iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 19h

This is a great accessible talk from the OU's Julia Semprich on studying rocks in Iceland that are thought to be analogues for past hydrothermal environments on Mars. The talk includes the different ways that rocks are studied to understand their compositions. www.youtube.com/watch?v=N7zI...

youtube.com

From Iceland to Mars: Hydrothermal Systems as Subsurface Habitable Environments.

YouTube video by The Open University's Faculty of STEM

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

Every time I buy bin bags it feels like I'm just throwing money away in the rubbish.

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

Is there anyone on here I should be following who is involved with astrobiology or origins of life? I'm already following quite a few people in those fields, but any recommendations for more people or organisations would be really welcome.

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Reposted by John Tweedie

AstrobiologyOU @astrobiologyou.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

In this World Space Week talk, Dr Julia Semprich explores how Iceland's hydrothermal systems help scientists investigate potentially habitable environments beneath the Martian surface. Watch now: youtu.be/N7zI8xoXmjY #WorldSpaceWeek #Astrobiology #Mars

youtu.be

From Iceland to Mars: Hydrothermal Systems as Subsurface Habitable Environments.

YouTube video by The Open University's Faculty of STEM

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

There’s only so much being alone one person can take.

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

I saw a headline today about young people getting really tired of being forever online, and it made me think of the shift to online meetings. I think they're good for many reasons such as not needing to travel, but I do find them more taxing than physical meetings.

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

People with tickets were turned away from the British Museum because there was a private event on. They never turn away billionaires though do they? www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

bbc.co.uk

British Museum boss 'sorry' for Bayeux Tapestry visitor issues

Changes to how visitors see the Bayeux Tapestry exhibition were made after concerns over long queues and overcrowding.

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

As we approach Halloween, I'm thinking back to primary school when one of the teachers did a spoken word performance of Tam o' Shanter with musical accompaniment on the piano from the music teacher. Still the best rendition of Burns' poem I've heard. When Meg is being chased by the witches...🏇🧙‍♀️

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

I’m watching a webinar in work and the presenter just said “opportunity space”. I think it’s fair to say he’ll not be writing a BAFTA-winning screenplay.

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

One of the standout things of TV documentaries about the Solar System, such as The Planets, is how much they show how special the Earth is. I do think exploration is needed, but to the tech bros, we already have a planet that works for us. www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/epis...

bbc.co.uk

The Planets - Series 1: 1. A Moment in the Sun - The Terrestrial Planets

The rocky planets Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars were born at the same time from the same material, yet they have lived radically different lives. What immense forces are at play?

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

A slice of sultana cake counts towards your five a day right?

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

That moment when someone sends out a message to colleagues thanking everyone for their contributions and they don’t mention you. Thanks, makes me feel really valued.

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Reposted by John Tweedie

Sean McMahon @seanhmcmahon.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Fabulous new preprint from some of my favourite scientists

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Scientists from NASA’s Goddard Instrument Field Team have visited Assynt to explore the rocks which are thought to be analogues of rocks on Mars that may have harboured life. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

bbc.co.uk

Nasa heads to Scottish Highlands in its search for life on Mars

The US space agency says ancient rocks at Clachtoll have similarities to those on the Red Planet.

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

Nice size comparison of Eastern Great Egrets and Little Egrets in Sri Lanka. Photo by Ishara S. Kodikara. The Great Egret found in Europe is increasingly found in Scotland. www.theguardian.com/news/gallery...

Large Great Egrets with yellow bills tower over Little Egrets with black bills in front of wind turbines in Sri Lanka.

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Reposted by John Tweedie

New-Cleckit Dominie @ncdominie.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

This picture from a Red Cross photoshoot in 1918 is an uncomfortable reminder of the time when Glasgow had a racially segregated hospital. A wee thread... 📷: Library of Congress

A Black man in a hospital bed, reading a newspaper while a (white) nurse looks on.

