Matthew Coates
@coatesmatthew.bsky.social
Postdoc in Philosophy, Politics and Economics (PPE), University of Pennsylvania | Birdwatcher | Englishman in America | Burnley supporter, Up the Clarets! matthewncoates.github.io
me: you should watch star trek 18-year-old boy in my work: i already don't like star wars me: oh they are nothing alike. star wars is exciting. him (laughing): and star trek is boring? me: yeah star trek is about a bunch of old people in a room talking him: why would i like that? me: its good!
I was about to do the washing up when I came across this email from the economist and decided to read it instead.
In a bar in Philadelphia and I think the entire population of Sunderland just walked in after their game against Wrexham
just seen a post talking about the risk of gentrifying Brick Lane and concerned that the person who posted it maybe got hit on the head very very hard around 15 to 20 years ago and decided to get to Instagram upon waking today
What I love about all train companies is they all believe very deeply that they have Japanese or Swiss levels of reliability when they plan your transfer time. Ten minutes interchange at Florence, Trenitalia? Really? Ten minutes at Darlington, LNER? Seriously?
Deutsche Bahn: You can totally make that 30 minute transfer at Frankfurt Hbf. Also Deutsche Bahn: Sorry we're stopped outside of Frankfurt for 30 minutes because of train traffic.
By popular demand, here is everything you need to know ahead of the Women's Professional Baseball League season that starts tomorrow:
everything you need to know about the WPBL
here's your WPBL-101
thefrankiedlc.news
leaning back in my chair, running a hand over my chin, tapping on the desk for a minute, then clicking "interested"
In a crowded field, this is one of the most dangerously stupid things Google has done in the last few years. And I use the word "dangerously" advisedly.
Joseph Cox@josephcox.bsky.social · 5d agoNew from 404 Media: Google Earth has introduced an AI feature that lets anyone fabricate completely bullshit satellite images. In our own tests, we added a “bomb blast and crater” to an area of Los Angeles. This is a misinformation time bomb, will 100% be abused www.404media.co/google-earth...
Seeing a few people sneer "oh look he's doing charts for dinner" again at this makes me rather angry. Especially if you a) read his very next post and b) see the further points made by @besttrousers.bsky.social just below. But people are just allergic to actually thinking about this for some reason.
Will Stancil@whstancil.bsky.social · last wk.hmm let’s add a couple lines and see how it looks
there are a lot of philosophical concepts that get egregiously misused out of the seminar room (and in the seminar room, to be fair). but in terms of sheer pernicious misuse "social construct" has gotta be top 5 somewhere and it's not number 5
Scott Bryan@scottygb.bsky.social · last wk.Channel 4 has announced documentary “The Great ADHD Myth?” It “seeks to determine whether ADHD is a genuine neurodevelopmental disorder, or a social construct.”
If our nearest neighbour were Germany, John Major would have a golden statue by now. If our nearest neighbour were Swiss, the Avanti board would be in prison.
imagine getting dunked on by Playboy for being weird about women’s bodies
Playboy@playboy.com · 7d agoWhat are the incel men up to over on X? Focussing on a quirk of women’s bodies most of us have never even thought about before now. Our take? "Making women mad and getting likes from fellow incels is all they have going for them." Read now: www.playboy.com/read/sex/the...
(With love,) I think if you are reading this blog post earnestly seeking advice for flirting at conferences, that’s an extremely good indication that you should not try to flirt at conferences
Idk man if you really cannot tell whether you are harassing someone without externalized guidelines, you have no business thinking abt flirting, regardless of location. Better to steer off of people until you gain some clarity & learn how to have a normal convo without violating someone's boundaries
Everyone at work told me to read Dungeon Crawler Carl and its the most annoying thing Ive ever read. Its wall to wall lowest common denominator le epic bacon millennial cringe and it literally starts with a dude complaining about his bitch ex gf. I made it 30pgs. Shade if you like this. Do better
To be fair I got the impression that it would be good for reading in general, as it’s the sort of book that I can imagine people who don’t usually read enjoying, which is probably positive. But I tried to read it and its humour just really annoyed me. A book written by early-mid 2010s Reddit
Truckstop Vigilante@brenthor.bsky.social · last wk.Everyone at work told me to read Dungeon Crawler Carl and its the most annoying thing Ive ever read. Its wall to wall lowest common denominator le epic bacon millennial cringe and it literally starts with a dude complaining about his bitch ex gf. I made it 30pgs. Shade if you like this. Do better
Oh, ok. Maybe they can make “The Great Vaccine Myth?” or ”The Great Evolution Myth?” or “The Great Round Earth Myth?” after it?
Scott Bryan@scottygb.bsky.social · last wk.Channel 4 has announced documentary “The Great ADHD Myth?” It “seeks to determine whether ADHD is a genuine neurodevelopmental disorder, or a social construct.”
Hmmm. I read the Emily Wilson review of Nolan's The Odyssey and not sure what the hubbub is about. Are negative reviews not allowed anymore? Some nuance of her points seems flattened in the criticisms of the review, too.
Getting the team together for one last job but the team is “Roy Hodgson’s England” for some reason
Stephen Bush@stephenkb.bsky.social · last wk.Chelsea signing Welbeck and Henderson = further proof this is all a simulation that is soon to either be reset or develop a game-breaking but.
Going to make a pornographic Warhammer gambling site and become the ultimate titan of the British economy.
Librarian Capital@librariancapital.bsky.social · last wk."How much does Wetherspoons make from its gambling machines?" Mgmt.: "Fruit (or “gambling”) machines accounted for 3.4% of Wetherspoon sales in 2025" 2025 pre-tax margin: 3.8% (ex. one-offs) So they make MAJORITY of profits from fruit machines (EBIT margin is 6.9%, but don't use this, see below)
Thomas Nagel fuming at this one.
MU-Peter Shimon 🀄@mu-peter.bsky.social · 2w agoHumans Can Learn to Echolocate Neuroscience has begun to look at capacity of sensory areas exhibiting a striking degree of plasticity Changes in primary visual and auditory cortex of blind and sighted adults following 10 weeks of click-based echolocation training🧪 academic.oup.com/cercor/artic...
I note with interest that Britain now has the level of state capacity at which "actually doing something" is seen as inherently suspicious.
James O'Malley@jamesomalley.co.uk · 2w agoNew mad conspiracy theory just dropped. (Answers: It's a GCHQ building, and I presume black paint and doors are available at B&Q.)
