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Tom Shakespeare

@tomshakespeare.bsky.social
11K followers 12K following 2.7K posts

Talks, writes, teaches. "The Ha-ha" & "The Ends" might make you laugh. Patreon patreon.com/Tomtalksdisabillity?utm…

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Reposted by Tom Shakespeare
The Intellectualist @theintellectualist.bsky.social · 03/05/2025
U.S. has worse wealth distribution than pre-revolutionary France did.
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Go Green @ecowarriorss.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
If the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) were to shut down, the continent would plunge into “ice age” winters with year-round long droughts, and agriculture would become close to impossible. www.newscientist.com/article/2588...
newscientist.com
The collapse of the AMOC would be catastrophic. How will we know when it's coming? | New Scientist
Europe faces incredibly harsh winters and unrelenting droughts if the vital AMOC ocean current fails – but when disaster will strike and how bad it will be remains uncertain. Now there is an ambitious...
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Grumpy Philosopher @stevecooke.org · 26/09/2026
Once again I find myself needing to write that the AI did not ‘go rogue’. It did what it was programmed to do by extremely negligent men, men who are responsible for their actions.
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Tom Shakespeare @tomshakespeare.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
theguardian.com
‘Rip the plaster off’: Andy Burnham sets out vision for universal free social care
PM says he will put proposals for NHS-style service funded by everybody into Labour’s next general election manifesto
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Paul Bernal @paulbernal.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Personally, I’d rather have healthy kids than mollycoddled millionaires
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Frances Ryan @francesryan.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
It’s brilliant to see two key government reviews will likely seek to end the pointless reassessment of many disabled people. I’ve written for years it’s a waste of resources and has a huge strain on disabled people forced into regularly proving their condition. www.theguardian.com/society/2026...
theguardian.com
Severely disabled young people should get fast-track access to benefits, Milburn says
Alan Milburn said 16- to 24-year-olds with most complex needs should not have to keep proving they cannot work
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Tom Shakespeare @tomshakespeare.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
theguardian.com
I have seen with pride how British overseas aid saves children’s lives. That is why I say cuts should be reversed | David Harewood
I understand the pressure on the public purse, but I have also seen the effect of our spending on the ground, says actor and Unicef UK ambassador David Harewood
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Olivia Guest · Ολίβια Γκεστ @olivia.science · 06/09/2025
Finally! 🤩 Our position piece: Against the Uncritical Adoption of 'AI' Technologies in Academia: doi.org/10.5281/zeno... We unpick the tech industry’s marketing, hype, & harm; and we argue for safeguarding higher education, critical thinking, expertise, academic freedom, & scientific integrity. 1/n
Abstract: Under the banner of progress, products have been uncritically adopted or
even imposed on users — in past centuries with tobacco and combustion engines, and in
the 21st with social media. For these collective blunders, we now regret our involvement or
apathy as scientists, and society struggles to put the genie back in the bottle. Currently, we
are similarly entangled with artificial intelligence (AI) technology. For example, software updates are rolled out seamlessly and non-consensually, Microsoft Office is bundled with chatbots, and we, our students, and our employers have had no say, as it is not
considered a valid position to reject AI technologies in our teaching and research. This
is why in June 2025, we co-authored an Open Letter calling on our employers to reverse
and rethink their stance on uncritically adopting AI technologies. In this position piece,
we expound on why universities must take their role seriously toa) counter the technology
industry’s marketing, hype, and harm; and to b) safeguard higher education, critical
thinking, expertise, academic freedom, and scientific integrity. We include pointers to
relevant work to further inform our colleagues.Figure 1. A cartoon set theoretic view on various terms (see Table 1) used when discussing the superset AI
(black outline, hatched background): LLMs are in orange; ANNs are in magenta; generative models are
in blue; and finally, chatbots are in green. Where these intersect, the colours reflect that, e.g. generative adversarial network (GAN) and Boltzmann machine (BM) models are in the purple subset because they are
both generative and ANNs. In the case of proprietary closed source models, e.g. OpenAI’s ChatGPT and
Apple’s Siri, we cannot verify their implementation and so academics can only make educated guesses (cf.
