Dan Lockton
@danlockton.com
Utrecht, Netherlands + Norwich, UK
Director of the new Institute for Sustainable Worlds, Norwich University of the Arts ⦿ Design—imagination—climate—futures ⦿ Imaginaries Lab http://imaginari.es ⦿ New Metaphors http://newmetaphors.com ⦿ he/him
Director of the new Institute for Sustainable Worlds, Norwich University of the Arts ⦿ Design—imagination—climate—futures ⦿ Imaginaries Lab http://imaginari.es ⦿ New Metaphors http://newmetaphors.com ⦿ he/him
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Dan Lockton
@danlockton.com
· Oct 14
Join us online on Wed 22 Oct for 'Creative Futures in Education'. We have three amazing speakers: educator-researchers engaging with #futures:
↠ Grace Turtle (Monstrous Futurities, Sandberg Inst)
↠ Christian Petersen (Norwich University of the Arts)
↠ shobhan s (Purdue University & slowstudio)
↠ Grace Turtle (Monstrous Futurities, Sandberg Inst)
↠ Christian Petersen (Norwich University of the Arts)
↠ shobhan s (Purdue University & slowstudio)
Reposted by Dan Lockton
Reposted by Dan Lockton
A good rule of thumb is that anyone "just asking questions" about any marginalized group already knows the answers they want to hear, and is also a bad person whose opinions mean less than those of the group they're interrogating.
December 19, 2025 at 2:35 AM
A good rule of thumb is that anyone "just asking questions" about any marginalized group already knows the answers they want to hear, and is also a bad person whose opinions mean less than those of the group they're interrogating.
Reposted by Dan Lockton
Went to thesis reviews at Cooper Union, and I’m moved, as always, by how much *everyone* benefits from an international cohort — the comparative perspective, the denaturalization of your own experience, the broader geographical and historical context: all threats to an authoritarian regime
December 18, 2025 at 10:23 PM
Went to thesis reviews at Cooper Union, and I’m moved, as always, by how much *everyone* benefits from an international cohort — the comparative perspective, the denaturalization of your own experience, the broader geographical and historical context: all threats to an authoritarian regime
Reposted by Dan Lockton
artists hold immeasurable storytelling power. well-educated artists are a genuine threat to the establishment, and that's why so much time and money is spent on dissuading people from pursuing a life among the arts
December 18, 2025 at 10:12 PM
artists hold immeasurable storytelling power. well-educated artists are a genuine threat to the establishment, and that's why so much time and money is spent on dissuading people from pursuing a life among the arts
There once was a fire door in Norwich
For which no-one could find a door wedge
But perceiving that this old lighter
Could be rammed in just a bit tighter
Was a little too ironic, I really do allege
For which no-one could find a door wedge
But perceiving that this old lighter
Could be rammed in just a bit tighter
Was a little too ironic, I really do allege
December 18, 2025 at 7:08 PM
There once was a fire door in Norwich
For which no-one could find a door wedge
But perceiving that this old lighter
Could be rammed in just a bit tighter
Was a little too ironic, I really do allege
For which no-one could find a door wedge
But perceiving that this old lighter
Could be rammed in just a bit tighter
Was a little too ironic, I really do allege
Reposted by Dan Lockton
Thinking you have a good idea because the LLM said “good idea!” is identical to thinking your gas pump is grateful because it thanked you
If we are banning cell phones for kids we need to be talking about banning chatbots for boomers
www.persuasion.community/p/my-chatgpt...
www.persuasion.community/p/my-chatgpt...
December 18, 2025 at 12:35 PM
Thinking you have a good idea because the LLM said “good idea!” is identical to thinking your gas pump is grateful because it thanked you
Reposted by Dan Lockton
If the legibility of research is a problem that ACM cares about - and I personally think it should be! - then the author of every ACM publication should be encouraged/supported to write an accessible, layperson's summary of their paper that could be connected to the DL entry for the paper.
December 17, 2025 at 5:43 PM
If the legibility of research is a problem that ACM cares about - and I personally think it should be! - then the author of every ACM publication should be encouraged/supported to write an accessible, layperson's summary of their paper that could be connected to the DL entry for the paper.
Reposted by Dan Lockton
I think the fundamental gap here is that non-creative people think that creative people make things for the end product, when in fact it’s the act of creation and not the end point that makes it worthwhile.
I have grown to believe that excessive wealth does something to your brain that is analogous to a serious head injury
December 15, 2025 at 6:26 AM
I think the fundamental gap here is that non-creative people think that creative people make things for the end product, when in fact it’s the act of creation and not the end point that makes it worthwhile.
