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Tom King

@acertaintom.bsky.social
118 followers 101 following 205 posts

overmighty citizen publicstatistic.substack.com

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Reposted by Tom King
peterkwells @peterkwells.com · 27/09/2026
Now all we have to do is wait for service providers to realise that if they sort out their shoddy services and customer service processes then none of us have to pay for all that compute going on AI bots 'arguing' with each other, and we can perhaps live in a better future 🙏
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Reposted by Tom King
Daniel Lakens @lakens.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
This is such a nice thread about whether metascientists have provided ammunition to US Government (ignoring how in Europe, the same metascience has just led to widespread improvements) where 2 people have an actual nuanced discussion about the topic (so rare) I just wanted to highlight it. 😍
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Charles West @pseudo-isidore.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
For anyone looking for a £245 Bayeux Tapestry silk scarf. www.libertylondon.com/uk/bayeaux-t...
libertylondon.com
Liberty Bayeaux Tapestry Silk Scarf 90 | Liberty
Drawing on Liberty’s love of storytelling, the Bayeaux Tapestry Silk Scarf brings a landmark chapter of history to life, marking its moment on display at The Br
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peterkwells @peterkwells.com · 07/09/2026
Inevitable and frankly baffling/astonishing that neither UK govt or Matt Clifford seemed to think this should be part of last week's announcement that he was joining Anthropic to lead a chunk of their work with governments
It’s been a huge privilege to serve as the Advanced Research + Invention Agency (ARIA)'s founding Chair over the last four years. Having completed my first full term last month, I have decided to step down to ensure my new role at Anthropic doesn’t become a distraction from ARIA’s incredible work. 

I have often said that ARIA is one of the things that makes me most optimistic about Britain. It’s a bold national experiment that’s paying off: ARIA has become a beacon for global talent and is building a portfolio of programmes - across neurotech, climate science, life sciences and more - that I have no doubt will change the world.

There’s lots to do, but I’m proud of the foundations the extraordinary team has built and so grateful to them for their work. I know that, under the leadership of our brilliant CEO Kathleen Fisher, ARIA will go from strength to strength. I will be excited to watch ARIA’s next steps and will remain the agency’s biggest fan. 

The Secretary of State has asked me to stay on for a short transitory period until 6 November to allow BIST to launch a process to select a new Chair. I’ve agreed to do this, with appropriate safeguards against potential conflicts in place. We will kick off the search shortly - it may well be the best non-executive job in the world, so I know we will find someone brilliant!
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Owen Boswarva @owenboswarva.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
Connecting data to enable modern digital government dataingovernment.blog.gov.uk/2026/09/03/c... Every day is groundhog day in UK data policy
The public sector holds vast amounts of information, but we still find it difficult to share and reuse that information effectively.

Different services often maintain their own versions of the same data. This creates duplication, makes collaboration more difficult and can lead to frustrating experiences for citizens and businesses.

Our discovery found that some data sets play a particularly important role because they are used repeatedly across many services and organisations. We call these foundational data.

Foundational data can be thought of as a small set of core facts that many services rely on. These might include who someone is, which organisation they belong to or where a property is located.
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Owen Boswarva @owenboswarva.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
"You might be surprised that this guidance hasn't substantially changed from what we've given in previous resources …" One in the eye for UK Gov't bods who have been pointing to CC's recent work on AI as an argument for rolling back open licensing of public sector information #techpolicy #opendata
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Owen Boswarva @owenboswarva.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
The National Data Library Expert Advisory Group has now concluded www.gov.uk/government/g... Well done everybody I like the gradient fills in particular www.data.gov.uk #govtech #opendata #datapolicy
Screenshot from GOV·UK:

