Paul Pharoah
@paulpharoah.bsky.social
Jack of some trades, master of none: public health, epi and genetics mainly. Arsenal supporter, hiker. Live in LA. If home is also where the heart is England, South Africa, Papua New Guinea. Photos are my own. Views expressed are my own.
My spaniel has turned into a softie Californian that can't cope with a few drops of rain. She's bringing shame on her breed.
February 17, 2026 at 1:52 AM
My spaniel has turned into a softie Californian that can't cope with a few drops of rain. She's bringing shame on her breed.
Is it wrong to dichotomize?
Yes
or
No
Yes
or
No
1/2 Nail in the coffin of dichotomania: @erik-van-zwet.bsky.social 's paper with @stephensenn.bsky.social and myself just published: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/... with extended discussion at discourse.datamethods.org/t/dichotomiz... #Statistics #StatsSky #rct #clinicaltrial
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
February 16, 2026 at 11:36 PM
Is it wrong to dichotomize?
Yes
or
No
Yes
or
No
This week's feathered friend is a southern yellow-billed hornbill.
#notpolitics #birdsoftheworld #birds #nature
#notpolitics #birdsoftheworld #birds #nature
February 16, 2026 at 5:08 PM
This week's feathered friend is a southern yellow-billed hornbill.
#notpolitics #birdsoftheworld #birds #nature
#notpolitics #birdsoftheworld #birds #nature
Correlation is not causation.
NEWS! Doctors discover new link between rising measles cases among children and their parents being gullible morons newsthump.com/2026/02/16/d...
Doctors discover new link between rising measles cases among children and their parents being gullible morons
After measles cases began rising rapidly in parts of London, doctors discovered a link between children who get measles and the likelihood of their parents being gullible simpletons.
newsthump.com
February 16, 2026 at 3:28 PM
Correlation is not causation.
Reposted by Paul Pharoah
Bounty Unveils New Ultra-Thin Paper Towels For More Natural Feeling While Wiping Up Spills https://theonion.com/bounty-unveils-new-ultra-thin-paper-towels-for-more-nat-1839096740/
February 16, 2026 at 3:00 PM
Bounty Unveils New Ultra-Thin Paper Towels For More Natural Feeling While Wiping Up Spills https://theonion.com/bounty-unveils-new-ultra-thin-paper-towels-for-more-nat-1839096740/
The ads are quite bizarre because they are often for rare diseases, so what is the point.
When I moved to the US, seeing direct to consumer ads for medicines on TV absolutely freaked me out (they’re banned in the UK)
I still find them utterly wild; hearing the list of possible side effects, which have to be announced, is quite something (“risk of death and of oily leaks from the anus”)
I still find them utterly wild; hearing the list of possible side effects, which have to be announced, is quite something (“risk of death and of oily leaks from the anus”)
February 15, 2026 at 3:43 AM
The ads are quite bizarre because they are often for rare diseases, so what is the point.
Apparently England's tackle success rate (it's not a rate) is 61.49% based. We'd be worried if it were only 61.03%. inappropriate precision all over the place.
February 14, 2026 at 5:19 PM
Apparently England's tackle success rate (it's not a rate) is 61.49% based. We'd be worried if it were only 61.03%. inappropriate precision all over the place.
It always feels wrong to wash down my pills with a martini.
February 14, 2026 at 1:53 AM
It always feels wrong to wash down my pills with a martini.
www.theguardian.com/football/202...
Brilliant exposition of the pernicious influence of an odious chancer.
Brilliant exposition of the pernicious influence of an odious chancer.
Football must reject Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s cynical, self-serving electioneering | Barney Ronay
Tax exile has already proven himself a terrible club owner; now his ill-informed diatribe about immigration has poured fuel on wider flames
www.theguardian.com
February 13, 2026 at 5:18 AM
www.theguardian.com/football/202...
Brilliant exposition of the pernicious influence of an odious chancer.
Brilliant exposition of the pernicious influence of an odious chancer.