Dingemanse 2025). Undefined terms used above: BERT (Devlin et al. 2019); AlexNet (Krizhevsky et al.
2017); A.L.I.C.E. (Wallace 2009); ELIZA (Weizenbaum 1966); Jabberwacky (Twist 2003); linear discriminant analysis (LDA); quadratic discriminant analysis (QDA).Table 1. Below some of the typical terminological disarray is untangled. Importantly, none of these terms
are orthogonal nor do they exclusively pick out the types of products we may wish to critique or proscribe.Protecting the Ecosystem of Human Knowledge: Five Principles
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𝕊𝕦𝕟𝕕𝕒𝕖 𝔾𝕦𝕣𝕝 @sundaedivine.lol · 27/09/2026
At last, a safe space for men who think empathy lowers testosterone.
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Tom Shakespeare @tomshakespeare.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
theguardian.com
The climate fight has one great ally. You just can’t look at it directly | Bill McKibben
There is hope in solar power. As the UN meets, we are urging leaders to pursue a clear goal: clean energy for all by 2030
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Professor Marion Gibson @witchesetc.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
This excellent book by Andrew Sneddon on witchcraft accusations and disability is free to view and download until 15th October - it’s in the CUP Elements in Magic series that I used to edit: eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com?url=https%3A...
eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com
Magic and Disability in the Early Modern World
Cambridge Core - Religion: General Interest - Magic and Disability in the Early Modern World
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Oregon Zoo @oregonzoo.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Happy Sea Otter Awareness Week!
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John Bate @jflb96.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
But they were fucked up in their turn, By bros in jeans and sleeveless coats, Who half the time were soppy stern, And half at one another's throats Bot hands down blatant goof to bot, It deepens like a coastal shelf, Block all the clankers you can spot, And don’t post any prompts yourself.
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Roger @rogerha.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
They fuck you up, these AI bots, They may not mean to, but they do. They pass on all the lies online And add some extra, just for you.
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Jeremy Noel-Tod @jntod.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
I was trying to find a line from a Philip Larkin poem, and instead Gemini made up swathes of lines that aren't in the poem
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Jennifer Shin - WTAF @jennifershin.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
💯💯💯 This 👇
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Nicolas Hénin @nicolashenin.net · 17/09/2026
Nice campaign by the Norwegian Consumer Council about the declining lifespan of products. Enjoy!
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Tom Shakespeare @tomshakespeare.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Just had great talk with Tom Yeandell, foot-and-mouth painter (though I would prefer to call him just painter).
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Michael Warburton @michaelwarburton.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
Some TV Dramas take a little nurturing, need time to grow, find their voice. Some don’t. THE WEST WING (1999) This - from the Pilot episode - gave Martin Sheen’s President Bartlett one hell of an entrance. #AaronSorkin
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Kenny @kennyekn.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
As per @clairehanna.bsky.social off-script aside, during her speech today, "not as Orange as he looks".
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Andy Scollick @andyscollick.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
The spirit of our dear departed Janey Godley is in Doonbeg, Co Clare, Ireland today.
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Tom Shakespeare @tomshakespeare.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
However useful (& environmentally preferable to cars), e-bikes badly parked are often hazardous to people with visual impairment & obstructive to wheelchair users www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...
theguardian.com
Thousands of ebikes seized by London councils as anger rises over blocked paths
Operators blame lack of parking and councils bemoan lack of central regulation, as more than 3,000 badly parked bikes seized
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Graham M. @graham-m.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
"The issues [maths] faces now are similar to issues that other scientific and creative professions are facing, and indicate issues that all of [us] might face: how to make sure that, as AI changes the way work is done, we do not lose sight of what that work was meant to achieve in the first place."
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The News Agents @thenewsagents.co.uk · 11/09/2026
"Technically Nigel Farage could have lost, not just the UK election on this, but the French election for the far right too." "That's quite a week's work." How Reform blew it with the French www.thenewsagents.co.uk/article/the-...
thenewsagents.co.uk
The sad, sad story of how Nigel Farage lost his friends in France | The News Agents
Last week, Nigel Farage signed an oversized ‘memorandum of understanding’ with French far-right leader, Jordan Bardella. This week, it could have cost his French pal a chance at becoming president.
