Arthur

Oil companies knew about the threat of global warming for decades. The chemical industry knew how microplastics can accumulate in vital organs for decades. Next time a company tells you something is safe, ask what they're hiding and how long they've known. e360.yale.edu/digest/chemi...

In just five days, Uganda vaccinated 8.3 million children against measles and rubella. The nationwide drive, which ended on 5 October, covered every child aged nine months to five years, whatever their vaccine history. The Cooperator buff.ly/7VnZOYR #ShareGoodNewsToo

Solar farms in the Gobi are cutting dust storms. A study of 17 farms found the panels slow surface winds by more than 9% and make soil up to 17% less erodible, reducing springtime dust by about 352,000 tonnes a month. RenewEconomy buff.ly/bambHT8 #ShareGoodNewsToo

#ShareGoodNewsToo Massive biodiversity gains in only two years. www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Sometimes we’re unsatisfied with a thing we made because when it only existed in our head, we saw all the things it could have been and when it’s done we know all the things that it isn’t, but we can’t see the way it expands into a million new things when someone else unpacks it in their head. 🖊️🦑

Protestors Criticized For Looting Businesses Without Forming Private Equity Firm First https://theonion.com/protestors-criticized-for-looting-businesses-without-fo-1843735351/

#ShareGoodNewsToo

In 2 years, the world protected an area of ocean larger than the EU. About 5 million km² of ocean came under protection in the 2 years to April 2026, lifting global coverage past 10% for the 1st time. That’s the target countries agreed for 2020, albeit 6 years late buff.ly/CR7liDj #ShareGoodNewsToo

Some people wonder why I insist on using an ad blocker. I'm not particularly bothered about Israelis spying on me, but anybody could install any malware via adverts. www.theguardian.com/technology/2...

#ShareGoodNewsToo

Wonderful. I finally get to take a few days off, go away for a quiet break and my Kindle decides its disk is broken and it knows nothing about any books, especially not the ones I was going to read. Needs a full computer to (possibly) fix it. Fortunately my tablet has the kindle app installed.

Some sketchbook doodles for the cartoon below

Do you think that's enough glue? Nah, give it another stick.

New working paper: the Norwegian wealth tax was a huge success. The "exodus" of wealthy people never happened (less than 100 individuals left). Tax revenue increased by 71.5%. No changes in business activity or investment. www.nber.org/papers/w35854

Just like humans most startups are conceived between spread sheets

Cat-shaped vessel from Peru (c. 200–700 CE) #MenWithCats

jwz knows what's up

Celebrating the 40th Monday morning of this remarkable year.

This needs locking up with all those additives.

Oh my: LibreOffice just made "no AI" one of their official features: blog.documentfoundation.org/blog/2026/09...

"Is the AI concious, is it like a human, is it a machine god to be?" Insane questions from the culturally Christian. LLMs are Sumerian type demons that can be summoned, bound and charged with tasks. They exist in their own cateogory.

This gave me a good laugh. (from @accordionguy.bsky.social 's "Saturday Picdump" of tech-related memes, cartoons, etc.)

Always happy to help with costume ideas for your #cats.

We have strayed so far from God’s light

Kemi Badenoch condemned Reform's ban on critical journalists covering their conference as "authoritarian", saying her own party would never do the same as "we believe in free speech. We believe in a free press." Now the Conservatives have banned Byline Times from their conference

My very Welsh father would have used his favourite saying at this point of my interaction: ‘Since light travels faster than sound, people may appear bright until you hear them speak’

It absolutely sucks, but I am going to have to start building clauses into my freelance contracts about not feeding my draft work into these software systems. Aside from my stuff being plagiarised, it's also just exposing work to potentially millions of other people

“Tech is inherently political” is not just about ideology, but about power, too. Yielding technological improvements to the adversary will have predictable outcomes. I’m really worried it will lock in power centralization in a way that will be impossibly hard to reverse. It’s already happening.

The thing that worries me most lately is that many people who know that “fascism is bad, actually” have also convinced themselves that AI tools must be eschewed as fake or impure. In a self-reinforcing loop, there is relatively little AI tooling and infra by “fascism is bad” folks.

After a long day at the aquarium, the otters help tidy their toys away. Payment is made promptly and entirely in ice cubes.

The fact that he believes that evil implies competence tells you all you need to know about this guy.

🧵A blue plaque at 1A St. Martin's House, Polygon Rd, Somers Town, Camden, London for Irene Barclay OBE, 1894-1989 who campaigned for better housing, spoke up on behalf of people who lived in slum conditions & was the first woman to qualify as a chartered surveyor in Britain in May 1922.

The Facial Expressions of Tethys by artist Julius von Bismarck. A suspended high-sea buoy that moves in real time. Sensors on a twin buoy out in the Atlantic Ocean send live satellite data to motors inside the museum. This makes the indoor buoy copy the exact, real-time movements of the ocean waves.

"Smart" appliances are often the dumbest choice. www.tomshardware.com/service-providers/samsungs-disastrous-firmware-update-breaks-refrigerators-ahead-of-south-korean-holiday-customers-complain-of-non-functioning-units-food-spoilage-ahead-of-three-day-celebration

Just seen Danny Tommo referred to as "Captain Thugwash" and seriously, that's excellent work.

The first time I heard 'English' defined in the way Suella Braverman has adopted was back in the 1970s from the National Front. Every time since, it's come from some variant of fascist.

Curious coincidence: the Royal United Services Institute warns that 'malign networks' will use free speech arguments to attack the new government anti-disinformation unit at almost *exactly* the same time as as Farage issues a statement saying the unit is an "Orwellian attack on free speech."

One of the greatest bollard walks in history. #WorldBollardAssociation

I wish there was as much resentment against those with power who have consciously led us here as there is with those with little power who no longer believe the lesser of two evil will make it all ok

The language of 'defensive' support is a smokescreen - the PM has committed the UK to this conflict Thousands have been killed by the Saudi-led coalition. Weddings hit, markets destroyed. International Humanitarian Law breached. The UK must not back the murderous Saudi regime.

"I have become increasingly convinced that we are heading for a disastrous confrontation and that the 21st century will be remembered for a terrible war between mankind and goats"