iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

When your music is rizzing you... No you're a hawt boi... 😏

A photo of the Oboe part for Vaughn Williams' Sea Songs. Under the Oboe label is the french translation "Hautbois", and when you think about that... It looks a little like hot boy

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

I have considered things like this, and I've tried a bunch of different formatting but it's all bit jarring. Maybe plain is the best way to go (that's where I'm currently leaning), but I find it hard to scan and pull the numbers out so I thought I'd post in case someone has a clever suggestion. 🙏

Lorem ipsum placeholder text in a serif font, justified format. Interspersed through the text are brackets containing numbers for example: (1675: 85%, 1742: 74%). One set of these numbers has a pale blue background.

100

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

Calling for clever people with inspiration/ideas. If you were preparing formal, formatted text and it had lots of numbers within it (see example), do you have any ideas to make those numbers easier to find/interpret without having them distract too much from the main text? I want to make them 'pop'

100

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 14/08/2026

It was my first outing of @chemscrapes.bsky.social's marvellous creation AND I was teaching the CIP rules while wearing a propeller hat and playing a game show-esque lick on a penny whistle.

A man wearing a T-shirt that says ENTGEGEN twice arranged in a "trans" configuration

151

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 12/08/2026

Is it even a conference if you don't extend the deadline? I had really hoped not to, but we see the busy people out there scrambling to get everything done and are offering a slight reprieve. Monday 17th at 5pm NZST. If you were hesitating because your were running out of time, no excuses now!

A poster advertising the New Zealand Institute of Chemistry abstract deadline.

The key detail is:

"Stop Press! Submission Deadline Extended. Monday 17 August 2026 at 5pm NZST"

011

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 07/08/2026

NZIC 2026 is going to be a blast! Abstract submission closes on Wednesday, so get your abstract in ASAP!

A poster declaring that the NZIC Conference 2026 to be held 15th - 19th November at The Pā, University of Waikato, Kirikiriroa Hamilton has an abstract deadline set at Wednesday 12 August 2026 at 11pm NZST.

Registration details can be found at www.nzic.org.nz

It thanks the sponsors:

Gold partners: University of Waikato, Lab Supply
Silver Partners: ECP Chemicals, MicroAnalytic, Technical Glass Products, Te Whai Ao Dodd-Walls Centre
Exhibitors: OneLab, Alphatech Systems, Scitek, John Morris Group
Student paper prize: Springer

000

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

I'm a bit disturbed by this comment lurking under the article. Any appetite to follow that up with the Electoral Commission, MPs etc? A "software issue" that might result in someone's vote not counting seems bad!

Screenshot of text reading:

Last week I spent 30 minutes on the phone to a staff member of the Electoral Commission changing the electorate that I vote in on the General Roll. I had tried on my own but the system didn’t work.
This kind person went through every page of the change of enrolment electronic process and confirmed at the end that my electoral address had been changed.
Yesterday I received an email from the Electoral Commission confirming that I was enrolled in my old electorate!
I called them today and the staff member spent sometime looking at my file and then told me there had been an issue with the software lately and some changes made on the roll had failed to be processed.
I was also told that they had no knowledge of which roll changes made by voters had failed and no method of contacting them to let them know that their particular change had not been processed.
They were only reacting to people like me who noticed that their confirmation email was incorrect.
Like many people I usually wouldn’t have opened an email from a government department that was just confirming a process I had been through a few days before with their staff.
I wonder how many other people have had the same problem but don’t know it and will have a problem voting.
And with only 2 days to go for enrolment changes it would seem we’re going to have a problem.
I wonder how many people this will affect on the General Roll and the Maori roll.

040

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 01/08/2026

First dog to break my heart ❤️

A black and white grayhound looking at a bird on a lake.

120

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 17/07/2026

Exciting... terrifying... exciting... terrifying. This is me convening a conference, but when you see the faces on this poster you know it's going to be a good one. These are just some of our amazing speakers! Abstract submissions close Wednesday, 12 August 2026 at 11.00pm NZST. Tell everyone!

A poster advertising the New Zealand Institute of Chemistry conference.

Key details are:
Conference runs 15th - 19th November 2026.
Abstract submissions close Wednesday, 12 August 2026 at 11.00pm NZST.

A list of plenary speakers is included:

André Isaacs
Martin Banwell
colette Boskovic
Jolon Dyer
Gwendolyn Lawrie
Nigel Perry
Lisa Pilkington
Ziyun Wang
Elizabeth Yuriev

100

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 16/07/2026

Lol... "Feedback can be submitted via this link." That link:

Screenshot of website showing "Requested page not found" plus further details of likely causes that are not relevant to the intended meaning of the screenshot.

110

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 12/07/2026

Striding right into the new Trimester with a 9am class and new (very overdue) shoes 😍

A photo of legs terminating in brown suede shoes. They have been equipped with rainbow laces as a subtle hint that the bigot of the world should take a long walk off a short pier.

180

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 26/06/2026

The festival is underway! Waikato Symphonic Band and Schools Band are on Sunday.