National Data Library Expert Advisory Group: Terms of Reference

This transparency data was withdrawn on 2 September 2026
This page was withdrawn on 2 September 2026. The National Data Library Expert Advisory Group concluded in September 2026. The National Data Library was launched in June 2025 and now sits within the wider work of the Government Chief Data Officer within DCMS, drawing on expert input from external advisers and government Chief Data Officers.
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peterkwells @peterkwells.com · 02/09/2026
"we’ll draw together a two-year digital and data devolution strategy and roadmap as part of the forthcoming Devolution White paper" gds.blog.gov.uk/2026/09/01/s...
gds.blog.gov.uk
Supporting devolution through digital, data and AI
Across government, there is a growing focus on how powers, funding and decision-making can be exercised closer to the places they impact. We're pleased to be working with Mayoral Strategic Authorities...
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Tom King @acertaintom.bsky.social · 30/08/2026
A review for an academic publication is a bit different. But if you say it did not cover something or assumes this or had a specific weakness, readers know you would have mentioned other issues if they were present. It also makes it more worthwhile
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Reposted by Tom King
Charles West @pseudo-isidore.bsky.social · 30/08/2026
I think a lot of people would be surprised to learn how much gatekeeping there is for what gets into bookshops - which might explain why so much of the history shelf in UK looks rather tired* * except of course /your/ sparklingly novel book, if your book is there ;)
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Laura Spinney @laurainparis.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
My investigation in today's @bmj.com shorturl.at/4ANG2
bmj.com
A “monstrous” conflict of interest: Kim Fox, ivabradine, and European Society of Cardiology clinical practice guidelines
A historical case involving more than £50m shows what’s at stake in the debate around transparency of doctor-industry relations. Laura Spinney reports A British cardiologist and former president of t...
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lordtim.bsky.social @lordtim.bsky.social · 22/08/2026
Welcome recommendation from the Fisher Review: a new offence for identity-based impersonation. I've pushed for this for years, since a Lords Select Committee report, after Bennett Arron's stolen identity went uncharged. Caveats : fraud "purpose" must be proven, and it should be triable either way.
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Reposted by Tom King
Prof Penny Endersby @pennyend.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
www.bbc.co.uk/weather/arti... I had an early brief on this and ordered a pallet of sandbags for my marginally flood-prone house. They’re easy to obtain in the middle of a drought! This is a good article by the BBC covering some of the global impacts to be expected from such a strong El Niño.
bbc.co.uk
El Niño set to be 'strongest in living memory', says Met Office
Scientists say the growing El Niño weather pattern is an "unprecedented event" and means 2027 is likely to be the world's hottest year on record.
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peterkwells @peterkwells.com · 14/08/2026
The dog that stares at cows
A brick wall with a small gate in it and grass on either side, a smallish yellow dog stands on its hind legs while staring intensely through the gate
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Reposted by Tom King
Reuters @reuters.com · 14/08/2026
Spain removes remains of 11th century kings from monastery as wildfire rages reut.rs/4zAAN4r
reut.rs
Spain removes remains of 11th century kings from monastery as wildfire rages
Spanish authorities on Thursday removed the remains of three kings who ruled the Aragón region in the 11th ​century from a monastery threatened by a wildfire.
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Jonty Wareing @jonty.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
I always suspected a UK government would eventually reverse course on "coding in public". So I've been backing up all government code. For six years. Today I finally generated a report on what has been deleted. Its much worse than I realised. github.com/uk-gov-mirro...
Deleted UK Government code repositories

Total deleted repositories: 1526
Organisations affected: 56

See RECENTLY_DELETED.md for the most recently deleted repositories.

Organisation	Deleted Repos	% Deleted
hmrc	195	9.8%
nhsdigital	169	33.8%
SkillsFundingAgency	154	22.7%
informatics-lab	154	100.0%
UKHomeOffice	101	7.5%
ministryofjustice	74	2.8%
ONSdigital	66	4.3%
moj-analytical-services	65	75.6%
ukwa	47	46.1%
dwp	46	6.7%
UKGovernmentBEIS	43	27.4%
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Side @sidegallery.bsky.social · 06/08/2026
🏙️ Looking back at Newcastle in 1971, we were struck by the blackened buildings. These Lambton Visual Aids slides catch the city mid-clean: some façades pale, others still carrying decades of coal smoke and industrial soot. How have you seen your city change over time?
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Christopher Smith @christophersmith.bsky.social · 01/08/2026
I no longer use X/Twitter, so here I am to support @stianwestlake.bsky.social who has written well on @ukri.org 's strategy I believe his argument is correct: a science funder must fund both curiosity driven and applied research, and that will demand difficult choices 🧵 x.com/stianwestlak...
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The Register @theregister.com · 29/07/2026
Word worm crawls into Copilot, spreads chaos
theregister.com
Word worm crawls into Copilot, spreads chaos
Researcher says months of coordination with Microsoft have yet to produce a robust mitigation
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peterkwells @peterkwells.com · 14/07/2026
"‘UK politicians are a lot more easily impressed than American politicians. It costs a lot less to influence them,’ a former Global Counsel employee said" www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...
lrb.co.uk
Peter Geoghegan and Lucas Amin · ‘This looks absolutely rubbish’: Palantir and the NHS
A decade ago Palantir was largely unknown in the UK. It now holds public contracts worth hundreds of millions of pounds...
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Owen Boswarva @owenboswarva.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
Wikimedia Foundation Challenges UK Online Safety Act Regulations wikimediafoundation.org/news/2026/07... update from @wikimediafoundation.org #Wikipedia #censorship #openweb #techpolicy
UPDATE — On 10 July 2026, the Wikimedia Foundation was notified by Ofcom that Wikipedia is not currently deemed a Category 1 service under the Online Safety Act (OSA). However, as part of that announcement, Ofcom informed the Foundation that Wikipedia will remain on a "watch list" of platforms that do not currently qualify as Category 1 services, but that could become Category 1 at any point in the future, should Ofcom choose to reassess its decision. 

