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Roo-bee

@roo-bee.bsky.social
313 followers 327 following 272 posts

Inveterate dabbler. Languages/ed tech career, now nature/conservation charity volunteer & Trustee. Interests inc. music, arts, photography, genealogy, science... Follow politics with increasingly horrified fascination.

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Reposted by Roo-bee
paulusthewoodgnome @paulusthewoodgnome.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Excerpt from Sunday Times article. ⬆️
'Most countries have gone backwards, with immigrants (and their children) dragging down the scores. Sweden's incoming prime minister wants a crisis commission; her critics say the issue is pupils who don't speak the language. Germany's education minister has blamed immigration and "a heterogeneous pupil body". A head teacher in Austria has called for pupils to read German books at home rather than "watch Turkish films".

But in Britain, the picture is different. What is strange, perhaps incomprehensible from a continental point of view, is that our immigrants did about as well as the natives. And the children of immigrants, the second generation, didn't just do well. They didn't just do better than native Brits. They scored higher than any cohort in Europe. They scored significantly higher than native Germans and French. It was the first proper sign of what could shape the long-term future of the country: those who have settled here, the one-in-five, seem to be raising children who are quite the educational asset.'
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Popular Education @populareducation.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
US sanctions on Cuba are economic warfare: • 7,000+ containers stranded • Essential aid blocked: ICU solar panels, cancer meds, water treatment • Crucial shipping lost: Sanctions scared off cargo lines • Mass suffering: Surging hunger, 100k awaiting surgery www.nytimes.com/2026/09/17/w...
nytimes.com
Trump’s Economic Vise Leaves Cubans Desperate for Food and Medicine
The U.S. says its sanctions are not aimed at depriving Cuba of essential goods. Thousands of stranded shipping containers tell a different story.
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Hassinator @hassinator.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
a great letter in the times today. perhaps worth sharing in these troubled times. #RNLI #heroes
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Christopher Webb @cwebbonline.com · 13/09/2026
And yet there are people who actually believe this clown is going to send them a check for $5,000.
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MrMirth @mrmirth.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
This is what the BBC calls 'news'. Released today. It's just a blatant platforming of Reform. It's meaningless and is not news.
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David Ho @davidho.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
Treating this as an unstoppable race, and accepting the "endgame" of runaway warming, is a reckless gamble that should never be decided in a boardroom alone. Betting on future carbon removal to fix today's emissions requires far more confidence than the evidence supports.
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David Ho @davidho.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
I resigned from ExxonMobil today. I spent the last three years doing fossil fuel extraction research at both BP and ExxonMobil. Neither company is acting responsibly. They are racing to maximize extraction while the window to act closes, and gambling with our lives. More below.
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Dr Julia Grace Patterson @jujuliagrace.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
It’s great to see Zubir Ahmed MP speaking up about Palantir in this way. All politicians should be doing so in my opinion!🚨 Link to article: www.lbc.co.uk/article/form... jujuliagrace.substack.com
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SteveH @sghendricks.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
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Jess Piper @piperformissouri.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Yuuuuup…
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John Oxley @joxley.jmoxley.co.uk · 06/09/2026
So in one week: 1) Reform get stung for dodgy finances, and the regulators play pass the parcel about enforcement 2) Farage announces plans to largely dismantle independent scrutiny of govt, and barely any press discussion of it 3) Masked thugs blockade a port, with narry a word from senior govt
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Anti-Reform @antireform.bsky.social · 06/09/2026
"There's actually a wonderfully simple way to save Birmingham taxpayers the entire £2.6 million: Don't attach 20,000 bloody flags to council lamp posts without permission in the first place" via Truth Against Hate and bill Raise The Colours for their removal!
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Sir Michael Take CBE @sirmichaeltake.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
John Cleese’s common sense is no more! It has ceased to be! It's expired and gone to meet its maker! It’s bereft of life, it rests in peace. ☹️
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maringerr.bsky.social @maringerr.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
Yep. It's about time that Labour did something about the dodginess of the print media. They've got a massive majority and need to use it. Give Ofcom more powers or set up a new body. Have an independent board to decide if headlines are lies and order retractions. That sort of stuff.
