Tom Dewar
@tomdewar.dev
Data science since before it was trendy. Ex-NHS, ex-civil servant. Wants you to use evidence to make better decisions.
Formally @tomdewar_ on the old bird site.
More frequently lurking on Mastodon as @tomdewar@mas.to
Formally @tomdewar_ on the old bird site.
More frequently lurking on Mastodon as @tomdewar@mas.to
Reposted by Tom Dewar
For those who haven't come across the Terrible Worlds series - these are standalone novellas, entirely separate to one another in setting and plot, but loosely grouped in conceptual trios...
Next year, a new TERRIBLE WORLDS novella is coming your way from @aptshadow.bsky.social !
Preorder PREACHING TO THE CHOIR now: https://geni.us/preachtc
And dive into the rest of the thematically linked series whilst you wait. Each novella is a standalone but 1-6 are available in bind ups too!
Preorder PREACHING TO THE CHOIR now: https://geni.us/preachtc
And dive into the rest of the thematically linked series whilst you wait. Each novella is a standalone but 1-6 are available in bind ups too!
November 30, 2025 at 12:02 AM
For those who haven't come across the Terrible Worlds series - these are standalone novellas, entirely separate to one another in setting and plot, but loosely grouped in conceptual trios...
Reposted by Tom Dewar
Does anyone want a survivorship bias shortbread
November 29, 2025 at 4:50 AM
Does anyone want a survivorship bias shortbread
Reposted by Tom Dewar
i hope this email finds you well
November 28, 2025 at 6:27 PM
i hope this email finds you well
Reposted by Tom Dewar
"Curtailment of jury trials has generally been reserved for exceptional circumstances, such as war or force of terrorism… the idea of jury trials being pared back in peacetime suggests a failure of governance. It is a symptom of national crisis."
David Hardstaff, partner at BCL Solicitors
David Hardstaff, partner at BCL Solicitors
November 27, 2025 at 7:13 AM
"Curtailment of jury trials has generally been reserved for exceptional circumstances, such as war or force of terrorism… the idea of jury trials being pared back in peacetime suggests a failure of governance. It is a symptom of national crisis."
David Hardstaff, partner at BCL Solicitors
David Hardstaff, partner at BCL Solicitors
Reposted by Tom Dewar
On Sunday I traveled to the middle of the desert to capture this: The ISS against our sun. What I didn't expect: the sun producing a magnificent flare at the same time
A once-in-a-lifetime shot I'm thrilled to share with you. See the uncropped shot or get the print in the reply
A once-in-a-lifetime shot I'm thrilled to share with you. See the uncropped shot or get the print in the reply
June 20, 2025 at 11:52 PM
On Sunday I traveled to the middle of the desert to capture this: The ISS against our sun. What I didn't expect: the sun producing a magnificent flare at the same time
A once-in-a-lifetime shot I'm thrilled to share with you. See the uncropped shot or get the print in the reply
A once-in-a-lifetime shot I'm thrilled to share with you. See the uncropped shot or get the print in the reply
Anyone know what’s on fire to the north east of Heathrow?
November 25, 2025 at 10:24 AM
Anyone know what’s on fire to the north east of Heathrow?
Reposted by Tom Dewar
Dear UK: You don’t pay enough taxes to have an NHS that doesn’t run on immigration and immigrant labour.
Sorry to be brutally honest but it’s how it is
Sorry to be brutally honest but it’s how it is
November 23, 2025 at 10:06 AM
Dear UK: You don’t pay enough taxes to have an NHS that doesn’t run on immigration and immigrant labour.
Sorry to be brutally honest but it’s how it is
Sorry to be brutally honest but it’s how it is
Reposted by Tom Dewar
I've written up the findings from our work with people and organisations who have used AI notetakers in meetings, identified 9 risks and a bunch of mitigation strategies. www.careful.industries/blog/2025-11...
