Dr. David McBride (dwm)
@dwm.me.uk
I'm not that kind of doctor. Senior IT technical specialist and occasional patient magnet.
Also:
https://mastodon.social/@dwm
https://dwm.me.uk
Also:
https://mastodon.social/@dwm
https://dwm.me.uk
Reposted by Dr. David McBride (dwm)
In an interview, Firefox's head says it like it is—Google deprecated its old extension system just to sabotage ad blockers
arstechnica.com/gadgets/2026...
arstechnica.com/gadgets/2026...
September 30, 2026 at 10:08 PM
In an interview, Firefox's head says it like it is—Google deprecated its old extension system just to sabotage ad blockers
arstechnica.com/gadgets/2026...
arstechnica.com/gadgets/2026...
Reposted by Dr. David McBride (dwm)
if you do not schedule maintenance the equipment will schedule it for you
September 26, 2026 at 6:46 PM
if you do not schedule maintenance the equipment will schedule it for you
Reposted by Dr. David McBride (dwm)
After a long day at the aquarium, the otters help tidy their toys away. Payment is made promptly and entirely in ice cubes.
September 26, 2026 at 3:56 PM
After a long day at the aquarium, the otters help tidy their toys away. Payment is made promptly and entirely in ice cubes.
I really enjoyed listening to this.
“If you write one good book, you will live forever.” How did A Theory of Justice make John Rawls a star in academia?
@iandunt.bsky.social and @dorianlynskey.bsky.social discuss the book that changed modern political philosophy.
➡️ https://linktr.ee/originstorypodcast
@iandunt.bsky.social and @dorianlynskey.bsky.social discuss the book that changed modern political philosophy.
➡️ https://linktr.ee/originstorypodcast
September 24, 2026 at 5:17 PM
I really enjoyed listening to this.
Reposted by Dr. David McBride (dwm)
A wave of cyberattacks on British academic blogs has raised concerns over efforts by authoritarian regimes to shut down research into human rights abuses
https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/foreign-interference-fears-over-cyberattacks-academic-blogs
https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/foreign-interference-fears-over-cyberattacks-academic-blogs
September 22, 2026 at 5:00 AM
A wave of cyberattacks on British academic blogs has raised concerns over efforts by authoritarian regimes to shut down research into human rights abuses
https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/foreign-interference-fears-over-cyberattacks-academic-blogs
https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/foreign-interference-fears-over-cyberattacks-academic-blogs
Reposted by Dr. David McBride (dwm)
one of my proudest moments was being told by a former Gove staffer that he once angrily proclaimed:
"I am NOT an eldritch horror!"
in a team meeting, because of me.
"I am NOT an eldritch horror!"
in a team meeting, because of me.
The War Game, Sky's terrifying new docu-drama, which paints a haunting picture of a near-future scenario in which the Prime Minister is somehow now Michael Gove
September 21, 2026 at 10:06 PM
one of my proudest moments was being told by a former Gove staffer that he once angrily proclaimed:
"I am NOT an eldritch horror!"
in a team meeting, because of me.
"I am NOT an eldritch horror!"
in a team meeting, because of me.
Reposted by Dr. David McBride (dwm)
Eye popping. Court just unsealed Summary Judgment motions in New York Times v OpenAI / Microsoft.
Easy to see why the AI companies had so many redactions (pink). Their own people wrote the lede for NYT, the "largest theft of labor in human history"... "more and more substitutive..." /1
Easy to see why the AI companies had so many redactions (pink). Their own people wrote the lede for NYT, the "largest theft of labor in human history"... "more and more substitutive..." /1
September 17, 2026 at 6:48 PM
Eye popping. Court just unsealed Summary Judgment motions in New York Times v OpenAI / Microsoft.
Easy to see why the AI companies had so many redactions (pink). Their own people wrote the lede for NYT, the "largest theft of labor in human history"... "more and more substitutive..." /1
Easy to see why the AI companies had so many redactions (pink). Their own people wrote the lede for NYT, the "largest theft of labor in human history"... "more and more substitutive..." /1
Reposted by Dr. David McBride (dwm)
I've been checking the source of quotes for my forthcoming book, and the performance of Gemini is extraordinary. I paste the quote into Google, and Gemini will barge in with the wrong answer over and over again. It's not an occasional thing - it's reliably wrong. Very odd.
Twice in the last week I've pasted a quotation into Google to check the source, and Gemini has barged in with the wrong answer. CS Lewis quote from The Seeing Eye (1967) was placed in The Screwtape Letters (1942). Alfred Loftus quote (1857) attributed to Austen Layard (1849). Gemini 0/2.
September 13, 2026 at 12:56 PM
I've been checking the source of quotes for my forthcoming book, and the performance of Gemini is extraordinary. I paste the quote into Google, and Gemini will barge in with the wrong answer over and over again. It's not an occasional thing - it's reliably wrong. Very odd.
