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Prof Henry WW Potts

@hwwpotts.bsky.social
283 followers 180 following 126 posts

UCL professor studying digital health/AI in healthcare (+ COVID stuff). Lead author of the GOV.UK website on how to evaluate digital health www.gov.uk/government/collections/e…

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Reposted by Prof Henry WW Potts
London Review of Books @lrb.co.uk · 03/10/2026
‘When they are given open-ended tasks and allowed to communicate freely, agents’ exchanges can become unintelligible to outsiders – they look like a cross between teenage slang and the source code of an operating system.’ Paul Taylor on AI agents. www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...
lrb.co.uk
Paul Taylor · Free Agents
The idea that AI was an existential threat seemed faintly ludicrous in 2024: how could a program that simply issued a...
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Prof Henry WW Potts @hwwpotts.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
How is AI like a microwave? A 2 minute video exploring how we think about AI in healthcare. www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxAV...
youtube.com
How is AI like a microwave?
YouTube video by Prof Henry WW Potts
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Prof Henry WW Potts @hwwpotts.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
🚀 New paper: we explored how to translate AI risk-management frameworks into practical worksheets for health AI innovators. innovations.bmj.com/content/earl... #HealthAI #DigitalHealth #AIGovernance #MedTech #ResponsibleAI
innovations.bmj.com
Healthcare AI risk management: an innovator-informed approach from frameworks to practical worksheets for proportionate regulatory evidence capture
Introduction Artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled healthcare systems introduce clinical safety, operational and governance risks across development, deployment and postdeployment stages. Although mult...
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Reposted by Prof Henry WW Potts
Midday Matinées @middaymatinees.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
First post is up, and it’s what - if anything - we should consider the First Film. It should be in subscribers inboxes now and is free to read at the site as a taste of what we’ll be doing for anyone who wants to subscribe. www.patreon.com/cw/MiddayMat...
patreon.com
Midday Matinées with James Cooray Smith — A newsletter about films and going to the cinema.
Get more from Midday Matinées with James Cooray Smith on Patreon. A newsletter about films and going to the cinema.. Support Midday Matinées with James Cooray Smith and get exclusive access to their w...
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Reposted by Prof Henry WW Potts
Brandon Moore, PhD @rando.insalubrio.us · 02/09/2026
Cacao DNA found on pottery from the Etowah site in Georgia shows that this chocolate ingredient was part of Mississippian life, just as it was at Chaco Canyon and Cahokia, pointing to far-reaching cacao trade networks across pre-Columbian North America! 🧪 journals.plos.org/plosone/arti...
An artist’s conception of Etowah, a Mississippian culture site located on the banks of the Etowah River in Bartow County, Georgia.

Credit: Herb RoeA map depicting three archaeological sites in the United States where evidence of cacao has been discovered.  The most recent site is Etowah, in Georgia.  Other sites include Chaco Canyon in New Mexico and Cahokia in Missouri.
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Reposted by Prof Henry WW Potts
Jack Stilgoe @jackstilgoe.bsky.social · 10/04/2025
Nature have picked up our survey. We think it's the largest survey of AI researchers ever conducted. Here's a quick thread on some of the headlines @nature.com www.nature.com/articles/d41...
nature.com
Will AI improve your life? Here’s what 4,000 researchers think
Scientists working on artificial intelligence are more confident than the public that the technology will benefit people.
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Reposted by Prof Henry WW Potts
Digital Health @digitalhealth2.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
The NHS risks patient harm at an “unprecedented scale and speed” unless weaknesses in digital clinical safety are addressed, a study has warned. www.digitalhealth.net/2026/08/nhs-...
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Reposted by Prof Henry WW Potts
Hetan Shah @hetanshah.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
Thanks to @nature.com for covering our @britishacademy.bsky.social trial of partial randomisation in the allocation of our small research grants. As the piece says it seems to have helped diversify those who apply rather than rule themselves out of the process www.nature.com/articles/d41...
One of the most
closely watched of these experiments comes from the United Kingdom.
New peer-review trial lets grant applicants evaluate each other's proposals
In 2022, the British Academy, the national
organization for
the humanities and social sciences, began randomizing its Small Research Grants among all proposals that pass a quality threshold - a trial since extended to 2028.
The issue that the academy was trying to solve was not simply that the review board was overworked, but also that many researchers never applied at all. "Some were disqualifying themselves from even making an application, says Ken Emond, the academy's head of research funding,The programme's numbers quickly changed after implementing this system.
