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Dr Helen Metcalfe | she/her

@hmetcalfe1.bsky.social
279 followers 391 following 20 posts

Ecosystems Modeller and Weed Ecologist at Rothamsted 🌾 Agriculture 🌱 Ecology 💻 Modelling Living with ME/CFS

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Dr Helen Metcalfe | she/her @hmetcalfe1.bsky.social · 09/04/2026
Campaigners demand action to break UK’s ‘addiction’ to herbicides | Herbicides | The Guardian share.google/uFceN4NMnNWj...
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Campaigners demand action to break UK’s ‘addiction’ to herbicides
Use of glyphosate has risen 10-fold in 30 years, raising fears for public health
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Dr Helen Metcalfe | she/her @hmetcalfe1.bsky.social · 05/01/2026
National-scale optimisation modelling shows that spatially differentiated land-use strategies outperform uniform policies, revealing trade-offs between food production and environmental quality.​ www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
sciencedirect.com
Rethinking land-use Strategies: A multi-objective analysis of combined sparing and sharing approaches applied across great britain
The land-sharing versus land-sparing debate represents a critical juncture in agricultural policy development. However, applying either of these appro…
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Dr Helen Metcalfe | she/her @hmetcalfe1.bsky.social · 10/12/2025
Farming decisions are often made at the farm-scale, yet simulations are often field- or landscape-scale. We propose a new framework for capturing variation in agroecosystem simulations at the scale most relevant for decision making. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
sciencedirect.com
A framework for capturing farm-scale variation in process-based simulations for agroecosystem resilience
Agroecosystem models typically simulate average conditions in fields or over a gridded landscape. This approach overlooks the spatial variation that s…
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Dr Helen Metcalfe | she/her @hmetcalfe1.bsky.social · 06/08/2025
This is so validating, and the much-needed first step into understanding the causes of ME. Candidate genes affecting the immune and nervous systems align with my and others' experience but now it's time to fund more in-depth research.
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Dr Helen Metcalfe | she/her @hmetcalfe1.bsky.social · 06/08/2025
What's the true value of a hedgerow? Or a diverse landscape when it comes to mitigating field edge yield declines? Our new paper out today might have some of the answers doi.org/10.1016/j.ag...
doi.org
Redirecting
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Dr Helen Metcalfe | she/her @hmetcalfe1.bsky.social · 18/03/2025
Started a new #ReverseMentoring relationship with a senior leader from @pirbrightinst.bsky.social this week. I love that BBSRC institutes are investing in EDI and I'm excited for our conversations about disability and chronic illness in the workplace #pwme #mecfs
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Reposted by Dr Helen Metcalfe | she/her
Rothamsted Research @rothamsted.ac.uk · 17/03/2025
The glyphosate debate: nice to see our own @hmetcalfe1.bsky.social quoted in this in-depth feature by @barbarapinho.com www.chemistryworld.com/features/the...
chemistryworld.com
The glyphosate debate
The EU has recently approved the use of glyphosate for another decade. Bárbara Pinho examines the controversial pesticide's presence in British farming and considers the possibility of a ban in the UK
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Dr Helen Metcalfe | she/her @hmetcalfe1.bsky.social · 23/01/2025
A brilliant example of the tradeoffs between soil health and weed control when thinking about min till
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Reposted by Dr Helen Metcalfe | she/her
New Scientist @newscientist.com · 17/01/2025
The Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii has recorded the biggest annual jump in atmospheric CO2 levels since measurements started there in 1958. www.newscientist.com/article/2464...
newscientist.com
Air monitoring station records biggest ever jump in atmospheric CO2
Wildfires and fossil fuel burning in 2024 contributed to the biggest annual rise in atmospheric CO2 levels ever recorded at the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii
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Reposted by Dr Helen Metcalfe | she/her
New Scientist @newscientist.com · 17/01/2025
Persistent droughts have become even drier and hotter in recent decades. www.newscientist.com/article/2464...
newscientist.com
Severe droughts are getting bigger, hotter, drier and longer
Droughts lasting multiple years are becoming more common and extreme around the globe, expanding by about 50,000 square kilometres annually
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Reposted by Dr Helen Metcalfe | she/her
Rothamsted Research @rothamsted.ac.uk · 13/01/2025
UK’s first glyphosate-resistant weed found on Kent farm. Rothamsted's @hmetcalfe1.bsky.social quoted www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
UK’s first glyphosate-resistant weed found on Kent farm
Scientist says case is warning for farmers to reduce reliance on controversial and common herbicide
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Dr Helen Metcalfe | she/her @hmetcalfe1.bsky.social · 10/01/2025
There's always a new challenge in Agriculture, let's not let the news today of glyphosate resistance in the UK prevent a positive transition toward more regenerative practices
