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Nick Gibbins

@nick.gark.net
445 followers 405 following 1.6K posts

Computer science lecturer, film and SF geek, gaming nerd (particularly the #TravellerRPG), manned spaceflight aficionado (but nothing Musky). cis, he/him. Born at 327.5 ppm.

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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 29/09/2026
Unpopular opinion, but I think that the utility of Knuth's TAoCP is much overstated. It's comprehensive, and has for many years been considered the sine qua non, but I've found that other reference works on algorithms are far more useful in practice (e.g. Cormen, Leiserson, Rivest and Stein).
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 28/09/2026
The credulity of some people continues to amaze me. Alas, this is not "Cary Grant's mugshot when he was arrested for being drunk & disorderly in 1959", as claimed by @rufustsuperfly.bsky.social This is a continuity photograph taken during the filming of North by Northwest, for scenes 48 and 49.
Cary Grant, dressed as the advertising executive George Kaplan, poses for a continuity photograph for scenes 48 and 49 (48 is his arrival at the Glen Cove police station, 49 his subsequent appearance in court).

The claim in the skeet - "Cary Grant's mugshot when he was arrested for being drunk and disorderly in 1959" - is utter bunk.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 25/09/2026
Thermodynamics is *among* the issues. Inter-satellite latency is another, as are environmental hazards (both radiation and debris), and the difficulty of upgrading servers when they’re on-orbit.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 17/09/2026
Oh, and Brexit was obviously a third significant source of damage to UK HE, in terms of both student recruitment and international research collaborations.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 17/09/2026
At what point do we admit that the financial crisis in UK HE has left the “gradually” phase and entered “suddenly”? This was all predictable, due to the erosion of tuition fee income (no meaningful uplift since 2010) and the hostile environment making the UK unattractive to overseas students.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 16/09/2026
The *only* reason for watching Birth of a Nation* is to more fully understand it as the propaganda it is. * likewise Olympia, The Triumph of the Will, arguably Gone with the Wind…
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 12/09/2026
A couple of impulse buys during an exam board last week turned up today - and now I own a comptometer and an Odhner arithmometer that my students can play with on my history of computing module. Now looking out for a Burroughs calculator.
An arithmometer in generally good condition - one of the columns doesn’t clear properly, but it’s otherwise fine.

It is extremely heavy (11kg) and fortunately came with a carrying case. 

It was also made for the pre-decimal British market, hence the columns for shillings and pence (the three rightmost). An Ohdner arithmometer (i.e. a pinwheel calculator) in exceptionally good condition. Needs a bit of a clean - the carriage shift mechanism is a bit balky - but otherwise fine. 

It also weighs half what the comptometer does, despite the fact that it multiplies as well as adds, and that it can directly subtract rather than using 9s-complement.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 10/09/2026
I’ve just realised that this is the same Lewis Page that used to write for The Register a decade ago. Given that his stablemate Orlowski ended up in Spiked, I shouldn’t be surprised, but yet here I am.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 29/08/2026
The US government is being run by 14yo edgelords. This is just pure cringe.
A post on Facebook by the “U.S. Department of State”, which is unfortunately not a parody account. 