Reposted by Paul Pharoah
Trump posted a video depicting the first Black president and his wife as apes and his excuse for this is that it's a riff on The Lion King, a movie that does not feature any apes. Somehow this was a one-day story and we've already moved on.
February 13, 2026 at 3:30 AM
Trump posted a video depicting the first Black president and his wife as apes and his excuse for this is that it's a riff on The Lion King, a movie that does not feature any apes. Somehow this was a one-day story and we've already moved on.
The world's number one dipstick continues to make pronouncements to ensure he stays at number one.
Q: What do you tell Americans who are concerned that repealing the endangerment finding comes at a host to public health and the environment based on science?
TRUMP: I tell them don't worry about it. This was all a scam. They'll have more money to spend for healthcare.
TRUMP: I tell them don't worry about it. This was all a scam. They'll have more money to spend for healthcare.
February 13, 2026 at 4:01 AM
The world's number one dipstick continues to make pronouncements to ensure he stays at number one.
I know the feeling.
Grant rejection, another one. Glowing reviewer's comments, but didn't even make it to panel. What the hell am I doing wrong?!
February 12, 2026 at 3:40 PM
I know the feeling.
But not the scientists that I used to interact with on Twitter.
Please enjoy our research paper on how Bluesky is the preferred home of academics of all stripes, including professors of rare moths. (Yes, we actually have lots of entomologists here).
academic.oup.com/icb/article-... 🧪
academic.oup.com/icb/article-... 🧪
February 12, 2026 at 3:39 PM
But not the scientists that I used to interact with on Twitter.
How exactly should protesting the illegal activities of ICE be putting yourself in harm's way? The only disgusting part of this is that doing so does put yourself in harm's way. Johnson is yet another sick apologist for authoritarianism.
Ron Johnson to Keith Ellison: "Two people are dead because you encouraged them to put themselves into harm's way! And now you are exploiting those two martyrs. You ought to feel damn guilty about it. Yeah, sit there and smirk. Smirk. It's sick! It's despicable. You disgust me."
February 12, 2026 at 3:37 PM
How exactly should protesting the illegal activities of ICE be putting yourself in harm's way? The only disgusting part of this is that doing so does put yourself in harm's way. Johnson is yet another sick apologist for authoritarianism.
www.theguardian.com/education/20...
Who knew that the opposite of many negative words we use did exist once upon a time. E.g. ruth(less), gorm(less), (in)ept, (un)kempt, (un)couth, and (dis)consolate. I wonder why the positives have died out.
Who knew that the opposite of many negative words we use did exist once upon a time. E.g. ruth(less), gorm(less), (in)ept, (un)kempt, (un)couth, and (dis)consolate. I wonder why the positives have died out.
Susie Dent’s tips and tricks to add muscle to a child’s vocabulary
To help combat the impact of screen-time creep, the Countdown word supremo has a few suggestions
www.theguardian.com
February 12, 2026 at 3:32 PM
www.theguardian.com/education/20...
Who knew that the opposite of many negative words we use did exist once upon a time. E.g. ruth(less), gorm(less), (in)ept, (un)kempt, (un)couth, and (dis)consolate. I wonder why the positives have died out.
Who knew that the opposite of many negative words we use did exist once upon a time. E.g. ruth(less), gorm(less), (in)ept, (un)kempt, (un)couth, and (dis)consolate. I wonder why the positives have died out.
www.theguardian.com/business/202...
Immigrants are costing the UK too much says billionaire who avoids paying tax by moving abroad and relying on millions in handouts to keep his companies afloat. Cast him and his companies adrift.
Immigrants are costing the UK too much says billionaire who avoids paying tax by moving abroad and relying on millions in handouts to keep his companies afloat. Cast him and his companies adrift.
Ratcliffe says immigrants cost too much, while Ineos lobbies for state funding
Billionaire’s business has in recent years claimed UK and EU support for refineries and chemicals plants worth about €800m
www.theguardian.com
February 12, 2026 at 3:14 PM
www.theguardian.com/business/202...