Reposted by Dr. David McBride (dwm)
It was exactly ten years ago today, on my 33rd birthday, that I posted this comic online.
September 13, 2026 at 11:54 PM
It was exactly ten years ago today, on my 33rd birthday, that I posted this comic online.
Reposted by Dr. David McBride (dwm)
A sticker to place anywhere.
Like hand dryers, toilet bowls, soap dispensers, alarm keypads, coffee machines, thermostats, pedestrian crossing buttons, BBQs, park benches, parking meters...
As well as staplers, pens, potatoes, bricks, brooms, lunch, potplants and speed humps.
Like hand dryers, toilet bowls, soap dispensers, alarm keypads, coffee machines, thermostats, pedestrian crossing buttons, BBQs, park benches, parking meters...
As well as staplers, pens, potatoes, bricks, brooms, lunch, potplants and speed humps.
September 12, 2026 at 3:06 AM
A sticker to place anywhere.
Like hand dryers, toilet bowls, soap dispensers, alarm keypads, coffee machines, thermostats, pedestrian crossing buttons, BBQs, park benches, parking meters...
As well as staplers, pens, potatoes, bricks, brooms, lunch, potplants and speed humps.
Like hand dryers, toilet bowls, soap dispensers, alarm keypads, coffee machines, thermostats, pedestrian crossing buttons, BBQs, park benches, parking meters...
As well as staplers, pens, potatoes, bricks, brooms, lunch, potplants and speed humps.
Reposted by Dr. David McBride (dwm)
Bill Bryson’s words seem appropriate to post right now
September 8, 2026 at 5:50 PM
Bill Bryson’s words seem appropriate to post right now
Reposted by Dr. David McBride (dwm)
Two extraordinary charts from today’s PISA test results:
1) School test scores continue to collapse internationally, underscoring how this is no longer a Covid effect but sustained decline.
Those falls in reading and maths are equivalent to about two years of lost schooling.
1) School test scores continue to collapse internationally, underscoring how this is no longer a Covid effect but sustained decline.
Those falls in reading and maths are equivalent to about two years of lost schooling.
September 8, 2026 at 10:56 AM
Two extraordinary charts from today’s PISA test results:
1) School test scores continue to collapse internationally, underscoring how this is no longer a Covid effect but sustained decline.
Those falls in reading and maths are equivalent to about two years of lost schooling.
1) School test scores continue to collapse internationally, underscoring how this is no longer a Covid effect but sustained decline.
Those falls in reading and maths are equivalent to about two years of lost schooling.
Reposted by Dr. David McBride (dwm)
90 years ago, Parliament responded to the rise of Oswald Mosley's Blackshirts by passing the Public Order Act, which banned political uniforms, private militias and the threat of force for political objects.
The debates make very resonant reading today. Here's the Liberal Robert Bernays. (Short 🧵)
The debates make very resonant reading today. Here's the Liberal Robert Bernays. (Short 🧵)
September 7, 2026 at 9:45 PM
90 years ago, Parliament responded to the rise of Oswald Mosley's Blackshirts by passing the Public Order Act, which banned political uniforms, private militias and the threat of force for political objects.
The debates make very resonant reading today. Here's the Liberal Robert Bernays. (Short 🧵)
The debates make very resonant reading today. Here's the Liberal Robert Bernays. (Short 🧵)
Reposted by Dr. David McBride (dwm)
The cats graciously put on a magic show for us last night. I figured out how they did most of the tricks, but I didn’t say anything, because that would have been rude.
September 5, 2026 at 2:30 PM
The cats graciously put on a magic show for us last night. I figured out how they did most of the tricks, but I didn’t say anything, because that would have been rude.
Reposted by Dr. David McBride (dwm)
Just so we are clear:
The 83yo priest on the left is a terrorist. The balaclava-clad men on the right are protestors with legitimate concerns
The 83yo priest on the left is a terrorist. The balaclava-clad men on the right are protestors with legitimate concerns
September 5, 2026 at 9:28 AM
Just so we are clear:
The 83yo priest on the left is a terrorist. The balaclava-clad men on the right are protestors with legitimate concerns
The 83yo priest on the left is a terrorist. The balaclava-clad men on the right are protestors with legitimate concerns
Reposted by Dr. David McBride (dwm)
Me, just before I’m not about to get away with it:
September 4, 2026 at 9:53 AM
Me, just before I’m not about to get away with it:
Reposted by Dr. David McBride (dwm)
I can't think of anything which is going to incentivise the Electoral Commission staff more 👇
"The Electoral Commission are useless, dumb and ineffective"
- James Orr, senior aide to Farage
"The Electoral Commission are useless, dumb and ineffective"
- James Orr, senior aide to Farage
September 4, 2026 at 8:24 AM
I can't think of anything which is going to incentivise the Electoral Commission staff more 👇
"The Electoral Commission are useless, dumb and ineffective"
- James Orr, senior aide to Farage
"The Electoral Commission are useless, dumb and ineffective"
- James Orr, senior aide to Farage
Reposted by Dr. David McBride (dwm)
I hereby declare the "learn to code" era officially dead:
Big declines in the number of people studying computer science in the last year or two 📉
Chart from this week’s edition of our newsletter on AI and the labour market www.ft.com/content/9183...
