iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

1 in 13 drivers were speeding when they put in this mobile speed camera nearby!

Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

The other afternoon to get to a meeting from Zwolle station I rented an OVfiets for a few hours from NS, the national rail company. The garage was nearly empty. When I came back a few hours later there were almost 400 returned bikes that had all been ridden around the city for the day

Hundreds of identical blue and yellow hire bikes parked in rows in an underground bike park at Zwolle station in the netherlands

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

Good to see the Dutch police treating the fash with all respect due. I'm also very amused to find out Dutch riot police have wicker shields. The gun is less amusing, the wicker shield is fun though

Dutch riot police about to hit some racist shit over the head with a stick. He has a wicker shield - fun! and a pistol - not fun!

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

What a day to have wiggled out of a bunch of meetings in Zwolle

Map from NOS showing railway sabotage across the Netherlands. 5 of 6 lines into Zwolle are disrupted

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

This summer I happened to visit the Longhope lifeboat museum. This station lost 8 men in one night in 1969 during a rescue, including two fathers, both with two sons onboard with them. In a community of just a few hundred this loss is still keenly felt, and the lifeboat service is hugely appreciated

Photo of an old wooden lifeboat at the top of a slipway inside a small shed. The shed is a museum

8 certificates celebrating the bravery of lifeboatmen on their successful rescues, one recognising the gallantly of a lifeboatman who list has life during a rescue

Telegrams from Queen Elizabeth II and the Queen Mother offering their condolences following the longhope lifeboat disaster

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

The building at the top is still here in Rotterdam. It's part of a city college now. maps.app.goo.gl/8CHgcLSVPrRq...

maps.app.goo.gl

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

Just to add to the Rowling list of wrongs, I grew up near Dursley. JKR used the name for the family in HP because apparently she didn't like the place. When we got a new library they asked if she wanted to open it and she said no. It all seemed oddly mean spirited then, but it feels in character now

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 30/08/2026

The solution to unhelpfully high expectations on young people always seems to be to ask even more of them, rather than to simply ease the pressure.

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

Woken up early by 5 military helicopters flying around the city. Now the question, is something up? Or is it conspicuous training because the military want more support from the population?

Screenshot of flight radar showing 5 helicopters above Rotterdam in a small area

Screenshot of flight radar showing 5 helicopters above Rotterdam, three of them are Apaches and two chinooks

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 09/08/2026

Ah I knew I had seen MVRDV's latest design for Rotterdam somewhere before

An architectural render of MVRDV's design for the SHIFT embassy project in Rotterdam. It looks like a collection of mossy boulders piled up on each other

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 03/08/2026

Some structures on Hoy in Orkney

Hackness Martello tower, a four storey stone cylinder with one small window. It was built to protect Scapa Flow from Napoleonic invasion

Dwarfie stane, a stone deposited by a glacier which was turned into a burial cairn, it was carved out by hand

A shed in Rackwick, it has dry stone walls covered in thick lichen and a roof made out of huge flagstones which is sagging alarmingly

Rackwick Bothy, recently reopened after an extensive renovation. It also has a flagstone roof but the roofline is ruler straight

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 22/07/2026

Midweek adventures ten zuid van Zwolle

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 20/07/2026

Walking the dog earlier I saw my 10 year old Dutch neighbour yelling a song from his front window, the lyrics were pretty much just 'fuck Lionel Messi', repeated many times. I cheered him as I walked by

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Reposted by Matthew Cook

Neil Goodrich @ngoodrichhsg.bsky.social · 19/07/2026

This is a good thread and a reminder of how the thinking, and delivery, of social housing has moved. The stigmatism and residualisation of social housing came in the 80s alongside wholesale changes to funding and building mechanisms.

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Reposted by Matthew Cook

Municipal Dreams @municipaldreams.bsky.social · 12/07/2026

I'm in Amsterdam - a couple of pics of Amsterdam School doorways in Hendrik Petrus Berlage’s Plan Zuid worker's housing scheme of the 1920s.

Recessed green painted and glazed doorway in brick entrance with flat numbers either side

Recessed doorway in brick entrance with flat numbers either side and window to right

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 09/07/2026

The 5-10 minute window of being stuck on a not-moving train, hoping the delay continues just a couple more minutes until you are into the refund zone

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 09/07/2026

My dad worked for a company that made software for Teletext in the 90s. A colleague of his took voluntary redundancy a few years back and took the obsolete software with him. Guess which ceefax loving, bin wearing, political figure he ended up working with.