While the Foundation is relieved by Ofcom's agreement that Wikipedia is not a Category 1 service, future Category 1 designation remains an existential threat to Wikipedia, open knowledge, and the privacy and safety of the global community of volunteers who create the information on the site. Without any clear and sustainable limits to categorization, Wikipedia remains vulnerable should Ofcom choose to reassess its decision. The Foundation will continue to advocate for safeguarding public-interest spaces like Wikipedia, asking for a careful re-scoping of the OSA and its Categorization Regulations.
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Royal Institution @rigb.org · 22/06/2026
How can AI improve statistics and take the pulse of our nation in new ways? Statistician @arthurturrell.bsky.social will illuminate how AI can be used in a considerate manner, for better data.
rigb.org
Statistics and stupidly smart AI
Statistician Arthur Turrell explores how we can separate bad data from good, how it impacts decisions, and w
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Lynton Lees @lyntonlees.bsky.social · 20/06/2026
By no means defunct but DSIT's 2023 Christmas jumpers (featuring Five Priority Technologies) to celebrate their inaugural year surely stand out as limited edition departmental merchandise for the ages... www.linkedin.com/posts/christ...
Department for Science, Innovation and Technology Christmas Jumper from 2023.
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Owen Boswarva @owenboswarva.bsky.social · 19/06/2026
Tech secretary Liz Kendall has now also blogged on socials about the resignation of the UK's Information Commissioner, John Edwards www.linkedin.com/posts/liz-ke... #FOI #dataprotection #govcomms
Screenshot of Linkin post by Liz Kendall:

UPDATE ON THE INFORMATION COMMISSIONER

▶️ John Edwards resigned from his post as the Information Commissioner and Chair of the Information Commission earlier today, following an independent investigation that upheld multiple allegations made against him.

▶️ I have seen evidence of the vulgar and highly sexualised language that was used in his interactions with his staff and am extremely concerned that he continues to describe these incidents as misplaced humour, including on his social media post announcing his resignation. Such conduct does not belong in the workplace, least of all exhibited by the leader of an organisation.

▶️ Multiple women shared testimony to the investigator on feeling offended, shocked and uncomfortable following interactions with Mr Edwards. I am deeply grateful to all who came forward to share their experiences as part of this investigation.

