Paul McMillan
@mcmillan-astro.bsky.social
Astrophysicist working on Milky Way dynamics and Gaia data. University of Leicester. Views expressed are my own.
Website: https://paulmcmillan-astro.github.io/
Website: https://paulmcmillan-astro.github.io/
Reposted by Paul McMillan
Please come and march alongside us tomorrow in the national demonstration called by @ucu.org.uk.
We will be on the pickets 9-10.30, and assemble for the demonstration in De Montfort Square at 11.
All welcome!
We will be on the pickets 9-10.30, and assemble for the demonstration in De Montfort Square at 11.
All welcome!
November 11, 2025 at 5:44 PM
Please come and march alongside us tomorrow in the national demonstration called by @ucu.org.uk.
We will be on the pickets 9-10.30, and assemble for the demonstration in De Montfort Square at 11.
All welcome!
We will be on the pickets 9-10.30, and assemble for the demonstration in De Montfort Square at 11.
All welcome!
Reposted by Paul McMillan
🔭🧪🎢 The University of Leicester is advertising PhD places in Physics & Astronomy starting 2026!
They span Astrophysics, Planetary Science, Space Instrumentation and Earth Observation.
All of them are advertised on FindAPhD 🔭🧪🎢
www.findaphd.com/phds/departm...
They span Astrophysics, Planetary Science, Space Instrumentation and Earth Observation.
All of them are advertised on FindAPhD 🔭🧪🎢
www.findaphd.com/phds/departm...
November 7, 2025 at 6:30 PM
🔭🧪🎢 The University of Leicester is advertising PhD places in Physics & Astronomy starting 2026!
They span Astrophysics, Planetary Science, Space Instrumentation and Earth Observation.
All of them are advertised on FindAPhD 🔭🧪🎢
www.findaphd.com/phds/departm...
They span Astrophysics, Planetary Science, Space Instrumentation and Earth Observation.
All of them are advertised on FindAPhD 🔭🧪🎢
www.findaphd.com/phds/departm...
Reposted by Paul McMillan
English article version: www.uu.se/en/departmen...
Award for collaboration and outreach to Linn Boldt-Christmas
- Uppsala University
www.uu.se
October 31, 2025 at 5:46 PM
English article version: www.uu.se/en/departmen...
Great show from @5teviem.bsky.social at the firebug this evening. Not just laughs alone, also horse lamps.
October 29, 2025 at 10:27 PM
Great show from @5teviem.bsky.social at the firebug this evening. Not just laughs alone, also horse lamps.
Martin Luther. Simon Alinder. Some other people too, no doubt.
There's a great history of nailing theses to things and Simon did that yesterday ahead of his thesis defense next month. I watched on zoom, and it turns out quite hard to get a good screenshot!
There's a great history of nailing theses to things and Simon did that yesterday ahead of his thesis defense next month. I watched on zoom, and it turns out quite hard to get a good screenshot!
October 29, 2025 at 8:11 AM
Martin Luther. Simon Alinder. Some other people too, no doubt.
There's a great history of nailing theses to things and Simon did that yesterday ahead of his thesis defense next month. I watched on zoom, and it turns out quite hard to get a good screenshot!
There's a great history of nailing theses to things and Simon did that yesterday ahead of his thesis defense next month. I watched on zoom, and it turns out quite hard to get a good screenshot!
The University of Leicester's marketing department know that it's the staff who are the lifeblood of the university. Leaving staff under threat of firing for months on end, with no negotiation with our representatives, is awful management
October 3, 2025 at 10:30 AM
The University of Leicester's marketing department know that it's the staff who are the lifeblood of the university. Leaving staff under threat of firing for months on end, with no negotiation with our representatives, is awful management
I'm not usually a much of a protestor, but I will try to defend the University of Leicester, and my colleagues, from the bad decisions made by our management. The proposed cuts unneeded, unfair and backed by cherry picked metrics. I support the @leicesterucu.bsky.social strike action.
September 30, 2025 at 7:43 AM
I'm not usually a much of a protestor, but I will try to defend the University of Leicester, and my colleagues, from the bad decisions made by our management. The proposed cuts unneeded, unfair and backed by cherry picked metrics. I support the @leicesterucu.bsky.social strike action.
I'm very sad that the university's leadership has brought us to this point. I will be joining my colleagues in striking to protect the future strength of the University of Leicester
Leicester UCU will be on strike from Monday 29 September until Friday 17 October.
September 26, 2025 at 1:01 PM
I'm very sad that the university's leadership has brought us to this point. I will be joining my colleagues in striking to protect the future strength of the University of Leicester
Today's entry in "Astronomers should't get to name things". Hubble's constant being constant in direction rather than time has always made it a bad name.
Astronomers! This year’s A level physics exams included the following question which seems dodgy to me. Anyone got a sensible answer?
