Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 02/10/2026Very positive discussion with my third years about LLMs today. We talked environmental costs, authoritarianism, patriarchy, tech-bros, etc. They don’t seem to like LLM much more than I do, which makes it all the more depressing that it’s my generation forcing it into their lives. 2141
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 02/10/2026Everyone loves a progress pic! For me, they're thing that helps motivate me to finish. Also, to spot all of the things that aren't quite right. Since you won't, here's a crudely animated progress gif of what I'm currently working on (which is to say: low quality fantasy art). 210
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 30/09/2026I'm holding a talk with students in the medical building, so I've got a seminar room with an examination bed behind the lectern. This could be handy - I picked up a stack of free economics books for my son before dashing across campus & have probably done my back in carrying them. 150
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 29/09/2026Just look at it! ”Average wealth varied most by age, with median total wealth amongst respondents aged in their early 60s almost nine times as high as those aged in their early 30s.” www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopula... 120
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 28/09/2026I've just been looking through my paperwork for some teaching materials and found this from 2023. I can't remember whether I printed it because it was useful or because of how implausible it sounded. Anyway, insert bitter laughter here. 080
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 10/09/2026Quick sketch to relax post conference. Moth friend: 3485
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 05/09/2026Having a go at making scented candles. Turns out to involve a lot more maths, know-how, and craft than I was expecting, but quite a lot of fun nevertheless. 1100
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 03/09/2026I should probably not be enjoying writing this chapter on animal rights activism as much as I am, but some of these sentences have been quite a lot of fun to write. Activists have done some wild stuff. 060
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 25/08/2026In two years, the University of Dundee will have shed nearly 1000 jobs. A large part of the reason will have been dreadful leadership. Out of curiosity, I‘ve just looked at the LinkedIn page of the man responsible (formally, he was awful at my university too). ‘Economic transition!‘ Shameless: 22010
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 24/08/2026Spotted a Ghent philosophy PhD student had added their name to the Confas support letter & thought I‘d see what kind of thing they might be interested in…nationalist eugenics…double yikes. Some additional yikes in the references. Eugenicists really outing themselves. 78515
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 24/08/2026My wife is working a local Country music and Americana festival. She checked out the food offerings: ‘A taste of Country food‘ apparently involves no vegetables at all. Pretty terrible first impression of a festival tbh., also of the culture the festival supposedly represents. 150
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 24/08/2026The Confas support letter is currently cursed, hopefully this number is where it stays just for the sake of poeticism. 2111
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 22/08/2026Doing a spot of pickling! The house, and possibly also the entire street, now smells of vinegar. 1241
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 20/08/2026I'm on the same version of Word as you and this is what my preferences options look like. I assume our administrators control what options I get and their deal with Microsoft to be some kind of awful Copilot AI Frontier university means ramming this shit down our throats. 170
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 20/08/2026Copilot bollocks appeared on my Mac version of Word this morning. There appears no option to remove it, I assume because it's licensed through my university, who have drunk all the LLM Coolaid in the universe. If I cannot find a way to remove it in the next ten minutes, MS Office is getting deleted. 7675683
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 17/08/2026Oh wow, I have just read the most amazing two sentences about Andrew Bridgen (on a hilarious right-wing website). It‘s the most perfect example of almost getting it I‘ve ever seen, so good, chef‘s kiss. 1110
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 12/08/2026I’ve followed my own advice - which felt silly but was nevertheless fun. 110
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 12/08/2026I'm trying to write about animal rights and this fucking thing has parked outside the window - it feels like a personal attack. 2200
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 10/08/2026Oh Evri..."We've not been able to get to your ParcelShop today due to bad weather in the area..." Bad weather...23°C, sunny, no rain, light breezes. I suppose they don't have an option for 'can't be bothered' or 'our staff don't care because we treat them appallingly'. 250
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 05/08/2026The inevitable endpoint of this story, in which a man in the Telegraph uses a single case to complain that attempts to treat people fairly are an existential threat to universities. Surprise: you’ll never believe that the professor who wrote the story went to an elite, boys-only private school. 2143
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 30/07/2026Apparently, it's World Embroidery Day, because there are world days for pretty much anything you can imagine. Here's the latest ridiculous thing I've embroidered. I'm unhappy with one bit of it but cannot be bothered to fix it. #embroidery 1182
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 18/07/2026I recently bought a Ukrainian Vareniki maker for a little over a tenner: total game changer. Knocked out 50 boolawnee (delicious Afghan leek pastry) in a quarter of the time I’d usually take. If you make a lot of pot-stickers or other kinds of dumplings, this thing is brilliant. 0121