Applications nearly doubled, from 643 in 2022 to 1,257 in the 2025-26 round, and the pool broadened. The share of applications from Asian and Asian British researchers, for instance, climbed from 13% to 19%, and their share of awards went from 11% to 17%. Other factors played a part, Emond notes, but the results matched what supporters of this change had predicted.
A lottery also changes what a rejection means. Whereas the academy once gave no feedback at all, it can now tell applicants whether they fell short on quality or simply lost the draw. Some rejectees, Emond says, take their"passed the threshold" verdict as validation of their proposal when applying elsewhere.
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Prof Henry WW Potts @hwwpotts.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
I once made a tech start-up happy by saying that, as they used logistic regression, they could say they were using AI.
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Reposted by Prof Henry WW Potts
Digital Health @digitalhealth2.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
Only around 9% of NHS technology spending is invested in digital tools that support service transformation, despite growing pressure to improve productivity and shift care out of hospitals, according to a report from management consultancy Baringa. www.digitalhealth.net/2026/07/repo...
digitalhealth.net
Report finds just 9% of NHS tech spending drives transformation
Only around 9% of NHS technology spending is invested in digital tools that support service transformation, according to a report.
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Prof Henry WW Potts @hwwpotts.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
Very good piece by Dan Niedle on social care costs: taxpolicy.org.uk/2026/07/27/s...
taxpolicy.org.uk
How social care costs work in England - and why it’s mad
One in seven of us will face care costs above £100,000, decided by luck rather than need. We explain how England’s social care charging system really works.
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Reposted by Prof Henry WW Potts
Vic Clarke (she/her, they/them) @vicclarke.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
Please share: One of my counselling psychology professional doctorate students Tahmeena Miah would like to speak to trainee and qualified therapists who have completed 6 sessions with a Muslim client about their experiences of this work. For further details and to consent: lnkd.in/ejsUqFPM
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Reposted by Prof Henry WW Potts
Hannah Murphy @hsmurphy.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
Please share! A rare PhD studentship @kingshistory.bsky.social *fully* funded by @slaveryinwar.bsky.social to work with myself and Maeve Ryan, supported by a broader community of experts in Caribbean history, transatlantic slavery, and the history of war. www.kcl.ac.uk/study/fundin... 🗃️
kcl.ac.uk
AHRC Studentship: Slavery and the Seven Years’ War within and across the Caribbean Archipelago | King's College London
The Leverhulme Centre for Research on Slavery in War (CRSW) is pleased to announce the availability of a fully funded AHRC doctoral studentship, to be jointly supervised across History and War Studies
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Reposted by Prof Henry WW Potts
Gavin Jackson @gavinjackson.bsky.social · 16/07/2026
The rollout of high speed internet in Uruguay worsended early childhood development. But not because the kids spent too much time in front of screens, because the parents did. cepr.org/voxeu/column...
cepr.org
High-speed internet and early childhood development: Causal evidence from a countrywide programme
The rapid expansion of high-speed internet has intensified concerns about how digital technologies affect early childhood. Using the staggered rollout of fibre optic to the home in Uruguay as a natura...
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Reposted by Prof Henry WW Potts
christhebarker @christhebarker.bsky.social · 02/07/2026
Hey Bayeux Tapestry fans have I made the platform game for you? I’m sure someone else will have done this before but well now I have too… bayeuxgo.live
bayeuxgo.live
Bayeux Go!
Bayeux Go! Thou art Harold. Go forth and win thine battle. Jump your way to victory, avoiding arrows…
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Reposted by Prof Henry WW Potts
Greg Jenner (Historian) @gregjenner.bsky.social · 03/07/2026
New episode of Youre Dead To Me now on BBC iPlayer and BBC Sounds Its about the father of Eugenics Francis Galton, with our guests Subhadra Das (former curator of the Galton collection) and comedian Desiree Burch It’ll go on YouTube/other pod apps in 28 days time www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/epis...
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Reposted by Prof Henry WW Potts
Kate Orman @kateorman.bsky.social · 27/06/2026
Further archaeology: you've probably seen this famous Egyptian papyrus with the lion and gazelle playing "chess" etc, but cast your eyes all the way to the right and you'll see another reason why he looks so cheerful www.britishmuseum.org/collection/o...
britishmuseum.org
papyrus | British Museum
Papyrus with satirical vignettes: a figured scene in which animals ape human activities, but in a topsy-turvy world, they act against their natural instincts. The lion does not attack the gazelle but ...
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Reposted by Prof Henry WW Potts
Hetan Shah @hetanshah.bsky.social · 16/12/2025
The review of the BBC Charter has just been announced. In anticipation of this we have published a review of how 10 countries around the world organise their public service media, and what lessons can be drawn for the renewal of the BBC Charter www.thebritishacademy.ac.uk/publications...
