There's lots of stuff LLMs can't do, but if you want to disbelieve all the recent math, you have to believe a bunch of Fields Medalists with long track records are just straightforwardly lying about the thing they care most about. Here's a recent blog by Gowers: gowers.wordpress.com/2026/05/08/a...

A recent experience with ChatGPT 5.5 Pro

We are all having to keep revising upwards our assessments of the mathematical capabilities of large language models. I have just made a fairly large revision as a result of ChatGPT 5.5 Pro, to whi…

gowers.wordpress.com

The Tour de France completed it's 113th edition yesterday. By why do cyclist keep making moves they know are destined to fail? Not for nothing is grand tour cycling often referred to as "Chess on Wheels". Check out my latest substack. open.substack.com/pu...

We were deeply saddened to hear of the sudden death of Professor Adrian Bowman, a distinguished statistician, longstanding RSS fellow, and valued contributor to the Society for almost five decades. Adrian's contributions to statistics, teaching, and the RSS will have a lasting impact.

Adrian W. Bowman, 1955-2026

rss.org.uk

"Impact as pressure, rather than recognition" chimes with my experience. In UK, the REF requirement to document impact makes extra work not properly recognised by colleagues or institution, and not portable. A sane UK academic should avoid having impact. Perverse. blogs.lse.ac.uk/impactofsoci...

Are high impact researchers less happy? - LSE Impact

Impact agendas are framed as ways of highlighting & rewarding work that reaches beyond academia, but do they come at a cost to researcher happiness & wellbeing?

blogs.lse.ac.uk

Exactly this. Starmer and Reeves ended the destructive misrule that had characterised the previous 14 years, but they were elected to change politics and the economy rather than stabilise it in a bad place.

Jonathan Portes@jdportes.bsky.social · 3w ago

Starmer and Reeves' legacy is stabilisation without a strategy. My unsolicited advice to Andy Burnham and the new Chancellor. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

I live in Clacton and have been posting this plea everywhere today.

As heatwaves sweep across Europe, climate change is once again front and centre. But 10 years after the Paris Agreement, what do the numbers say? Both the modest improvements and significant challenges show the importance of stats in understanding climate progress. Read the latest CCTF explainer👇

Did the Paris Agreement work? RSS explainer assesses the evidence

rss.org.uk

Fluffing or just plain fibbing? Read it and you choose!

Kemi Badenoch fluffs her lines on welfare

She relies on dud facts to make her case

kellnerp.substack.com

Chris Mason should just go on and work for GB News now His hero worship for Nigel Farage is now just an open joke

Zia Yusuf claims Farage is bravely "bringing forward" the judgment of "the ultimate authority": the people of Clacton. Two problems here: 1) He's insisting they judge *before* the full evidence has been heard, not *after*; 2) No constituency can exempt its MP from rules designed to protect us all

He literally took undeclared donations from a criminal - never mind “breaking rules” Farage has tried to ignore them entirely for personal gain. And he’s done it over and over again www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Farage denies rules broken after reports benefits from ally were not declared

The Sunday Times says the Reform UK leader failed to register the support supplied by a man who had been convicted of fraud in the US.

bbc.co.uk

Following the decision of Statistics and Computing to charge (high!) APCs to *all* accepted papers, I decided to resign from the Editorial Board. (Sorry to the let EiC down, he's doing a super job).

F. Javier Rubio@fjrubio.bsky.social · last mo.

“Springer about to hijack Statistics & Computing” xianblog.wordpress.com/2026/06/28/s...

The small army of goalkeepers got me

Razzball@razzball.bsky.social · last mo.

my kind of Jubilee, the Japanese national team vs. 100 kids

One of the lessons of the last two years is that Labour urgently needs to stop being afraid of its own shadow. Burnham should appoint whoever he thinks would be the best Chancellor and throw his authority behind them. The Daily Mail will try to kill them anyway. So just govern.

Tim Bale@timbale.bsky.social · last mo.

Hard not to regard this as a classic example of a pre-emptive campaign by certain sectors, along with their media sympathisers, to discourage a new prime minister from appointing someone who might damage their interests in the long and short term. And it will almost certainly work.

Beckenbauer 😂 m.youtube.com/watch?v=PjV9...

Monty Python's World Cup Team of Philosophers

YouTube video by Lonnie Goldman

m.youtube.com

BBC article about Brian Ripley of the #RStats Core team given this week's excellent news concerning 2026 Rousseeuw Price for Statistics recognition for him and the core team. www.bbc.com/news/article...