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 17/07/2026Embroidering a weird little eye for no reason that I can readily explain, except that arts and crafts are good for the soul and I need something to occupy my mind when I’m taking writing breaks. 4442
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 13/07/2026Being asked to provide reasons why I’m wrong about LLMs was too much for this guy, he preferred to merely assert the contrary. I like the little winking face emoji after being a patronising twat though, really adds a certain something. 031
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 12/07/2026Looking after my mental health by painting the kind of cheesy 1980s fantasy art that you’d see on the box of a jigsaw puzzle found in a charity shop. Some pieces would probably be missing. 0130
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 10/07/2026The Times and Telegraph both running stories within two days of each other about wealthy antisocial columnists who should have their driving licences taken away. 2114
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 07/07/2026Just visited the BBC‘s football page to see if there was a photo of Ronaldo looking sad (my favourite genre of Schadenfreude sources). Was not disappointed, 10/10. 040
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 30/06/2026“That sign is such a disgusting butchering of the Nicene Creed.“ 040
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 30/06/2026“That sign is such a disgusting butchering of the Nicene Creed.“ 140
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 30/06/2026“That sign is such a disgusting butchering of the Nicene Creed.“ 160
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 20/06/2026A surprising number of Americans spent last night telling me attack helicopters are a very normal way to start a football match, everybody does it. It isn‘t, they don‘t, but if it were & they did then it would still be messed-up & weird. 7283
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 17/06/2026I've ticked cycling in London off my list, so now have seen what London cyclists are like firsthand & understand why people hate cyclists. Going to talk human exceptionalism on Radio 4, but not until after coffee and cake. 2270
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 09/06/2026OK Kemi, so we scrap the duty to treat people equally…now, what? Tell me how allowing public authorities to unfairly discriminate on grounds of age, sex, race, disability, etc., & to promote discriminating this way, would somehow improve equality? I‘ll wait. 140
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 08/06/2026The taste of sick in my mouth at this prompted me to look a little more closely at this org. Tyler Cohen on the board, which figures. I'm guessing they're operating on an extremely narrow conception of liberalism (coining it liberalism for arseholes or edgelord liberalism). 190
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 04/06/2026Farage is now complaining that some police officers who received diversity & inclusion training reported feeling ‘controlled and pressured to be certain ways‘. What ways Nigel, what ways? See: www.lbc.co.uk/article/hamp... 290
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 29/05/2026I hear Trump is in his situation room making the final decision on the US-Iran ceasefire. I‘ve managed to gain access to the folder containing the draft of the decision. 2161
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 27/05/2026I don't know what this sticker was attached to, but I have questions and a lingering sense of disquiet. 2182
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 27/05/2026The Chickadee study I mentioned found that songs were different between the sexes. This is interesting to me for two reasons. One is that Chickadees are pretty similar to Tits. The second is that Chickadee songs were structurally similar between sexes (they varied on things like amplitude). 150
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 26/05/2026Just did an extremely* rough chart of growth of interest in animal cultures by looking at scientific publications over time. Traces back to Jane Goodall writing about primate behaviour in the mid-1980s. Really time for moral philosophers to get in on the game. * honestly this is very, very rough. 191
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 23/05/2026Feeling some sympathy for this author as I read the abstract for their paper. The fact/fart distinction does seem important though. 57912
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 22/05/2026Today I discovered that the first prime minister of Canada had this wallpaper in his house. I've spent the rest of the day trying to decide if I hate it or if it slaps. 2120
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 16/05/2026Yes, I know it’s the weekend and I shouldn’t be working, but I’m making some conference handouts nevertheless. 2180
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 28/04/2026Had cause to take a quick look at research ethics processes in the US, instantly discovered the malign influence of Trump. I don't know how researchers can work with people in the US when policies & processes are likely to be destroyed on a whim, with nothing replacing them & no accountability. 023
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 23/04/2026Found a picture I inked a few years ago of Vincent Price in Theatre of Blood (playing an actor playing Shylock). Posting because I did this for Shakespeare‘s birthday, which is generally celebrated today. Hurrah Shakespeare! 1130
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 22/04/2026Food on main campus is awful right now, and frankly so is the atmosphere, so I've cycled to the Space Park where there's a ready supply of vegan cake and a good buzz. Hopefully, nobody will notice that I'm not doing space research. 3181
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 20/04/2026When a political philosopher is writing about birdsong. 2242
Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 17/04/2026Here, in the 1720 text, while slandering Bullfinches, von Parnau describes them learning songs. 110