Sam

How safe are UK research institutions from politicisation? - Impact of Social Sciences New research finds the arm's length bodies that underpin UK research run the risk of politicisation unless they are put on a firmer footing.

How safe are UK research institutions from politicisation? Answer - not at all. A Reform government could do the worst of Trump2 in a couple of weeks. blogs.lse.ac.uk/impactofsoci...

The right-wing campaign group that helped topple Roe v Wade in the US is now working to roll back abortion laws in the UK, with the help of Nigel Farage.

Its first step? Trying to create a debate around "free speech"
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/13/w...

Our research makes it clear: by capitulating to the right, Labour is driving voters to Reform UK | Tarik Abou-Chadi and Stuart Turnbull-Dugarte Mimicking Farage on immigration is senseless. Labour voters feel betrayed; anti-immigration voters see through the ruse, say academics Tarik Abou-Chadi and Stuart Turnbull-Dugarte

For the Guardian, @turnbulldugarte.com and I discuss our research that clearly shows one thing: Labour's anti-immigration strategy will only strengthen Reform and weaken its own electoral prospects. It won't win voters back but ultimately normalizes the far right

www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Oh no

Farage pledges to expel hundreds of thousands of migrants Reform says mass deportation would save £234bn as it warns ‘Boriswave’ of migration will take critical toll on welfare system

Any journalist quoting this absurd, invented £234 billion number cited by Farage/Reform should make absolutely clear that it has been withdrawn by *its own authors* (the Centre for Policy Studies) after they admitted it contained several major errors (1/3)

oh man, this is how I remembered my fave Lou Wilson works on that show

The Constant Battle The first excerpt from 107 Days

If this excerpt from VP Harris’ book is typical of the whole, it’s going to be juicy (and enraging.)

www.theatlantic.com/politics/arc...

nce 2017, the number of asylum applications in the UK has been increasing, by 2019 returning to levels seen during 2015-16 although the UK was relatively little affected by the European 'migration crisis’. This recent increase is likely due in part to movement to the UK by those already in Europe. • In 2019, at least 1 in 6 asylum applicants to the UK had made a prior application in a European country. • However, only a small portion of secondary movement across Europe is to the UK – in 2019, the UK produced just 6% of Eurodac hits relating to prior applications elsewhere in Europe. • While many entering the UK may travel through France, most top nationalities applying for asylum in the UK do not apply in France in large numbers (with the exception of Sudanese, Afghan and Albanian applicants). Social networks, shared languages and diasporas motivate asylum seekers to reach certain destination countries • Social networks aid migrant integration to society, acting as facilitators of information relating to life in the destination country. They are considered trusted sources and are likely to influence migration journeys more than information from formal institutions. • The presence of diaspora communities can motivate migrants to reach certain destination countries. The proportion of diasporas in the EU+ residing in the UK is correlated with the proportion of asylum applications across the EU+ made in the UK (see slide 21). Armed conflict, human rights abuses, poverty, political & economic instability and violence are factors that forcibly displace migrants • The majority (57%) of individuals escaping persecution are internally displaced within their own countries and most refugees displaced abroad stay within their region of displacement, living in countries neighbouring their countries of origin 1 2 . • Of the number of asylum seekers that reach Europe, only a small percentage claim asylum in the UK. In 2019, the UK received 6% of total EU+ asylum applications. • A …

The Home Office's own (excellent) research summary says

a) asylum seekers come to the UK primarily because of social networks/ties

b) welfare and labour market policies are *not* a big "pull factor"

c) safe routes would help

freemovement.org.uk/wp-content/u...

Collapse of critical Atlantic current is no longer low-likelihood, study finds Scientists say ‘shocking’ discovery shows rapid cuts in carbon emissions are needed to avoid catastrophic fallout

Let me rewatch The Day After Tomorrow to see what to expect.

Reform UK, which has a grand total of four MPs, was just given an uninterrupted platform for an hour and a half on the BBC and Sky News channels, in order to talk about its plans for mass deportations

When was the last time the Greens (with four MPs) or the Lib Dems (with 72) were given the same?