The post reads: “It was brought to our attention that Lake America was erroneously labeled as Lake ‘Ontario’ on our website. We have corrected this mistake and apologize for deadnaming the lake.”
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 28/08/2026
Regarding unilateral changes to long-established hydronyms, I’m quite surprised that there hasn’t been a campaign to rename sewage works. “The Donald J. Trump Wastewater Treatment Plant” has a nice ring to it, and is especially fitting given that both are full of shit.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 25/08/2026
Best Star Trek crew, wrong answers only.
The cast of The Breakfast Club.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 19/08/2026
I shall be stealing this analogy for OAuth when I come to teach it again this coming semester. (I like my existing slides, but it’s a fiddly protocol and anything that makes it easier for students to understand is fine by me) edshare.soton.ac.uk/21143/
edshare.soton.ac.uk
Authentication and Authorisation - EdShare Southampton
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 18/08/2026
Paul Simon - The Rhythm of the Saints. Still a cracking album 36 (!) years later.
The cover of Paul Simon’s 1990 album The Rhythm of the Saints.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 18/08/2026
Couldn’t really be anything else.
Ivor the Engine, from the Merioneth and Llanfair Rail Traction Company Limited. Jones the Steam is sitting on his footplate, drinking a mug of tea.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 17/08/2026
For me, it’s the early-60s library in Upminster, where I grew up. Despite the unprepossessing exterior (I wish they hadn’t glazed in the porch), it was light and airy inside with a mezzanine at the front of the building that let you look down over the book stock.
Upminster Library, on Corbets Tey Road. It is a 1960s building in yellow brick with a flat roof.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 17/08/2026
The response to @sainsburys.bsky.social claiming a 99.98% accuracy for their facial recognition system should be to ask them to give the formal definition of accuracy, and then to state the rate of Type I (false positive) and Type II (false negative) errors.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 22/07/2026
Oi! Goffick! Shoes off the bed!
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 09/07/2026
The score is now one-all in the mischaracterisation of UK vs US cuisine; this is presumably revenge for the “UK food has no flavour” taunts. Shenandoah is the only part of Appalachia that I’ve visited, but I would have thought that seaweed was not a common ingredient.
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Reposted by Nick Gibbins
Nick Drage @sonofsuntzu.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
The head of Count Binface seamlessly photoshopped on top of a picture of Wesley from The Princess Bride.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 08/07/2026
I’m stepping down from my admin role of 20 years - an unprecedented innings, and a role I greatly enjoyed. My loading for it was about 2.5 hours per week, but it took far more in practice. My replacement is getting a day and half per week, plus two deputies. It’s a compliment of sorts.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 08/07/2026
He is not the real Count Binface; he inherited the costume from the previous Count Binface. The man he inherited it from was not the real Count Binface either - his name was Cummerbund. The real Binface has been retired for fifteen years and is living like a king in Patagonia.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 26/06/2026
There is nothing quite so depressing as a conversation with an old and dear friend who has thoroughly AI-pilled themselves and is now convinced that they’ve discovered (with the help of an LLM) a Theory of Everything that will upend all physics.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 23/06/2026
Me, packing my bag before leaving the house for work: there’s no point lugging around an umbrella today, is there?
The weather forecast for this morning. It is hot and sunny with a 0% probability of precipitation. A pavement spattered with rain. Not shown: the soaring humidity and the smell of petrichor.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 18/06/2026
The mature lime tree outside our house is now in full bloom. Not only is the air full of its scent, but there’s also a pronounced hum from the hundreds and hundreds of bees that are harvesting nectar from it.
A lime tree (some kind of Tilea - not sure of the species) in full bloom, against an almost cloudless blue sky.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 16/06/2026
Three-way split between: * Usenet before the Eternal September * LiveJournal before it was sold to the Russians and * Cheeseplant’s House[1] before it got shut down. [1] orchid.warwick.ac.uk:2001 as ane fule kno.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 04/06/2026
Tired: Who would win - the Hulk or the Thing? Wired: Who would win - Mr Blobby or Gritty?
The pink-with-yellow-polka-dots nightmare features of Mr Blobby, British agent of chaos. Do not be fooled by his insouciant pose or his natty bow tie - those eyes have seen horror and mayhem, and approved of both.The orange furry features of Comrade Gritty: hockey mascot, socialist icon, and US agent of chaos. Do not be fooled by the fact that he hails from the City of Brotherly Love - he's here to fuck you up, particularly if you're a penguin from Pittsburgh.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 03/06/2026
The aftermath of last night’s riot in Southampton. Certainly doesn’t look like a peaceful protest. (photo by my friend Chris WINOBS)
St Denys Road in Portswood on the evening of 2 Jun, strewn with broken glass, bricks, and other projectiles.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 02/06/2026
I guess we’re going to be listening to helicopters and sirens all night here - and we’re a mile and a half from the ongoing riot in Southampton. It’s going to be a long summer.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 02/06/2026
Drop some Wings 🛩️🪽
youtu.be
Wings Tracking Shot
YouTube video by Murderous Ink
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 30/05/2026
Took a break from marking to dabble in a first attempt at leatherworking. Quite pleased with the results.
A crude yet functional leather cover for a hatchet head.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 25/05/2026
There’s been much criticism of the NYT for its reporting of SpaceX’s latest flight, but I think that we should just acknowledge that the rocket made “an awkward gesture in a moment of enthusiasm” and then move on.
NYT headline reading: “SpaceX Completes Mostly Successful Starship Rocket Flight”
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 22/05/2026
My favourite TTRPG Classes: 1. My character is [three hours of intricate yet superfluous character background deleted] 2. I am Bob McBob. 3. Remind me again how you roll to hit. 4. What’s the name of the fifteenth bar customer and what’s his backstory? 5. I roll to seduce the Great Old One.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 22/05/2026
Time for my story about the time that I was the only customer in a bookshop when Bill Gibson was doing a signing, and yet we failed to do anything but smile shyly at each other… 1/8
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 21/05/2026
Introduce yourself with 10 bands/artists you've seen live. All About Eve The Divine Comedy Fairport Convention Front 242 John Otway The Proclaimers Psychic TV Steeleye Span Norma Waterson and Martin Carthy The Wonderstuff
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 15/05/2026
Up, Down, Strange, Charm, Top and Bottom.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 14/05/2026
"Under the agreement the institutions would merge by the end of summer 2027, and be known as King’s College London." That's a takeover, not a merger. We're going to be seeing a lot more of this kind of thing.
theguardian.com
King’s College London to merge with Cranfield University
Merged institution will become second largest mainstream university in UK with about 47,000 students
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 13/05/2026
And there was I thinking that "brought low by squirrels" was something that only happens to hateful characters in Roald Dahl books. Warning: contains Ken Whitman.
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Reposted by Nick Gibbins
The Oldhammer Fiction Podcast @oldhammerpodcast.bsky.social · 07/05/2026
I always loved those Les Edwards Call of Cthulhu 4th edition colour plates.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 23/04/2026
This place is not a place of honour. No highly esteemed deed is commemorated here. Nothing valued is here. What is here was dangerous and repulsive to us. This message is a warning about danger.
A triumphal arch that even Albert Speer would think was a bit much. A ballroom built to please a pedophile. The interior of a ballroom built to please a pedophile.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 22/04/2026
Jellied eels. Believe me, I’ve tried. I like the taste of the eels, but the texture is a bit too much, and there’s an awful lot of bone for not much meat. Just as well they’re critically endangered.
A delicious bowl of eels, lying in a glistening heap of quivering jelly.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 11/04/2026
Amongst the very many reasons to miss the late great David Barron is his way with a good epigram. (this from his 1977 book An Introduction to the Study of Programming Languages, published by Cambridge University Press)
Chapter 10: Suggestions for Further Reading

