"We've normalised the troll" - so true. Offline, this behaviour would not be tolerated to the same extent. But even online there are cool people like us though, which keeps me going!!!
Freelance science and technology journalist. 11+ years experience. Irish/Polish. I write for the BBC, Wired, the BMJ, The Guardian, and others! Newsletter: thereengineer.pro Portfolio: chrisbaraniuk.com HQ: Belfast, Northern Ireland
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"We've normalised the troll" - so true. Offline, this behaviour would not be tolerated to the same extent. But even online there are cool people like us though, which keeps me going!!!
Woah this was new to me, too. And gone! I recently got an N64 - Goldeneye an obligatory initial purchase but am almost more looking forward to replaying PD.
You keep saying it's up to me but... somehow it feels like, really, you're saying something else. Muting now :)
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Language is always changing, some things go out of fashion, new spellings get adopted... I think there's more to it than what the dictionary, or a grammar book, says.
I just think this division of spellings into US or UK is often not as clear as some think. While "color" is something that shouts "I'm from the US", "reengineer" is less obvious. The fact that UK publications often spell it sans hyphen - in spite of style guides - only proves my point, really.
Pine marten?
I'm not sure in this case it really is the "American" spelling. It appears in various UK publications including the Guardian. And also in the Cambridge dictionary, a spelling option not listed as US. For the title of a publication, losing the hyphen works better. share.google/RqLa90BsNMaZ...
Nah
Haha, more like lying in a pile of empty fast food cartons saying "you too can live like this"
Please do share the above post! FYI, this is restricted to freelance *journalism*, specifically. I can't really help re: commercial writing / copywriting / creative writing. It's been a while since I last did a round of these calls. Looking forward to 'em!
Hey everyone - are you / do you know a budding or early career *freelance journalist*?? I'm offering 8 *free* calls with folks during Sept / Oct to share my experiences and advice on how to make freelance journalism work professionally. Contact me if you're interested. First come, first served.
The 1,210 empty newbuild homes reported on here are the tip of the iceberg, as only a small proportion of applications have got through the earlier part of the process - most are still waiting for approval to be built.
Build, build, build isn't much use as mantra if you then leave the new homes sitting empty for a year or more while the Building Safety Regulator gets round to approving them. This process used to take a matter of days when local authorities were in charge of it. news.sky.com/story/bluesk...
I am pretty good at seeing the future, but I didn't expect this to come true the next day. Humans are being hired to make AI slop look less sloppy www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-ne...
Confirmed. www.bbc.co.uk/weather/arti...
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Of course, drop me an email! chrisbaraniuk at gmail
cc @emmajourno.bsky.social @richardfisher.bsky.social @redique.bsky.social
Oh and to be clear, these calls are one-to-one and 100% confidential.
Please do share the above post! FYI, this is restricted to freelance *journalism*, specifically. I can't really help re: commercial writing / copywriting / creative writing. It's been a while since I last did a round of these calls. Looking forward to 'em!
Hey everyone - are you / do you know a budding or early career *freelance journalist*?? I'm offering 8 *free* calls with folks during Sept / Oct to share my experiences and advice on how to make freelance journalism work professionally. Contact me if you're interested. First come, first served.
"You all must personally post better" is a deflection - it's not about "posting better", it's about ensuring hostility / gatekeeping - a long-standing issue in many online social hubs - does not get out of hand. This is not new to Bluesky. But it remains important.
Nah. Growth may not be essential for every online hangout space (plenty of olde worlde forums still exist with stagnant user bases). It *is* important for a site like Bluesky that seemingly wants to have its finger on the pulse / provide a resource for researchers, political folks, journalists etc.
There is such knowledge and helpfulness on here - and you're right, lists / feeds really help! I just hate to see it drowned out by over-posters who will argue at anything.
Hardly anyone I know IRL uses social media like Bluesky anymore. Everyone's just done with having aggression / gate-keeping thrown at them all the time. Personally, I have found some wonderful people on here and I would like that to continue.
Bluesky is a fantastic resource at the moment, especially for science and energy folks. But I have to say I agree with James. The hostility and nitpicking is extremely off-putting. Anecdotal, but IMO it feels like the place is getting quieter, too.
You're baiting them
Tomato season.
"If you have a heat pump you will find a constant day temp and say 2 or 3 degree night-time setback is best for running costs." Should Your Heating be Left on All the Time or Not? - HeatGeek share.google/Gi5rctATmBZI...