Reposted by Dan Lockton
I’ve been seeing this cover over and over and I just…
In the original you’re aware of the horror of falling, but the body positions of the workers are solid on the beam. Here, most of them should be falling off, yet they don’t, because they live in an unreal, consequence-free space.
In the original you’re aware of the horror of falling, but the body positions of the workers are solid on the beam. Here, most of them should be falling off, yet they don’t, because they live in an unreal, consequence-free space.
I guess it's fitting that it's a reimagined, worse version of someone else's artwork
December 14, 2025 at 9:36 AM
I’ve been seeing this cover over and over and I just…
In the original you’re aware of the horror of falling, but the body positions of the workers are solid on the beam. Here, most of them should be falling off, yet they don’t, because they live in an unreal, consequence-free space.
In the original you’re aware of the horror of falling, but the body positions of the workers are solid on the beam. Here, most of them should be falling off, yet they don’t, because they live in an unreal, consequence-free space.
I really support what the ERC does, but I really wish they would just publish clear, textual summaries of things like the new Plus Grants rather than expecting us to watch webinars / videos. The webinar introducing the grants was 1h30m long, with no link in the description to more details, nothing.
Missed our webinar on ERC Plus Grants? We've got a shorter interview that walks you through the essentials.
A clear overview of eligibility, funding and how the selection process will work.
👉 youtu.be/TU2ymXwm-Cw?...
#ChooseEuropeforScience
A clear overview of eligibility, funding and how the selection process will work.
👉 youtu.be/TU2ymXwm-Cw?...
#ChooseEuropeforScience
What should you know about the ERC Plus Grants?
YouTube video by European Research Council
youtu.be
December 8, 2025 at 9:48 AM
I really support what the ERC does, but I really wish they would just publish clear, textual summaries of things like the new Plus Grants rather than expecting us to watch webinars / videos. The webinar introducing the grants was 1h30m long, with no link in the description to more details, nothing.
Reposted by Dan Lockton
I don't want to generalize about other disciplines necessarily but for my part I can't think of a single skill that I want to test that relates to how long someone takes to complete the test.
December 2, 2025 at 8:39 PM
I don't want to generalize about other disciplines necessarily but for my part I can't think of a single skill that I want to test that relates to how long someone takes to complete the test.
The only "augmented reality" I want is some kind of analogue goggles that make everything look like this
A couple of years ago I found an expired film (Trueprint Colour) and tested it out. #35mm 🎞️
December 2, 2025 at 8:30 PM
The only "augmented reality" I want is some kind of analogue goggles that make everything look like this
An Amoco staff uniform "fashion brochure" from c.1972–3, showing Town Centre Service Station in Feltham, Middlesex (which I think was about where the car park is outside Matalan). Is that a Triumph 1500, or a Dolomite? More info here: www.flickr.com/photos/danlo... #petrolstations #petrocultures
December 1, 2025 at 7:37 PM
An Amoco staff uniform "fashion brochure" from c.1972–3, showing Town Centre Service Station in Feltham, Middlesex (which I think was about where the car park is outside Matalan). Is that a Triumph 1500, or a Dolomite? More info here: www.flickr.com/photos/danlo... #petrolstations #petrocultures
Reposted by Dan Lockton
See.
This capitulation will do untold amounts of harm — by design.
This capitulation will do untold amounts of harm — by design.
*adds Northwestern to growing list of US universities whose research published in 2025 and after is now questionable*
November 29, 2025 at 2:13 PM
See.
This capitulation will do untold amounts of harm — by design.
This capitulation will do untold amounts of harm — by design.
Reposted by Dan Lockton
Pope: AI won’t stand in authentic wonder before the beauty of God’s creation.
AI: There is no Pope.
AI: There is no Pope.
I thought I might try the same experiment with a bit more context, and - I dunno - it seems to have stumbled a bit with the basic facts…
November 26, 2025 at 8:25 PM
Pope: AI won’t stand in authentic wonder before the beauty of God’s creation.
AI: There is no Pope.
AI: There is no Pope.
Reposted by Dan Lockton
If HE was free at the point of use nobody would ever think like this - it would be seen, rightly, as a public good in which all can participate. But as a commodity, it just stirs resentment. I have many friends who have regaled me with stories of how their kids aren’t getting what they paid for.
November 24, 2025 at 7:59 PM
If HE was free at the point of use nobody would ever think like this - it would be seen, rightly, as a public good in which all can participate. But as a commodity, it just stirs resentment. I have many friends who have regaled me with stories of how their kids aren’t getting what they paid for.
