iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Preserving our olfactory heritage with the latest science of scent. The remarkable heritage scientist, Dr Cecelia Bembibre, shows us how she uses the latest techniques to preserve the past

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Friend, co-presenter and neurobiologist of olfaction, Prof Stuart Firestein leads the afternoon session @ifrauk Fragrance Forum at the Royal Institution reminding us that it hard, scientifically, to pin down odours as molecules

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Prof Simon Niedenthal speaking at IFRA Fragrance Forum at the Royal Institution @rigb.org on capture, coding and delivery of odour for VR. He shows us his BRIAN E-nose (pun intended) and speculates on the future of digital olfaction

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Prof Simon Niedenthal speaking at IFRA Fragrance Forum at Royal Institution @rigb.org on olfactory capture, encoding and presentation in virtual reality. He also displays his BRIAN E-Nose (pun intended) and speculates on the future of digital olfaction

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Festival of Research and Engagement at School of Advance Study, University of London @sas-news.bsky.social in the iconic Senate House where the @ip-sas.bsky.social Centre for the Study of the Senses will present its work. Come along if you can

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Delighted to be part of the IFRA Fragrance Forum again @rigb.org with introduction to an intriguing day by Lisa Hipgrave of INFRA #fragranceforum

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

First speaker at the annual @ifrauk Fragrance Forum at the Royal Institution @ri_science is Jonas Olofsson, cognitive neuroscientist of olfaction at Stockholm University and author of The Forgotten Sense talking about use of AI to capture olfactory knowledge

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Tasting day pt 1. Early start at the Art Worker’s Guild for the Global Drinks Awards panel judging. Lovely venue. Now the hard work begins

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Tasting day pt 2 @sciencemuseum.org.uk introducing wines and a stellar cast of Astrophysicists: Sheila Rowan, Sera Markoff, Stephen Smart, Nikku Madhusudhan making the invisible perceptible. Fabulous wines from countries with the key telescopes. Inspired curation by Laura Joy Pieters

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

Lab Meeting @ip-sas.bsky.social on recalcitrant sexual desires and political commitments by @elisewoodard.bsky.social

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Launch of Quassim Cassam and Richard English’s new book, How to Think About Terrorism at the Reform Club

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

My colleague, Prof Ophelia Deroy, taking @ip-sas.bsky.social Lab Meeting on the responsibility gap with AI agents causing harm but not being morally responsible

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

You have to love Oban Whisky and Fine Wines!

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

The magical Western Isles of Scotland

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

Sailing past Barnhill on Jura where George Orwell lived out the last years of his life and where he wrote 1984. From here we sail out to sea and past Corryvrecken, the whirlpool where Orwell nearly drowned himself, his son Richard and his visitors when his rowing boat got too close

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

Final distillery visit is a warehouse tour on Jura. Some lightly peated drams with long sherry finish sitting amidst hundreds of casks, all producing single malts. None of blending. A great way to cap off the New Scientist whisky sailing tour of the Western Isles

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

Poor wee other timorous beastie in the fields between Lagavulin and Ardbeg

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

Boat waiting for us in the bay at Ardbeg. A welcome sight

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

If you can it’s best to get your first glimpse of these heartland distilleries from the sea

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

Best way to approach Islay’s legendary distilleries is by the sea

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

The ship at anchor in Ardbeg bay as we as we head back after an illuminating tasting at Lagavulin

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

Moored in the bay at Ardbeg to go on foot to Lagavulin for a warehouse tasting

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

Arriving in Jura at Craighouse, city of drams

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

Always a pleasure to serve as New Scientist’s whisky expert on their science of whisky sailing trip around the Scottish Isles. The Flying Dutchman ready to leave Oban and head for Mull. Last night a gentle tasting to focus the palate for the sensory adventures abead

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

Alas, this gift shop is no more in Oban. It used to sell shortbread, fudge and tablets with lashings of kitch

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

A great pleasure to welcome Prof Katsumi Watanabe from Waseda University to speak at the Institute of Philosophy Lab Meeting. His talk on duality in crossmodal perception provided a perfect balance between empirical findings and conceptual inquiry

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

Michael Devitt gives the Dunja Jutronic Memorial Lecture at the Philosophy of Language and Linguistics Conference at the IUC in Dubrovnik. Dunja was the mainstay of this conference. She is much missed