The performance will depend on the home and installation in question - it's something to ask a professional installer about. I'd be surprised if it were a deal breaker. @heat-geek.bsky.social @tomasmcguinness.bsky.social
You can certainly have a cooler overnight (or out-during-the-day) temperature. Often called a setback temperature. If your regular temperature is 20C and your setback is, like, 12C then there is more work for your heat pump to do getting to 20C again. But if your setback is 18C it's not as severe.
bUt OnE AI qUEry DoEsn'T uSe MuCh EnErgY share.google/sjQCtlt4ahtU...
A fair distinction I think but A) Some people might feel what they need is emotional support when they really need therapeutic intervention - a trained professional can help confirm. B) even if they "only" want emotional support, is AI the best option? Disclosure: my wife is a psychologist
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Sorry to hear that! The Heating Hub, National Energy Action and Energy Saving Trust all have great advice so might be worth checking them out.
Am fascinated to see how low one can push these things - I wonder how many houses have 10+ kW of power burning that is totally unnecessary?
How to Set Your Thermostat—According to Science | WIRED share.google/GJVPycOBvyXb...
Some articles I've written on this topic: The hacks that can help to keep your home warmer - BBC Future share.google/c9o82b2FHC0X...
I think you may be thinking of a hot water tank? My boiler is a combi, which is different and has different requirements re safety.
It doesn't define temperature output - the flow temperature is set separately. The 40-50C I mentioned refers to radiator temp, not hot water temp (no legionella risk unless u plan on washing in radiator water!) The 60% = the power the boiler expends in the process of reaching desired temperatures.
He mentioned that manufacturer training has highlighted that many boilers are far more powerful than they need to be for the size of homes they are in. So maybe this point is beginning to filter through the industry a bit more! First time I've heard it from a boiler service guy.
Will keep a close eye on it over winter. Interested to see if there's a noticeable reduction in gas use but depends on weather etc etc.
Heating engineer turned boiler power output down to 60% (think it was previously at 80%). Had been hoping to try it at this level for a while! No heating needed at the moment but that might change in the next few weeks... Generally keep flow temp between 40-50C, occasionally 55C absolute max.
Rubbish behaviour. As is commenting on a story with random thoughts / questions having never bothered to read it. It's nothing new, and seemingly ubiquitous these days, but *so* irritating.
Extremely depressing: posting a feature story you worked hard to research and write only to have some reader on a social media platform tag an AI chat bot to ask a question that would have been answered if only they'd actually read the story.
Also I think writers really do have to compete with TikTok influencers and the like. That doesn't necessarily mean becoming one! But I think we increasingly need to make explicit the value of good writing / reporting. A hard sell in this day and age - maybe - but nothing beats the best writing.
And I think more journalists and publications should be saying it loud and clear, and explaining why readers should trust them rather than AI.
That's not to say there are never good reasons for blocking a wind development but the lack of detail and transparency is increasingly noticeable.
You can see a pattern with this wind farm blocking behaviour from the US government at the moment - often the reasons cited are very vague or overblown.
Related: Wind farms 'could disrupt railway radio tech' – wait, what? share.google/DoR5LVH7wl8s...
www.canarymedia.com/articles/off...
Planted* ofc!
I planned a few shallots and basically forgot about them... But they've done all right!
My newsletter has been going for about 9 months now. I'm really happy with how it's developed - thank you to everyone who has subscribed so far! If you haven't yet, do consider it. Reengineering in response to climate change is really booming, from what I can tell... www.thereengineer.pro
www.thereengineer.pro/p/the-bigges...
www.thereengineer.pro/p/spin-up-wa...
www.thereengineer.pro/p/an-interne...
www.thereengineer.pro/p/we-should-...
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My newsletter has been going for about 9 months now. I'm really happy with how it's developed - thank you to everyone who has subscribed so far! If you haven't yet, do consider it. Reengineering in response to climate change is really booming, from what I can tell... www.thereengineer.pro
Not a bad place for a swim. And the passing dolphins were the icing on the cake. 🐬
Watched the 2010 remake of The Crazies tonight. It was great! Definitely better than I expected.
Well that's an easy block.
Not sure my picture really captures it that well but the attention to detail on this layout was incredible.
Being EXTRA cool today and checking out the (fantastic!) Ulster Model Railway Club annual exhibition.
Speckled wood.
