Mark Foden
@markfoden.com
Looking after the tech for a firm in London
Hosting The Clock and the Cat complexity podcast
Proceeding by experiment
Hosting The Clock and the Cat complexity podcast
Proceeding by experiment
…said the one time chairman of a psychedelic pharmaceutical startup
OpenAI's Sam Altman says world 'right to be afraid' but 'should trust' AI firms
Sam Altman and other tech CEOs say there are incentives to limit advancements in AI, as fears grow over the threats it poses to humanity.
www.bbc.co.uk
September 16, 2026 at 5:04 AM
…said the one time chairman of a psychedelic pharmaceutical startup
Reposted by Mark Foden
The greatest , shortest , daftest race on the calendar
September 8, 2026 at 10:14 PM
The greatest , shortest , daftest race on the calendar
Reposted by Mark Foden
NSF 'Mûr de Ned' Hill Climb
NSF Hill Climb returns for 2026!
www.eventbrite.com
September 8, 2026 at 7:42 PM
September 8, 2026 at 9:01 PM
Reposted by Mark Foden
One of the trickiest problems in mathematics has now fallen to AI after just days of work. The groundbreaking result was announced amid rumour after similar, but less complete work, also created with AI, was announced just hours before
OpenAI has solved the Navier-Stokes Millennium problem using $15m of AI effort | New Scientist
One of the trickiest problems in mathematics has now fallen to AI after just days of work. The groundbreaking result was announced amid rumour after similar, but less complete work, also created with AI, was announced just hours before
www.newscientist.com
September 8, 2026 at 6:59 PM
One of the trickiest problems in mathematics has now fallen to AI after just days of work. The groundbreaking result was announced amid rumour after similar, but less complete work, also created with AI, was announced just hours before
September 5, 2026 at 7:38 AM
Over the last 250 years machinery has transformed society and immeasurably advanced living standards. But we’ve been unconsciously applying the mindset of machinery to pretty much everything else since. And it’s not helping.
Article by @bioengineergm.bsky.social
Article by @bioengineergm.bsky.social
August 30, 2026 at 7:52 AM
Over the last 250 years machinery has transformed society and immeasurably advanced living standards. But we’ve been unconsciously applying the mindset of machinery to pretty much everything else since. And it’s not helping.
Article by @bioengineergm.bsky.social
Article by @bioengineergm.bsky.social
"Meta just cut a deal to put itself in charge of how social media works going forward" - Mike Masnick
@masnick.com
@masnick.com
Meta Just Paid Nearly $17 Billion To Make Sure It Gets To Write The Kid Safety Rules For Every Other Social Media Platform
By now you've almost certainly heard the news that Meta has settled with 52 state and local Attorneys General who had sued the company in some form or another over child safety on Meta's platforms. The headlines are all covering the basics: the years-long case these states filed against Meta ends, and Meta pays somewhere...
www.techdirt.com
August 27, 2026 at 5:47 AM
"Meta just cut a deal to put itself in charge of how social media works going forward" - Mike Masnick
@masnick.com
@masnick.com
Reposted by Mark Foden
Checks and balances, checked.
Separation of powers, overpowered.
Separation of powers, overpowered.
BREAKING: The Supreme Court has cleared the way for President Trump's executive order restricting mail-in voting ahead of midterms.
Supreme Court clears the way for Trump mail voting order in advance of midterms
The Supreme Court has cleared the way for President Donald Trump to move ahead on his executive order restricting mail-in voting, though it remains unclear how much his administration can implement before the fast-approaching midterm elections.
bit.ly
August 24, 2026 at 9:14 PM
Checks and balances, checked.
Separation of powers, overpowered.
Separation of powers, overpowered.
Palantir may be brilliant. That’s not the point. The daft bit is blindly accepting dependence as the only way to benefit from it. We pay for the learning: they keep the know-how. We should use all that taxpayer cash to build a public commons that keeps suppliers on their toes.
The conspiratorially minded fret that it could steal and sell British data. More sober types worry about “lock-in”, where it burrows deep into the state and ensconces itself. But these fears stem from a misunderstanding of what Palantir does
Britain would be bonkers to ditch Palantir
Whatever the company’s flaws, its critics have taken a worryingly illiberal turn
bit.ly
August 22, 2026 at 7:36 AM
Palantir may be brilliant. That’s not the point. The daft bit is blindly accepting dependence as the only way to benefit from it. We pay for the learning: they keep the know-how. We should use all that taxpayer cash to build a public commons that keeps suppliers on their toes.
I see that Farage did not attend the Count
August 14, 2026 at 6:35 AM
I see that Farage did not attend the Count
"Meta is currently facing thousands of lawsuits in the US over similar issues."
Good.
Good.
