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Reposted by Patrick Thomson

pixelatedboat aka “mr bluesky” @pixelatedboat.bsky.social · 7d

Rest in peace to Jane Goodall, whose tireless advocacy for primates has brought us closer than ever to the Planet of the Apes becoming a terrifying reality

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Patrick Thomson @patrickthomson.bsky.social · 16d

PC gaming feels a better fit than railroads. There aren't many consumers holding AI bonds about to get devalued, and the remnants won't be hundred-year infrastructures but technologies, products, and shifts in equilibria.

Patrick Thomson @patrickthomson.bsky.social · 19d

You're welcome. There's also a big kerfuffle about the bins at the moment. Feels like every country could do with a bit of Parish Council energy at the very highest levels of governance.

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Reposted by Patrick Thomson

Marsh Davies @marshdavies.bsky.social · 19d

Heartfelt thanks to the Scottish parliament for keeping its political disasters on a level I can actually tolerate.

Quote from an article, which reads:

The Highlands and Islands MSP claimed the incident happened in front of security and other parliamentary staff, after the pair had clashed over the scheduling of a summit to discuss "out of control" seagulls.

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Reposted by Patrick Thomson

Colin Murray @colinmurray.bsky.social · 19d

Right. My students working two part time jobs and/or having an hour and a half commute to uni because they have to live at home due to the cost of student accommodation lack drive and vigour. Sure thing, Peter. The UK Govt still haven't a clue about the realities of universities today.

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Patrick Thomson @patrickthomson.bsky.social · 19d

Me, begrudgingly dressing for academic processions: www.instagram.com/reel/DNwz2nH...

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pixelatedboat aka “mr bluesky” @pixelatedboat.bsky.social · 23d

Congratulations to all the shows that won Emmys, they sound cool, I’ll definitely check them out when I’m done watching 500 episodes of Antiques Roadshow

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Patrick Thomson @patrickthomson.bsky.social · 28d

a black and white drawing of a man with glasses and a mustache

ALT: a black and white drawing of a man with glasses and a mustache

media.tenor.com

Patrick Thomson @patrickthomson.bsky.social · Sep 8

Yes! I've been saying this for years, AI can at best be an accelerator for expertise; using it without any is utter folly. Teach it critically, to graduates.

Andre the Chemist @andrechemist.bsky.social · Sep 7

There's a small thread on my timeline about calculators (I don't want to rope the folks on that thread into this) and I think it illustrates something about LLMs quite clearly. (1/n)

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Reposted by Patrick Thomson

Earl Grey: 𝙁𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙨 @earlgreymemes.club · Aug 19

Curated meme by Andorian Memeing Consortium. Text and images. Text reads: Don't claim to be a Fan of Star Trek unless you've seen the whole trilogy. Image is three movie posters of the Borne Identity trilogy, only it's edited to be The Morn Identity, The Dorn Supremacy, and the Gorn Ultimatum with the respective characters edited into the images.

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Patrick Thomson @patrickthomson.bsky.social · Sep 5

We LEAFd but it really feels more of a researcher thing, lots of simple stuff that passes, lots of avoidable consumption that didn't move the needle either way.

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Reposted by Patrick Thomson

Balderdash @balderdash.bsky.social · Sep 4

Outstanding news that should be shared.

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Patrick Thomson @patrickthomson.bsky.social · Aug 29

Wonderful #vicephec25, as always!

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Patrick Thomson @patrickthomson.bsky.social · Aug 27

About to pass through the hated Wavertree Technology Park, voted "station most likely to be the only one that autocompletes when you forget that Edinburgh Waverley isn't just called Waverley"

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Patrick Thomson @patrickthomson.bsky.social · Aug 27

Update: I am on the way to Liverpool and I did not do the shirt thing.

Patrick Thomson @patrickthomson.bsky.social · Aug 8

Seriously considering printing up a custom shirt for @vicephec.bsky.social that just says "Do your SFHEA already", figure I'll probably end up Orient Expressed by about 25% of the delegates.

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Patrick Thomson @patrickthomson.bsky.social · Aug 18

If anyone's heading over/up/down to @vicephec.bsky.social next week, check out the presentation by Strathclyde student sgchem.bsky.social , who used TikTok to punch up our prelabs! Previously of the YouTube Paper fame, with @lemackz.bsky.social royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/...

Scott Gardner (@sgchem.bsky.social)

sgchem.bsky.social

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Patrick Thomson @patrickthomson.bsky.social · Aug 15

We did an open-access thing! Prelabs, what instructors (you) typically do in them, and what y'all think about them! Now with added "Outwith". pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/... with @edinburghchem.bsky.social colleagues Ben and Mairi, @chemistryncl.bsky.social Cristina, and @annajkirkham.bsky.social !

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Reposted by Patrick Thomson

ViCEPHEC Conference 27-28 August 2026 @vicephec.bsky.social · Aug 13

For those arriving for satellite activities, #ViCEPHEC25 is just two weeks away. If you haven't already, this is another great opportunity to follow the conference starter pack.

Get in touch if you'd like to be added to this - it is a work in progress. go.bsky.app/FffPieC

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Patrick Thomson @patrickthomson.bsky.social · Aug 12

We are fitting our own kitchen (not the royal we! Marrying an engineer has some benefits) and I actually used Duct Tape to Tape up a Duct and I've never been more devastated to realise I was previously stupid.

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Patrick Thomson @patrickthomson.bsky.social · Aug 8

Seriously considering printing up a custom shirt for @vicephec.bsky.social that just says "Do your SFHEA already", figure I'll probably end up Orient Expressed by about 25% of the delegates.

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Patrick Thomson @patrickthomson.bsky.social · Aug 7

The @advancehe.bsky.social awards are out - congrats to new chemistry #NationalTeachingFellow @drkevinmorgan.bsky.social ! And recognition for @uni-of-warwick.bsky.social "We are Chemistry" team in the #CATE.

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Patrick Thomson @patrickthomson.bsky.social · Aug 7

With the decline of paper money and the "I'll have you know it's legal tender" conversation, us Scots need a new friction to export, so once again I find myself saying "it's a real word, albeit rarely used outwith Scotland"

A snippet of an editorial trace document, showing the word outwith has been replaced by the word outside

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Patrick Thomson @patrickthomson.bsky.social · Jul 26

In about ten years time, any universities depending on international students from China is going to start seeing this come through as well.

Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · Jul 25

Mind-blowing stats on nurseries in China: the number of births has fallen by half *since 2017*, leading to a collapse in early years provision.

The future impact on primary and secondary education is going to be seismic.

www.ft.com/content/8271...

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Patrick Thomson @patrickthomson.bsky.social · Jul 15

So pleased that Taskmaster has added "Jason Mantzoukas, chaotic good" to the pantheon of positive male role models in media (alongside the entirety of the Fellowship, ofc). No longer am I forced to choose between a natural sprinter and a vegetable thief.

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Patrick Thomson @patrickthomson.bsky.social · Jul 9

I suppose there's a bit less kicking and screaming in Canada because they only got the one math, but we have to teach all of the several and many maths at the same time.

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