A table of the festival programme. The categories are Band Performances, Solo Performances, Ensemble Performances and Workshops.

Apologies, extracting all the timetable information for alt text is beyond me, but if you have a specific query please ask in a comment.

132

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 13/06/2026

Took the kids and had a nice time in the sun with a bunch of really normal people. Good speeches, happy vibes. 100% would go again.

Two people dressed in bright colours standing at a protest rally carrying trans and pride progress flags. One holds a rainbow sign saying "A bill can't erase people, identity or science. Trans rights are human rights". The other holds a pink and blue sign saying "Policing genitals is very weird".

38019

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 25/05/2026

Cool... new ChemDraw autoinstalled at some point and while it has a fancy redesigned logo it otherwise appears completely borked. I guess instead of working with my VERY expensive productivity software I'll spend time trying to make it usable instead... *SIGH*

The splash screen for the ChemDraw software. It features a green hexagon with rounded points and stylised CD in its centre, the text ChemDraw, the company name "revvity signals" and some amorphous green blobs.

A screen shot of the ChemDraw app. All of the user-interface buttons are lacking symbology so the software is essentially unusable.

110

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 20/05/2026

I was reminded of this today. From 2021, and still bad science is getting trotted out to justify bigotry. Personally, if you need to be conscious of someone's gender to value them as a person you need to take a long look at yourself. You're not a good person. From: scientists.org.nz/press-releases

Press Release from the New Zealand Association of Scientists

Science and Gender
As an organisation, the New Zealand Association of Scientists (NZAS) recognises the importance of inclusiveness and kindness in science. Transgender, intersex, and gender diverse Kiwis experience significant discrimination within our society. This is partially due to our science system’s inability to even engage with them as part of our population - only this year has Stats NZ offered guidance for collecting sex and gender data which addresses the full scope of gender diversity in Aotearoa.
Additionally, misinformed claims of ‘science’ are often used as a tool of oppression against these groups. It concerns us to see incorrect claims being made that ‘science’ supports the definition of all humans into one of two categories based on assignment of sex at birth. We see science as one of the most important ways we have of learning and talking about ourselves, our world, and everyone within it (we are, after all, scientists). The NZAS recognises that the scientific consensus tells us that gender cannot be reduced down to any simple combination of an individual’s chromosomes, hormones, genitalia, or any other characteristic: it is not a simple binary. The principles of inclusiveness and kindness in science tell us to engage with people as who they are, recognising the world around us, and within us, as it is rather than as we think it should be.
Despite the challenges they face, we already work with trans, gender diverse, and intersex scientists of all genders. They are working and leading in science in Aotearoa as scientists and equals. We support them and all efforts to make science and society in Aotearoa safer for everybody, by taking the stance that this is not only the moral thing to do, nor only the scientifically most valid perspective: supporting trans, gender diverse, and intersex scientists of all genders produces better science for all of society.

1189

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 04/05/2026

Copyediting standards seem pretty terrible at journals right now. For example, I'm reading a J. Med Chem article (10.1021/acs.jmedchem.5c03255) where someone has clearly done a 'find and replace' for "ki" -> italic(K)subscript(I) How does this stuff get through, these journals charge $$$$$$$$$$$$$$

The word "pharmacokinetic" with the KI stylised as if they're a standalone symbol italic K, subscript I.

110

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 18/04/2026

As a kid I always thought it was quite strange that Tip Top was spelled Jip Jop given how it's pronounced. Similar vibe...

120

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 16/04/2026

Took me a couple of tries though 😅

Screenshot of game score, the key text is 47.96/50 and #172,920 of 2,237,478

110

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

According to this www.immigration.govt.nz/study/once-y... Master's and PhD students CAN work without limit on hours on a student visa (although a limit is often in the scholarship agreement). They very much should not have to, it's not desirable for them or their supervisor, but they can 🥲

Screenshot text reads:

PhD and Masters research students
There is no limit on the hours you can work if you are enrolled in a doctoral degree (PhD) or Research Masters programme at a New Zealand tertiary institution.

If you work full-time, you must also keep studying full-time.

210

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 18/03/2026

I guess there are small mercies...

Screenshot from website with text reading:

Why did you change the wind barbs to arrows?
Our user research showed a strong preference towards arrows. In future, we plan to provide the ability for users to select their preferred option.

120

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 12/03/2026

Oh là là là là ! This wee moment delighted me so much

I head and shoulders picture of a mid-20's white man with eyes downcast and the caption "There were no books. Okay."

010

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 03/03/2026

Sorry not sorry, in my head this goes: Kate: Hey insta, generate a picture of me Insta: ok...

120

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 04/02/2026

I desperately tried to find this late last year, but you were gone, but now you're back and I have had some exciting developments! There were ~7 of them in early December, and right now there's another just blooming 🤩🤩🤩

A bunch of pale pink flowers with three green leaves behind them

220

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 01/01/2026

I'm... not sure what to do with this. Perhaps I'll adjust my walk.

Screenshot of a post by Merriam-Webster that reads:

Take a screenshot of this GIF, and whichever new word you land on is YOUR word for 2026.