Nine risks caused by AI notetakers — Careful Industries
AI transcription tools are not currently mature or reliable enough to be regarded as an always on, single-source of truth for meeting notes. Nine common risks, and six possible mitigations.
www.careful.industries
November 21, 2025 at 7:09 AM
I've written up the findings from our work with people and organisations who have used AI notetakers in meetings, identified 9 risks and a bunch of mitigation strategies. www.careful.industries/blog/2025-11...
Reposted by Tom Dewar
This is, of course, a fascinating thread from Kate asking why Google is effectively cannibalizing its own market for both digital ads on third party properties and search ads, by effectively taking away the incentive to click through to third party sites. I have a theory as to why they're doing it.
So this ad revenue metric is indicative of such a fascinating and weird set of business decisions by Google to inexplicably kill of SEO-- and I honestly don't get how they think this is going to pay off for them in the long run.
🧵
1/
🧵
1/
Stereogum says Google's switch to AI Overviews reduced its ad revenue by *70 percent* www.theverge.com/entertainmen...
November 18, 2025 at 9:26 PM
This is, of course, a fascinating thread from Kate asking why Google is effectively cannibalizing its own market for both digital ads on third party properties and search ads, by effectively taking away the incentive to click through to third party sites. I have a theory as to why they're doing it.
Reposted by Tom Dewar
i was trying to type a .com address and was moving so quickly and sloppily I accidentally wrote it as .cmon
and now i'm like
holy crap
that's great
we need that TLD
and now i'm like
holy crap
that's great
we need that TLD
November 14, 2025 at 10:41 PM
i was trying to type a .com address and was moving so quickly and sloppily I accidentally wrote it as .cmon
and now i'm like
holy crap
that's great
we need that TLD
and now i'm like
holy crap
that's great
we need that TLD
It is 2025 and a major breakdown recovery company provides no way, via its app or website, for members to download receipts or even view previous payments you’ve made. How did services get so bad?
November 14, 2025 at 2:43 PM
It is 2025 and a major breakdown recovery company provides no way, via its app or website, for members to download receipts or even view previous payments you’ve made. How did services get so bad?
Reposted by Tom Dewar
There are thousands of things like this in tech. Why is search bad in Gmail. Why does Bluetooth suck. Why are most streaming apps bad. Why is file transfer still annoying. Every day it feels like I've got random issues with tech stuff while these companies sink billions into AI
if microsoft just made outlook search not suck they'd see triple the productivity gains of any AI integration
November 14, 2025 at 8:24 AM
There are thousands of things like this in tech. Why is search bad in Gmail. Why does Bluetooth suck. Why are most streaming apps bad. Why is file transfer still annoying. Every day it feels like I've got random issues with tech stuff while these companies sink billions into AI
Why are they so bad at this?
November 14, 2025 at 8:55 AM
Why are they so bad at this?
Reposted by Tom Dewar
This is now outside the paywall, please do read and share
EXCLUSIVE 🚨 A report alleging Panorama broadcast misleading Trump quotes contains misleading quotes itself
✏️ @jamesrball.com
✏️ @jamesrball.com
Exclusive: the error at the heart of Trump’s BBC attack
A report alleging Panorama broadcast misleading Trump quotes contains misleading quotes itself
www.thenewworld.co.uk
November 13, 2025 at 12:37 PM
This is now outside the paywall, please do read and share
Great to see the FT pick up @edzitron.com’s breakdown on just how insane the business model appears to be for OpenAI (and all their competitors by extension).
November 13, 2025 at 11:56 AM
Great to see the FT pick up @edzitron.com’s breakdown on just how insane the business model appears to be for OpenAI (and all their competitors by extension).
