Prof Mike Yearworth
@mikeyearworth.bsky.social
Emeritus Professor · Problem Structuring · Problem Formulation · Soft Systems Methodology · Practice of Operational Research · Process Thinking · Facilitation · Group Support Systems · Co-Editor-in-Chief European Journal of Operational Research · CEng
Pinned
My book 'Problem Structuring: Methodology in Practice' has just been published by Wiley! www.grounded.systems/2024/03/prob...
Almost like there’s a positive feedback loop amplifying noise instead of a nice balancing negative feedback loop providing a modicum of stable control
Important column here from Gita Gopinath - former chief economist at the IMF - questioning the frequency of the OBR assessments and the volatility that induces www.ft.com/content/a2ef...
November 11, 2025 at 8:18 AM
Almost like there’s a positive feedback loop amplifying noise instead of a nice balancing negative feedback loop providing a modicum of stable control
Reposted by Prof Mike Yearworth
This is an interesting take.
November 11, 2025 at 7:45 AM
This is an interesting take.
“A basket of bonds issued by so-called hyperscalers — companies that are building vast data centres, including Alphabet, Meta, Microsoft and Oracle — has sustained a hit in recent weeks.”
on.ft.com/47OKizL
on.ft.com/47OKizL
Investor angst over Big Tech’s AI spending spills into bond market
Debt issued by groups building data centres has been hit in recent weeks
on.ft.com
November 11, 2025 at 7:31 AM
“A basket of bonds issued by so-called hyperscalers — companies that are building vast data centres, including Alphabet, Meta, Microsoft and Oracle — has sustained a hit in recent weeks.”
on.ft.com/47OKizL
on.ft.com/47OKizL
“Ironclad is built in the granddaddy of safe systems-programming languages, Ada, and its design-by-contract dialect SPARK”
www.theregister.com/2025/11/10/i...
www.theregister.com/2025/11/10/i...
Ironclad OS crafts Unix-like kernel in Ada and SPARK
: There's more to safer systems languages than Rust
www.theregister.com
November 10, 2025 at 5:24 PM
“Ironclad is built in the granddaddy of safe systems-programming languages, Ada, and its design-by-contract dialect SPARK”
www.theregister.com/2025/11/10/i...
www.theregister.com/2025/11/10/i...
Reposted by Prof Mike Yearworth
For this week's @theobserveruk.bsky.social I've written about one of my favourite topics: the productivity of the public sector, how it's measured, why it tends to grow less quickly than productivity in the private sector, and what it means for policy.
observer.co.uk/news/busines...
observer.co.uk/news/busines...
November 9, 2025 at 10:11 AM
For this week's @theobserveruk.bsky.social I've written about one of my favourite topics: the productivity of the public sector, how it's measured, why it tends to grow less quickly than productivity in the private sector, and what it means for policy.
observer.co.uk/news/busines...
observer.co.uk/news/busines...
Reposted by Prof Mike Yearworth
Very interesting paper. Confirms what we knew from cross-country studies - large, rapid effects. The really interesting part is the firm-level analysis, which shows similar, if somewhat lower, magnitudes.
www.nber.org/papers/w3445...
www.nber.org/papers/w3445...
November 10, 2025 at 11:44 AM
Very interesting paper. Confirms what we knew from cross-country studies - large, rapid effects. The really interesting part is the firm-level analysis, which shows similar, if somewhat lower, magnitudes.
www.nber.org/papers/w3445...
www.nber.org/papers/w3445...
“Transport officials are working with the National Cyber Security Centre to assess whether Yutong, the world’s biggest bus maker, has remote access to the vehicles’ control systems for software updates and diagnostics.”
www.ft.com/content/07ec...
www.ft.com/content/07ec...
UK investigates whether buses made in China can be turned off from afar
Investigation comes after Norway found Yutong vehicles could be ‘stopped or rendered inoperable’ by Chinese company
www.ft.com
November 10, 2025 at 8:30 AM
“Transport officials are working with the National Cyber Security Centre to assess whether Yutong, the world’s biggest bus maker, has remote access to the vehicles’ control systems for software updates and diagnostics.”
www.ft.com/content/07ec...
www.ft.com/content/07ec...
“One professor even told THE that the research section seemed like a “ChatGPT digest” of ministerial speeches and previous skills announcements. “Line by line it reads OK, but step back and there are so many contradictions that you can’t ignore.””
www.timeshighereducation.com/depth/uk-res...
www.timeshighereducation.com/depth/uk-res...
UK research faces a radical overhaul
The recent skills White Paper foreshadows the shuttering of some or all research in certain UK universities. But what will the effects of that be on teaching – and on research itself? How could it be ...
www.timeshighereducation.com
November 10, 2025 at 7:46 AM
“One professor even told THE that the research section seemed like a “ChatGPT digest” of ministerial speeches and previous skills announcements. “Line by line it reads OK, but step back and there are so many contradictions that you can’t ignore.””
www.timeshighereducation.com/depth/uk-res...
www.timeshighereducation.com/depth/uk-res...