Meta told to pay another $567m in New Mexico child safety lawsuit
A New Mexico judge ordered the Instagram, Facebook and Whatsapp parent company to pay another $567m for the way it has harmed children.
www.bbc.co.uk
August 7, 2026 at 4:47 AM
"Meta is currently facing thousands of lawsuits in the US over similar issues."
Good.
Good.
Reposted by Mark Foden
Describing this as merely having blogged rather undersells the breadth and depth of this grand tour of how government works and doesn't.
I have blogged!
The State of the Present: Andy Burnham’s new government
or
- Why the abolition of DSIT is baffling and bad
- Why I'm worried about what it means for civil service reform
- Some opportunities for the new government around data, digital, open government
medium.com/state-of-the...
The State of the Present: Andy Burnham’s new government
or
- Why the abolition of DSIT is baffling and bad
- Why I'm worried about what it means for civil service reform
- Some opportunities for the new government around data, digital, open government
medium.com/state-of-the...
The State of the Present: Andy Burnham’s new government
In common with lots of other policy people in recent weeks, I’ve been reading Head North, the (very readable) book by new Prime Minister…
medium.com
July 30, 2026 at 6:10 PM
Describing this as merely having blogged rather undersells the breadth and depth of this grand tour of how government works and doesn't.
“The consequences of Trump winning the 2024 election are catastrophic”
From Unredacted by Christopher Steele - the utterly believable account of his Trump-Putin dossier - written just before the election
He wasn’t wrong, was he
@christophersteele.bsky.social
Via @hainge.bsky.social
From Unredacted by Christopher Steele - the utterly believable account of his Trump-Putin dossier - written just before the election
He wasn’t wrong, was he
@christophersteele.bsky.social
Via @hainge.bsky.social
August 3, 2026 at 5:03 PM
“The consequences of Trump winning the 2024 election are catastrophic”
From Unredacted by Christopher Steele - the utterly believable account of his Trump-Putin dossier - written just before the election
He wasn’t wrong, was he
@christophersteele.bsky.social
Via @hainge.bsky.social
From Unredacted by Christopher Steele - the utterly believable account of his Trump-Putin dossier - written just before the election
He wasn’t wrong, was he
@christophersteele.bsky.social
Via @hainge.bsky.social
Reposted by Mark Foden
In this short paper, I reflect on the demise of citizens' assemblies in Ireland and propose a new role for deliberative mini-publics in working with the Electoral Commission to 'support' the referendum process in Ireland
publications-prairial.fr/droit-public...
publications-prairial.fr/droit-public...
Ireland: Back to the deliberative drawing board? – Droit Public Comparé
This paper examines Ireland’s decade of deliberative democracy (2013-2023), during which six deliberative mini-publics (DMPs) produced 335 recommendations leading to landmark reforms including the leg...
publications-prairial.fr
July 31, 2026 at 10:45 AM
In this short paper, I reflect on the demise of citizens' assemblies in Ireland and propose a new role for deliberative mini-publics in working with the Electoral Commission to 'support' the referendum process in Ireland
publications-prairial.fr/droit-public...
publications-prairial.fr/droit-public...
"Andy Burnham and Labour cannot rely on vague promises of reform without a clear plan for implementation and detail on what will happen when"
Said another politician with no conception that complexity eats plans and detail.
Linearity will get us nowhere
#complexity
Said another politician with no conception that complexity eats plans and detail.
Linearity will get us nowhere
#complexity
Burnham invites Tories and Lib Dems to talks about social care
In a speech, the PM is expected to say finding common ground across party lines will be key to fixing social care.
www.bbc.co.uk
July 29, 2026 at 4:52 AM
"Andy Burnham and Labour cannot rely on vague promises of reform without a clear plan for implementation and detail on what will happen when"
Said another politician with no conception that complexity eats plans and detail.
Linearity will get us nowhere
#complexity
Said another politician with no conception that complexity eats plans and detail.
Linearity will get us nowhere
#complexity
Reposted by Mark Foden
I’d forgotten that the “Maggie Thatcher. Can you hear me?” was a Norwegian commentator youtu.be/PqZTP8-8wIs
Norway 2 England 1 1981 Commentary
YouTube video by Michael Alcorn
youtu.be
July 11, 2026 at 8:24 PM
I’d forgotten that the “Maggie Thatcher. Can you hear me?” was a Norwegian commentator youtu.be/PqZTP8-8wIs
Reposted by Mark Foden
The govt is consulting on future of public service broadcasting in a digital age - including how to secure prominence & visibility online of high quality information
www.gov.uk/government/c...
www.gov.uk/government/c...
Watch this space: a new strategic direction for UK media - green paper and public consultation
www.gov.uk
July 5, 2026 at 5:02 AM
The govt is consulting on future of public service broadcasting in a digital age - including how to secure prominence & visibility online of high quality information
www.gov.uk/government/c...
www.gov.uk/government/c...
