iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 12/09/2026

My biggest tomatoes this year! They are all in the process of ripening. Sadly the largest of the three got a touch of blight but I have conducted very precise surgery and cut it out, and am hoping for the best. 🤞🏻

A large light red tomato on scales. Weight reads 478g.

A large green tomato on scales. The weight reads 488g.

A large green tomato on scales. The weight reads 571g.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 09/09/2026

I watched this live. Not only did Alcaraz walk off from a gruelling late night match, which he lost, while beaming a huge smile... You see that guy at the tunnel entrance behind him? Carlos gave him a little fist bump too. What a sportsman. Greatest I've ever seen. www.reddit.com/r/tennis/s/Y...

A photo of Carlos Alcaraz carrying his tennis gear bags and walking through a tunnel exiting the Arthur Ashe stadium court at the US open. He has a huge smile on his face despite losing a marathon five set match. Behind Alcaraz a staff member standing at the entrance to the tunnel is visible standing with his arms folded.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 06/09/2026

Wildflowers = visiting colours.

A photo of a bright red peacock butterfly on a light purple field scabious wildflower in a small garden meadow. A stone garden path is visible, blurred, in the background.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 27/08/2026

Please read the whole piece if you can (free trials are available from the BMJ!) but if I were to pull out one bit... it would be this. I was floored when I found out about it.

It’s hard to measure the true impact of Parton’s interventions. The major 2017 donation to the Monroe children’s hospital at Vanderbilt happened while one teenage patient there, Lily Hensiek, was receiving chemotherapy for leukaemia. Her cancer had returned more than five years after she was previously treated successfully for it as a young child.

Hensiek’s family credits Parton with supporting a medical trial that helped their daughter through that second wave of treatment. Earlier this year Hensiek returned to the same hospital to complete her training as a physician assistant, saying that she wanted to share her experience with child cancer patients, to help them through their own chemotherapy. Not only that, Hensiek’s family also founded a charity called Lily’s Garden, which has itself raised more than $3m to support paediatric cancer care at the same hospital.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 26/08/2026

Still going strong with the runner beans.

A photo of freshly harvested veg in a white enamel circular pie dish. There are very large runner beans, french beans and cherry tomatoes, red and orange.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 24/08/2026

Red sweetcorn!! Never grown this before but it's done really well. Tastes pretty much exactly like regular yellow sweetcorn but looks quite a lot more gnarly.

A photo of a freshly harvested sweetcorn cob held in my hands. The covering leaves have been pulled aside to slow shiny purple-red sweetcorn inside. Out of focus in the background, a garden path and some plants, including a row of plants in plastic terracotta-coloured pots, is visible.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 18/08/2026

A handful of our beetroots will make a pasta sauce tonight! New variety this year - "sanguina"

A photo of four beetroot of varying sizes, still with soil on their taproot, pictured in a glass bowl held above a wooden floor.

A photo of diced, purple-red beetroot pieces in an oven tray lined with light brown baking paper.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 16/08/2026

Harvest time going well. Going to have the big tomato (410g) with dinner tonight! Just add salt and a little olive oil...

A photo of a bowl containing thin red Cayenne chillies and fat green padrons.

A photo of a large red tomato on a wooden table.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 03/08/2026

This is a seal, inside a wind turbine tower! They swim in and out of "water replenishment holes". The holes on this one were designed larger than usual, allowing them in and out. Credit: Jelle Pennekamp / Føn Energy Services / Vattenfall

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 03/08/2026

Have never grown anywhere near so many cucumbers!

A photo of about a dozen knobbly cucumbers, freshly harvested, on a weathered wooden table.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 02/08/2026

Good swimming this morning! Very calm indeed.

A photo of a beach with a blue sky above with some very thin scattered cloud. Some small green grassy dunes are visible.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 28/07/2026

Beautiful painted lady in the garden. What other migratory insects are you seeing at the moment?

A photo of a painted lady butterfly sitting on some purple knapweed flowers in a garden wildflower meadow.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 27/07/2026

Peacock butterfly in the garden and also some funky bee-imitating fly... It's not a dark edged bee fly though - anyone know the species??

A photo of a bee-like large fly on a purple knapweed flower.

A photo of a large fly, fuzzy and with bee-like colours on a yellow dandelion flower.

