Sign in

James Ferrando

@jamesferrando.bsky.social
358 followers 1K following 50 posts

Particle physicist at Lancaster University @atlasexperiment.bsky.social. Personal account, all views expressed are my own

PostsRepliesMedia
Reposted by James Ferrando
Rebecca Sear @rebeccasear.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
Nature has published a tribute to Dolly Parton 💔 www.nature.com/articles/d41...
nature.com
Dolly Parton dies aged 80 – researchers celebrate her contributions to science
The country singer was an advocate for vaccines, public health, literacy and marginalized communities.
117877
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
There were definitely still 2E offers in 1996 for some Oxford courses.
110
Reposted by James Ferrando
Adam Kucharski @adamjkucharski.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
New post, on why people shouldn't 'never-skill' themselves with AI: kucharski.substack.com/p/dont-never...
kucharski.substack.com
Don’t 'never-skill' yourself with AI
If you rent your abilities from AI companies, other people can rent them too
05523
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
German Gose beers can also be great, my favourite had lime in, not sure you can find them easily in the uk (was called Aufklärung, by the Buddelship brewery)
010
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
I’ve always loved the raspberry ones. Lindemanns pecheresse (peach) is also worth trying.
110
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
The net economic impact of international students in 2024-2025 for the Lancaster and Wyre constituency is estimated there as +£211m.
000
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
Interesting study from the Higher-Education Policy Institute on the benefits and costs of international students for the UK economy www.hepi.ac.uk/reports/hepi...
hepi.ac.uk
The benefits and costs of international higher education students to the UK economy - HEPI
A new report reveals how international students support jobs, growth and local economies across every UK constituency.
100
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 25/06/2026
Delighted for Ecuador. ¡Qué emocion!
010
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 02/06/2026
Is that the services operated by the same company as Tebay on the M6?
100
Reposted by James Ferrando
Dr Jamie Gallagher @jamiebgall.co.uk · 29/05/2026
🚨 all science officers to the bridge 🚨 I’m looking for Scientists to come and speak at Destination, the Star Trek convention in Blackpool. 30 min + 15 min questions on any science topic linked to the show. (£125 + weekend pass for 2 people) 21-23 Aug. DM if interested.
A photo of Ethan peck, Christina Chong, Star Trek uniforms and a Lego Voyager space ship.
23731
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
For me Hamburg, München and Köln are the real contenders here. (Taking Berlin as 1st city being a given)
010
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
Large cultural media presence in Germany via e.g. WDR and Sendung mit der Maus as well..
111
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
true, Glasgow too for the UK.
000
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
(I'm in the Birmingham camp for English 2nd city too, also with quite some bias)
000
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
I'm biased towards Hamburg, but it definitely feels much more like a 'big city' than Munich does when you walk around the centre. Also on the pro-list should be that it has long been Germany's gateway to the rest of the world via the port.
210
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
Great set list, I have soft spot for "Venus and Serena" myself
000
Reposted by James Ferrando
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 12/05/2026
'The government is understood to be currently determining the level of next year’s Strategic Priorities Grant (SPG) – the money given to universities to support teaching, including for high-cost subjects.' 1/2
timeshighereducation.com
Further teaching grant cuts ‘would undermine tuition fee rise’
Ministers urged to protect budget for ‘strategic priorities’ as government funding cuts over past decade place higher burden on graduates
122
Reposted by James Ferrando
Jon Butterworth @jonbutterworth.bsky.social · 15/04/2026
What do you get if you bring a Hydrogen ion together with an Oxygen ion? Well... it kind of depends how violently you bring them together 😊 atlas.cern/Updates/Brie...
atlas.cern
ATLAS turns into a cosmic-ray laboratory with proton-oxygen collisions
The ATLAS Collaboration reports its first measurement of proton-oxygen collisions at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). These results transform the ATLAS experiment into a cosmic-ray laboratory, helping...
041
Reposted by James Ferrando
Spencer Ackerman @attackerman.bsky.social · 21/03/2026
Mueller’s FBI persecuted Muslims nationwide. He was responsible for one of the most egregious, systemic violations of civil rights in the history of the FBI, which is saying a whole lot. This was Mueller’s FBI:
wired.com
FBI Teaches Agents: 'Mainstream' Muslims Are 'Violent, Radical'
The FBI is teaching its agents that ordinary American Muslims are likely to be terrorist sympathizers; that the Prophet Mohammed was a “cult leader”; and that Islamic charity is no more than a “fundin...
4041321418
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 02/03/2026
I see the AQA 2025 GCSE formula sheet includes area of trapezium and of a circle which seems on the excessive side to me, but some of the higher level formulae included seem fair enough. www.aqa.org.uk/news/gcse-ma...
aqa.org.uk
GCSE Maths and GCSE Sciences formulae and equation sheets fo…
Find GCSE Maths and GCSE Sciences formulae and equation sheets for exams in 2025
000
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 02/03/2026
yes, it's arguable like that depending on whether you are trying to assess knowledge, skills or understanding. At uni level it's useful giving formula sheets so that you can set more challenging questions and not have people simply be unable to start or go astray by slightly misremembering formulae.
200
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 02/03/2026
Well there is a subtlety here, if the formula is given then the candiadtes won't get marks simply for remembering formulae but rather for the application of them to actually do something useful.
100
Reposted by James Ferrando
Jon Butterworth @jonbutterworth.bsky.social · 02/03/2026
An open letter has been sent to Lord Vallance from 57 heads of UK physics departments and institutes, including all of the heads of physics departments of the Russell group. www.iop.org/about/news/o...
iop.org
Open letter to the Science Minister from Heads of Physics
Heads of Physics departments have expressed concern about UKRI funding changes.
01812
Reposted by James Ferrando
Ben Ansell @benansell.bsky.social · 19/02/2026
🤖NEW POST ON AI🤖 Perhaps you're thinking like Brenda from Bristol, 'not another one!' but... I felt that lots of writing about Claude Code doesn't really show you how it works. So I thought well, why not? And along the way some bad literary allusions. 1/n benansell.substack.com/p/the-appren...
benansell.substack.com
The Apprentice's Sorcerer
Or I how I learned to start worrying and love Claude Code
129026
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 09/02/2026
Post a banger not in English youtu.be/rmv8m1d3PVc?...
youtu.be
Hello Seahorse! - La Flotadera
YouTube video by Hello Seahorse! Oficial
020
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 06/02/2026
Ah found it, it Way of X #1
020
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 06/02/2026
I've seen this partly reference in one of the Krakoan-era x-men storylines (Way of X, Legion of X or Uncanny Spiderman I think) which had Nightcrawler (canonically Roman Catholic) being questioned about the fact that the god he puts his faith in is the only one who never turns up in their universe.
110
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 06/02/2026
Not a character, but (fairly) recently implied to have been a mutant www.cbr.com/immortal-x-m...
cbr.com
Marvel's Immortal X-Men Implies Jesus Christ Was Actually a Mutant
A former X-Men supervillain hints that Jesus Christ, himself, may have actually been a mutant in the Marvel Universe in Immortal X-Men #1.
000
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 25/01/2026
A Classic of the Nueva Canción that speaks to the moment open.spotify.com/track/1hcVUv... 3/X
open.spotify.com
El pueblo unido jamás será vencido
000
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 05/01/2026
Love the usage of and collaboration with the marvel multiverse TTRPG in this month's Snap developer update www.youtube.com/watch?v=m7TV...
youtube.com
Dragons | Developer Update | January 2026
YouTube video by MarvelSnap
000
Reposted by James Ferrando
Gaye Murray @tortymurray.bsky.social · 04/01/2026
Missing dog in Hamburg, Germany 👇 🙏 Repost if have followers around there
121
Reposted by James Ferrando
Stephen Collins @stephencollins.bsky.social · 13/11/2025
Every ad now
[Scene is a kitchen - a middle aged woman called JANET is boiling peas at the stove. A younger more colourfully dressed woman named LIZ approached her.]