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Greenpeace International 🌍 @greenpeace.org · 10/09/2026
We have a chance to turn the tide. If world leaders act swiftly, they can protect at least 30% of the ocean by 2030 — giving marine life space to recover, helping stabilise our climate, safeguarding the livelihoods of billions of people, and securing a thriving planet for generations to come.
act.gp
Let’s Turn the Tide to Protect 30% of the Ocean by 2030 - Greenpeace International
Call on your government to start implementing protected ocean sanctuaries.
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Tom Shakespeare @tomshakespeare.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Please, MPs, back assisted dying on Friday. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
theguardian.com
My plea to MPs: this is the final chance to save the assisted dying bill. Make your mark on history | Polly Toynbee
Any MP not voting for it on Friday will condemn thousands of us to die in agony. The public is hugely in favour too, so do the right thing, says Guardian columnist Polly Toynbee
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Nereide @drnereide.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
"If I were king, I would redress an abuse which cuts back, as it were, one half of human kind. I would have women participate in all human rights, especially those of the mind." ― Émilie Du Châtelet, passed away #OTD in 1749 I reshare this thread. 🧪 ⚛️ #histsci #WomenInSTEM #MathSky #EduSky
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Brian Bilston @brianbilston.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
US FOLKS: My latest book How to Lay an Egg with a Horse Inside will be published in the US on 22 September. If you preorder it today or tomorrow via Barnes & Noble, you’ll get 25% off - simply use the coupon code PREORDER25 on the B&N site. [End of very important message] @barnesandnoble.com
A poster advertising my book ‘How to Lay an Egg with a Horse Inside’, plugging a 25% offer with code PREORDER25 for orders via the Barnes & Noble website.
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Michael Warburton @michaelwarburton.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
FRED ASTAIRE and ELEANOR POWELL with one of the great tap dance numbers of all time. BROADWAY MELODY OF 1940 (1940)
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PIK_climate @pik-potsdam.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
"The AMOC is now at its weakest in at least 1,000 years." - Watch PIK’s @rahmstorf.bsky.social explain how climate change is putting the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation #AMOC at risk and what this could mean for Europe and the world. ➡️ Full video: www.youtube.com/watch?v=sNOS...
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Hedy Lamarr @chudonew.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
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Bruce Little @brucedlittle.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
He's now resorting to trying to buy the election. Federal law makes it unlawful to knowingly and willfully pay, offer to pay, or accept payment for registering to vote or for voting. (52 U.S.C. §10307(c).) Any type of incentive is considered “payment.”
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Prem Sikka @premnsikka.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Neoliberalism has ravaged the UK Workers’ share of gross value added down from 71.9% in 1975, to 59.7%. 1.23m workers are on zero-hour contracts. 4.4m jobs pay less than the real living wage. Poorest 20% pay a higher proportion of income in direct/indirect taxes than the richest 20%.
leftfootforward.org
Here’s how the chancellor can raise the billions needed to improve the quality of life of millions
Prem Sikka is an Emeritus Professor of Accounting at the University of Essex and the University of Sheffield, a Labour member of the House of Lords, and Contributing Editor at Left Foot Forward. Mi...
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Tom Shakespeare @tomshakespeare.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Hope they can clean house & pay for £4.400 mobility aids because otherwise PIP claimants like me will be a bit f*cked. www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
theguardian.com
UK disabled people could swap Pip cash for ‘in kind’ support in benefit overhaul
Claimants could trade part of payment for specialist equipment, services or training under proposal
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Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan @london.gov.uk · 10/09/2026
A dark blizzard of disinformation is warping the public’s perception of our great city. But we know the truth: our homicide rate is lower than every major US city, neighbourhood crimes are down and we’ve been ranked #1 city in the world 11 years in a row. My piece for The Times.
thetimes.com
We must fight back against troll army’s lies about London
There is a dark blizzard of disinformation online, where our capital is described as a lawless dystopia in decline — this couldn’t be further from the truth
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Daniel Bellingradt @dbellingradt.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Oh no, the house dragon is vomiting again!
a scene from an illuminated manuscript, a bible, of late 14th century Europe, and a dragon is vomiting in front of an angel. page 501r of the "Bible historiale complétée Moyenne" (SBB Berlin PK, Ms. Phill. 1906).