Immigrants are costing the UK too much says billionaire who avoids paying tax by moving abroad and relying on millions in handouts to keep his companies afloat. Cast him and his companies adrift.
Immigrants are costing the UK too much says billionaire who avoids paying tax by moving abroad and relying on millions in handouts to keep his companies afloat. Cast him and his companies adrift.
A pardon does not change a guilty verdict to a not guilty verdict.
NEGUSE: AG Bondi, that man works for you now, right? The man in that video from J6 yelling 'kill them!' at cops. His name is Jared Wise.
BONDI: He does work for us, yes. I believe he was pardoned
NEGUSE: And you expect hard-working police officers to believe you take law enforcement seriously?
BONDI: He does work for us, yes. I believe he was pardoned
NEGUSE: And you expect hard-working police officers to believe you take law enforcement seriously?
February 11, 2026 at 7:02 PM
A pardon does not change a guilty verdict to a not guilty verdict.
Listening to a talk about digital biomarkers and the concept of screening for pre-diabetes is being discussed!
February 11, 2026 at 6:18 PM
Listening to a talk about digital biomarkers and the concept of screening for pre-diabetes is being discussed!
What an odious racist.
'The UK has been colonised by immigrants', says INEOS boss and Man Utd co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe
'The UK has been colonised by immigrants', says INEOS boss and Man Utd co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe
Britain has been "colonised" by immigrants, who are draining resources from the state, Sir Jim Ratcliffe, one of the country's richest and most influential men, has told Sky News.
news.sky.com
February 11, 2026 at 6:10 PM
What an odious racist.
I have heard about Claude Code. My first Q; what does it do? The 'overview' website seems an obvious starting place. Apparently it "is an agentic coding tool that reads your codebase, edits files, runs commands, and integrates with your development tools". I am none the wiser.
February 10, 2026 at 10:04 PM
I have heard about Claude Code. My first Q; what does it do? The 'overview' website seems an obvious starting place. Apparently it "is an agentic coding tool that reads your codebase, edits files, runs commands, and integrates with your development tools". I am none the wiser.
He's not bright enough to work out that that is how the stock market works today. Everything he does is bad news.
Trump: "We have to go back to the old system. When we have good news, the market should go up. When we have bad news, the market should go down. And we'll take care of inflation as it comes."
February 10, 2026 at 9:14 PM
He's not bright enough to work out that that is how the stock market works today. Everything he does is bad news.
#WinterOlympics These team events like team ski jumping should be taken from the schedule. Ski jumping is not a team sport.
February 10, 2026 at 7:07 PM
#WinterOlympics These team events like team ski jumping should be taken from the schedule. Ski jumping is not a team sport.
1/2 The one publication reporting sensitivity was based on just 200 (approx) stage 1 cases from multiple cancer types, so the sensitivity for any given type is poorly estimated. Overall just 40% sensitivity for stage 1 (based on cross-valdation as no independent data set).
I find drug advertising on US TV distasteful enough. But advertising a 'screening' test for which there is no evidence of benefit is even worse. Encapsulates the driving force behind all our current problems, i.e. the primacy of commercial interests above all else.
February 10, 2026 at 5:13 PM
1/2 The one publication reporting sensitivity was based on just 200 (approx) stage 1 cases from multiple cancer types, so the sensitivity for any given type is poorly estimated. Overall just 40% sensitivity for stage 1 (based on cross-valdation as no independent data set).
I find drug advertising on US TV distasteful enough. But advertising a 'screening' test for which there is no evidence of benefit is even worse. Encapsulates the driving force behind all our current problems, i.e. the primacy of commercial interests above all else.
February 10, 2026 at 4:55 PM
I find drug advertising on US TV distasteful enough. But advertising a 'screening' test for which there is no evidence of benefit is even worse. Encapsulates the driving force behind all our current problems, i.e. the primacy of commercial interests above all else.