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Dawny B @dawnbritten.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
@andyburnham.bsky.social this needs sorting asap please.
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Fiona Reavley @aquabassgirl.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
UK's iconic Jodrell Bank telescope faces axe in science cuts… This sounds a bit crazy but apparently funding has been cut for this telescope, part of the #eMerlin system of 7 telescopes across the U.K. which together can see into space similarly well as Hubble. Hoping #funds can be found soon!
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Helen @allmycircus.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
Of all the trips we got dragged on in school, I remember the one to Jodrell Bank with actual fondness for the introduction to astronomy and the realisation by baby me that we actually did cool science in the UK and it wasn't just for Americans in movies. This is infuriating.
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Roo-bee @roo-bee.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
Exactly - Jodrell Bank is also a key site within important networks. Ominous.
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Roo-bee @roo-bee.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
Appalling decision.
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Reposted by Roo-bee
Cardinal Cyn @jacquelinecable.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
BBC News - UK's iconic Jodrell Bank telescope faces axe in science cuts www.bbc.co.uk/news/article... Starting to sound like trump style movement is incoming #science
bbc.co.uk
Jodrell Bank's Lovell telescope faces axe in science cuts, BBC understands
Astronomers warn it would tear the heart out of UK science, and leave a generation untrained.
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Astronomer Royal for Scotland | Catherine Heymans @astroroyalscot.bsky.social · 18/07/2026
“What will the Lovell Telescope discover/enable 20 yrs from now? I can’t tell you, and that’s the point. It will either be something extraordinary that none of us can yet predict, or we will defund it and leave Cheshire with a rusting monument to unfulfilled potential and discoveries never made.” 🔭🧪
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Diane Coyle @dianecoyle1859.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
It’s a rip-off price, the vendor is toxic, and it seems the software doesnt deliver: www.ft.com/content/cbd1... Palantir tool has not cut hospital discharge delays, study says
ft.com
Palantir tool has not cut hospital discharge delays, study says
Think-tank’s findings likely to add to calls for audit of NHS England claims around Federated Data Platform
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Ian Dunt @iandunt.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
Said this before, will again. Badenoch is the most dangerous figure in British politics. She's not as extreme as Farage or Lowe, but her impact is more pernicious. She actively prevents the British centre-right from adopting moderate positions, and thereby facilitates the radicalisation process.
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Jodrell Bank @jodrellbank.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
Tracking Space Debris from Jodrell Bank! The Lovell Telescope has helped demonstrate a world-first radar technique for tracking satellites and space debris in real time. www.manchester.ac.uk/about/news/j...
manchester.ac.uk
Jodrell Bank demonstrates live radar observations of satellites and space debris
Radio astronomers and radar experts have teamed up to demonstrate how powerful radio telescopes, including the 76-m Lovell Telescope and e-MERLIN antennas operated by the University of Manchester at J...
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Jodrell Bank @jodrellbank.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
Discounted Annual Tickets this summer! 💫 Make the most of discounted Annual Ticket prices this summer until 1 September, giving you access to space all season round. Families can join us this school holiday for hands-on science activities, trails, and Space Dome Shows: ow.ly/vuOk50ZicHX
A group of children partake in space-themed colouring activities.
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Roo-bee @roo-bee.bsky.social · 18/07/2026
REVEALED: Jul 9, 2026 Science & Tech: ⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ ⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ Solved in 1️⃣ Reveal & 0️⃣ Hints! www.britannica.com/games/reveal...
britannica.com
Revealed, a Daily Puzzle Game | Britannica
Uncover something interesting: Guess the topic using the fewest Reveals and Hints. Topics include People, Science & Tech, History & Society, and more.
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Reposted by Roo-bee
The Guardian @theguardian.com · 16/07/2026
Brain implant helps paralysed man to feed himself and drink from cup
theguardian.com
Brain implant helps paralysed man to feed himself and drink from cup
Keith Thomas can move arms and hands, and feel sensation of touch after ‘double neural bypass’ and months of training A man who was paralysed from the chest down in a swimming accident six years ago has been able to feed himself and drink from a cup thanks to a brain implant that bypasses his spinal cord injury. Keith Thomas of Massapequa, New York, could not lift his arms off his wheelchair when he agreed to trial the technology in 2021, but after surgery to implant electrodes in his brain and many months of training, he was able to move the limbs again. Continue reading...