A photo of a peacock butterfly in a wildflower meadow. Purple knapweed flowers are visible.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 25/07/2026

Left: An illustration/montage I made on Thursday, for my newsletter, to sum up our current moment and highlight frustrations around media image choices during heatwaves. Right: A real photo taken the following day by an AFP photographer in the south of France. www.thereengineer.pro/p/oh-how-we-...

A montage illustration of a family on a beach watching as a firefighting plane scoops up water in front of them. To the right of the picture, a wildfire burns on a hillside. Smoke fills the sky.

A couple sit on a beach under a parasol as a huge wildfire burns on the horizon, across a body of water in front of them. Smoke completely fills the sky.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 22/07/2026

Rather enjoying this ghostly purple sweet pea at the moment.

A photo of a very light blue, almost light blue coloured sweet pea flower. Darker purple flowers are visible in the background.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 22/07/2026

If anyone's doing Making Tax Digital (MTD), I think I've found something that could trip a lot of folks up. You do *not* send the total for each quarter in isolation, but rather *cumulative* totals for income / expenses at the end of each quarter. As HMRC explains here. www.gov.uk/guidance/use...

Each time you send a quarterly update it will cover from the start of the tax year to the end of the update period, not just the previous three months. This means you can correct your records without having to resend previous updates.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 20/07/2026

Well the bees must be reading my Bluesky posts because after my whining about their absence they have turned up in force! Meadow doing its job.

A photo of a flagstone path through a summer wildflower meadow. There are knapweed, ox eye daisy and trefoil flowers visible.

A close up photo of a bumblebee on a light purple scabious flower in a small meadow.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 19/07/2026

More sea swimming this morning!

A photo of a beach. The sky is blue with some light cloud. There is a grassy fenced area in the foreground. The beach curves round in a crescent shape to a headland on the horizon.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 16/07/2026

First time I've grown winter squash. This is one of the fruits that looks to have set - exciting stuff! Variety is Green Hokkaido.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 16/07/2026

Yes and huge variance across the country. Here in Belfast it's getting easier to grow outdoor tomatoes (like this one I'm currently hoping ripens well!!) but our winters, while warmer, are getting more risky with wet-dry fluctuations and bigger storms too.

A photo of a large green tomato growing on a plant held up by a thick bamboo cane.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 13/07/2026

If only I could share the scent!

A photo of highly perfumed sweet pea flowers growing up cords against a dark grey fence. The flowers are white/light pink with mottled purple colour.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 11/07/2026

Also, this image is in the story but I want to highlight it here. This is what an air conditioning system made of brick and iron looks like. It's steam punk air con!

A photo of a large six blade fan, painted red, set into a circular hole in a brick wall.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 07/07/2026

Enjoying the dahlias now July is here.

A photo of a rich purple coloured dahlia flower. The blurred background shows a patio and wooden chair amongst other flowering plants.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 06/07/2026

Cool moth relaxing on a compost bag. Anyone know the species?

A photo of a large dark brown moth, wings closed, resting on a bright petrol blue compost bag.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 24/06/2026

Odd situation here in Belfast. Forecast was for grey skies today and noticeably cooler than yesterday. But the sun is out this morning...

A photo of a blue sky with some cloud present here and there. The top of a tree is visible.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 23/06/2026

By some distance, the healthiest-looking cucumber plants I've grown to date. Hopefully they yield well, too!

A photo of a row of relatively young, richly green coloured cucumber plants growing in a raised bed. Some yellow flowers are visible behind.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 23/06/2026

This: share.google/pZlmNDvbuSRY... Most people agree that heating systems should be efficiently run, and not used to an extent that would cause energy systems to fall over, it's the same principle with AC.

"Record-shattering temperatures are feeding demand for air conditioning and driving surges in demand for electricity – which can result in a vicious cycle of increased greenhouse gas emissions that in turn make the world even hotter.”

During the early summer heatwave of 2025, France recorded an evening electricity peak 25 per cent above the off-season average due to cooling, despite the country having a relatively low ownership of AC.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 22/06/2026

This comment from Linda Speight, Lecturer in Physical Geography at the University of Oxford.