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

I don't know if I dreamed this but does Benjamin Labatut have a new book coming out? I was sure I saw reference to this but I can't see anything online telling me that he does have a new book out soon. Maybe it was a dream...

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

I remember when Terminator 2 came out that people were talking about how long it had been since the first film came out. It was actually only seven years between them.

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

What a horrible world we live in now where you constantly question whether an image or video was actually created by someone.

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

"Four floors up and never a job at the top of them." What fine writing because it makes you imagine Uncle Monty sweating his way up all those steps for nothing. www.youtube.com/watch?v=o3cP...

youtube.com

Withnail & I (1987) - Visiting Uncle Monty

YouTube video by Withnail & I Clips

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Reposted by John Tweedie

Paul Voosen @voosen.me · 28/09/2026

New Horizons is now *three days away* from shutting off its two heliophysics instruments, simply because NASA has not provided the $2M in funding it had promised to the mission last year or this year. There is no science basis for shutting these off. Our earlier coverage:

science.org

NASA’s New Horizons mission may shut down two instruments over lack of funding

Decision risks “incalculable loss” of data from the edge of the Sun’s influence, scientists say

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Best appearance by a Magpie in a music video. Mogwai - How to be a Werewolf. www.youtube.com/watch?v=GrIR...

youtube.com

Mogwai - How to Be a Werewolf (in Thirty Century Man) [OFFICIAL VIDEO]

YouTube video by Sub Pop

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

I don't usually buy singles these days, but I made an exception for PJ Harvey and her new track celebrating the two Voyager spacecraft. www.youtube.com/watch?v=XzCj...

youtube.com

PJ Harvey - Voyager (Official Video)

YouTube video by PJHarveyVEVO

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

When Tape 05 dropped, everything else had to stop. It was renamed Deep Time on the album. #BoardsOfCanada www.youtube.com/watch?v=6bgh...

youtube.com

Tape 05

YouTube video by Boards of Canada

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Just saw a young woman driving her car into my street, both hands on her phone and then urgently grabbing the steering wheel to avoid crashing into a parked car.

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Check out this great photo by Diego Perez of a mantis appearing to lounge human-like on a leaf. One of many great photos in the Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards 2026. www.theguardian.com/artanddesign...

A mantis is partially obscured meaning only the top half of its body is visible so it looks like it's lounging on the leaf surface with arms stretched behind it and legs bent before it, like a human sitting on the floor.

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

It's quicker to evacuate someone during a medical emergency from the International Space Station than it is from Antarctica. The average evacuation time from Antarctica is 7-10 days in the summer. www.youtube.com/watch?v=IAF9...

youtube.com

S5 Ep13: Can I work in Antarctica with a medical condition?

YouTube video by British Antarctic Survey

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

You should get your hands on the first part of The Worst Journey in the World graphic novel. Absolutely stunning work has gone into it. worstjourney.com/shops/

worstjourney.com

Shops – The Worst Journey in the World: Graphic Novel

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Reposted by John Tweedie

British Antarctic Survey 🐧 @bas.ac.uk · 02/10/2026

And they’re off! ✈️ The first of our Twin Otter aircraft and their flight teams have begun the journey south, from Calgary, Canada, all the way to Rothera Research Station in Antarctica to start a new season of polar science! 🇨🇦➡️🇦🇶 (1/3)

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Ele Willoughby @minouette.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

For #spacetober_challenge day 2: galaxy - astronomer Vera Rubin (neé Cooper, ‘28-‘16) & her discovery that angular motion of galaxies deviates from predictions, 1st evidence for dark matter, now known as 5x as common as matter & the stuff which dictates dynamics of galaxies & 🧪🐡👩🏼‍🔬🔭 #histsci

My linocut portrait of astronomer Vera Rubin with short hair, glasses and resting her face in her hand in burgundy on a background of outer space with stars and galaxies in black with blue and pink splotches to mimic how dust bends light in space. At the base of the print is a large spiral galaxy with a plot of orbital velocity versus distance going out from its centre (so the distance axis is indeed distance from centre). There are two lines labelled “observed” which goes up from the origin and then is a pretty flat wavy line all the way across. This line marks the bottom of Rubin. Below it is a wide empty gap of visible white paper down to the second line labelled “predicted”. The Predicted line goes up from the origin to a peak where it diverges from the observed and falls smoothly back down in a gentle curve.