“Guide me, O thou great Redeemer,
Pilgrim through this barren land.”
- Can Rhondda (Hymns A&M No. 196)

The bibliography given in this chapter is by no means exhaustive, but represents a personal selection of texts that the author has read with profit and/or enjoyment.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 03/04/2026
That's the last episode of The Long Dark finished. Good to see @hinterland.bsky.social wrap the story up, and lay the groundwork for Black Frost. A bit more linear and expositionary than I'd expected, but that's just what happens when you have to tie up so many loose ends. The best bit: the train!
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 31/03/2026
Tonight, I shall be mostly following @thelongdark.bsky.social to its conclusion. Excellent start - this is the sort of robust statement against the use of generative AI in the creative industries that I think should be standard. All of us - players and developers alike - deserve this much.
A screenshot of the opening screen of The Long Dark, containing the following statement:

STATEMENT AGAINST THE USE OF GENERATIVE AI

Hinterland is a humans-first company. We believe in the primacy of human creativity, and in the dignity of all human creators. We will never use generative Al for any of our games, nor include any code or content in our games that wasn't created purely by humans.

We are opposed to the widespread exploitation and abuse of human creativity, exploitation that underpins the business models of all generative Al companies. We believe that this fight is an existential fight for the soul of humanity, and we see games standing at the forefront of this fight. There is no ethical application of generative Al, as all commercial models are built on the industrial-scale theft and exploitation of workers, as well as the destruction of our environment, to the sole benefit of the billionaire-class.

We also do not consent to have any of our work added to any generative Al models, for training purposes or otherwise, and will use all legal means at our disposal to protect our creations and our intellectual property. We believe that our work, and the commitment to our players, demands this of us.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 16/03/2026
The ISO 216 paper sizes originated in an early C20th utopian project that ironically was funded by one of the people most responsible for the bloodshed of World War 1. A thread... 🧵
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 16/03/2026
This is awful news. We had a similar outbreak here at Southampton (two deaths in my hall of residence) when I was just starting my PhD in 1997.
theguardian.com
Two dead and 11 seriously ill in meningitis outbreak at University of Kent
Students in Canterbury given antibiotics for fast-acting and invasive meningococcal disease, says UKHSA
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 15/03/2026
Para el desayuno esta mañana: Chorizo con papas Frijoles refritos Huevos revueltos Mexicanos (with a little salsa roja) Guacamole Salsa bandera Tortilla To the side, café de olla and a Paloma. Everything made from scratch (including the chorizo), except for the tortilla.
A plate containing (in anti-clockwise order from the left): 

Chorizo con papas
Frijoles refritos
Huevos revueltos Mexicanos (with a little salsa roja)
Guacamole
Salsa bandera
Tortilla

To the side, cafe de olla and a Paloma.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 15/03/2026
I memed. No regrets.
Three frames parodying the Christmas Carol meme taken from the 1951 film Scrooge starring Alastair Sim, except that Sim has been replaced by Kenneth Williams as Julius Caesar from Carry on Cleo.

Frame 1: Williams-as-Caesar calls down from an open window "You there, boy! What day is it?"

Frame 2: A Dickensian urchin calls up "Why, it's the Ides of March!"

Frame 3: A disconcerted Caesar says "Then I haven't missed it!"
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James Goss @gossjam.bsky.social · 11/03/2026
We are trying to find the people who did this.gif
Tuition fees a mess says Clegg
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 02/03/2026
It is right that our local Labour MP’s first priority is as she says. However, I would hope that behind the scenes she’s also questioning why our government is allowing the US to use UK bases to make preemptive strikes on targets in Iran.
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Nick Gibbins @nick.gark.net · 01/03/2026
From where I’m sitting, it’s the current Labour leadership that looks pretty extreme. It’s certainly not the party that I had supported for thirty years.
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