You're totally right to point this out. A lot of people seem desperate to constantly make their bitterness and judgements known - as if constantly gatekeeping their own brains - rather than exploring information and doing the best one can only ever really do: keep learning.
Three years ago it was possible to attempt the Great American Road Trip in an EV and end up stranded. Two years ago it was touch and go. Now you can just wing it. There are 60,000 fast charging ports in the U.S. today, mostly Tesla. By 2030 there will be *180,000*, mostly not-Tesla.
Something surprising is happening -- despite Trump admin's rollbacks of incentives for EVs and related tech: America's fast charging infrastructure is exploding. We'll see a 3x increase in chargers in just the next 4 years. I hit the road to experience it first hand: www.wsj.com/business/aut...
Oof, this is extraordinary and extremely moving. BBC Radio 4 - New Storytellers, In Living Memory share.google/xYno2M45Ykuc...
It's just about identifiable! We had one earlier in the summer though it only visited twice.
The only thing I'd add is that writing creatively involves being inventive, maybe breaking a few boundaries, always attempting something eye-catching, heart-catching. The passage above is a great example. Celebrate that this comes from people. Us.
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Fabulous
It's extreme. The Essex houseboat is the other one I always cite.
The man who built his house upon the cliffs. Grand Designs ‘saddest ever property’ finally sells after over a decade of turmoil share.google/gQYQcpfvHBF8...
Oof, this is extraordinary and extremely moving. BBC Radio 4 - New Storytellers, In Living Memory share.google/xYno2M45Ykuc...
What's your favourite radio programme? Has to be World at One for me.
Pollutant-rich gases from the ships’ exhaust will be pumped into a container filled with pellets made from lime, a substance that naturally reacts with CO2 to form limestone: “You can think of lime as a CO2 sponge,” says [Seabound co-founder Alisha] Fredriksson. www.thereengineer.pro/p/the-plan-t...
We thank you for your service
I'm going to reiterate this, re: the Margaux Blanchard fallout. Honestly, if you're a human writer out there, I think it's time to speak up for yourself and remind people why you offer so much more than a chatbot. You'll have your own version of this. Say it. Sell it.
And yet bsky.app/profile/kevi...
It's something!
And it was that very question that was my motivation for writing this story. Seabound has been met with much scepticism so I asked them about their entire loop and how they planned to account for / manage CO2 right from obtaining lime to the end of their process.
That's explained in the article :)
Pollutant-rich gases from the ships’ exhaust will be pumped into a container filled with pellets made from lime, a substance that naturally reacts with CO2 to form limestone: “You can think of lime as a CO2 sponge,” says [Seabound co-founder Alisha] Fredriksson. www.thereengineer.pro/p/the-plan-t...
youtu.be/liiVX55tJ7E?...
I'm going to reiterate this, re: the Margaux Blanchard fallout. Honestly, if you're a human writer out there, I think it's time to speak up for yourself and remind people why you offer so much more than a chatbot. You'll have your own version of this. Say it. Sell it.
I feel for editors in these weird times. Weeding out this nonsense is a whole other job, and not a fun one. I also hate the thought that everything I write will now be regarded with suspicion. Ugh.
We got burned by an AI freelancer and a few missteps of our own. Here's the full disclosure on that. All I can add from my vantage here is that my work has always been subject to rigorous fact checking. It's sometimes a days long, maddening process, but 100% of the time I am grateful in the end.
Thank you for clarifying
I think you're right that this is a factor, but I've seen so many sources that refer to a lack of water that is cool enough being a problem. France nuclear river too hot cooling - Google Scholar share.google/Nq65LNyE4qGF... happy to be corrected if this is genuinely not the case!
ChatGPT is probably the last place I'd go for an accurate source on stuff like this.
NEW: Seabound has a plan to capture carbon and sulphur emissions from ships as they sail. I asked them A) why they think CCS is a good idea for shipping and B) how can they ensure it will lead to a true net reduction in emissions. 🚢💨 www.thereengineer.pro/p/the-plan-t...
High French river temperatures to hit nuclear production next week | Reuters share.google/exdp9rTpEiox...
Hey Ralph! People who comment meaninglessly on my posts and tell me to "look it up" get blocked.
NEW: Seabound has a plan to capture carbon and sulphur emissions from ships as they sail. I asked them A) why they think CCS is a good idea for shipping and B) how can they ensure it will lead to a true net reduction in emissions. 🚢💨 www.thereengineer.pro/p/the-plan-t...