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Mark A. Norris

@markanorris.bsky.social
345 followers 208 following 2.6K posts

Astronomer, Educator, Traveller, Human, Mild cynic.

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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Seems like a good time for a marketing expert to come up with a strategy to market UK gilts as the reliable alternative to unstable US treasuries. At least worth a try to shave a bit off our borrowing costs.
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Seems like we need a marketing expert pushing UK gilts as the boring but reliable alternative to unstable US treasuries now….
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Given that Man City have reportedly been found guilty of 114 of 115 charges, and their owners are still denying it, surely it’s time to apply a fit and proper test to their ownership. Don’t see the point of punishing the club when the problem is clearly with the ownership.
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Given the proliferation in stories of OpenAI products facilitating and outright committing crimes, perhaps suing OpenAI out of existence is a viable or necessary strategy if governments won’t bother applying the laws.
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
It’s incapable of original thought or originality. You’d struggle to design a better system for rejecting anything actually novel or groundbreaking.
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Reposted by Mark A. Norris
John Stott @jpsastro.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Had a UKRI funded grant proposal rejected at the "AI triage stage". "This AI-based triage was used only to identify approximately 50% of the strongest proposals to take forward to full human review." 🧪 #academicsky
I am writing to let you know that, unfortunately, your application was not successful.

Review process

As part of the initial triage of the 179 proposals submitted to this call, each was assessed using an AI-based review. Every proposal was read independently by several different AI models against the same seven criteria used to shape this call (including cyber security relevance, research quality and novelty, importance of the problem addressed, feasibility of the project plan, likely outputs and impact, value for money, and responsible research practice), with each model asked to give a score and a written justification with supporting quotations from the text. To guard against any one model's idiosyncrasies, we also ran a second, independent process in which different AI models debated the merits and weaknesses of each proposal before reaching a judgement, again against the same criteria. Scores from both processes were combined to produce an overall ranking. 

This AI-based triage was used only to identify approximately 50% of the strongest proposals to take forward to full human review.  Projects selected for funding were drawn from those that progressed to the full human review stage. We recognise that AI-assisted assessment is a new and evolving part of the review process, and we are continuing to evaluate how well it aligns with the judgements of human reviewers on this call. We will soon produce a document detailing our method, so that others can build upon it and improve it.