"Change the algorithms because that’s what creates the harm" Joe, 63, mental health nurse
‘The genie is out of the bottle’: parents react to UK under-16s social media ban
Some feel it is a concrete step to protect children, but others argue it is ‘trying to fix the symptoms and not the disease’
www.theguardian.com
June 16, 2026 at 5:09 AM
"Change the algorithms because that’s what creates the harm" Joe, 63, mental health nurse
"We should expect to see very small groups of humans form organizations that have the capabilities of 10,000+ employee corporations" - Jack Clark
Transcript of a talk from a founder of Anthropic - dizzying stuff
Transcript of a talk from a founder of Anthropic - dizzying stuff
Import AI 458: Reckoning with the future; and a singularity story
What AI-driven miracles will happen this year?
importai.substack.com
June 7, 2026 at 6:01 AM
"We should expect to see very small groups of humans form organizations that have the capabilities of 10,000+ employee corporations" - Jack Clark
Transcript of a talk from a founder of Anthropic - dizzying stuff
Transcript of a talk from a founder of Anthropic - dizzying stuff
"the construction of Babel or the rebuilding of Jerusalem begins within each one of us" - Pope Leo XIV
Smart words on the morality and control of AI
Smart words on the morality and control of AI
Encyclical Letter of His Holiness Leo XIV Magnifica Humanitas (15 May 2026)
ENCYCLICAL LETTER MAGNIFICA HUMANITAS OF HIS HOLINESS POPE LEO XIV ON SAFEGUARDING THE HUMAN PERSON IN THE TIME OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE [ Multimedia ] ___________________________
www.vatican.va
June 7, 2026 at 5:37 AM
"the construction of Babel or the rebuilding of Jerusalem begins within each one of us" - Pope Leo XIV
Smart words on the morality and control of AI
Smart words on the morality and control of AI
Reposted by Mark Foden
This post by @terrygodier.com made me have all the feels. I'm not sure what I want to say about it. I'm going to have to process for a while.
First time using "finger" in over 30 years was something (I can't believe it's not installed as standard in Ubuntu).
First time using "finger" in over 30 years was something (I can't believe it's not installed as standard in Ubuntu).
My heart loved this essay by @terrygodier.com. My head however has been in meetings with 23-year-old policy staffers openly advocating for the elimination of privacy and freedom of speech, because the internet of hell is the only thing they've ever known. www.terrygodier.com/the-boring-i...
The Boring Internet
The internet you grew up on isn't dying. A commercial veneer glued on top of it is. A visual essay about what actually persists.
www.terrygodier.com
May 30, 2026 at 8:19 PM
This post by @terrygodier.com made me have all the feels. I'm not sure what I want to say about it. I'm going to have to process for a while.
First time using "finger" in over 30 years was something (I can't believe it's not installed as standard in Ubuntu).
First time using "finger" in over 30 years was something (I can't believe it's not installed as standard in Ubuntu).
Here’s a great idea. Proceeding by experiment is the only way to engage with complex problems.
@ntouk.bsky.social and James Findlay
www.computerweekly.com/opinion/The-...
@ntouk.bsky.social and James Findlay
www.computerweekly.com/opinion/The-...
The Isle of Wight can settle more than the digital ID argument | Computer Weekly
The Isle of Wight is geographically bounded, with three monitored ferry gateways. Its population of 140,000 is served by a single local authority and a defined NHS footprint. It is, in effect, a conta...
www.computerweekly.com
May 27, 2026 at 5:41 AM
Here’s a great idea. Proceeding by experiment is the only way to engage with complex problems.
@ntouk.bsky.social and James Findlay
www.computerweekly.com/opinion/The-...
@ntouk.bsky.social and James Findlay
www.computerweekly.com/opinion/The-...
Reposted by Mark Foden
Suzanne Vega releases “Luka” 39 years ago this weekend. She said she once received a fan letter about it:
“Dear Suzanne,
Luka is the most compelling piece of music I’ve heard in a long time. There are no words 2 tell U all the things I feel when I hear it.
I thank God 4 U,
Prince”
“Dear Suzanne,
Luka is the most compelling piece of music I’ve heard in a long time. There are no words 2 tell U all the things I feel when I hear it.
I thank God 4 U,
Prince”
May 24, 2026 at 9:04 PM
Suzanne Vega releases “Luka” 39 years ago this weekend. She said she once received a fan letter about it:
“Dear Suzanne,
Luka is the most compelling piece of music I’ve heard in a long time. There are no words 2 tell U all the things I feel when I hear it.
I thank God 4 U,
Prince”
“Dear Suzanne,
Luka is the most compelling piece of music I’ve heard in a long time. There are no words 2 tell U all the things I feel when I hear it.
I thank God 4 U,
Prince”