PD Smith
@pdsmith.bsky.social
📚City: A Guidebook for the Urban Age, Doomsday Men, Einstein, Metaphor & Materiality. Now writing about cities, detectives and crime. https://linktr.ee/pd_smith
“But when from a long-distant past nothing subsists, after the people are dead, after the things are broken and scattered, … the smell and taste of things remain …” Scientists unravel the mysteries of Proust’s madeleine moment www.thetimes.com/article/5043...
Scientists unravel the mysteries of Proust’s madeleine moment
Researchers have found the part of the brain that creates memory links to odours after studying mice from the early days of their life
thetimes.com
Cropped some parsley from the garden before the sun becomes too hot. Such a beautiful green…
Fresh blueberries from the garden. Raspberries doing less well in the heat…
The Zurbaran exhibition at the National Gallery is superb. Definitely worth visiting…
It’s too hot for me in the garden but the flowers seem to love it…
Very much enjoyed coming up with my top 10 for the 100 best novels in today’s Guardian! Link to my list in the reply. www.theguardian.com/books/ng-int...
The 100 best novels of all time
The top 100 novels of all time published in English, as voted for by authors, critics and academics worldwide. How many have you read?
theguardian.com
Great to be asked to review four fascinating books on nuclear history for the current issue of @thetls.bsky.social. www.the-tls.com/history/twen...
Great to be asked to review four fascinating books on nuclear history for the current issue of @thetls.bsky.social. www.the-tls.com/history/twen...
“The young spent 18 minutes a day reading for pleasure compared with three hours and one minute looking at a screen. One third of 16 to 19-year-olds read nothing at all.” Book lovers’ cathedral on the brink as Paris turns the page on reading www.thetimes.com/article/1b8a...
Book lovers’ cathedral on the brink as Paris turns the page on reading
Literary city risks ‘losing its soul’ as rising costs and falling sales put bookshops out of business
thetimes.com
Wonderful to be back in Rome. Such a beautiful city, full of colour and light, narrow alleys and grand public spaces…
"You're killing the tree by removing the roots." Higgs boson breakthrough was UK triumph, but British physics faces 'catastrophic' cuts. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Higgs Boson was UK triumph, but British physics faces 'catastrophic' cuts
Britain is preparing to cancel its contribution to one of the Large Hadron Collider's next major upgrades.
bbc.co.uk
Loved Carrie Cracknell’s production of Tom Stoppard’s Arcadia @oldvictheatre.bsky.social. Such a wonderfully clever and moving play that weaves together science and literature. Recommended!
“Nothing says ‘I have a great attention span’ like hefting around a 1,000-page book about Beethoven or the Peasants’ Revolt or something.” Buy nonfiction! www.thetimes.com/article/d1be...
There’s a crisis in non-fiction book sales. What’s to blame?
We’re buying 17 million fewer factual books than six years ago. Is the rise of podcasts to blame? Or publishers’ obsession with celebrities and influencers?
thetimes.com
“The chests are so integral to our history. They sit at the centre of the cathedral & they are part of our historical DNA & connect us right back to our Anglo-Saxon past.” Fascinating story. Bones of Anglo-Saxon kings return to Winchester cathedral www.thetimes.com/article/712e...
Bones of Anglo-Saxon kings return to cathedral after DNA ‘jigsaw’
The remains, believed to be of 25 individuals including Emma of Normandy, were jumbled together in mortuary chests at Winchester Cathedral
thetimes.com
“There used to be people from all different social classes, but more and more Paris is a city for the rich.” Can a new mayor take Paris back to its glory days? www.thetimes.com/article/b5db...
Can a new mayor take Paris back to its glory days?
Anne Hidalgo’s opponents say she has undermined retail, waged war on drivers and failed to halt a middle-class exodus. Voters will soon have their say
thetimes.com
Some great Christmas photos from the Times archive. Memories of Christmas past — in pictures www.thetimes.com/article/5848...
Memories of Christmas past — in pictures
Delve into the Times archive to explore a century of festive celebrations, from carols at a Second World War bomb site to Santa’s shift at Harrods
thetimes.com
“It turns an almost intractable problem into something that feels within reach — which, to me, is very exciting.” Fascinating! British breakthrough brings nuclear fusion a step closer www.thetimes.com/article/2fee...
British breakthrough brings nuclear fusion a step closer
Predicting how plasma behaves in a fusion power plant can take days using powerful supercomputers. A new tool backed by Britain can do it in seconds
thetimes.com
Brilliant talk this evening at Winchester College by @bendorgrosvenor.bsky.social about his new book The Invention of British Art. Fascinating!
A great year for sweet corn - today’s lunch fresh from the garden. Delicious!
Here are my two Guardian paperback picks for August! The Green Ages by Annette Kehnel & Ootlin by Jenni Fagan. Links to the reviews below. Enjoy! 🧵 #nonfiction #books📚
Here are my two Guardian paperback picks for August! The Green Ages by Annette Kehnel & Ootlin by Jenni Fagan. Links to the reviews below. Enjoy! 🧵 #nonfiction #books📚