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Reposted by Dr Helen Metcalfe | she/her
Damian Carrington @dpcarrington.bsky.social · 10/01/2025
UK’s first glyphosate-resistant weed found on Kent farm - Scientist says case is warning for farmers to reduce reliance on controversial and common herbicide Story by @priyabharadia.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
UK’s first glyphosate-resistant weed found on Kent farm
Scientist says case is warning for farmers to reduce reliance on controversial and common herbicide
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Dr Helen Metcalfe | she/her @hmetcalfe1.bsky.social · 10/01/2025
"The case [of glyphosate resistance in the UK] is a “warning sign” for farmers to reduce their reliance on glyphosate" www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
UK’s first glyphosate-resistant weed found on Kent farm
Scientist says case is warning for farmers to reduce reliance on controversial and common herbicide
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Reposted by Dr Helen Metcalfe | she/her
Prof_GD_Foster @profgdfoster.bsky.social · 10/01/2025
Glyphosate-resistant weeds have evolved in the UK for the first time www.newscientist.com/article/2463...
newscientist.com
Glyphosate-resistant weeds have evolved in the UK for the first time
The herbicide glyphosate is helping farmers adopt more environmentally friendly practices, and resistant weeds will make this transition more difficult, experts say
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Reposted by Dr Helen Metcalfe | she/her
Adam Vaughan @adamvaughan.bsky.social · 10/01/2025
A glyphosate-resistant weed has been found on a UK farm for the first time, raising the spectre of a new pressure on British farmers. Researchers have confirmed that Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum) on a farm in Kent was resistant to the weedkiller glyphosate. Story soon.
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Dr Helen Metcalfe | she/her @hmetcalfe1.bsky.social · 06/01/2025
First day back at work post Christmas break... what is it I do again? Asking for a friend
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Reposted by Dr Helen Metcalfe | she/her
Simone Conradi @sconradi.bsky.social · 31/12/2024
A classic proof without words showing that 1+3+5+...+(2n-1)=n² taking advantage of the fact that 2025 is a square and therefore it's the sum of all odd numbers from 1 to 89! #MathArt #Mathematics #HappyNewYear Made with #python #matplotlib
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Dr Helen Metcalfe | she/her @hmetcalfe1.bsky.social · 01/01/2025
What a reading year I've had! I can't believe I read 87 books in 2024! Choosing to read for an hour before bed instead of watching TV has been easier on my nervous system and reduced my sensory symptoms. I gave 15 books 5⭐️ By diversifying my reading I 1discovered new favourite authors and genres!
A summary of my reading in 2024. The first book I read was Curious Tides by Pascale Lacelle and the last book I read was Apple and Knife by Intan Paramaditha. The longest book I read in 2024 was A Day of Fallen Night by Samantha Shannon and the shortest book was Why Money Matters by Deborah Meaden in total. I read 87 books covering 28064 pages. The top genres were mystery, thriller, literary, fantasy and LGBTQIA+,  my top authors were Saraa el-arifi, Eliza Clark, and Pascale Lacelle. Some of my five-star reads were Curious Tides, Tender is the Flesh, and Homegoing
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Reposted by Dr Helen Metcalfe | she/her
Jeremy Hemberger @jhemberger.bsky.social · 19/11/2024
Hey y'all. I've created an #agroecology starter pack for folks interested in how we create, manage, research, and advocate for more sustainable agricultural systems across the world. Please let me know if you'd like to be added! Currently v. short list as I'm new to Bluesky. go.bsky.app/6d3FswT
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Dr Helen Metcalfe | she/her @hmetcalfe1.bsky.social · 28/12/2024
With just 3 days to go, I finished @thestorygraph.com reads the world challenge 2024! Already picking out titles for next years countries 💙📚
10 book covers from around the world with the countries listed below them
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Dr Helen Metcalfe | she/her @hmetcalfe1.bsky.social · 21/12/2024
I've loved trying out some new genres this year thanks to @thestorygraph.com genres challenge and I even found a couple of new favourites... I'll let you guess which ones!
10 book covers and their genres
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Reposted by Dr Helen Metcalfe | she/her
Mark Ramsden @ipmmark.bsky.social · 16/12/2024
Any #IPM #atdev here? Our IPM Decisions platform is #opensource and all in #github here: github.com/H2020-IPM-De... Ready to work with anyone wanting to get pest forecast models integrated and available to #agriculture #advisors anywhere in Europe #horizoneurope
github.com
H2020 IPM Decisions
H2020 IPM Decisions has 23 repositories available. Follow their code on GitHub.
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Dr Helen Metcalfe | she/her @hmetcalfe1.bsky.social · 16/12/2024
After a week of lurking it's time for my blue-sky debut! For those who don't know me I'm an ecologist and modeller who loves data, sewing, and reading 🌱📈🧵📚 When I'm not doing those things I'm usually napping thanks to my ME/CFS 😴
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