Reposted by Tom Dewar
A must read post
November 12, 2025 at 6:29 PM
A must read post
Reposted by Tom Dewar
people seem to be liking this thread so reminder that I wrote a book, called Escape, on exactly this, which sadly didn't do super well as "oh wow the internet sucks now" wasn't as popular a view in 2022 lol www.pagesofhackney.co.uk/webshop/prod...
basically believe that this mostly depends on when you got Properly Online - before a certain cut-off your normal internet experience was high agency/high effort, but it eventually became low agency/low effort, and it's impossible to create a social media experience that caters to both groups
yes I think @youngvulgarian.marieleconte.com has talked about this, it's deeply alienating to find out that the vast majority of people do not want the curated timeline / engagement / discussion version of social media that I find to be the only good version of the experience
November 12, 2025 at 4:07 PM
people seem to be liking this thread so reminder that I wrote a book, called Escape, on exactly this, which sadly didn't do super well as "oh wow the internet sucks now" wasn't as popular a view in 2022 lol www.pagesofhackney.co.uk/webshop/prod...
Reposted by Tom Dewar
NEW
The letter the BBC could send back to Trump
A proposal for a reply to his $1bn claim
By me. Enjoy.
emptycity.substack.com/p/the-letter...
The letter the BBC could send back to Trump
A proposal for a reply to his $1bn claim
By me. Enjoy.
emptycity.substack.com/p/the-letter...
The letter the BBC could send back to Trump
A proposal for a reply to his $1bn claim
emptycity.substack.com
November 12, 2025 at 12:00 PM
NEW
The letter the BBC could send back to Trump
A proposal for a reply to his $1bn claim
By me. Enjoy.
emptycity.substack.com/p/the-letter...
The letter the BBC could send back to Trump
A proposal for a reply to his $1bn claim
By me. Enjoy.
emptycity.substack.com/p/the-letter...
Reposted by Tom Dewar
Great thread! This summer we discovered our Sonos speaker was playing an unknown neighbour’s music requests, which presumably means theirs was also playing ours?
my mother's hearing aid has broken the doorbell
November 12, 2025 at 10:07 AM
Great thread! This summer we discovered our Sonos speaker was playing an unknown neighbour’s music requests, which presumably means theirs was also playing ours?
Reposted by Tom Dewar
Love being reminded to do this every year. It's a win/win all round
November 11, 2025 at 11:00 AM
Love being reminded to do this every year. It's a win/win all round
Reposted by Tom Dewar
Exactly
Nowhere in the hysterical pile-on against the BBC in the British press has anyone mentioned that BBC News now has 77 million viewers & listeners in the US and has established itself as the second most trusted news source there.
November 11, 2025 at 1:13 PM
Exactly
Reposted by Tom Dewar
I can't tell you how many interviews I've done where I've been asked: If Trump's policies are so problematic, why are U.S. stocks rising so rapidly.
A bit of international context illustrates the real issue here.
U.S. stocks have dramatically underperformed other advanced economies.
A bit of international context illustrates the real issue here.
U.S. stocks have dramatically underperformed other advanced economies.
November 10, 2025 at 3:15 PM
I can't tell you how many interviews I've done where I've been asked: If Trump's policies are so problematic, why are U.S. stocks rising so rapidly.
A bit of international context illustrates the real issue here.
U.S. stocks have dramatically underperformed other advanced economies.
A bit of international context illustrates the real issue here.
U.S. stocks have dramatically underperformed other advanced economies.
Reposted by Tom Dewar
A national newspaper journalist went on a British TV channel to claim police stats showed asylum-seekers committed 44% of sex crimes in Dorset.
This shocking claim was treated as fact by the channel which promoted the clip on social media where it was amplified by AI.
Except... it's bollocks.
This shocking claim was treated as fact by the channel which promoted the clip on social media where it was amplified by AI.
Except... it's bollocks.
November 8, 2025 at 8:39 AM
A national newspaper journalist went on a British TV channel to claim police stats showed asylum-seekers committed 44% of sex crimes in Dorset.
This shocking claim was treated as fact by the channel which promoted the clip on social media where it was amplified by AI.
Except... it's bollocks.
This shocking claim was treated as fact by the channel which promoted the clip on social media where it was amplified by AI.
Except... it's bollocks.