Department for Science, Innovation and Technology
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peterkwells @peterkwells.com · 10/06/2026
"Temporary governance changes at the ICO" ico.org.uk/about-the-ic...
ico.org.uk
Temporary governance changes at the ICO
The ICO has today made temporary changes to the governance around how the Information Commissioner’s responsibilities are carried out.
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Orkney Library & Archive @orkneylibrary.bsky.social · 03/06/2026
Stromness was like a velodrome back in the day. This photograph of cyclists in Dundas Street was taken more than a hundred years ago by #Orkney photographer Tom Kent. It hasn't really changed much. 🚴‍♂️🚴‍♀️
A colourised Tom Kent photograph of Dundas Street in Stromness taken around 1900. Several people are cycling on the street.
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Daniel Lakens @lakens.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
If you have been at previous editions, you know this is an incredibly fun (and free) event that provides excellent networking opportunities for young researchers interested in open science and metascience. Listen to state of the art research by early career researchers. Or present it!
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House of Commons Committees @hoccommittees.parliament.uk · 27/05/2026
The Treasury Committee has published a summary of the results of the survey on student loans and the taxation of graduates. We received over 52,000 responses. Read more about these results👇 committees.parliament.uk/committee/15...
Pie chart showing most respondents say student loan repayments have had a material impact on future financial planning. Counts: Yes 34,555; Too early to tell 11,832; No 1,772; Don’t know 1,198 (total 49,357).Pie chart showing most respondents would not take out a student loan again. Counts: No 25,291; Don’t know 13,698; Yes 10,368 (total 49,357).
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Newcastle Lib Dems @newcastlelibdems.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
Newcastle Council Update: The Liberal Democrats and the Green Party agree deal to run Newcastle City Council. The Liberal Democrats will be in charge of the council with a minority administration after securing support from the Green Party. #Newcastle #LibDems
Picture of Colin Ferguson, leader of Newcastle Lib Dem Group, signing agreement with Nick Hartley, Leader of Green Party Group. (Overlaid text is repeat of text post)
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Matthew Somerville @dracos.co.uk · 25/05/2026
I’ve just finished running a full pass over the Post Office Inquiry evidence, for the first time since January, and uploaded everything new to postofficeinquiry.dracos.co.uk It found >4,000 new documents; for the sort of thing it’s being used for, see e.g. www.postofficescandal.uk/post/project...
postofficeinquiry.dracos.co.uk
Searchable transcripts of the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry hearings — Searchable transcripts of the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry hearings documentation
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The Mill @manchestermill.bsky.social · 23/05/2026
Stop looking for Burnhamism - in six years, I’ve never found. Watching the mayor up close in Manchester, I’ve seen his unusual gifts and glaring weaknesses. Would he make a good prime minister? Our weekend read - by @joshih.bsky.social manchestermill.co.uk/stop-looking...
manchestermill.co.uk
Stop looking for Burnhamism - in six years, I’ve never found it
Watching the mayor up close in Manchester, I’ve seen his unusual gifts and glaring weaknesses. Would he make a good prime minister?
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Shaun Lintern @shaunlintern.bsky.social · 21/05/2026
Eleven members of staff have been sacked for inappropriately accessing the medical records of the victims of the 2023 Nottingham stabbings, Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust has said.
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John Burn-Murdoch @jburnmurdoch.ft.com · 17/05/2026
Science nerds of BSKY: Next week I’m interviewing Prof. Sir John Bell about recent medical breakthroughs, touching on - Gene therapies & cancer vaccines - Tech in healthcare more broadly - Ethics & regulation This includes a Q&A where I can field your questions. If you have any please post below 🙏
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Tim Harford @timharford.ft.com · 13/05/2026
Data: You don't know what you've got 'till it's gone as.ft.com/r/305e6598-f...
as.ft.com
Data: you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone
To decide whether official statistics are useful, look at what happens when they disappear
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Daniel Lakens @lakens.bsky.social · 11/05/2026
I also created a version of the 'guess the correlation' game. Students always enjoyed it, but the original website (with fun retro design) started to require a google account login. So I created my own version. Play it here: lakens.github.io/statistical_...
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Lauren Leek @laurenleek.eu · 07/05/2026
Data engineers: I’m busy building a large-scale cloud data pipeline and want to get the foundations right from the start. What’s the one thing you wish you’d set up early? 🙏
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Daniel Lakens @lakens.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
Many Labs 5 was such a cool project. Authors who argued that a study from the Reproducibility Project: Psychology was 'too different', leading to a null result, could propose their own replication. Mostly null results again. Blaming auxiliaries is easy. Replication is hard.