JANET:
Ugh...

LIZ:
What's up?

JANET:
I am so bored of cooking peas!

LIZ:
Have you tried...

AI peas?

JANET:
AI peas?

LIZ:
They're peas with AI!

[Liz holds up to us a packet of peas labelled: Pea-i AI - Peas with AI].

LIZ:
Al-powered peas harness the potential of your peas

JANET:
What

LIZ [Now a voiceover as we cut to a whizzy technology diagram of peas all connected by meaningless dotted lines]

Why not take your peas to the next level with Al Peas' new Al tools to power your peas?

[Show a techno diagram of a pea with a label reading 'AI' pointing to a random zone in it]

LIZ:

Each pea has Al in a way we haven't quite worked out yet but it's fine

[Show Janet and Liz now in a Matrix-style world of peas]

LIZ:
With Al peas you can supercharge productivity and make AI work for your peas!

JANET:
What

LIZ:
Shut up

LIZ:
Our game-changing Pea-Al gives you the freedom to unlock the potential of the power of the future of your peas workflow

From opening the bag of peas

to boiling the peas

to eating the peas

To spending millions on adding Al to the peas and then having to work out what that even means.

JANET:
Is it really necessary to-

LIZ [Grabbing Janet by the collar]:
THE PEAS HAVE GOT AI, JANET

[Cut to an advert ending screen, with the bag of peas and the slogan:

AI PEAS: Just 'Peas' for god's sake buy the AI peas.