The British Academy
Public service media: funding and governance options
An international comparison to inform
BBC Charter review 2027
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Reposted by Prof Henry WW Potts
Youth Resilience Unit @qmulresilience.bsky.social · 25/06/2026
"Drama therapy is delivered to children in schools; however, little empirical data evaluating the quantitative effect is currently available." This new publication hopes to address that - please do share! @qmul-wiph.bsky.social intellectdiscover.com/content/jour...
intellectdiscover.com
Exploring the impact of school-based drama therapy on emotional distress in UK primary school children: A contribution of quantitative data | Intellect
Drama therapy is delivered to children in schools; however, little empirical data evaluating the quantitative effect is currently available. This observation study of ten children undergoing drama the...
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Prof Henry WW Potts @hwwpotts.bsky.social · 23/06/2026
T-Cat is tackling the heat by sleeping next to her collection of water bowls. (She likes to have more than one.)
A tabby cat resting her head on a bowl of water
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Reposted by Prof Henry WW Potts
Steve Peers @stevepeers.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
My comments on the CJEU's judgment this week on Internet liability, for the @irishexaminer.bsky.social www.irishexaminer.com/opinion/comm...
irishexaminer.com
EU Court of Justice ruling may have just radically changed social media regulation
The rule exempting internet service providers from liability as a publisher is the foundation of modern social networks, but the court said it doesn't apply where an algorithm is used
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Reposted by Prof Henry WW Potts
Rob Ford @robfordmancs.bsky.social · 17/06/2026
Grim. Plenty of research showing public service broadcasting delivers real benefits to health of democracy. Yet here we are, in these polarised times, slowly starving our public service broadcaster.
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Prof Henry WW Potts @hwwpotts.bsky.social · 03/06/2026
The report is available here: cdn.prod.website-files.com/6638c5104324...
cdn.prod.website-files.com
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Reposted by Prof Henry WW Potts
Jonn Elledge @jonnelledge.bsky.social · 02/06/2026
Amazon has knocked more than 20% off the price of A History of World in 47 Borders in some kind of summer sale, so if you have somehow STILL not read it then THIS IS YOUR CHANCE
amazon.co.uk
A History of the World in 47 Borders: The Sunday Times #1 Bestseller: Amazon.co.uk: Elledge, Jonn: 9781472298546: Books
Explore the untold stories behind the world's borders in this Sunday Times bestseller praised for its novel, fascinating, and delightful insights into global history.
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Reposted by Prof Henry WW Potts
Eddie Robson @eddierobson.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
bsky.app/profile/scia...
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Prof Henry WW Potts @hwwpotts.bsky.social · 18/05/2026
📢 New paper: we explore how extended reality (VR/AR) can make physical activity more enjoyable and why those affective responses matter for long-term behaviour change. Includes a roadmap for future research. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti... #XR #DigitalHealth #PhysicalActivity
sciencedirect.com
Enhancing affective responses to physical activity with extended reality (XR) technology: Current progress and future roadmap
Physical inactivity remains a global health challenge, with recent estimates indicating that nearly one-third of adults (1.8 billion) fail to reach ph…
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Reposted by Prof Henry WW Potts
London Review of Books @lrb.co.uk · 14/05/2026
‘I think there are some professions where it matters that it’s a human that’s doing it. Emotionally, you want to feel cared for by another human being – not by a chatbot.’ Paul Taylor (@paul3548.bsky.social) on AI and the future of work, on the podcast. podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/t...
podcasts.apple.com
When will AI replace us?
Podcast Episode · The LRB Podcast · 14 May · 43min
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Prof Henry WW Potts @hwwpotts.bsky.social · 15/05/2026
📢 "How Cancer Online Support Groups Work, for Whom, and in What Circumstances: Realist Review" Our new paper reviews what is known and provides recommendations for online support groups for cancer. www.jmir.org/2026/1/e77445 #cancer
jmir.org
How Cancer Online Support Groups Work, for Whom, and in What Circumstances: Realist Review
Background: Online support groups (OSGs) offer a convenient way for patients with cancer and survivors of cancer to obtain information and support. However, not all OSGs are helpful, and in some cases...