Back in 2022 when temperatures were forecasted to reach 40 °C for the first time and the Met Office issued its first ever Red Heat Warning many people underestimated the risks, with some media coverage dismissing concerns and encouraging people to head to the beach. The next day, people were shocked as roads melted, wildfires raged close to urban areas, and the heatwave led to nearly 3000 excess deaths in England.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 19/06/2026

Veg for tonight's dinner sorted.

A photo of a bunch of tender stem broccoli held in someone's hand, having just been cut from the plant below.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 17/06/2026

Last month I stayed in a Premier Inn. Found a very obvious blood stain on the bedding upon check-in. Was given a new room but still complained (who wouldn't?) and this was their response. They've said in this garbled reply that I did raise the issue - but also that I didn't?? Quite maddening!

I am sorry to hear that you did not enjoy your stay on this occasion due to finding blood stains on the bedding in your original room, and then being moved to another room with a strong damp smell, with no further room move available.

I understand how disappointing this must have been, especially given the cost of your stay, and I am sorry that the overall experience did not meet the standards you expected from Premier Inn.

Whilst we completely understand it may not have benefitted to raise the issues at the time, considering the time, however, this doesn’t allow the team the opportunity to try and resolve this issue, so you could enjoy a more comfortable stay. Furthermore, they have also confirmed to us that this issue
was not brought to their attention during checkout.

Taking this into consideration, and in line with our booking T&Cs, which require all issues to be reported to a member of staff at the time, unfortunately we are unable to process a refund under our Policy on this occasion and can only offer our apologies.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 15/06/2026

First cosmos flower of the year.

A close up photo of a large pink cosmos flower, viewed directly face-on. The blurred background shows a patio, vegetation and some wooden chairs behind.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 14/06/2026

That's incorrect, and pretty dismissive. share.google/AMzx5yc3lqCl...

According to UN maritime agency, the latest incident brings the number of confirmed seafarer fatalities to 14 since the crisis began on 28 February. The agency has verified 46 attacks on international shipping in and around the Strait of Hormuz during that period.

More than 20,000 sailors are stuck on around 2,000 vessels in the Gulf, many of them unable to leave ship, lacking adequate ‌supplies of food and fresh water, and fearful of an uncertain future at sea in a war zone.
Sailors interviewed by Reuters in recent weeks have described the hardships and anxieties of their experience, and a federation representing them warns of dire conditions.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 12/06/2026

Oh and chillies are on the way!

A photo of an embryonic chilli, green in colour, growing on a potted chilli plant in a summer house.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 12/06/2026

Here's something nice. This year's strawbs have been good so far. A little smaller than some years but very nice flavour.

A photo of strawberries at various stages of ripeness growing on strawberry plants in a veg patch. The soil is covered with a layer of straw mulch.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 12/06/2026

NEW: I spoke to one of Africa CDC's top officials, Prof Yap Boum II, who is leading the Ebola response in the DRC. He told me about the latest situation there. www.bmj.com/content/393/... Photo: Africa CDC

A photo of Prof Yap Boum II (in green waistcoat and sunglasses) with people standing outside in Rwampara, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Some of the people are wearing facemasks. One woman is holding a smartphone. A security guard is visible in the background.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 11/06/2026

I've blocked this account. If you think that this was an appropriate thing to write, about me, in response to the thread I posted, then unfollow me right now.

An account known only as "barry parmegiana" quoting my post saying, "This is a laudable sentiment but the person who posted it works for the BBC, which is promoting the pogroms."

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 08/06/2026

Saw Eric Bibb live in Belfast tonight. He was awesome! Fabulous blues and folk in his unique style. Huge presence. So much soul in everything he does.

A photo of Eric Bibb and his band on stage at the Empire Music Hall in Belfast.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 05/06/2026

Yes I think putting a path through the garden meadow was the right decision.

A photo of large square paving slabs meandering through a small wildflower meadow. There are many oxeye daisies and birds foot trefoil flowers visible.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 03/06/2026

Female common blue in the garden wildflower meadow...

A close up photo of a female common blue butterfly sitting on an ox-eye daisy flower that is yet to fully open. The blurred background shows green vegetation below.

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Chris Baraniuk @chrisbaraniuk.com · 29/05/2026

Painted lady butterflies have been flitting about the garden all day. One of my favourites.

A close cropped photo of a painted lady butterfly sitting on pink thyme flowers in a garden rockery.

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