Feedback on your application

Your application was not selected to progress beyond the AI triage stage.  To provide transparency on the outcome of this assessment, we are sharing below the scores (out of 5) from each of the two AI review processes described above, together with the mean score across the two processes.
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Reposted by Mark A. Norris
Chris Lintott @chrislintott.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Oh for goodness sake. What are we doing?
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
But Chris they are no doubt excellent at ensuring “spend is properly aligned with priorities” and not wasted on anything potentially novel. As LLMs are not good with novelty this is basically setup to reject anything truly revolutionary.
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
I don’t know how anyone can. It’s 12 minutes of actual ball in play spread over 195 minutes of adverts and inane chat by people literally brain damaged by the game.
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
Fair enough. How about you surrender now and save us all the bother?
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Yeah but… bsky.app/profile/atru...
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
If the contract includes a release clause. And if that hypothetical release clause isn’t more than Man U is willing/able to pay. And if they are willing/able to pay him enough. And if no one better wants him. And if he wants to go. Some serious straw clutching going on. #NUFC #MUFC
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
I think it sounds like a deeply corrupt regional football federation, or a small regional trading block.
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
If he wasn’t fit why did he pick him? Sounds like owning up to incompetence.
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
Sure. Send some of them our way.
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
The loans were to close out some stadium debts and to improve flexibility when trading after COVID. Not for buying the club. You can’t give preferential loans anymore. You have to charge market rate. Otherwise they count to PSR and they’d be up on charges. finance.yahoo.com/news/arsenal...
finance.yahoo.com
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
He invested additional funds at below the market rate for loans. They were essentially free money. That has been banned. theesk.org/2026/04/22/t...
theesk.org
Everton & other writings by Paul Quinn, The Analysis Series, Talking the Blues & the esk PodcastsThe Analysis Series: Strategic and Financial Analysis of Arsenal Holdings Limited (2025) and the Kroen...
Arsenal Holdings Limited, Annual Report & Accounts 31-5-25 Combining sporting performance, global brand capitalisation, and intricate corporate finance, the Arsenal Group has reported a transfo…
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
Kroenke is a billionaire owner of multiple sports teams. He invested about half a billion in Arsenal in the form of loans that are now banned. So no. Try again.
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
That’s fine for other clubs. But the fine for us tapping up wouldn’t be pretty.
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
Sure. The last 12 years of the Ukrainians fighting tooth and nail to be free of the Russian yoke is all the result of western brain washing. I’d tell you to get a life. But it would be wasted, you are a serf. You do only what your owner Putin orders.
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
Needs a year out to recharge and work up new tactics before returning to management.
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
They developed Elliott Anderson and Lewis Miley. Not sure what more you expect.
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
We got one completely in Welsh. With no link to a translation. The English one turned up 5 minutes later.
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
Could be lucky. They could be out of their depth private equity gamblers like Chelsea got.
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
As far as I understand it that was an accounting thing to facilitate redevelopment. If the club was sold the ground would have to be part of the sale. No one would buy it otherwise, not for anything worth PiF selling anyway.
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
They can sell the stadium to a third party (pocketing the income themselves) then have the club pay rent to use it. Same with any other property. It’s what they did to the high street companies they took over.
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
Taking Ruben home?
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
Some American billionaire. Or private equity asset strippers would seem most likely at present.
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
Clearing is open. If you would like to study Mathematics, Physics, or Astrophysics this September in a supportive setting, enjoy top class teaching and make use of one of UK’s best equipped observatories, then come and join us at the University of Lancashire. www.lancashire.ac.uk
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
There are four stacked professional divisions of teams in the English pyramid, comprising 92 teams. Most of those will never play in the premier league, nevermind win it. They still have fans and they continue to exist, most have been around for more than a century.
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Reposted by Mark A. Norris
Chris Weatherspoon @cweatherspoon.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
In just 14 months, 23 players have joined 'Big Six' clubs from elsewhere in England's top tier. It is a rapidly accelerating trend. The Premier League has a problem. @theathleticfc.bsky.social www.nytimes.com/athletic/749...
nytimes.com
Premier League’s ‘Big Six’ are raiding poorer clubs at record levels as wealth gap grows wider (Gift Article)
Arsenal signing Bruno Guimaraes from Newcastle has taken recent 'Big Six' spending on players from other Premier League clubs to £1.2bn
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
What funds do you think PIF are investing?
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 09/08/2026
Take a look at who is making the predictions. You’ll find that those who work at banks that are vying for the fees from the future SpaceX bond and equity sales are all at the high end.
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 09/08/2026
static.klipy.com
David Byrne: Same As It Ever Was
ALT: David Byrne: Same As It Ever Was
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 09/08/2026
Personally? Hardly. Team wise? Tonali wasn’t off it last year and is already talking about wanting to be back in Italy. Spurs might get one good year out of him. Isak downed tools after the cup win, not a team player. Bruno is a loss. But we were very stale last year. Time for new ideas and faces.
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 09/08/2026
You must be new here. Or have suffered a brain injury since Isak.
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 09/08/2026
We haven’t focussed on this one. You have. Keep up.
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
I suspect that once Chelsea has built their new stadium the rules will change so investments in new stadiums will count for sustainability purposes. We have the chief executive of a big six club (unnamed which) on the record saying they are working to avoid another Leicester.
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
Perhaps, but if it works then the big six work in concert to asset strip again or the rules will be changed again to prevent this or that investment.
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
Tottenham literally did meet Tonali in person. They even put it in writing they’d done it. Apparently even that isn’t enough these days. I guess Newcastle were just happy to have their pants down on the fee. No doubt there was a non complaint clause. www.chroniclelive.co.uk/sport/footba...
chroniclelive.co.uk
Sandro Tonali and Roberto De Zerbi sensationally lift lid on Spurs' 'tapping up' transfer approach
Newcastle United transfer bombshell over £100m Tottenham Hotspur move for Sandro Tonali
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
I saw Fab announce it. No one at the club claimed it was untrue. No one anywhere denied it. Wissa might well have been similar. We’ll no doubt be brought up on charges and fined before City’s are resolved. 😂
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
I think you’ll find there was plenty of outcry here when Liverpool did it with Isak. 😂
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
It used to happen. Teams were regularly charged, including us under Ashley I think. Perhaps agents have got so much power they have cowed most clubs from complaining.
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
I’m not aware of an example in recent years where we’ve announced that we’ve agreed personal terms before we’ve announced we have agreed the fee. Happy to be proven wrong, and definitely against it if they did it.
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
Your apparent insouciance likely comes from thinking you get a better deal from this setup. You get to punch down more. But no doubt you are still annoyed when the bigger clubs tap up your players though. 2/2
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
This is hair splitting now. Probably we agree that the whole transfer system is odd and probably shouldn’t exist. But as it does it would be better and fairer if everyone followed the rules. 1/2
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
It’s still tapping up, and still against the rules though, no?
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
So what you claimed isn’t in fact true? There is a rule against it, even if not enforced properly l?
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
Show me the specific FA rule that does what you claim. I can point to FA rule C87 which is still on the books as far as I can tell.
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Mark A. Norris @markanorris.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
I mean Bruno obviously did, as did Isak, and Tonali, and Shearer clearly. Are you a bit slow?
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