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 04/07/2026

Rotterdam is going completely nuts this evening

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 27/06/2026

Report from Rotterdam, just got caught in the most intense hailstorm I've ever seen. The dog and I were lucky not to get brained while we ran for cover

A hailstone in the palm of my hand. It's 20mm in diameter!

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 20/06/2026

Great big thunderstorm over Zuid-Holland last night

Lightning crossing a dark sky with a city skyline below

Lightning branching across a dark sky with a skyscraper and skyline below

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 15/06/2026

Love to see Rotterdam's Cape Verdean community out celebrating tonight as if they won the entire tournament

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 12/06/2026

Last autumn, just before the election, I literally heard the Director General of Ministerie Volkshuisvesting en Bouwen say there's plenty of budget for housing schemes and they are just waiting for proposals to fund!

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 07/06/2026

Warmth/cold storage (WKO) is increasingly common here in NL where seasonal heat or cool is stored underground in aquifers using two-way heat pumps. I wonder if it could be deployed in the UK, or even scaled up to make use of old coal pits etc.

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

The Berlage Instituut will end its degree programme in the next year. Maybe I missed it but there seems to have been basically no discussion about it, let alone objections, in the Dutch architectural press. Not going out with a bang and barely a wimper either

A LinkedIn post from Wouter Vanstiphout discussing the closure of the Berlage Instituut with a screenshot of the page from TU Delft announcing the discontinuation of the degree programme after 2026

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 24/05/2026

The Knap of Howar is a stunning piece of architecture. The oldest dwelling in Europe, older than the pyramids. The rafters were made from whale bones as there were no trees but there is decorative stone backing the shelf alcoves. An amazing legacy, both in its building and re-discovery

A picture of the knap of howar, a roofless prehistoric house

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 20/05/2026

Last night was the launch event for architectscan.org NL's demolition atlas: www.sloopkaart.nl/kaart I may not entirely agree with their analysis but the map is crucial in tracking which buildings are under threat or lost here in the Netherlands. It should be an excellent tool!

sloopkaart.nl

Sloopkaart

Demolition Atlas voor Nederland

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 16/05/2026

Happily, today I saw this swan, partner and about 6 cygnets just up from their nesting site

Photo taken across the water of the westersingel in Rotterdam. Two adult swans and 6 cygnets sit on a grassy bank next to the water. A few meters behind is a busy street with a tram, bikes, a few bars with terraces of seats on the street

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 07/05/2026

Last night while walking the dog, I came across this by a playground. It's a doorbell that sends local parents an alert to let them know kids are playing there and would love for other kids to come join. A nice idea to help kids meet each other! openrotterdam.nl/kinderen-kun...

A doorbell attached to a colourful board mounted on the pole of a streetlight. It says Spel Bel, druk op de bel & speel samen

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 30/04/2026

It's going to be fun seeing the UK discover, and then try to pronounce, wokkeltrappenhuizen

A diagram of the wokkeltrappenhuis, it's two separate stairs arranged in a double helix to create two means of escape in a single structural building core

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 26/04/2026

Incredibly gross to see the Dutch police wearing ICE style masks in Rotterdam. Everyone accepts Wilders has a right to objective police protection. The masks put you on Wilders' side. Protecting him doesn't require anonymity, being part of his intimidation racket does.

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 06/04/2026

Given the amount of technology available now I often despair that we haven't solved this problem. Maybe it's simpler though: D-plates. If your driving has resulted in injury or you've been fined X number of times you have to drive with a L-plate style badge to show you are a danger to others

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 04/04/2026

Living in a very wet country means wildlife often comes right into the heart of the city via the waterways. It's great to see Gemeente Rotterdam give these swans a little more protection amongst all the urban traffic.

A swan sitting on a nest next to a canal in the heart of Rotterdam. Behind it is a road, buildings and a tram track. The nest is protected on three sides by jute netting with the side towards the water left open

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 31/03/2026

The results of the neighbourhood council were only confirmed late last week and the radical right councillor has already been chucked out the party for using AI to spruce up her campaign photo and for lying about living in the area

https://www.rijnmond.nl/amp/nieuws/2174161/leefbaar-rotterdam-zet-wijkraadslid-na-nepfoto-uit-partij-geen-vertrouwen-meer

Headline from this news story describing how the councillor has been chucked out because they don't trust her anymore. The picture shows two photos, left of an older woman in her late 50s and the right of a woman who looks about 20 and was used in the election materials as the photo of the woman on the left

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 25/03/2026

My brother is a British Army reservist and I asked how they were training for drone warfare. He said he recently had to run around the range with a bluetooth speaker playing drone noises since they dont have any to practice against/with. I guess it was nice knowing him?!?