Prof Brian Ripley on developing R to manage the world's data

Prof Brian Ripley has spent the past three decades working on a computer software that analyses data.

bbc.com

It's just one long stream of BS from these fossil fuel-backed clowns. Adopting their policies would destroy a million jobs (see next post) while creating almost none in return. Total environmental and social vandalism. The absolute state of "conservatism". www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

Populist and rightwing figures take aim at Ed Miliband and UK net zero policies at ‘anti-woke Davos’

Kemi Badenoch, who joined US anti-abortion activists and European far-right parties at ARC, described energy secretary as a ‘villain’

theguardian.com

The UK Statistics Authority has written to Kemi Badenoch today, following our fact check of her inaccurate claim that the total welfare bill is now higher than income tax receipts “for the first time ever”. We hope she will correct the record soon.

Statistics watchdog challenges Badenoch over welfare claim after Full Fact intervention – Full Fact

The UK Statistics Authority has called on the Conservatives to “clarify” the inaccurate claim in their Alternative King’s Speech

fullfact.org

Grateful to Geoff Marshall for his map showing where London Underground lines are air conditioned. Also most overground services are. Thank you too to the Mayor of London for the investment in upgrading London train services. #tubes #heatwave secretldn.com/air-conditio...

This handy Tube map details every air-conditioned line across London’s public transport network – here’s how to stay cool while you commute

If you're having to use London's transport network during this heatwave; allow us to point you in the direction of the coolest carriages of all.

secretldn.com

It’s the utter shamelessness that is so striking If not those leading Leave then who should have plans? He can’t blame the utter mess of the Brexit HE delivered on anyone else That was HIS plan. A terrible one Helped along by political weakness & knee-jerk voting And we are all paying the price.

Farrukh@implausibleblog.bsky.social · last mo.

10 years ago, after narrowly winning the referendum, Boris Johnson confessed, "We didn't have a plan for what to do next" "We didn't think it was our job to have a plan" 10 years later, Brexit continues to be a disaster

#OTD 1912 Alan Turing b (d 7 Jun 1954). OBE FRS. Father of AI & pioneering work in theoretical computer science & information theory. His contributions to probability & statistics are almost unknown, as most of these papers were classified until 1980s, & 2 were only declassified in 2012.

It's the 10th anniversary of the dumbest moment in modern British history so let's celebrate some of the idiots who made it happen. First up ... Jacob Rees-Mogg and his promise of cheap food and wine... In fact food prices have increased some 12% as a direct result of Brexit (LSE) 1/5

Makerfield is - of course - hugely important, and perhaps Nigel Farage may be encouraged to fade away & spend more time with his £5 million "personal security" £££ & other donations - but today's biggest news is this: the real cost of Brexit to all of us. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Brexit cost 6% of UK economy, Bank of England company data suggests

Analysis showed how much the UK could have grown if it had not exited the EU.

bbc.co.uk

Reform have now lost six by-elections in a row in England, Scotland and Wales. Their national poll rating is 26% – below Labour in 1983 – and Farage’s approval rating is -37. They’re very far from the voice of the people and need to stop being treated as such.

Since I did do my PhD in cyanobacteria growth and treatment optimization modeling AND work in the water treatment industry, I’m gonna share my theory as to what’s happening here and how to fix it. People are focusing on the painted bottom of the pool increasing residual heat, and while that 1/19

derek guy@dieworkwear.bsky.social · 2mo ago

RIP Mark Rothko. You would have loved how the hydrogen peroxide bleach is only turning the Reflecting Pool blue around the perimeter

At 6pm this evening, at Broadway House, RSS President Sir John Aston will give this year's President's Address on the theme 'Statistics in Times of Crisis'. Free to attend and followed by a drinks reception. We hope to see many of you there. Full details: rss.org.uk/training-eve...

RSS President's Address: Statistics in times of crisis

rss.org.uk

Exactly 10 years ago today, Labour MP Jo Cox was murdered by a far-right man. She was just 41 years old. One of many victims of far-right terrorism. R.I.P. 💔

The most disgusting behaviour I’ve ever witnessed in public spaces was directed at Sadiq Khan by ‘anti-Ulez’ protesters, who of course received way more coverage, much of it friendly, than the scheme’s incredible success ever will.

The Guardian@theguardian.com · 2mo ago

Emergency hospital admissions fell after introduction of London’s T-charge and Ulez, study suggests

Justin Webb now stating as fact that in Northern Ireland - and across the U.K. - for years people ‘have been able to come here and get access to services’ that local people can’t Is there any evidence for this? Why is a presenter on the BBC stating this as fact?