Reposted by Dan Lockton
If I was going to speculate, I’d say that the current government’s hostility to universities, and their refusal to consider them as crucial infrastructure, is directly traceable to Labour’s original decision to institute a fee regime which made HE a commodity in England (especially).
November 24, 2025 at 7:53 PM
If I was going to speculate, I’d say that the current government’s hostility to universities, and their refusal to consider them as crucial infrastructure, is directly traceable to Labour’s original decision to institute a fee regime which made HE a commodity in England (especially).
Really enjoying this from @helleborezine.bsky.social!
(also, intriguing to me that the first story, by Reggie Oliver, incidentally includes a character who was a member of staff at "an art school in Norwich" which is of course the position I also find myself in...)
(also, intriguing to me that the first story, by Reggie Oliver, incidentally includes a character who was a member of staff at "an art school in Norwich" which is of course the position I also find myself in...)
Exciting news! HELLEBORE’s first short story anthology is here! 9 new tales of the supernatural and the strange by Ramsey Campbell, Ally Wilkes, Reggie Oliver, Helen Grant and more, set in some of the most beguiling locations of Occult Britain.
👉🏼 Pre-order now to secure your copy: helleborezine.com
👉🏼 Pre-order now to secure your copy: helleborezine.com
November 22, 2025 at 9:52 AM
Really enjoying this from @helleborezine.bsky.social!
(also, intriguing to me that the first story, by Reggie Oliver, incidentally includes a character who was a member of staff at "an art school in Norwich" which is of course the position I also find myself in...)
(also, intriguing to me that the first story, by Reggie Oliver, incidentally includes a character who was a member of staff at "an art school in Norwich" which is of course the position I also find myself in...)
Reposted by Dan Lockton
We’re often asked whether we’re optimistic or pessimistic about technologies. That’s the wrong question. If any of this matters, we need to stop seeing technology like the weather, to be merely forecasted, and instead see it like politics, to be collectively shaped.
November 16, 2025 at 11:22 AM
We’re often asked whether we’re optimistic or pessimistic about technologies. That’s the wrong question. If any of this matters, we need to stop seeing technology like the weather, to be merely forecasted, and instead see it like politics, to be collectively shaped.
Reposted by Dan Lockton
In this week's post I make the case for an #AI #metaphor observatory tracking how we think and talk about and act on GenAI and LLMs makingsciencepublic.com/2025/11/14/m...
Making the case for an AI metaphor observatory
Between 2023 and 2025 I have written various posts on GenAI, Large Language Models and metaphors: one where I went out hunting for metaphors; one where I had a chat with ChatGTP about metaphors for…
makingsciencepublic.com
November 14, 2025 at 7:18 AM
In this week's post I make the case for an #AI #metaphor observatory tracking how we think and talk about and act on GenAI and LLMs makingsciencepublic.com/2025/11/14/m...
My first Wordpress blog post was 20 years ago today architectures.danlockton.co.uk/2005/11/16/w...
That blog—boosted by links from sites such as BoingBoing (thanks @pluralistic.net.web.brid.gy!)—ultimately led to so many opportunities, a PhD, a job in the US, basically my whole career in academia.
That blog—boosted by links from sites such as BoingBoing (thanks @pluralistic.net.web.brid.gy!)—ultimately led to so many opportunities, a PhD, a job in the US, basically my whole career in academia.
November 16, 2025 at 8:00 AM
My first Wordpress blog post was 20 years ago today architectures.danlockton.co.uk/2005/11/16/w...
That blog—boosted by links from sites such as BoingBoing (thanks @pluralistic.net.web.brid.gy!)—ultimately led to so many opportunities, a PhD, a job in the US, basically my whole career in academia.
That blog—boosted by links from sites such as BoingBoing (thanks @pluralistic.net.web.brid.gy!)—ultimately led to so many opportunities, a PhD, a job in the US, basically my whole career in academia.
Reposted by Dan Lockton
"Nostalgia is a warping gravity."
Just for any academics, let me be clear, Hookland is anti-nostalgic. It's an exploration and exorcism of my childhood, not a celebration of falsely remembered sunshine. Nostalgia is a warping gravity.
November 14, 2025 at 11:37 AM
"Nostalgia is a warping gravity."
Reposted by Dan Lockton
Was really struck by what a lovely inspiring exercise this is, like a primary school version of Mary Oliver’s Instructions for living a life
Pay attention.
Be astonished.
Tell about it
Pay attention.
Be astonished.
Tell about it
November 10, 2025 at 9:35 AM
Was really struck by what a lovely inspiring exercise this is, like a primary school version of Mary Oliver’s Instructions for living a life
Pay attention.
Be astonished.
Tell about it
Pay attention.
Be astonished.
Tell about it