Matthew Somerville
@dracos.co.uk
I help people report broken street lights, find out their bin day, plan train travel, manage an orchestra, locate the nearest postbox, research old theatre productions, keep time in a choir, and occasionally play board games | https://dracos.co.uk
Having a very rare triple cinema day. Have seen Transformers (1986) 40th anniversary rerelease (dont think I saw it at the time; what an 80s soundtrack!), next up Shaun the Sheep: The Beast of Mossy Bottom, and then Pressure
September 19, 2026 at 2:19 PM
Having a very rare triple cinema day. Have seen Transformers (1986) 40th anniversary rerelease (dont think I saw it at the time; what an 80s soundtrack!), next up Shaun the Sheep: The Beast of Mossy Bottom, and then Pressure
Reposted by Matthew Somerville
This is going around as essential reading and for very good reason. Honestly the most incisive and full summary of the longtermism/x-risk pathology I have seen.
Every stanza is a gem, and the closing is genius, but my personal favorite, because I have had this exact conversation almost verbatim:
Every stanza is a gem, and the closing is genius, but my personal favorite, because I have had this exact conversation almost verbatim:
![[nitter.app post excerpt from banteg]
>someone asks where the one-in-a-million number came from
> expert judgement
>which expert
>us
>how calibrated
> extremely thoughtfully
›reduce estimate to one in ten million to be conservative
›still beats curing cancer by 38 orders of magnitude
›epistemic robustness achieved](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:wh6w2f2s53tgyaqws22bobam/bafkreibpxyhcaxi7ulblrfmt253xiyragzxuerdgtijcttsuo6arhelh2q)
September 19, 2026 at 11:42 AM
This is going around as essential reading and for very good reason. Honestly the most incisive and full summary of the longtermism/x-risk pathology I have seen.
Every stanza is a gem, and the closing is genius, but my personal favorite, because I have had this exact conversation almost verbatim:
Every stanza is a gem, and the closing is genius, but my personal favorite, because I have had this exact conversation almost verbatim:
I’m not scared, I’m angry.
My sites still work, as I have spent a lot of time dealing with the issue (especially last week when scrapers started to overload the server). I wouldn’t even care about them scraping (for my specific things) if they had any indication of community, care or consideration
My sites still work, as I have spent a lot of time dealing with the issue (especially last week when scrapers started to overload the server). I wouldn’t even care about them scraping (for my specific things) if they had any indication of community, care or consideration
When we talk about the costs that LLMs impose on society we should not forget the fact that nothing works anymore because everyone is so scared of getting their shit scraped.
I can't even use google scholar from my university or starlink because they send too much traffic.
I can't even use google scholar from my university or starlink because they send too much traffic.
September 19, 2026 at 5:58 AM
I’m not scared, I’m angry.
My sites still work, as I have spent a lot of time dealing with the issue (especially last week when scrapers started to overload the server). I wouldn’t even care about them scraping (for my specific things) if they had any indication of community, care or consideration
My sites still work, as I have spent a lot of time dealing with the issue (especially last week when scrapers started to overload the server). I wouldn’t even care about them scraping (for my specific things) if they had any indication of community, care or consideration
@paulclarke.com Here you go, was passing on my way to Mahler 2. Lovely to see you
September 17, 2026 at 8:37 PM
@paulclarke.com Here you go, was passing on my way to Mahler 2. Lovely to see you
I was early enough coming home that the Milton Keynes to London part turned out to be £43.20 total. £108.40, a 57% saving overall. Sadly no ice cream stop
Talking of which - off to Stevenage for the day, £252 return… or:
🍍to Rugby : £15 return
To Milton Keynes : £21.40 return
To London : £48.80 two singles
To Stevenage : £28.80 two singles
Total: £114
Annoyingly due to changes etc you have to work that out in bits on split.traintimes.org.uk
🍍to Rugby : £15 return
To Milton Keynes : £21.40 return
To London : £48.80 two singles
To Stevenage : £28.80 two singles
Total: £114
Annoyingly due to changes etc you have to work that out in bits on split.traintimes.org.uk
split.traintimes.org.uk
September 16, 2026 at 4:40 PM
I was early enough coming home that the Milton Keynes to London part turned out to be £43.20 total. £108.40, a 57% saving overall. Sadly no ice cream stop
The keyboard at New Street says from 7am but it is switched off so you are all saved my poor half remembered Williams, Einaudi, Bach
September 16, 2026 at 6:10 AM
The keyboard at New Street says from 7am but it is switched off so you are all saved my poor half remembered Williams, Einaudi, Bach
When I saw the grey background didn’t get down to the bottom of the container, and you couldn’t scroll to the bottom (only in Safari) my first thought was – is this a float bug? Surely it can’t be a float bug! And lo, it is a float bug! In 2026!