Let's. Go.

The word shown in the screenshot is "Sultry".

020

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 20/09/2025

Staaahhhp call the police, unpermitted cuteness on display in Kirikiriroa

A couple wearing brightly coloured jumpers and sunglasses sits on outdoor tiered seating in the sun. The centerpiece of the photo is two large almond croissants being held up to the camera, one for each of the happy and hungry couple.

A couple sit on tiered seating in the sun wearing sunglasses and brightly coloured jumpers. In the background is a tandem bicycle with bright pink helmets hanging on the handlebars.

020

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 19/09/2025

Phase 1: Complete. Ft. Cycle past Gardens, cycle along river past rowing clubs and waka ama. Total vibes

A tandem bicycle parked on a city street. Brightly coloured helmets hang from the handlebars (pink and blue).

110

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 06/09/2025

This is a great opportunity to introduce kids to all the different wind instruments, and inspire them to play. Heck, if you've played an instrument in the past and enjoy the concert, maybe you'll be inspired to join for the next programme... so we can become a large community band! 😁

Advertisement for a concert, text on a music themed background, plus images of a trumpet and a saxophone.

The text reads:

Join Waikato Symphonic Band for our concert "Loco-motifs and Symphonic Shenanigans" 3PM, Saturday 20th September, St Aidan's Church, 24 Thames Street. Entry free or by koha.

010

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 06/09/2025

If Hamilton folk are interested in amateur musicians playing in a small community band... Do I have the event for you! A free concert? Yes free! Or koha if you would like. It's an interesting and eclectic musical programme, so should be good family friendly fun. 🎺🎷🪈🥁📯

172

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 24/08/2025

Different train vibe today, northbound again to Huntly

020

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 14/08/2025

Over on the IG... I never knew you had this double life! Flattering no doubt 😅 That app is buuuuuggy

A screenshot of a notification from Instagram. The icon is the comedian Melanie Bracewell and the notification says: "Melanie Bracewell invited you to join their channel: ChemScrapes"

110

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 02/08/2025

Saturday shopping 🚲🚲🥰

A photo of a tandem bicycle in front of a great wall. A purple helmet hangs from the front handlebars.

030

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 31/07/2025

Hat described as "tuff" and wearer as having "aura" by authentic gen alpha. Where does this go on the RS&T CV?

A pale male is appears not stale by virtue of the red, green, yellow and blue hat they wear with a propeller on top. They are also wearing a boring gray jacket, and clear framed glasses. They look into the camera over the frame of the glasses.

030

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 24/07/2025

Farewell old friend, do not fear... we have not forgotten that the University Advisory Group report has still not been released...

This is a screenshot of the "This site can't be reached" error page for uag.org.nz. The screenshot is merely used to illustrate that the website is gone, it's appearance is not otherwise relevant.

2163

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 26/06/2025

Microsoft Word... where below means above, and above also means above and I just really want it below... but no, that can't be because WORD KNOWS BEST DOOFUS

120

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 18/05/2025

For the uninitiated, this is how they enter port...

A photo of the Mexican Tall Ship Cuauhtémoc entering port. Each of her horizontal yards is lined by crewmen standing on top of the poles, bracing against ropes and each other

010

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 14/05/2025

Chalk this up as one of the weirdest spam/phishing emails I've ever received...

Screenshot of an email reading:

Hello there

Do you have enemies? Do you hate someone? Let me know their e-mail addresses by replying to this e-mail. And I'll tease them for your behalf.

Thanks
Punsi

010

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 08/05/2025

In the results letter it says "This year the success rate for the Expressions of Interest to the full proposal round was just under 28%" Is this a mistake, or am I just being a dunce? Happy to sit in the corner if so... (and no... I'm not FS applying to MIS)

A table of data relating to Marsden application and invitations to the full round. The key take home is that only the Fast Start rate for a single panel is near 28%. The majority of success rates are around 20 - 23%

100

Ben Dickson @drbenomycin.bsky.social · 29/04/2025

This Government are such clever law makers... flawless...

A screenshot with the following sentence highlighted:

In light of this, these new speed reviews are proposing to change back to the lower speeds immediately following this change in July

The full text reads:

What we propose
Changing speed limits is a legal process. The Rule allows NZTA to set speed limits for roads under its control where there is alignment with the intent and requirements of the Rule.

These 2 new reviews in Hamilton and one in Tūrangi propose lower speeds at specific locations. The new reviews acknowledge that under the Rule, on 1 July 2025, these locations must reverse to their previous higher speeds (for eg, 70km, 80km or 100km, depending on where they are). In light of this, these new speed reviews are proposing to change back to the lower speeds immediately following this change in July (eg back to the lower speed they have today). Each proposal shows the economic impacts, which NZTA then considers alongside the views of road users gathered during consultation and technical safety assessments, to determine if we set the lower speed limit.

Below you will find more detailed information on each proposal including a description of each state highway section, why a speed limit change is proposed, and a Cost Benefit Disclosure Statement describing the estimated safety and travel time impacts and implementation costs of a proposed speed limit change.

020