Reposted by Prof Mike Yearworth
If you’ve been watching the Hack there’s an ITV documentary on phone hacking at 10.15 pm this evening
November 9, 2025 at 9:59 PM
If you’ve been watching the Hack there’s an ITV documentary on phone hacking at 10.15 pm this evening
“The government’s plan to use artificial intelligence to accelerate planning for new homes may be about to hit an unexpected roadblock: AI-powered nimbyism.
A new service called Objector is offering “policy-backed objections in minutes…”
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
A new service called Objector is offering “policy-backed objections in minutes…”
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
AI-powered nimbyism could grind UK planning system to a halt, experts warn
Tools that help people scan applications and find grounds for objection have potential to hit government’s housebuilding plans
www.theguardian.com
November 9, 2025 at 9:44 PM
“The government’s plan to use artificial intelligence to accelerate planning for new homes may be about to hit an unexpected roadblock: AI-powered nimbyism.
A new service called Objector is offering “policy-backed objections in minutes…”
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
A new service called Objector is offering “policy-backed objections in minutes…”
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
“…industry anger over decisions that have led to key routes being left with stretches that require diesel trains”
I think there’s more than industry anger. I suppose the West Country to run on diesel trains for the foreseeable future
www.ft.com/content/5ecd...
I think there’s more than industry anger. I suppose the West Country to run on diesel trains for the foreseeable future
www.ft.com/content/5ecd...
UK transport secretary says full electrification of railways ‘not affordable right now’
Heidi Alexander says focus will be on other projects such as HS2
www.ft.com
November 9, 2025 at 9:20 PM
“…industry anger over decisions that have led to key routes being left with stretches that require diesel trains”
I think there’s more than industry anger. I suppose the West Country to run on diesel trains for the foreseeable future
www.ft.com/content/5ecd...
I think there’s more than industry anger. I suppose the West Country to run on diesel trains for the foreseeable future
www.ft.com/content/5ecd...
I would be curious to know what contribution Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) could make, if any, in this debate about public sector productivity.
“Claiming, as some do, that tens of billions of pounds in further cuts could be found easily through a crackdown on “waste” is not a helpful or serious contribution to the debate.”
observer.co.uk/news/busines...
observer.co.uk/news/busines...
The UK has a productivity problem. Cuts won’t fix it | The Observer
observer.co.uk
November 9, 2025 at 10:37 AM
I would be curious to know what contribution Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) could make, if any, in this debate about public sector productivity.
“Claiming, as some do, that tens of billions of pounds in further cuts could be found easily through a crackdown on “waste” is not a helpful or serious contribution to the debate.”
observer.co.uk/news/busines...
observer.co.uk/news/busines...
The UK has a productivity problem. Cuts won’t fix it | The Observer
observer.co.uk
November 9, 2025 at 8:47 AM
“Claiming, as some do, that tens of billions of pounds in further cuts could be found easily through a crackdown on “waste” is not a helpful or serious contribution to the debate.”
observer.co.uk/news/busines...
observer.co.uk/news/busines...
Reposted by Prof Mike Yearworth
Great snappy documentary (12 minutes) about misinformation by the Expedition team www.joinexpeditions.... 1/2
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Explore the library of knowledge
Meet the world's best researchers. Enjoy conversations with leading academics, scientists and thinkers. From climate change to genetics, from AI to feminism, from economic growth to the exoplanets, discover the issues that matter to them, to us and to the world.
www.joinexpeditions.com
November 8, 2025 at 6:44 PM
Great snappy documentary (12 minutes) about misinformation by the Expedition team www.joinexpeditions.... 1/2
1/2
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Reposted by Prof Mike Yearworth
Publication in highly ranked political science journals increasingly depends on usig complex quantitative methods. Silje Synnøve Lyder Hermansen argues the fetishization of quantitative tools has obscured the wider context & meaning of research. blogs.lse.ac.uk/impactofsoci...
Quantitative political science shouldn’t favour tools over theory - Impact of Social Sciences
Has the fetishization of quantitative tools obscured the wider context and meaning of in political science?
blogs.lse.ac.uk
November 7, 2025 at 6:29 PM
Publication in highly ranked political science journals increasingly depends on usig complex quantitative methods. Silje Synnøve Lyder Hermansen argues the fetishization of quantitative tools has obscured the wider context & meaning of research. blogs.lse.ac.uk/impactofsoci...
Reposted by Prof Mike Yearworth
This is the device I need. Foldable like a small paperback. Kindle and Wikipedia.
The book is Chip War by Chris Miller
The book is Chip War by Chris Miller
November 7, 2025 at 5:40 PM
This is the device I need. Foldable like a small paperback. Kindle and Wikipedia.
The book is Chip War by Chris Miller
The book is Chip War by Chris Miller
Reposted by Prof Mike Yearworth
This is one of the first cases in which a single cyberattack has produced such clear economic and fiscal effects in the United Kingdom.
