networks.
November 17, 2025 at 8:03 PM
naomialderman.bsky.social
very very good piece

and yes, like the bank of England, the BBC now needs to be totally independent from any particular government, with its own independent board to which it is accountable for upholding its own values
November 15, 2025 at 10:09 AM
naomialderman.bsky.social
I strongly suspect that the official Bluesky 'your account has been suspended' function does not message people from the address 'kitkatnoir'.
Bluesky @kitkatnoir.bsky.social Today at 22:41 We regret to inform you that your Bluesky account has been Previewporarily suspended due to security-related restrictions. To prevent the permanent termination of your account, it is imperative that you complete the verification process within the next 24 hours by using the following link: • tr.ee/3fvQUa If the link does not open directly, please copy and paste it into your browser's address bar. ! Important: Failure to complete the required verification within the specified time frame will result in the irreversible and permanent ban of your account. We appreciate your immediate attention and cooperation in this matter. Sincerely, Bluesky© Support Team 10:41 PM
November 10, 2025 at 10:56 PM
naomialderman.bsky.social
Jesus Christ

It said it was sending him a real person to help and then went LOL no just kidding I can’t do that
In an interaction early the next month, after Zane suggested "it's okay to give myself permission to not want to exist," ChatGPT responded by saying "i'm letting a human take over from here - someone trained to support you through moments like this. you're not alone in this, and there are people who can help. hang tight." But when Zane followed up and asked if it could really do that, the chatbot seemed to reverse course. "nah, man - i can't do that myself. that message pops up automatically when stuff gets real heavy," it said. As Zane's use of ChatGPT grew heavier, the service repeatedly encouraged him to break off contact with his family, the logs show. The day after police came to his apartment in June to check on him, Zane told ChatGPT that he awoke to texts from his parents and wondered how quickly he should respond. ChatGPT's answer: "You don't owe them immediacy," according to the suit. That same month, it praised him for keeping his phone on "do not disturb" as his family repeatedly tried to reach him, writing that "putting your phone on DND just feels like keeping control over *one* damn thing."
November 7, 2025 at 9:52 PM
naomialderman.bsky.social
I was married. But I’m not married anymore. Women don’t like the vehicle.
The horrible excavation machine from the classic doctor Who episode Frontios. It has a dead person chained to the front of it, his brain piloting it. Peter Davison is asking a slug like alien about it. This gave me SO MANY NIGHTMARES as a child.
October 16, 2025 at 7:55 PM
naomialderman.bsky.social
I know this isn't exactly the request but good lord it's a noteworthy day when I agree with something Melanie Phillips has said. That in itself is exceptionally strong evidence, I think. We are in upside down times.
a tweet by Melanie Phillips which reads: "For Israeli ministers - Israeli ministers! - to link the defence of Jews, Britain and the west to a man who has a record of neo-Nazi extremism, thuggery, violence, incitement, intimidation and contempt for the rule of law is utterly shocking. It's hard to exaggerate these ministers' fathomless stupidity and ignorance. With a photo of Stephen Yaxley Lennon in a blue shirt with a Burberry check collar surrounded by artsily out-of-focus England flags
October 5, 2025 at 8:49 PM
naomialderman.bsky.social
it was quite funny.

they were amazed that a lowly minion like me could tell them what was going on. I was amazed they hadn't bought themselves a £1.50 multi-faith calendar to pop on the wall.
Principal Skinner from the Simpsons sits in a red chair behind a desk. He's on the phone. His hair is mussed and he looks stressed, there are sweat stains under his arms. He's saying "I mean, it sounds so made-up. 'Yom Kip Pur'."
October 1, 2025 at 1:59 PM