September 15, 2026 at 2:43 PM
When I saw the grey background didn’t get down to the bottom of the container, and you couldn’t scroll to the bottom (only in Safari) my first thought was – is this a float bug? Surely it can’t be a float bug! And lo, it is a float bug! In 2026!
You will be pleased to know this is (hopefully) the last message I shall send about the awful Tax-free Childcare system. Mine has now aged out, so I closed the account on 3rd August. They sent me a few notifications.
And yet, this morning, I received the quarterly “confirm your details” email!
And yet, this morning, I received the quarterly “confirm your details” email!
September 15, 2026 at 6:19 AM
You will be pleased to know this is (hopefully) the last message I shall send about the awful Tax-free Childcare system. Mine has now aged out, so I closed the account on 3rd August. They sent me a few notifications.
And yet, this morning, I received the quarterly “confirm your details” email!
And yet, this morning, I received the quarterly “confirm your details” email!
Reposted by Matthew Somerville
Dates have been saved as this will be a wonderful event from @mysociety.org
September 14, 2026 at 10:01 AM
Dates have been saved as this will be a wonderful event from @mysociety.org
From the current @privateeyenews.bsky.social
September 13, 2026 at 11:05 AM
From the current @privateeyenews.bsky.social
Ticket machine does not let you buy the £33.50 super off peak to London because of how it works. Trebles all round. Thankfully the ticket office is very nice, and also can help you when all trains to London are then cancelled due to a fatality
September 13, 2026 at 8:53 AM
Ticket machine does not let you buy the £33.50 super off peak to London because of how it works. Trebles all round. Thankfully the ticket office is very nice, and also can help you when all trains to London are then cancelled due to a fatality
Justin Fletcher is the voice of Shaun the Sheep?!
September 12, 2026 at 7:57 PM
Justin Fletcher is the voice of Shaun the Sheep?!
Reposted by Matthew Somerville
Listen you sound nuts if you try to explain that a bunch of silicon valley luminaries are involved in a weird cult that started with a harry potter fanfic and that their weird bboard flame war has spilled over into the real world
That's absurd is what that is
But also... It's true
That's absurd is what that is
But also... It's true
September 10, 2026 at 11:55 PM
Listen you sound nuts if you try to explain that a bunch of silicon valley luminaries are involved in a weird cult that started with a harry potter fanfic and that their weird bboard flame war has spilled over into the real world
That's absurd is what that is
But also... It's true
That's absurd is what that is
But also... It's true
Google mistreated their heritage and lost all of the newsgroups, e.g. groups.google.com/g/uk.railway
So I thought I’d lost the post where I announced the first version of traintimes.org.uk (the live departure boards, in 2001). But I’ve tracked a copy down :) traintimes.org.uk/announcement
So I thought I’d lost the post where I announced the first version of traintimes.org.uk (the live departure boards, in 2001). But I’ve tracked a copy down :) traintimes.org.uk/announcement
September 12, 2026 at 3:12 PM
Google mistreated their heritage and lost all of the newsgroups, e.g. groups.google.com/g/uk.railway
So I thought I’d lost the post where I announced the first version of traintimes.org.uk (the live departure boards, in 2001). But I’ve tracked a copy down :) traintimes.org.uk/announcement
So I thought I’d lost the post where I announced the first version of traintimes.org.uk (the live departure boards, in 2001). But I’ve tracked a copy down :) traintimes.org.uk/announcement
As @infrequently.org noted in infrequently.org/2023/02/the-..., and the same applies with AI coding
September 12, 2026 at 8:57 AM
As @infrequently.org noted in infrequently.org/2023/02/the-..., and the same applies with AI coding
I’ve been running @theyworkforyou.com for over 20 years; if you want to point your ill-managed swarm at trying to compile a local democracy version, I probably have some thoughts on a slightly easier way of going about it than hacking ruby packaging
Even more strangely this says it was council democracy info, *digs deeper*
thehackernews.com/2026/05/gems...
thehackernews.com/2026/05/gems...
September 12, 2026 at 7:44 AM
I’ve been running @theyworkforyou.com for over 20 years; if you want to point your ill-managed swarm at trying to compile a local democracy version, I probably have some thoughts on a slightly easier way of going about it than hacking ruby packaging
September 12, 2026 at 6:41 AM
Never mind policy and all the rest, I fixed the bug you can see in the below image (that should be, as you can guess, “MP”) last week, but failed to merge it in time!
(The MP who abstained, by voting both Aye and No, was Gareth Snell. votes.parliament.uk will not tell you this, confusing things.)
(The MP who abstained, by voting both Aye and No, was Gareth Snell. votes.parliament.uk will not tell you this, confusing things.)
