Mastodawn

Last night I spotted this little gas canister at the top of our stairs, refrigerant for some of our chillers or heat pumps on the roof. 21 kg of R-410a. Read the label: 44 tonnes of CO2e . One false move by an installer, or slow leaks and it’s released - the equivalent of 30 return trips to Vancouver in a canister that barely reaches my knee.
We have natural refrigerants like CO2 and propane. Time to choose/switch!! #GWP #climatechange #refrigerant

HGourlayUCL Apr 13

Mike Galsworthy 🦣Apr 12

Long Sunday read 👉👉https://open.substack.com/pub/mikegalsworthy/p/why-an-orban-loss-would-be-a-huge

HGourlayUCL Apr 8

Simon Phipps Apr 8

Here's a petition I broadly support, with caveats. It calls for a referendum on bringing the UK water industry into public ownership.

https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/762640

Caveats:
* Not a fan of plebiscites. Parliament should Just Do It. But needs must.
* "Public ownership" needs nuance. Natural monopolies should be run by non-profits (TfL is an examplar; CICs are great) under public oversight. Infrastructure should be leased to them by the state, not owned.

#UKPol #Water #Petition

Petition: Hold a referendum to bring the water industry into public ownership

Hold a binding national referendum on whether the water industry should be returned to public ownership. Water is a basic human necessity; we believe our privatised system has failed, so the public should decide who owns and controls it.

Petitions - UK Government and Parliament

HGourlayUCL Apr 5

Woodland in England in spring, with bluebells. #ukcountryside #AncientWoodland

HGourlayUCL Apr 4

El Duvelle Apr 4

"Why are flights in the UK so often cheaper than taking the train?"

Some of the reasons are nonsensical:
for trains:

"The fuel is subject to VAT at 5% on diesel and 20% on electricity.".

this should be the reverse?!?

for planes:

"Fuel accounts for a much bigger part of airlines’ costs, but they do not have to pay VAT or duty on it.".

whyyyy??
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2025/nov/19/why-are-flights-in-the-uk-so-often-cheaper-than-taking-the-train

#SaveThePlanet and tax planes in proportion of the damage they do to their environment!

Why are flights in the UK so often cheaper than taking the train?

The environmental costs of flying are much higher, and the government subsidises rail travel, so what explains the baffling price difference when travelling domestically?

The Guardian

HGourlayUCL Mar 28

David Ho Mar 27

I don't think people fully appreciate how apocalyptic things are for US science. I haven't received any new funding since 2024, but I'm still ok since grants are typically for 3 years. This means next year I will be completely out of funding and will have to fire everyone in the lab. It's not great.

In my 25-year career, I’ve never NOT had funding. I typically have 4 to 8 grants, which you need if you’re running an observation science program and have a technician, students, and postdocs.

HGourlayUCL Mar 25

Let's hope Rebecca Solnit is right: https://www.theguardian.com/books/2026/mar/25/rebecca-solnit-slow-revolution-far-right-cannot-tolerate? #slowrevolution

‘A new world is being born’: author Rebecca Solnit on the ‘slow revolution’ the far right cannot tolerate

It’s easy to focus on authoritarians and their petty victories. But zoom out and the picture is more encouraging, says the woman who popularised the term ‘mansplaining’, whether it’s in feminism, or the environment, or civil rights

The Guardian

HGourlayUCL Mar 23

John Leach Mar 22

Spotted my first tiny balancing sheep in the wilds of Wales!

#tinybalancingsheep #wales

HGourlayUCL Mar 21

The absolute state of the UK in one story: https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2026/mar/21/british-teenagers-stranded-abroad-dual-national-rules-home-office-passports? Some British citizens unable to travel into the UK due to change of rules posted on UK gov website in 2024. #vogons

More British teenagers stranded abroad as result of new rules on dual nationals

Cases emerge after other people tell of change in Home Office policy on passports that has left people scrambling

The Guardian

HGourlayUCL Mar 20

On productivity: Does microsoft think it made us more productive by forcing links instead of attachments in email? Even when you change the settings, the link does not work for the person you sent it to. #productivity