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Adam Bienkov @adambienkov.bsky.social · 16/07/2026
These years of anti-immigration hysteria we're living through right now are going to look utterly incomprehensible in the coming era of closing schools, ageing populations and massively understaffed public services
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Roo-bee @roo-bee.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
Just because. 😃
Brightly striped flowers and fokiage in a hanging basket
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Fionna O’Leary @fascinatorfun.bsky.social · 28/06/2026
9%
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Thomas Swords 🇮🇪 🇵🇸🏳️‍⚧️ @thomasswords.bsky.social · 28/06/2026
6/27/26 tweet by Just Jack: Mamdani’s crazy shtick about actually doing the stuff he promised has confounded every political pundit in America.
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Roo-bee @roo-bee.bsky.social · 29/06/2026
REVEALED: Jun 26, 2026 Person: ⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ ⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ I solved it in 0️⃣ Reveals & 0️⃣ Hints! www.britannica.com/games/reveal...
britannica.com
Revealed, a Daily Puzzle Game | Britannica
Uncover something interesting: Guess the topic using the fewest Reveals and Hints. Topics include People, Science & Tech, History & Society, and more.
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Adam Bienkov @adambienkov.bsky.social · 21/06/2026
The attacks in Edinburgh, in which an armed bare-chested white man terrorised Muslims, leaving five people injured, don't feature on a single newspaper front page this morning. Two tier journalism
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Robert Saunders @robertsaunders.bsky.social · 21/06/2026
For Fathers' Day, Keir Starmer posts a photo of his own father, who died in 2018, and a non-political message. The replies are a torrent of vitriol & cruelty, all with hundreds of Likes. We complain a lot about the quality of leadership, but there's a huge problem with the way we treat politicians
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Spooky Snigdha @snig.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
AI facial recognition with sexist and racist biases baked in? A cynic might argue that's perfect for the UK Home Office.
The leaked Home Office document obtained by Lighthouse Reports largely details the “best” performing of seven facial age estimation algorithms that the department tested last year, although it does not directly name the companies behind them. The report found that the system performed significantly worse when it was used to estimate the ages of Sub-Saharan Africans compared to other groups. Sub-Sarahan Africans are the largest group of migrants entering the UK after crossing the English Channel in small boats in recent years and had more age assessments raised in 2025 than cohorts from other regions, according to Home Office data. For female Sub-Saharan Africans, the age that the system guessed was off by an average of 4.6 years, meaning that a 13.5-year-old girl could be assessed as an 18-year-old adult.
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Matt Burgess (WIRED) @mattburgess1.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
It seems to be the first time AI face scans are planned to be used at any border. Human rights experts fear other countries could copy the UK's approach Today more than 60 organizations, led by @foxglovelegal.bsky.social and @hrw.org, wrote to the Home Office calling for the plan to be scrapped
foxglove.org.uk
Foxglove, Human Rights Watch and 60 other organisations write open letter to Government condemning Home Office border tool aimed at asylum-seeking children
This open letter has been prepared by Foxglove and Human Rights Watch. A full list of signatories can be found at the bottom of the page.
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Roo-bee @roo-bee.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
The National Rejoin March is this Saturday. Join us to mark ten years since the EU referendum and show that thousands of us agree: it's time to rejoin. marchforrejoin.co.uk/nrmiv
marchforrejoin.co.uk
Event - NRMIV | National Rejoin March
To mark 10 Years since the Brexit referendum, we are having our 4th National Rejoin March (NRMIV). We anticipate this being the biggest one yet, with Rejoin being firmly on the agenda in the country ...