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Reposted by Prof Henry WW Potts
John Bull @garius.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
This week on Untitled History pod we talk about the origins of the EBU, Eurovision and its weird historical quirks and borders And of course there was only one person I was getting back on for this... @jonnelledge.bsky.social #history #eurovision Available on Youtube and your pod app of choice!
youtu.be
The Surprising History Behind the Eurovision Song Contest | Untitled History Podcast Episode: 14
YouTube video by The Untitled History Podcast
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Reposted by Prof Henry WW Potts
Headline Books @headlinebooks.bsky.social · 07/05/2026
From sewers to skyscrapers to the streets on which they stand. Introducing 31 Inventions that Built our World by @jonnelledge.bsky.social the Sunday Times #1 Bestselling author of A History of the World in 47 Borders✏️ Coming August 2026 Pre-order now!🔗 linktr.ee/31Inventions...
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Reposted by Prof Henry WW Potts
Marcus Baw @marcusbaw.com · 07/05/2026
NHS code clampdown draws open source backlash www.theregister.com/software/202...
theregister.com
NHS code clampdown draws open source backlash
Plus a petition for the UK Civil Service to go FOSS by default
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Prof Henry WW Potts @hwwpotts.bsky.social · 01/05/2026
📢New paper: Association of oral contraceptives with depression symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment in healthy women: A meta-analysis I helped on this new study showing oral contraceptive use is associated with increased risks of depression www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
sciencedirect.com
Association of oral contraceptives with depression symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment in healthy women: A meta-analysis
Oral contraceptives are a popular choice of contraception globally.The objective was to assess whether oral contraceptive use is associated with diagn…
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Prof Henry WW Potts @hwwpotts.bsky.social · 26/04/2026
A lovely review of Yes's new single "Aurora" from Simon Barrow and the first comments about the whole album from Stephen Lambe on the latest Yes Music Podcast episode, as well as an interview with orchestrator Paul K Joyce: yesmusicpodcast.com/in-conversat...
yesmusicpodcast.com
In conversation with Paul K Joyce about his contributions to the new Yes album, Aurora – 718 – Yes Music Podcast
Produced by Joseph Cottrell, Wayne Hall, Ken Fuller and Jeffrey Crecelius Kevin is back! He and Mark bang on at length about the recent Oliver Wakeman concert with his band at Worcester, the remastere...
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Reposted by Prof Henry WW Potts
Adam Serwer @adamserwer.bsky.social · 19/04/2026
Important story from the Times on the rise of AI influencers for Trump www.nytimes.com/2026/04/17/b...
nytimes.com
Hundreds of Fake Pro-Trump Avatars Emerge on Social Media
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JM 📎🟦🪬🥯🥡🥠🦀 @jmdc88.bsky.social · 29/03/2026
Dr. Joyce Brothers grew up in a Jewish family in NY, had a PhD from Columbia, a husband in medical internship making $50/month, a new baby, and no income. In 1955 she decided to go on a game show. Not because she wanted to be on TV. Because they were, in her words, "hungry." #EternalLight 1/10
A woman wearing a dark tweed jacket and a light blouse holds a book titled "10 DAYS TO A SUCCESSFUL MEMORY" by Joyce Brothers.
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Hetan Shah @hetanshah.bsky.social · 30/03/2026
TL:dr - invest in public service broadcasting; support copyright against AI; hold digital platforms to account. Good to see this stuff going full legit in a Martin Wolf column www.ft.com/content/c1af...
ft.com
What to do when the ‘public good’ of information goes bad
The creation and dissemination of reliable news is at an economic disadvantage
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Prof Henry WW Potts @hwwpotts.bsky.social · 11/03/2026
... and I'm on a third preprint relating to generative AI: "Curiosity, reassurance and convenience: Understanding public motivations for using Generative AI in symptom assessment" www.researchsquare.com/article/rs-9... by @austenelosta.bsky.social, me, et al.
researchsquare.com
Curiosity, reassurance and convenience: Understanding public motivations for using Generative AI in symptom assessment
Introduction Generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) tools such as large language models are Generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) tools such as large language models are increasingly used for...
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Prof Henry WW Potts @hwwpotts.bsky.social · 09/03/2026
📢"Evaluating the Quality of AI-generated outputs for textual analysis with GRACE (Grounded Review and Assessment of Computational Evidence)" New preprint by Paulina Bondaronek, me, et al. preprints.jmir.org/preprint/91433 How does AI do at qualitative analysis?
preprints.jmir.org
Evaluating the Quality of AI-generated outputs for textual analysis with GRACE (Grounded Review and Assessment of Computational Evidence): A Comparative Evaluation of Ten Methods including Topic Model...
Background: The rapid growth of digital technologies has generated large volumes of free-text data across healthcare, public health, and social research. These contain contextualised accounts of...
