William Kentridge, Blue Rubrics (Starve the Algorithm), 2019
16.02.2025 15:23
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William Kentridge, Blue Rubrics (Starve the Algorithm), 2019
free product tie in idea: cake pop demon hunters there you go starbucks it’s all yours
Other sources of pride include the political system (mentioned by 22% of Britons), diversity and multiculturalism (16%) and health care (12%), especially the “National Health Service.” 🏥
Dive deeper into our full survey covering 25 countries:
Some negative responses refer to specific issues, like “Brexit was a bad idea,” while others simply say there is “not much to feel proud [of] at the moment.” There are few countries where people mention things they are not proud of as frequently as the British.
“What makes you proud of your country?” 🇬🇧
People in the U.K. are proud of the “kind” and “honest” British people (25%), but they just as frequently mention things they are not proud of (29%).
Very minor
World Book Day to-do list:
- spend some time reading a book
- make a plan to get to the library this weekend
- send fan mail to an author
- send a donation to a literacy charity
Optional: tell people I'm dressed up as a minor character in Stefan Fatsis' Unabridged
Patrick will be exploring the 80th anniversary of the "Iron Curtain" speech at the @mileendinstitute.bsky.social tonight, 18:30. Do join us!
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/beyond-the...
"If a major burden shift is likely, Britain & its neighbours can try to negotiate a Fulton-in-reverse, receiving back the baton but in an orderly, stable & gradual way, creating a less American not a post-American Europe"
Key reading from @patporter76.bsky.social
www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
For World Book Day I might dress as an author on a deadline and spend all day on Bluesky
Saying it with a full [t], yes, formal. But saying it with a flap in the middle (the AmE d-like t) to me doesn't sound formal. I think when I first heard it I thought "Oh, this must be a pod person whose AmE simulation has cracks". Then I found out I was the weirdo.
My photo shows part of a limestone wall panel carved in bas relief from the Fifth Dynasty mortuary temple of king Userkaf at Saqqara, Old Kingdom, 2465-2458 BC. It shows a Hoopoe, a crested bird with black and white wing pattern, and an ibis, with long curved beak, amongst papyrus plants in the marshes of the river Nile. My photo was taken in 2022 at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.
Lovely naturalistic relief of a Hoopoe and Ibis, carved by an Egyptian artisan some 4,500 years ago!
Limestone wall relief from the 5th Dynasty mortuary temple of Userkaf at Saqqara. Egyptian Museum, Cairo 📷 by me
#ReliefWednesday
#Archaeology
What. The. Fuck.
WTF
Apparently so. I grew up with it in upstate NY, but apparently it's v common in the west now.
I’ve heard that occasionally. It’s odd
I only learned that not all Americans have a glottal stop in 'mitten' when I moved away from upstate NY and tried teaching intro to linguistics...
Chart showing about a quarter of teens say they are highly confident using chatbots.
About a quarter of teens report being extremely or very confident in their ability to use chatbots. Roughly another three-in-ten say they’re somewhat confident.
Dive deeper: www.pewresearch.org/...
Interesting. UKers are proud of being kind and honest—but outsiders might not understand English indirectness & reserve (& poor charitable giving &c) that way.
USers are proud of their 'freedoms & liberties', but outsiders'll ask how can you really be free with so little safety net (healthcare)?
Day 3 of Female Words for #WomensHistoryMonth - trilby.
A soft felt, narrow-brimmed hat with an indented crown. It gets its name from the dramatised version of “Trilby” a hugely popular novel published in 1894 by George du Maurier (1834-1896 and Daphne du Maurier's grandfather) #etymology 🧵
Festive Lucky Dip Special offer. Pay just £10 postage for 15 lucky dip back issues (contact us for overseas prices) Contact babelthelanguagemagazine@gmail. com to place your order
Not yet a susbcriber to Babel magazine? Well, you can find out what you're missing through the back-issue (BrE) lucky dip*!
*AmE grab bag
Complain. I've seen it work!
🚨 It looks like the UK government is gearing up to upend copyright law in favour of AI companies, legalising the theft of their work.
This is despite creatives' huge protests, and despite previous proposals being roundly rejected by the public.
Please spread the word.
🧵 1/4
Street name "Prince Andrew Court" with the last part crossed out and changed to "caught".
cot-caught-court on a British high street ;-) #linguistics
The February Separated by a Common Newsletter is out!
Two blog posts this month, plus lots of fantastic links
lynneguist.substack.com/p/not-the-lo...
For the 2026 primary elections, NPR has collected deadlines and information on how to register to vote — online, in person or by mail — in every U.S. state and territory.
Reflecting on this and the fact that the UK is actually very good at economic and social outcomes for immigrants…
What if we built our immigration policy around the fact we’re GOOD at this stuff? And used the lessons of what has worked well to talk about national identity, welcome and integration?
