Justin Lo
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justinjhlo.bsky.social
Justin Lo
@justinjhlo.bsky.social
680 followers 450 following 450 posts
Sociophonetician & forensic speech scientist @ Lancaster University. All about voice and identity.

I talk about trains a lot. You have been warned.

justinjhlo.github.io
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justinjhlo.bsky.social
Reunited after having to abandon bike at the station 3 nights ago! But here we are facing points failure and more delays together!
A red bike at a bike rack in a train station
November 21, 2025 at 8:35 AM
justinjhlo.bsky.social
gotta admire Northern’s creativity for the things it tries to pass off as a restraining strap
A restraining strap for a bike on a Northern train. There is a receptacle for a buckle on one end of the strap, but no buckle on the other end.
November 7, 2025 at 8:25 PM
justinjhlo.bsky.social
I might’ve just read my book of the year
A paperback copy of Andrew McMillan’s Pity with a black cover and an off-centre pink circle
October 14, 2025 at 10:10 PM
justinjhlo.bsky.social
Did this cat (not mine) make me miss the bus this morning? Yes.
Do I love her? Yes.
Will she one day end up tripping me down the stairs and breaking my bones? You betcha.
A grey Russian Blue cat lying sideways on a cream carpet, with front paws tucked in and head turned back towards the camera
July 28, 2025 at 7:47 PM
justinjhlo.bsky.social
I’m not sure I can comprehend the concept of a local train departing two (2) whole minutes earlier than scheduled. Like, what on earth.
Departure board of a 13:45 train from York to Leeds, showing it left Harrogate 2 minutes early than scheduled
July 27, 2025 at 1:36 PM
justinjhlo.bsky.social
some things do come full circle
A screenshot from Microsoft Word, where the word "Language" is red-squiggly-underlined. Spelling suggestions include "Langage", "Languate", and "Lagunage".
June 13, 2025 at 7:52 PM
justinjhlo.bsky.social
Morecambe Bay’s outdone itself again this evening
Morecambe Bay at sunset, with the setting sun on the left and a bright reflection in the water. Distant hills are visible on the right.
May 1, 2025 at 10:10 PM
justinjhlo.bsky.social
the only reason I don't completely turn off this rubbish is so I can keep laughing at and whinging about how rubbish it is
Screenshot from Microsoft Outlook with text "I guess if there is any time people have...". The word "is" is double-underlined in blue, with a grammar tooltip recommending to double-check that I'm sticking to singular or plural and suggesting "are" as alternative
May 1, 2025 at 8:48 PM
justinjhlo.bsky.social
I could get used to the Bay at sunsets like this
Morecambe Bay in low tide at sunset. The water is reflecting the pale orange light, and mountains are clearly visible beyond.
April 29, 2025 at 6:48 AM
justinjhlo.bsky.social
Cornwall has been so lovely, can’t get enough of it.

Could do without being trapped on the train with this drunk family from Luxulyan who insisted on singing ching chang chong at us.
View of the East Looe River flowing into the Looe Bay, with a pier extending into the bay. The beach is packed witb people, hilltops roll in the back, and the sky is blue and cloudless.
April 22, 2025 at 8:47 AM
justinjhlo.bsky.social
I made plans to treat myself to a 17-mile ride (context: I only started cycling again last week after quite a while) and stuck to them (please clap) and, headwind notwithstanding, the views were so rewarding
View of Morecambe Bay at low tide under a very blue sky, with large swathes of sandy beach visible. A stone jetty sits on the right, the Furness Fells can be seen in the distance, and a seagull is flying past in the foreground. The octagonal Morecambe Stone Pier Lighthouse, with the beach in the background. Buildings of the town can be seen in the background under a very blue sky with wisps of cloud. A side view of the stone Lune Aqueduct over the River Lune, with blue sky in the background.
April 4, 2025 at 3:43 PM
justinjhlo.bsky.social
yes suuuure
A Microsoft Word document with the phrase "Method unclear", where the word "unclear" is double-underlined in blue. A grammar tooltip says to "Double-check that you're sticking to singular or plural" and suggests "unclears" instead.
March 24, 2025 at 10:42 PM
justinjhlo.bsky.social
I just had the (mis)fortune to set eyes on these pasteis de nata that looked like they’d exploded in the oven so now y’all have to as well
A dozen pasteis de nata in a display case. They look like burnt Yorkshire puddings.
February 27, 2025 at 8:08 AM
justinjhlo.bsky.social
Newcastle’s been welcoming us with glorious weather today and clearly wants us to stay longer, so much so that it’s cancelled my train home.

Thanks @roryturnbull.bsky.social for the invitation to talk about coarticulation!
A clear sky view from the tilting Millennium Bridge of the River Tyne, buildings of Newcastle along the river, and the various bridges across the river in the background
February 5, 2025 at 8:48 PM
justinjhlo.bsky.social
Harrogate station’s undeniably a pretty sight though
View of snow-covered tracks and platforms, and buildings in the town beyond, from a footbridge in Harrogate station
January 9, 2025 at 9:28 AM
justinjhlo.bsky.social
First #TheGreatBritishCommute of 2025 starting with a wee bit of ice
Snow-covered trail sloping up to a fork, with a house at the end
January 9, 2025 at 9:24 AM
justinjhlo.bsky.social
Did not know about this variant spelling until today!
Screenshot from an email that says “You shared 0 vouchers and you earnt… 12 vouchers”
January 7, 2025 at 4:14 PM
justinjhlo.bsky.social
straight into my folder of next years’s essay questions on how this is not how any of this works
It could also work retroactively, as part of an advanced speech analysis program that transcribes the conversation and judges the emotional state of the agent and caller. Bahala said the program scores him on his tone, his pitch, the mood of the call, his use of positive language, if he avoided interrupting or speaking over a caller, how long he put the caller on hold, and how quickly he resolved the issue. Bahala said he nudges customers toward high-scoring responses: “yes,” “perfect,” “great.” Every stutter, pause, mispronounced word, or deviation from a script earns him a demerit.
November 26, 2024 at 8:37 PM
justinjhlo.bsky.social
making slides for the new module means I get the excuse to show off my cat as much as I want to, which is about every five slides
A tabby cat playing with a red ribbon hiding under her bed
October 7, 2024 at 2:42 PM
justinjhlo.bsky.social
It’s finally in. Now the long wait begins.
Text box with blue header saying “Important”, containing the message “Application received by UKRI”
October 2, 2024 at 4:20 PM
justinjhlo.bsky.social
Fitting models be like:
A folded navy T shirt with a square containing increasingly narrow white stripes. Above and below the square is the text “Make it simple, but significant”
July 8, 2024 at 12:51 PM
justinjhlo.bsky.social
A double and supernumerary rainbow???
Rainbow in an orange-pink sky. A fainter double rajnbow can be seen at a distance. Additional, fainter bands are seen bordering the inner arc of the rainbow. There is part of a tree in the foreground.
June 14, 2024 at 8:50 PM
justinjhlo.bsky.social
Meanwhile Northern is passing this off as a bike space??
A bike space on a Northern train, with shelves on one side and a big metal box on the floor at the end
June 13, 2024 at 1:27 PM
justinjhlo.bsky.social
winner for earliest season’s greetings this year
A lorry being unloaded with the words “Merry Christmas from Poundland” on its side
April 25, 2024 at 6:43 AM
justinjhlo.bsky.social
can the railway please 😭 let 😭 me 😭 catch 😭 a 😭 bloody 😭 break 😭
A screenshot of the itinerary of a cancelled train from Swansea to London Paddington due to flooding
March 28, 2024 at 7:04 AM