This is dark and incredibly damning. We're speed running social media and mental health stuff, and now we're seeing direct lines of liability to chatbots. >>

Call from a producer this morning:

Zoe please help - we thought the panel on our show was balanced, but it turns out they’re both pro-mass detention camps for asylum seekers. Would you come on to be the anti-detention camp voice?

We are in a really bad place, friends, I am telling you.

Factcheck: Trump’s climate report includes more than 100 false or misleading claims

NEW – Factcheck: Trump’s climate report includes more than 100 false or misleading claims | @ayeshatandon.carbonbrief.org @leohickman.carbonbrief.org @ceciliakeating.carbonbrief.org @rtmcswee.carbonbrief.org @tomoprater.carbonbrief.org

Read here: buff.ly/AvcB7Aw

My wife shared this with me and I’m tellin you… it’s worth the read.

What do these people think climate change is going to do to their tranquillity and beauty?! And the answer is 'at any cost', if what you really mean is 'what parts of our comfortable middle-class lives do we need to compromise to ensure a liveable future for our grandchildren'

Rusty is reliably excellent but this is Proper. (I am also in the 'read Apt Pupil once, never again' camp)

🌲Ed Sheeran explains to Louis Theroux that he dislikes private jets and prefers trains because "I like the environment, I like trees." We know that this type of messaging from celebrities is hugely impactful. We need far more of this from more stars.
As posted by @nowthisimpact.bsky.social

There it is. The first ever Heat Advisory issued in Alaska. This is the first year it has been an option. @alaskawx.bsky.social

I told you we’d be back

This internet poll is breaking men's brains! And this is what we get when male fitness standards clash with female preferences.

The latest batshit internet scandal is men accusing women of “lying” when stating a preference for Ollie Murs’ before pic.

So I unpacked all that

nataliaantonova.substack.com/p/this-inter...

People in casual spring attire walk, cycle, and ride trams along car-free streets lined with colourful low-rise residential buildings in the neighbourhood of Vauban in Freiburg, Germany.

People in casual spring attire walk, cycle, and ride trams along car-free streets lined with colourful low-rise residential buildings in the neighbourhood of Vauban in Freiburg, Germany.

People in casual spring attire walk, cycle, and ride trams along car-free streets lined with colourful low-rise residential buildings in the neighbourhood of Vauban in Freiburg, Germany.

People in casual spring attire walk, cycle, and ride trams along car-free streets lined with colourful low-rise residential buildings in the neighbourhood of Vauban in Freiburg, Germany.

A former French military base, Vauban is a thriving neighbourhood of 5,500 residents connected to Freiburg town centre by bus and light rail. Built in the late 1990s as a radical experiment in low-car living, it forgoes virtually all on-street parking in favour of active, green, and social spaces. 🧵

Gene found to link obesity risk in labradors and humans Scientists have found a genetic cause of many labradors' - and some people's - tendency to overeat.

Dogs that are constantly hungry and prone to being overweight share common biology with some obesity-prone humans.

The researchers comment - "owners of slim dogs are not morally superior - and the same is true of slim people".
🧪🐕

www.bbc.com/news/article...

FYI I'm aware we're having some intermittent 'invalid handle' issues with our feed accounts which I'm trying to get fixed asap #academicsky

Well THIS is excellent news

Liz Truss called solar farms a “blight on the landscape”, but researchers have found they are actually better for birds than farmland

Solar farms in East Anglia had greater bird diversity & bird abundance than nearby arable land, a study finds

Paper here later www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

this was the actual cover in question - it's from the 1981 edition rather than the 1964 (I did not end up with a dress like this, obviously!)

When I got married, I couldn’t figure out why none of the dresses I tried on felt right, until I realised that was I was looking for was the dress on the cover of this book, which was apparently embedded in my subconscious

NOOOOOO

Elidor has the tensest opening chapter in all of children’s fiction I think. So good.

21-24% of Britons falsely believe that Axel Rudakubana is a Muslim, an immigrant to the UK, and was motivated by religious terrorism – and this figure has grown since the summer

yougov.co.uk/politics/art...