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Disillusioned With Conservatives @neverevertory.bsky.social · 14/06/2026
Farage’s Parliament attendance record: • 1 fisheries meeting out of 42 • 1 parliamentary vote out of 77 • 0 constituency surgeries • Parliament participation rate: 32.8% He does not care about ordinary people or Britain at all. #NeverVoteReform
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Maya Media @mayamedia.bsky.social · 12/06/2026
Worse than I thought. I saw Kushner’s Albania resort up close — it is an environmental disaster. The damage at Vjosa-Narta is not fake news. Bulldozers are tearing into one of Europe’s most precious wetlands www.aljazeera.com/opinions/202...
aljazeera.com
I saw Kushner’s Albania resort up close — it is an environmental disaster
The damage at Vjosa-Narta is not fake news. Bulldozers are tearing into one of Europe’s most precious wetlands.
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Roo-bee @roo-bee.bsky.social · 13/06/2026
RIP David Hockney. Thank you for the joyous art.
Art gallery in Salts Mill, Saltaire. Row of iron columns in large industrial space. Black & white image, David Hockney prints on walls, one person glimpsed between pillars in background.
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Mike Jay @mikejay.link · 10/06/2026
This cannot be allowed to pass. No one will be safe.
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Roo-bee @roo-bee.bsky.social · 05/06/2026
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
theguardian.com
I’m a Sikh MP. Here’s why we should all heed the words of Henry Nowak’s father | Jeevun Sandher
As a nation we face a choice: either follow the far-right rhetoric of hate and division, or unite under our values of decency and determination, says Labour MP Jeevun Sandher
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Roo-bee @roo-bee.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
I'll take the little wins gratefully but please let there be some big wins soon? A groundswell of realisation that fascist autocracies do not serve most people well would be a good start... REVEALED: May 25, 2026 Person: ⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ solved in 0️⃣ Reveals & 0️⃣ Hints! www.britannica.com/games/revealed
Ripening gooseberries
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Roo-bee @roo-bee.bsky.social · 25/05/2026
GB News is trying to gut the BBC. Sign the petition to say NO to a BBC subscription model: 38d.gs/5bgx
38d.gs
No subscription model for the BBC
GB News is trying to gut the BBC. Their radical plan would force shows like Strictly and The Traitors to be axed or hidden behind a Netflix-style paywall. Sign the petition to say NO to a BBC subscrip...
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38 Degrees @38degrees.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
Let’s get Palantir out of our NHS for good: act.38degrees.org.uk/act/to-the-n...
act.38degrees.org.uk
To the new Health Secretary: Get Palantir out of our NHS!
I just the petition calling on the new Health Secretary to get Palantir out of our NHS!
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38 Degrees @38degrees.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
Palantir now has "unlimited access" to your identifiable medical records. This is a dangerous step too far. We won’t stop campaigning until the Government triggers the Palantir break clause.
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Trish Greenhalgh @trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social · 12/05/2026
OUR NEW BMJ editorial: Andes virus should reset WHO’s default approach to airborne risk. 🧵 1/ For severe pathogens with person-to-person transmission, the starting point should be precautionary airborne protections — not waiting for definitive proof after spread occurs. www.bmj.com/content/393/...
bmj.com
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Roo-bee @roo-bee.bsky.social · 02/05/2026
Wisteria is doing quite well this year. Wordle 1,778 3/6* ⬜⬜⬜⬜🟨 🟨🟩⬜🟩⬜ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
Close-up of lilac & white wisteria blossom.
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Roo-bee @roo-bee.bsky.social · 26/04/2026
REVEALED: Apr 25, 2026 Person: ⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ ⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ I solved it in 0️⃣ Reveals & 0️⃣ Hints! www.britannica.com/games/revealed
britannica.com
Revealed, a Daily Puzzle Game | Britannica
Uncover something interesting: Guess the topic using the fewest Reveals and Hints. Topics include People, Science & Tech, History & Society, and more.
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Roo-bee @roo-bee.bsky.social · 23/04/2026
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
theguardian.com
A catastrophic climate event is upon us. Here is why you’ve heard so little about it | George Monbiot
Scientists say a crucial Atlantic system is set to collapse. But the billionaire death cult that steers humanity’s destiny just doesn’t do existential crises, says Guardian columnist George Monbiot
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