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

Chris Barker’s talk, ‘Honking’ at Philosophy of Language and Linguistics Conference at IUC in Dubrovnik. It would be a whole different talk if he gave it in Glasgow

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

Such a pleasure to join the celebrations of Chris and Uta Frith’s 60th wedding anniversary at the Royal Society along with a who’s who of leading cognitive neuroscientists whose work they have done so much to support

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

Another PM resigns. This time with no venal crime forcing the issue. Starmer gives his resignation speech while Steve Bray plays Ode to Joy from a loud speaker at volume We are not serious people

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 19/06/2026

Going to miss the morning commute and view from the classroom at our Summer School in AI and Philosophy in Venice. A wonderful collaboration between the Institute of Philosophy at the University of London, Hong Kong University and LMU Munich

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 19/06/2026

Last session at the Summer School on AI and Philosophy in Venice features Profs Rachel Sterken and Alex Radelescu asking ‘Can AI systems be communicative agents?’ Their answer is no. Summer School is a collaboration between the the Institute of Philosophy, Hong Kong University and LMU in Munich

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 18/06/2026

Student presentations at the Institute of Philosophy,University of London, Hong Kong University and LMU Summer School on AI and Philosophy in Venice

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 17/06/2026

Day 2 of AI and Philosophy Summer School in Venice International University on San Servolo with Institute of Philosophy Fellows and Google researchers, Geoff Keeling and Winnie Street. The Summer School is a collaboration between @ip-sas.bsky.social of Philosophy and Hong Kong University

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 17/06/2026

Opening talk of the AI and Philosophy Summer School in Venice International University by Herman Cappelen with reply by Alex Grzankowski. The Summer School is a collaboration between the Institute of Philosophy and Hong Kong University’s AI and Humanity Lab. Nice commute to San Servolo each morning

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 15/06/2026

Thanks to @ip-sas.bsky.social colleagues Alex Grzankowski and Myrto Chomaniatou for organising our Philosophy and AI Summer School in Venice with colleagues from Hong Kong University

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

David Papineau on problems with interventionism as a philosophical outlook on causation @ip-sas.bsky.social Lab Meeting

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 29/05/2026

Today’s office in the Jardin du Luxembourg. It would be lovely to sit and stare but.. alas, those emails won’t send themselves. Still, there could be worse places to work

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 28/05/2026

Smith Haut Lafite was founded by Scot, George Smith at the end of the 18th century. A Bordeaux fantasy chateau owing more to Austria or Switzerland. The cool cellar was very much appreciated on a hot day in Bordeaux

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 28/05/2026

After successfully completing her higher doctorate in oenology in Bordeaux, Dr Georgia Lytra takes her examiners on a visit to Smith Haut Lafite where many of her students have been stagiers. Cathiard family commissioned a sculpture of the screwed up paper with Parker’s review in 2008. Good riposte!

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 25/05/2026

Heartbreakingly beautiful and meaningful songs by Clayton Blizzard @howthelightgetsinfestival at Hay-on-Wye. We all felt it in the room. Very special music making. Thank you!

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 24/05/2026

Karl Friston becoming a regular at How the Light Gets In festival @howthelightgetsin2.bsky.social

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

Final session of Reasoning and Agency in AI Conference at the Institute of Philosophy features a Google DeepMind Principal Scientist, Murray Shanahan who considers how mind like the exotica of large language models are

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

Adrian Alsmith speaking at Reasoning and Agency in AI @ip-sas.bsky.social AI assistants seen as producing narrative selves which are conceived in response dependent terms

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

Day 2 of Reasoning and Agency in AI Conference at the Institute of Philosophy starts with AI researcher, Adriana Manzini from Google DeepMind on a role-based view of personal assistants

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

Core business from Prof Paul Boghossian at Reasoning and Agency in AI Conference at the Institute of Philosophy in whether LLMs understand and reason

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

Role-play or Agents. Characterising LLMs in action. Leonard Dung at Reasoning and Agency in AI @ip-sas.bsky.social

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Barry C Smith @barrycsmith.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

Leonard Dung sets out a range of views on what LLMs do and what they are at Reasoning and Agency in AI Conference at the Institute of Philosophy @ip-sas.bsky.social

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