[Ends]
8271773088
Reposted by James Ferrando
William Barter @wjbarter.bsky.social · 08/11/2025
Interested in a fully funded PhD place in Experimental Particle Physics in Edinburgh? We have fully funded studentships, including a specific scholarship for students from a Black heritage (including mixed Black background). More info: inspirehep.net/jobs/3080808
inspirehep.net
INSPIRE
0913
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 07/11/2025
As I have seen others say, he was a tremendously kind man who was very supportive and encouraging of those he taught and/or supervised.
000
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 07/11/2025
Sad news. It was fantastic to be taught by Robin as a student and then to work with him as a colleague.
hertford.ox.ac.uk
Professor Robin Devenish (1942–2025) - Hertford College | University of Oxford
It is with great sadness that we share the news of the death of Hertford Emeritus Fellow Robin Devenish, who died peacefully at home surrounded by his family on 27 October. Robin was appointed to a Un...
110
Reposted by James Ferrando
The Royal Society @royalsociety.org · 28/10/2025
There's still time to apply for our Career Development Fellowship scheme, which aims to support the retention in STEM of researchers from underrepresented backgrounds. The deadline for this application round is Wednesday 19 November: royalsociety.org/grants/career-deve…
256
Reposted by James Ferrando
Physics World @physicsworld.bsky.social · 23/10/2025
Tuning the treatment laser to the collagen absorption peak could enable efficient pancreatic tumour ablation with minimal damage to healthy tissue. 🧪⚛️ physicsworld.com/a/resonant-l...
physicsworld.com
Resonant laser ablation selectively destroys pancreatic tumours – Physics World
A mid-infrared femtosecond laser tuned to the collagen absorption peak can ablate pancreatic cancer while preserving healthy pancreatic tissues
1195
Reposted by James Ferrando
Hetan Shah @hetanshah.bsky.social · 21/10/2025
Here’s the link to the full @royalsociety.org report on UK researcher visa costs compared to other countries royalsociety.org/news-resourc...
royalsociety.org
UK immigration costs: an international comparison of skilled worker, researcher and student visas in 2025 | Royal Society
2025 update to the Royal Society's analyses of upfront immigration costs in the UK and 17 other leading science nations.
1297
Reposted by James Ferrando
Ben Ansell @benansell.bsky.social · 20/10/2025
If any Labour MPs are reading (go on, you know you want to), as someone trying to hire six new Oxford professors in AI / experiments / big data / all the stuff you say you want, I would really appreciate knowing if new hires can, you know, stay in the country they move to... current policy is chaos
421944
Reposted by James Ferrando
Ben Ansell @benansell.bsky.social · 20/10/2025
All of which is to say, this has costs, for us in HE sure, but also for business, medicine, finance, tech, arts and entertainment, pharmaceuticals. The industries that this country is a world leader in. And if you cannot fathom why this uncertainty is a problem then you are not fit to govern.
214023
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 12/10/2025
The final release before they discontinued expansions improved it a lot.
000
Reposted by James Ferrando
German Embassy London @uk.diplo.de · 03/10/2025
“This morning, Germany is one nation again.” This is how BBC Breakfast News reported on German reunification, 35 years ago today.
226086
Reposted by James Ferrando
University of Oxford @ox.ac.uk · 03/09/2025
Daybreak over the Bridge of Sighs 🌅 📷 Instagram | Juncao_Oxford
Aerial view of Oxford at sunrise, showcasing historic buildings and a vibrant sky.
2385
Reposted by James Ferrando
Hetan Shah @hetanshah.bsky.social · 10/07/2025
We are calling on the UK Government to not introduce a levy on higher education provider income from international students, reduce visa costs to attract global talent, and to review higher education funding to create a sustainable model www.thebritishacademy.ac.uk/documents/58...
• Discontinue the idea of introducing a levy on higher education provider income from international students.
• Reduce visa costs to ensure they are at least as competitive in cost as other leading science nations, and preferably have a target to become the mos competitive in the G7.
• Provide immediate clarity that the current time length for Indefinite Leave to Remain is kept in place for current and future Global Talent visa holders and their dependents.
5334153
Reposted by James Ferrando
John Williams @johnhuww.bsky.social · 24/08/2025
“High visa fees are putting off some of the world’s most talented scientists from coming to the UK,” said Foulkes, with “We need to be able to compete for the world’s best scientists.” research institutes forced to divert funds from labs to pay fees.” observer.co.uk/news/nationa...
observer.co.uk
Cancer research ‘set back years’ as visa fees drive scien...
With vital studies being shelved and foreign experts turning down jobs, leading charity urges ministers to act
22616
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 22/08/2025
A song that brings Wolf Alice's excellent new album "The Clearing", to a satisfying conlcusion. open.spotify.com/track/6APpl5... 2/X
open.spotify.com
The Sofa
100
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 18/08/2025
The openstax textbooks are pretty great if you weren't already aware of them: openstax.org/details/book...
openstax.org
OpenStax | Free Textbooks Online with No Catch
OpenStax offers free college textbooks for all types of students, making education accessible & affordable for everyone. Browse our list of available subjects!
010
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 12/08/2025
ditto “1066 and all that”, possibly “diary of a nobody” though I haven’t reread the latter in ages.
000
James Ferrando @jamesferrando.bsky.social · 12/08/2025
Saki’s short stories are also still funny I’d say, at least in my memory of them.
110
Reposted by James Ferrando
William Barter @wjbarter.bsky.social · 12/08/2025
A couple of thoughts on genAI. Even if it was brilliant, worked perfectly, and did not hallucinate, I would not want it in an undergraduate setting in an unguarded manner.
1133