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National Trust @nationaltrust.org.uk · 03/05/2026
We have an *extremely* important announcement to make. From Wednesday, we will be launching our puffin live cam, coming to you from the Farne Islands. So you can watch puffins all day long. In celebration, please enjoy this clip of puffins being really busy for 39 seconds straight.
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Terence Eden @edent.tel · 01/05/2026
New blog post: NHS Goes To War Against Open Source shkspr.mobi/blog/2026/05/nhs-goes-t… The NHS is preparing to close nearly all of its Open Source repositories. Throughout my time working for the UK Government - in GDS, NHSX, i.AI, and others - I championed …
shkspr.mobi
NHS Goes To War Against Open Source
The NHS is preparing to close nearly all of its Open Source repositories. Throughout my time working for the UK Government - in GDS, NHSX, i.AI, and others - I championed Open Source. I spoke to dozens of departments about it, wrote guidance still in use today, and briefed Ministers on why it was so important. That's why I'm beyond disappointed at recent moves from NHS England to backtrack on…
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Stephen Senn @stephensenn.bsky.social · 01/05/2026
Should be good. It seems that July will be randomisation month this year. rss.org.uk/training-eve... 100 years ago Fisher wrote this: repository.rothamsted.ac.uk/id/eprint/20...
rss.org.uk
Discussion paper meetings
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Matthew Somerville @dracos.co.uk · 30/04/2026
So as someone very much aware of this - I’m no @archive.org, but if you know of a theatre production archive that’s going to disappear, do get in touch. I have better credentials than national governments, billion dollar tech companies, and well funded projects that didn’t budget for”after”
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Andrew Gelman et al. @statmodeling.bsky.social · 28/04/2026
Two Health Economists Walk into a Bar: What bothered me in that conversation of Jay Bhattacharya and Emily Oster statmodeling.stat.columbia.edu/2026/04/28/w...
statmodeling.stat.columbia.edu
Two Health Economists Walk into a Bar: What bothered me in that conversation of Jay Bhattacharya and Emily Oster | Statistical Modeling, Causal Inference, and Social Science
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Dorothy Bishop @deevybee.bsky.social · 26/04/2026
my thoughts on that fireside chat between Jay Bhattacharya and Emily Oster deevybee.blogspot.com/2026/04/that... #NASEM #NIH #CDC #replication #innovation #COVID
deevybee.blogspot.com
That fireside chat with Jay Bhattacharya: a view from across the pond
On Friday I attended (virtually) a workshop organised by the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine on Enhancing Scientific...
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Andrew Gelman et al. @statmodeling.bsky.social · 24/04/2026
Three things I forgot to say today at the National Academy of Sciences Workshop on Enhancing Scientific Integrity statmodeling.stat.columbia.edu/2026/04/24/t...
statmodeling.stat.columbia.edu
Three things I forgot to say today at the National Academy of Sciences Workshop on Enhancing Scientific Integrity | Statistical Modeling, Causal Inference, and Social Science
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Alan Baxter @alanbaxter.bsky.social · 24/04/2026
Then he says something else and heads out of the shop. He catches my eye and gives a surreptitious thumbs up as he goes, grinning like a fool. She's watching him go and when he's out the door she does a little excited skip behind the counter and she's smiling so wide.
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Diane Coyle @dianecoyle1859.bsky.social · 20/04/2026
V interesting. As I keep saying, economic statistics really matter (& need funding). A state that doesn’t know what’s what (about itself and its oppos) is in trouble.
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National Audit Office @nao.org.uk · 17/04/2026
We recently announced upcoming reports, including: • Digital ID: insights to inform government’s approach • Integrating patient records: laying the foundations for a more productive NHS • Prevent • BBC efficiency and transformation programme Find out more ⤵️ www.nao.org.uk/work-in-progress
nao.org.uk
Work in progress - National Audit Office
Our schedule of future publications.
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Katy Milkman @katymilkman.bsky.social · 10/04/2026
To everyone responding with vitriol: please come! Our goal in choosing speakers was to platform both popular and unpopular figures advocating for scientific reforms to spark productive conversations across divides! If this makes you angry, come engage in dialogue — that’s how we improve.
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Katy Milkman @katymilkman.bsky.social · 10/04/2026
I'm co-organizing a free, 2-day Zoom workshop from the NAS & hope you'll consider attending! 📅 April 23-24: Discuss how we can enhance scientific integrity in the social and behavioral sciences REGISTER: www.nationalacademies.org/projects/DBA... PROGRAM: www.nationalacademies.org/cdn/material...
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Tom King @acertaintom.bsky.social · 09/04/2026
Just assumed the Italians would be really backward in their energy mix, and they do use a lot of gas still. But they get around ten hours above 10GW solar power, additionally the obscure self-use which may also include solar runs at 10GW dati.terna.it/en/generation
dati.terna.it
Energy Generation | Terna Driving Energy data
Access data on installed capacity and the amount of energy fed into the grid. You can also consult the energy balance of the Italian electricity system.
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