New House of Commons vote: Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill: Second Reading - https://votes.theyworkforyou.com/decisions/division/commons/2026-09-11/75
2026-09-11 - Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill: Second Reading
Analysis and data on voting in the UK’s Parliaments
votes.theyworkforyou.com
September 11, 2026 at 2:36 PM
Never mind policy and all the rest, I fixed the bug you can see in the below image (that should be, as you can guess, “MP”) last week, but failed to merge it in time!
(The MP who abstained, by voting both Aye and No, was Gareth Snell. votes.parliament.uk will not tell you this, confusing things.)
(The MP who abstained, by voting both Aye and No, was Gareth Snell. votes.parliament.uk will not tell you this, confusing things.)
I hadn’t looked after my last post until today. Umm, hope they’re enjoying it?
September 9, 2026 at 3:41 PM
I hadn’t looked after my last post until today. Umm, hope they’re enjoying it?
It is certainly possible to get a computer to do something quite complicated from an idea, and for the result to be superficially impressive and in detail poor. Annoying bot scrapers, graphical implementations of Zork I, rubbish rip-offs of sites you run. Easy to throw something up
Quick play - why is the house bigger on the inside? Why does the window not line up in/outside (and why is there a path up to a window)? Why are there lit fires? Why does the rug not cover the trapdoor? Why can’t I examine the other rug? Why is there a light down the trapdoor? Where’s the skeleton?
September 6, 2026 at 8:15 AM
It is certainly possible to get a computer to do something quite complicated from an idea, and for the result to be superficially impressive and in detail poor. Annoying bot scrapers, graphical implementations of Zork I, rubbish rip-offs of sites you run. Easy to throw something up
“One of the clearest findings from the discovery is the importance of consistent ways to describe people, organisations and locations.”
Councils, for example. It’d be good for the government to have an official reusable list of them. Or countries. Could call it, I dunno, a register?
Councils, for example. It’d be good for the government to have an official reusable list of them. Or countries. Could call it, I dunno, a register?
Connecting data to enable modern digital government dataingovernment.blog.gov.uk/2026/09/03/c...
Every day is groundhog day in UK data policy
Every day is groundhog day in UK data policy
September 5, 2026 at 1:10 PM
“One of the clearest findings from the discovery is the importance of consistent ways to describe people, organisations and locations.”
Councils, for example. It’d be good for the government to have an official reusable list of them. Or countries. Could call it, I dunno, a register?
Councils, for example. It’d be good for the government to have an official reusable list of them. Or countries. Could call it, I dunno, a register?
So this week over 170,000 hits have been made to the entrances to my twisty little maze, and over 145,000 to deeper passages leading from them.
That disguises some fun oddities, like on Wednesday it was 42.5k to entrances, and only 4k to further in; but on Thursday it was 26.5k / 49k.
That disguises some fun oddities, like on Wednesday it was 42.5k to entrances, and only 4k to further in; but on Thursday it was 26.5k / 49k.
Made myself a honeypot for bots to find and play around in. Wrote it in Apache Server Side Includes, like it’s the late 90s. Since 6.30am this morning, it has welcomed over 9,000 scouting bots, and nearly 3,000 follow-on incursionary bots based upon the scout’s intelligence
September 5, 2026 at 7:20 AM
So this week over 170,000 hits have been made to the entrances to my twisty little maze, and over 145,000 to deeper passages leading from them.
That disguises some fun oddities, like on Wednesday it was 42.5k to entrances, and only 4k to further in; but on Thursday it was 26.5k / 49k.
That disguises some fun oddities, like on Wednesday it was 42.5k to entrances, and only 4k to further in; but on Thursday it was 26.5k / 49k.
Reposted by Matthew Somerville
New House of Commons vote: Representation of the People Bill: Third Reading - https://votes.theyworkforyou.com/decisions/division/commons/2026-09-02/64
2026-09-02 - Representation of the People Bill: Third Reading
Analysis and data on voting in the UK’s Parliaments
votes.theyworkforyou.com
September 2, 2026 at 7:21 PM
New House of Commons vote: Representation of the People Bill: Third Reading - https://votes.theyworkforyou.com/decisions/division/commons/2026-09-02/64
Made myself a honeypot for bots to find and play around in. Wrote it in Apache Server Side Includes, like it’s the late 90s. Since 6.30am this morning, it has welcomed over 9,000 scouting bots, and nearly 3,000 follow-on incursionary bots based upon the scout’s intelligence
August 31, 2026 at 12:34 PM
Made myself a honeypot for bots to find and play around in. Wrote it in Apache Server Side Includes, like it’s the late 90s. Since 6.30am this morning, it has welcomed over 9,000 scouting bots, and nearly 3,000 follow-on incursionary bots based upon the scout’s intelligence