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 18/03/2026

Always enjoy getting to vote in the Netherlands as I can only vote in local elections. The dog loves it too! #hondenbijstembureaus #dogsatpollingstations

A line of people at night queuing up to vote in a greenhouse in the middle of a housing block. It has strings of lights and looks very cute

Me holding my black labradoodle Oscar next to the sign that says stembureau. He looks very cute too

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 09/03/2026

🚨 Cool boat alert 🚨 from the office window in Rotterdam. The Canopee, a cargo ship that takes Ariane 6 rocket parts from Europe to Guinea and is partly powered by sail

A large modern white ship coming into Rotterdam harbour. It has four towers, one on each corner of the deck, which are masts for sails. On the side is says Canopee, ESA and Ariane 6 on board

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 05/03/2026

Recently I saw NZ's Beehive parliament in the flesh, driven by curiosity after @cinemashoebox.bsky.social's twitter parliament culture war. Basil Spence's bit is cool by itself but the way it plays with the classical form it extends is exquisite. Those trads have no idea what they are missing!

Basil Spence's 1979 executive wing to the New Zealand parliament aka the beehive. Photo is taken from close with trees and steps in the foreground as entrance sequence

Basil Spence's 1979 executive wing to the New Zealand parliament aka the beehive to the left in the background, Parliament House from 1922 in an Edwardian Neoclassical style is in the foreground on the right

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 08/02/2026

In Wellington badly parked cars are given dunce caps

A row of cars parked along a street where roadworks are taking place, each car has a traffic cone placed on the roof

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 29/01/2026

@flightradar24.com it's snowed again at Schipol but it looks like they have enough deicer today. PH-TFL is off to Bonaire, where I'm sure it will be a bit warmer!

A picture of a TUI 787 from the terminal building, from the front in line with the starboard engine. A deicing truck is cleaning snow from the plane. A guy in a cherry picker basket is spraying a white misty liquid onto the engine casing

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 29/01/2026

This is intertwined with a lack of building density. You can't build pleasant density if you have to store all the cars, but you need the car if everything is distant.

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 21/01/2026

Maybe we could give trump a large perspex 'ice' key to greenland and an ownership certificate like those ones that said you owned a bit of the moon?

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 20/01/2026

A quarter of Geert Wilders' PVV party have broken away due to disagreements with his leadership. This could be concerning for the UK's radical right, but luckily for them it has no history of infighting or splits!

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 10/01/2026

Edward Jenner, pioneer of vaccination, is not celebrated nearly enough IMO! Last week I visited the first vaccine clinic (aptly named the Temple of Vaccinia) and his tomb (under the blue card by the alter). The temple was recently put on the heritage at risk register but funding has now been found

The temple of vaccinia, a small outbuilding in a wooded part of a garden. Made from rubble stone walls with a thatched roof. It has a big wooden door with a gothic arch and the door is flanked by whole tree trunk slices as decorative cladding

The corner of the chancel of a small church. Next to the alter is a small blue card marking the family tomb of the jenners

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 21/12/2025

We have a dog delighted to be heading overland from Rotterdam to the UK via metro and ferry

Our black labradoodle sitting next to suitcases on a metro platform, wagging his tail

The dog on the ferry, rolling around on the cabin bed like a silly boy

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 08/12/2025

New game: What season is it? - anthropogenic climate change editon

A picture of several trees. The one in the foreground has blossom, the one in the background is only just turning yellow. Other threes are completely bare. It is december

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 06/12/2025

Daft, the amount of times I hear about a significant death via a dumb joke like this

Screenshot of a post that reads Frank Gehry 1929-2025, itself with a screenshot of a joke news article from 2002 headlined 'Frank Gehry no longer allowed to make sandwiches for grandkids and a picture of a mad pile of sliced bread and sandwich fillings looking like a Gehry building

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Matthew Cook @matthew-cook.bsky.social · 04/12/2025

I asked my boss what the difference between gereformeerde and hervormde churches is and 15 minutes later he had drawn this diagram for me, starting around 500 ad and ending in madness

A full size whiteboard, standing on the short end, with a family tree style diagram of the various splits in the church from top to bottom. By the end it's an always sunny style made scribble

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