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Imagine being a scriptwriter on a TV show and having one of the main characters fluff their lines just as they reach the pinnacle of their character arc. Ooft! #ForAllMankind

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

It was good to see the OU's Dr Susanne Schwenzer on ITV News tonight talking about the ExoMars Franklin rover while it was being tested in Spain. I can't see the video on their website right now, but here's info about the rover. www.esa.int/Science_Expl...

esa.int

ExoMars

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Andrea Wulf's book The Traveller is on the shortlist for the Baillie Gifford Prize. This prize always has a great shortlist but part of me still calls it the Samuel Johnson Prize. www.theguardian.com/books/2026/o...

theguardian.com

Patrick Radden Keefe’s bestseller London Falling shortlisted for Baillie Gifford prize

The acclaimed American journalist, who won the nonfiction prize in 2021, is shortlisted alongside Andrea Wulf and Matthew Sweet

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Fiona McMillan @moraigmonkey.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

I've been asked not to use archaic language before when I used the word "outwith" it was a masterclass in how to anger a Scottish person.

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

This new film about Tenzing Norgay looks good. It's out this month. youtu.be/KkYCY5YR12U?...

youtu.be

Tenzing — Official Trailer | Apple TV

YouTube video by Apple TV

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Finally catching up with season 5 of For All Mankind. After a slow start it's really picked up and I'm really enjoying it again.

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ESA Space Science @science.esa.int · 30/09/2026

On 9 December, two little explorers, Bepi and Mio, will part ways as they approach their final destination after an eight years-long journey 🥹 Join us in sending them a #WelcomeToMercury message to cheer them up at this bitter sweet moment. Enter our competition here 👉 esa.int/WelcomeToMercury 🔭 🧪

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Exactly. I love it when a band or artist releases new stuff and it's really different to what they did before. Not everyone wants to hear a rehash of everything that came before, I love the novelty and being challenged. But generally I love the anticipation of new music from people I like.

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

You know you're starting to get obsessive over astrobiology and origin of life stuff when you want to watch Snoopy in Space.

Snoopy sits on a kennel with the stars above. He wears a bowl as a space helmet. The image is headed: Snoopy in Space: The Search for Life.

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Watching the Scotland men's team is like watching a bunch of wee school boys. They have no composure on the ball and they get into a panic when they have the ball at their feet and then they rush to give the ball to someone else or they make wrong decisions, rushing into crowded parts of the pitch.

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

A couple of days ago in Rutherglen a small flock of long-tailed brownish birds flew overhead and disappeared from view behind some trees. The view was fleeting but my first thought was: Redwings. Now I see reports in the Clyde area of Redwings around, so maybe I was right. #BirdingScotland

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Next Wednesday 7 October, Nick Lane will be talking at the Royal Philosophical Society of Glasgow on The Deep Chemistry of Life and Death. #KrebsCycle www.royalphil.org/lecture/chem...

royalphil.org

The Deep Chemistry of Life and Death - The Royal Philosophical Society of Glasgow

Summary

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John Tweedie @johntweedie.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

In 2022, Brian Cox spent seven days at JPL following the Perseverance rover as it went on a long drive on Mars. He talks about how this managed as well as the science it hopes to explore. www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/epis...

bbc.co.uk

Brian Cox: Seven Days on Mars

With unique access to Nasa, Brian Cox follows Perseverance rover’s search for life on Mars during a critical seven-day period as it undertakes an epic journey across the red planet.

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