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Prof Henry WW Potts @hwwpotts.bsky.social · 06/03/2026
📢 Trust Me, I Might be a Medical Device: The Problem with AI Scribes by Claire Dady, me et al www.researchsquare.com/article/rs-8... Most AVTs provide little or no verifiable evidence of regulatory compliance. Transparency and oversight need to catch up fast! #AI #HealthTech #NHS #AIscribes
researchsquare.com
Trust Me, I Might be a Medical Device: The Problem with AI Scribes
Background AI-enabled digital medical scribes are increasingly promoted as a solution to documentation burden and burnout in UK primary care. Recent NHS guidance indicates that many such tools may fal...
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Philip Purser-Hallard @purserhallard.com · 06/03/2026
I imagine Zeno would be very relaxed about the Trolley Problem.
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Digital Health @digitalhealth2.bsky.social · 24/02/2026
Ireland has launched a digital strategy to increase access to mental health services through technology and improve digital health literacy. www.digitalhealth.net/2026/02/irel...
digitalhealth.net
Ireland launches digital strategy to increase mental health support
Ireland has launched a digital mental health strategy to increase access to services through technology and improve digital health literacy.
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Reposted by Prof Henry WW Potts
Gengyan Tang @gengyantang.bsky.social · 24/02/2026
I’m very pleased to share this article and to translate our research insights into a blog that is more accessible to the public. When universities began deploying AI detection tools, I knew it might give rise to yet another commercial empire.
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UCL Discovery @ucldiscovery.bsky.social · 12/02/2026
Open Access UCL Research: Using Statistical Process Control through the Making Data Count approach to visualise data in NHS Trusts: a mixed-methods study discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10...
discovery.ucl.ac.uk
Using Statistical Process Control through the Making Data Count approach to visualise data in NHS Trusts: a mixed-methods study - UCL Discovery
UCL Discovery is UCL's open access repository, showcasing and providing access to UCL research outputs from all UCL disciplines.
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Prof Henry WW Potts @hwwpotts.bsky.social · 10/02/2026
📢 Statistical process control has become popular in healthcare, but is the NHS using it well? Yes! The Making Data Count programme is 👍 + SPC use mostly appropriate, but tendency for Trust boards to still claim metrics have improved without adequate support. bmjleader.bmj.com/content/earl...
bmjleader.bmj.com
Using Statistical Process Control through the Making Data Count approach to visualise data in NHS Trusts: a mixed-methods study
Introduction English National Health Service (NHS) Trust Hospital board members are collectively responsible for ensuring high-quality care and organisational performance. Integrated performance repor...
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Prof Henry WW Potts @hwwpotts.bsky.social · 05/02/2026
It was lovely to be interviewed for this article in Curie, the Swedish Research Council's magazine, on the funding crisis in UK universities: www.tidningencurie.se/nyheter/skar...
tidningencurie.se
Skarpt läge för den brittiska universitetssektorn | Tidningen Curie
Landet är en av världens främsta forskningsnationer. Trots det befinner sig universitetssektorn i Storbritannien i en djup kris. Under förra året blev 15 000 anställda på universiteten av med jobbet, ...
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Eddie Robson @eddierobson.bsky.social · 30/01/2026
My 18yo's group Pop Ltd are supporting @dominiehooper.bsky.social at her gig in Morecambe tonight. Still tickets left if you're free: moremusic.org.uk/whats-on/dom...
moremusic.org.uk
Dominie Hooper | More Music
A music and education charity based at the Hothouse in Morecambe
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StatsCI @statsci.bsky.social · 30/01/2026
🥳 We are thrilled to celebrate Jack Elkes, who has successfully defended his PhD on, Improving the evaluation of digital mental health interventions in randomised controlled trials by understanding and incorporating user engagement. Congratulations Jack! 🥳
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Oli Franklin-Wallis @olifranklinwallis.bsky.social · 27/01/2026
I think a lot about Parmy Olson's observation that AI companies actively push everyone to talk about existential risk, because it distracts from more prosaic current day concerns like copyright theft, conditions for data workers, energy & water use, and their financial situation
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John Drury @profjohndrury.bsky.social · 25/01/2026
There are too many special issues. Publishers encourage them (I say this based on my own experience as an editor-in-chief). When we looked at the data, we found that special issue articles get fewer views, fewer downloads, and fewer citations than normal articles.
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Trish Greenhalgh @trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social · 21/01/2026
As the world hurtles towards geopolitical crisis, my marine biologist son sends photo of an underwater leaf slug from Fiji to wish us calm.
cute green leaf slug
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