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Tom Shakespeare @tomshakespeare.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
You know it's a bad day when you are reduced to swearing at your trousers.
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Alice Roberts @profaliceroberts.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
I’ve reached the point - well actually, I reached it a while ago - where I’m militantly anti-AI. Fine - use it in bioscience labs and radiology where it might help analyse data more effectively. Use it sparingly for systems engineering. Everywhere else, it can fuck off.
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Rebecca Solnit @rebeccasolnit.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
My 2008 essay that started it all (nice to see here; over on FB the AI clickbait spammy recaps of the story, sometimes with terrible AI photos, always with inaccuracies, circulate).
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Tom Shakespeare @tomshakespeare.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Went to launch of Matthew Sweet's fabulous biography of Barbara Cartland - The Great Dictator. I somehow failed to talk to Mark Gatiss or David Olusoga. But I did get an insight into life as the Albanian Ambassador.
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Colin Schultz @colinschultz.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
"If the cost of renaming Lake Ontario does come in at a similar figure to the estimate for the Gulf of Mexico, it would mean U.S. federal agencies may have spent as much as US$1 million on renaming the two bodies of water." nationalpost.com/news/cost-to...
nationalpost.com
How much would renaming Lake Ontario cost the U.S.? Here's the best estimate
Renaming Lake Ontario to "Lake America" will come at a cost to federal agencies in the U.S. responsible for updating maps and databases.
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Sunder Katwala (sundersays) @sundersays.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
If you would like to add your voice to tens of thousands of people thanking RNLI volunteers for their work, 38 Degrees have organised this open letter to express public support (at a time when a hateful fringe have been intimidating & abusing RNLI volunteers) act.38degrees.org.uk/act/rnli-tha...
act.38degrees.org.uk
An open letter in support of the volunteers and staff at the RNLI
This is a disgrace. Brave RNLI volunteers being called scum for risking their lives to save others at sea is just plain wrong. So I've signed an open letter of thanks for the RNLI letting them know th...
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Tom Shakespeare @tomshakespeare.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
The Effra
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Clive Lewis MP @labourlewis.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Support for bringing water back into public ownership is rising, and MPs are taking notice. If you want clean rivers and seas, ask your MP to join next week's debate. Help me get them there! It takes 2 minutes: actionnetwork.org/letters/ask-...
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Tom Shakespeare @tomshakespeare.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Finishes an (academic) book. Opens a bottle of 2015 Marsannay. Relaxes.
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Katie Martin @katie0martin.ft.com · 08/09/2026
@ stephenkb.bsky.social hitting the nail on the head of course. "the Labour Party has now produced two governments whose response to acts of thuggery and intimidation is to reiterate that perhaps the thugs have a point" - as.ft.com/r/97d33f08-a...
as.ft.com
Labour’s muddled migration policy won’t stop thuggery
A government that can’t distinguish between ‘legitimate concerns’ and open racism is only making things worse
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Folk on Foot @folkonfoot.com · 21/07/2026
On our walk with @robcowen.bsky.social at the ancient Thornborough Henges in Yorkshire, @johnnyflynnmusic.bsky.social conjures “The Ghost of O’Donahue”. 👻🎶 🎧 Listen to the full episode here: pod.fo/e/44c958
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Tom Shakespeare @tomshakespeare.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
"Legitimate concerns"? Jusr Stop Oil protestors have legitimate concerns. Racist rioters in Portsmouth and Dover can just eff off.
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pharaoh house crash @phchq.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
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Jon Cooper @joncooper-us.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
Here’s the best shirt for Halloween. 🎃
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