Big declines in the number of people studying computer science in the last year or two 📉
Chart from this week’s edition of our newsletter on AI and the labour market www.ft.com/content/9183...
September 3, 2026 at 12:12 PM
I hereby declare the "learn to code" era officially dead:
Big declines in the number of people studying computer science in the last year or two 📉
Chart from this week’s edition of our newsletter on AI and the labour market www.ft.com/content/9183...
Big declines in the number of people studying computer science in the last year or two 📉
Chart from this week’s edition of our newsletter on AI and the labour market www.ft.com/content/9183...
Reposted by Dr. David McBride (dwm)
On the off chance any neurodivergent students follow me (or their lecturers do which is more likely?), this seems like a brilliant thing to get involved with! A Little Book of Neurodiverse Hope - app.onlinesurveys.jisc.ac.uk/s/mmu/little...
Little Book of Neurodiverse Hope - Online Surveys | Online surveys
Online surveys is a powerful, easy to use tool for creating online surveys. Run by Jisc, Online surveys is used by over 300 different organisations in the UK...
app.onlinesurveys.jisc.ac.uk
September 1, 2026 at 10:27 AM
On the off chance any neurodivergent students follow me (or their lecturers do which is more likely?), this seems like a brilliant thing to get involved with! A Little Book of Neurodiverse Hope - app.onlinesurveys.jisc.ac.uk/s/mmu/little...
Reposted by Dr. David McBride (dwm)
Can't get a moment's peace on this bloody planet.
September 1, 2026 at 11:30 AM
Can't get a moment's peace on this bloody planet.
Reposted by Dr. David McBride (dwm)
One key to British politics is that one quarter of the public are distinctly more likely than others to think most people agree with them (while often/mostly being a vocal minority)
August 26, 2026 at 5:06 PM
One key to British politics is that one quarter of the public are distinctly more likely than others to think most people agree with them (while often/mostly being a vocal minority)
Oh, good! I've long thought that I — and people richer than me — should be taxed harder.
No, this is not sarcasm. There are things we all need that need paying for.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
No, this is not sarcasm. There are things we all need that need paying for.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Andy Burnham refuses to rule out tax rises in autumn Budget
Experts have warned that he and Chancellor John Healey will have little room to manoeuvre in their first Budget.
www.bbc.co.uk
August 26, 2026 at 7:18 AM
Oh, good! I've long thought that I — and people richer than me — should be taxed harder.
No, this is not sarcasm. There are things we all need that need paying for.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
No, this is not sarcasm. There are things we all need that need paying for.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Reposted by Dr. David McBride (dwm)
The most predictable consequence of the Online Safety Act is UK government ministers promoting technology that claims to keep your kids safe online, but actually broadcasts their live GPS location to any moderately competent hacker.
Great job everyone!
Great job everyone!
Security consultant Paul Moore found that he could silently connect to *any* HMD Fuse device, access the child's live GPS location, and even turn off the Harmblock+ protections.
Hard to imagine a more serious set of security failures on a device that has safety *as its USP*.
x.com/paul_reviews...
Hard to imagine a more serious set of security failures on a device that has safety *as its USP*.
x.com/paul_reviews...
Paul Moore - Security Consultant (@Paul_Reviews) on X
PSA: Multiple Critical HMD Fuse / #HarmBlock+ Vulnerabilities
Over the past seven months, I've responsibly disclosed multiple critical security vulnerabilities affecting the HMD Fuse and HarmBlock+ p...
x.com
August 23, 2026 at 2:26 PM
The most predictable consequence of the Online Safety Act is UK government ministers promoting technology that claims to keep your kids safe online, but actually broadcasts their live GPS location to any moderately competent hacker.
Great job everyone!
Great job everyone!
Reposted by Dr. David McBride (dwm)
here is the thing. if you tell me that you believe that race is a biological category and that it is a guide to the objective superiority and inferiority of groups of people, i am not calling you a racist to *insult* you, i am calling you a racist because it best describes your beliefs.
not only that, they are demanding that they not be called racist when they are observed to be signing up to support the racist
August 23, 2026 at 12:22 AM
here is the thing. if you tell me that you believe that race is a biological category and that it is a guide to the objective superiority and inferiority of groups of people, i am not calling you a racist to *insult* you, i am calling you a racist because it best describes your beliefs.
Reposted by Dr. David McBride (dwm)