November 8, 2025 at 7:19 AM
This is one of the first cases in which a single cyberattack has produced such clear economic and fiscal effects in the United Kingdom.
Reposted by Prof Mike Yearworth
The incident was classified as a category-three systemic event, with a potential cost to the local economy of up to £2.1 billion, while Jaguar Land Rover’s lost revenues alone are estimated at more than £2 billion.
November 8, 2025 at 7:19 AM
The incident was classified as a category-three systemic event, with a potential cost to the local economy of up to £2.1 billion, while Jaguar Land Rover’s lost revenues alone are estimated at more than £2 billion.
Reposted by Prof Mike Yearworth
The Bank of England indicated that the cyberattack on Jaguar Land Rover significantly slowed national gross domestic product growth. www.bankofengland.co.uk/monetary-pol...
November 8, 2025 at 7:19 AM
The Bank of England indicated that the cyberattack on Jaguar Land Rover significantly slowed national gross domestic product growth. www.bankofengland.co.uk/monetary-pol...
Reposted by Prof Mike Yearworth
‘An executive decided the extra liability for running the Idaho plant filterless would be worth it: “200 children” at “$5 to 10,000 [per] kid” was a small price compared to the money to be made from uninterrupted smelting.’
James Lasdun on pollution and murder.
www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...
James Lasdun on pollution and murder.
www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...
James Lasdun · American Berserk: Serial Killers in Seattle
For a period beginning in the 1960s and ending around the turn of this century, the preferred form of the homicidally...
www.lrb.co.uk
November 7, 2025 at 7:07 PM
‘An executive decided the extra liability for running the Idaho plant filterless would be worth it: “200 children” at “$5 to 10,000 [per] kid” was a small price compared to the money to be made from uninterrupted smelting.’
James Lasdun on pollution and murder.
www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...
James Lasdun on pollution and murder.
www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...
Reposted by Prof Mike Yearworth
Depressing new evidence on work conditions for Amazon delivery drivers (and interesting comparisons with UPS), by Danny Schneider and David Weil theconversation.com/the-unraveli...
The unraveling of workplace protections for delivery drivers: A tale of 2 workplace models
A first-of-its-kind study finds Amazon’s delivery drivers earn less and face more instability than their unionized counterparts.
theconversation.com
November 7, 2025 at 6:58 PM
Depressing new evidence on work conditions for Amazon delivery drivers (and interesting comparisons with UPS), by Danny Schneider and David Weil theconversation.com/the-unraveli...
Reposted by Prof Mike Yearworth
Maps based on climate data show that land next to the #Oldbury #nuclear power station, which is being assessed by the government for potentially building small modular reactors ( #SMRs), is projected to be below the annual flood level by 2050.
www.newcivilengineer.com/latest/sitin...
www.newcivilengineer.com/latest/sitin...
Siting new nuclear at Oldbury deemed ‘problematic’ due to high level of flood risk | New Civil Engineer
The maps also show that land at Wylfa in North Wales, the other site being considered by the government for potentially deploying SMRs, will remain above
www.newcivilengineer.com
November 7, 2025 at 10:03 AM
Maps based on climate data show that land next to the #Oldbury #nuclear power station, which is being assessed by the government for potentially building small modular reactors ( #SMRs), is projected to be below the annual flood level by 2050.
www.newcivilengineer.com/latest/sitin...
www.newcivilengineer.com/latest/sitin...
Reposted by Prof Mike Yearworth
A beautiful stack of "Mereological Syntax," which publishes on November 18th! More information here: mitpress.mit.edu/978026255327...
Look what just arrived early! It’s chunkier than I thought. Open access version on publication day which I think is the 18th on the @mitpress.bsky.social website. I must admit, I’m very fond of the colour!!! 🐦🐦 #syntax #newbook
November 7, 2025 at 5:37 PM
A beautiful stack of "Mereological Syntax," which publishes on November 18th! More information here: mitpress.mit.edu/978026255327...
This is the device I need. Foldable like a small paperback. Kindle and Wikipedia.
The book is Chip War by Chris Miller
The book is Chip War by Chris Miller
November 7, 2025 at 5:40 PM
This is the device I need. Foldable like a small paperback. Kindle and Wikipedia.
The book is Chip War by Chris Miller
The book is Chip War by Chris Miller
Reposted by Prof Mike Yearworth
Caroline Lucas appointed as new Professor of Practice at the University of Sussex www.sussex.ac.uk/news/univers...
Caroline Lucas appointed as new Professor of Practice at the University of Sussex
Caroline Lucas has been appointed by the University of Sussex as its first Professor of Practice in Environmental Sustainability.
www.sussex.ac.uk
November 7, 2025 at 11:59 AM
Caroline Lucas appointed as new Professor of Practice at the University of Sussex www.sussex.ac.uk/news/univers...