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Rebekah Higgitt

@rhiggitt.bsky.social

Historian of science; Principal Curator of Science @ntlmuseumsscot.bsky.social & Hon Fellow, STIS, Uni of Edinburgh. VP @bshsnews.bsky.social #histSTM. Views own. Formerly known as @beckyfh https://teleskopos.wordpress.com/profile

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Richard Jean So@richardjeanso.bsky.social · 2h ago

I missed this when it first came out but it's terrific - insightful, helpful - and even if you read it before, it's worth reading again now, esp in light of new arguments emerging that AI technology and R&D should transform into a kind of public utility, not guided entirely by commercial interests.

Ted Underwood@tedunderwood.com · 9mo ago

Wrote a short piece arguing that higher ed must help steer AI. TLDR: If we outsource this to tech, we outsource our whole business. But rejectionism is basically stalling. If we want to survive, schools themselves must proactively shape AI for education & research. [1/6, unpaywalled at 5/6] +

Rebekah Higgitt@rhiggitt.bsky.social · 3d ago

Yup. Closing in the first place was essential, when there was no vaccine, no clear understanding of transmission, and many parents were already taking their children out of school.

Dr Zubaida Haque@zubhaque.bsky.social · 3d ago

We need to separate two distinct failures: 1/Schools stayed closed longer than they needed to bec the govt failed to put in strong mitigation measures to make them safe 2/Johnson failed to invest properly in helping children recover – a failure that led Sir Kevan Collins to resign as “catch‑up tsar”

Rebekah Higgitt@rhiggitt.bsky.social · 5d ago

The Doomsday Clock and @bshsnews.bsky.social are the same age; both will be 80 next year. I hope they'll both see many happy returns yet! #histSTM

Alex Wellerstein@wellerstein.bsky.social · 5d ago

I have not had much time to write this week (because I’ve been writing something else, which will come out in a couple weeks...), but I did manage to get down some ideas for DOOMSDAY MACHINES on an intrusive thought of mine: What's the opposite of the Doomsday Clock?

Rebekah Higgitt@rhiggitt.bsky.social · last wk.

I'm at Edinburgh City Archives, which means facing tourists and pre-Fringe crowds as I go out for lunch. Quite a contrast to the records of Castlehill School that I'm reading, when this was an impoverished area, many pupils lacked boots, even in winter, and boys were in court for playing football.

View up the busy High Street, with St Giles Cathedral on the left, some random orange fencing on the road and just visible statue of Adam Smith with a bollard on his head.
ESO@eso.org · last wk.

The conclusion of a century-long quest 😲 Our VLT obtained firm evidence that Betelgeuse, a red supergiant star in the Orion constellation and one of the most famous stars in the night sky, is not alone! 🔭 🧪 1/4

A collage of various astronomical images. The background image shows a wide view of a starry night sky, with blue lines connecting the stars of the Orion constellation. An inset image zooms into the star Betelgeuse, showing its orange surface. A second inset shows a bright companion next to the star. Image by ESO/M. Montargès et al. Background: N. Rissinger (skysurvey.org).
Jon Agar@jonagar.bsky.social · last wk.

The new Fuchs files are a substantial collection of primary sources on the atom spy. It’s actually a compilation of files to do with his time in prison and afterwards. Some documents of great interest …

Adam Markham@adammarkham.bsky.social · last wk.

This would be another big blow for UK science. It's also a threat to a #WorldHeritage site which was only listed by the UK in 2019 after nearly a decade of work by scientists, advocates & government. Now it should go on the World Heritage "in danger" list. @unesco.bsky.social @icomos.bsky.social 🧪🌏

Jodrell Bank Observatory facing closure after major funder cuts support

Scientists say decision is blow to UK astronomy as deep space observatory is home to world-leading facilities

theguardian.com

Rebekah Higgitt@rhiggitt.bsky.social · 2w ago

Saw the film last night and I'm with Wilson on its lack of depth. It felt predictable, and gave much less than many literary retellings. (Samantha Morton was great, though!)

Hetan Shah@hetanshah.bsky.social · 2w ago

‘It’s also weird there’s no sex and none of the food looks very nice. The Odyssey is all about eating and it’s all about a man getting back to his marriage bed to have sex with his wife’ @emilyrcwilson.bsky.social not too impressed by the film www.thetimes.com/article/c3bc...

Rebekah Higgitt@rhiggitt.bsky.social · 2w ago

These don't look like any of the 17th-19thC texts I have worked on, or 16thC secretary hand. They don't lookike they're written with a quill or nib. Any thoughts?

Dr Cinzia Yates 🇮🇲🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿@manxinwales.bsky.social · 2w ago

Do I (or you) know any historical palaeographers on here? I need some opinions on these texts (just a simple first pass). They are English. I'm just trying to vaguely date them so I can do some proper digging...

Sunder Katwala (sundersays)@sundersays.bsky.social · 2w ago

The retained Home Secretary will now need to 'review and refresh' these settlement reforms after the consultation period. Her Home Office have been working on a compromise plan, as revealed by ex-minister Mike Tapp, among others.

Sunder Katwala (sundersays)@sundersays.bsky.social · 2w ago

Times report still misses > draft proposals 15 years for most, not wait 10 > but most on 15 years could never settle at all (by accident or design), inc many women. Most who'd lose status are black or brown > Mahmood (reluctantly) + Tapp did concede need signficant change to Rayner,Starmer + Burnham