September 16, 2025 at 2:59 PM
Today's entry in "Astronomers should't get to name things". Hubble's constant being constant in direction rather than time has always made it a bad name.
Reposted by Paul McMillan
Astronomers! This year’s A level physics exams included the following question which seems dodgy to me. Anyone got a sensible answer?
September 16, 2025 at 1:50 PM
Astronomers! This year’s A level physics exams included the following question which seems dodgy to me. Anyone got a sensible answer?
Personal opinion: Squirrels are cuter than other rodents because of the bouncy way they run, not because of the tail
September 12, 2025 at 12:24 PM
Personal opinion: Squirrels are cuter than other rodents because of the bouncy way they run, not because of the tail
🔭🧪🎢 I'll be at the Leicester open day this Saturday. Maybe you can find out why my student feedback included being called an "S-tier" lecturer, which I had to look up, but is apparently positive! 🔭🧪🎢 le.ac.uk/open-days
September 9, 2025 at 10:49 AM
🔭🧪🎢 I'll be at the Leicester open day this Saturday. Maybe you can find out why my student feedback included being called an "S-tier" lecturer, which I had to look up, but is apparently positive! 🔭🧪🎢 le.ac.uk/open-days
🔭 On a related note: When students reach out to their former supervisors it can mean a lot to us. I'm going to write to my former Masters project supervisor and thank her. 🔭
🔭 One of the greatest pleasures of my job is when someone I helped and enthused at the start of their astrophysics studies finds success.
Congratulations ot Aayush Desai on publishing his first paper! arxiv.org/abs/2509.03216 🔭
"Magnetic Atmospheres and Circumstellar Interaction in
J1901+1458"
Congratulations ot Aayush Desai on publishing his first paper! arxiv.org/abs/2509.03216 🔭
"Magnetic Atmospheres and Circumstellar Interaction in
J1901+1458"
September 4, 2025 at 9:38 AM
🔭 On a related note: When students reach out to their former supervisors it can mean a lot to us. I'm going to write to my former Masters project supervisor and thank her. 🔭
🔭 One of the greatest pleasures of my job is when someone I helped and enthused at the start of their astrophysics studies finds success.
Congratulations ot Aayush Desai on publishing his first paper! arxiv.org/abs/2509.03216 🔭
"Magnetic Atmospheres and Circumstellar Interaction in
J1901+1458"
Congratulations ot Aayush Desai on publishing his first paper! arxiv.org/abs/2509.03216 🔭
"Magnetic Atmospheres and Circumstellar Interaction in
J1901+1458"
September 4, 2025 at 8:47 AM
🔭 One of the greatest pleasures of my job is when someone I helped and enthused at the start of their astrophysics studies finds success.
Congratulations ot Aayush Desai on publishing his first paper! arxiv.org/abs/2509.03216 🔭
"Magnetic Atmospheres and Circumstellar Interaction in
J1901+1458"
Congratulations ot Aayush Desai on publishing his first paper! arxiv.org/abs/2509.03216 🔭
"Magnetic Atmospheres and Circumstellar Interaction in
J1901+1458"
🔭🧪🎢 Reposting for the feeds 🎢🧪🔭
If you know/are an interested sixth-form student, our open day is a great way of seeing what you could be doing with us. I'll be there telling you about our work on the Milky Way!
le.ac.uk/open-days
If you know/are an interested sixth-form student, our open day is a great way of seeing what you could be doing with us. I'll be there telling you about our work on the Milky Way!
le.ac.uk/open-days
Just over 2 weeks until our next public open day!
On 13th September, come and see what studying physics at the University of Leicester can be like. You'll also witness some of the highlights of our internationally renowned space research.
Book your place here: le.ac.uk/open-days
On 13th September, come and see what studying physics at the University of Leicester can be like. You'll also witness some of the highlights of our internationally renowned space research.
Book your place here: le.ac.uk/open-days
August 28, 2025 at 12:32 PM
🔭🧪🎢 Reposting for the feeds 🎢🧪🔭
If you know/are an interested sixth-form student, our open day is a great way of seeing what you could be doing with us. I'll be there telling you about our work on the Milky Way!
le.ac.uk/open-days
If you know/are an interested sixth-form student, our open day is a great way of seeing what you could be doing with us. I'll be there telling you about our work on the Milky Way!
le.ac.uk/open-days
🔭 Exciting results from my colleagues 🔭
An extragalactic explosion was a massive star exploding, with a jet that was trapped in a 'cocoon' by the outer layers of the star or the dense matter surrounding it. Our researchers helped explain this using data from the Einstein Probe and ground telescopes. le.ac.uk/news/2025/ju...
Leicester researchers shed new light on extragalactic event | News | University of Leicester
le.ac.uk
July 10, 2025 at 4:34 PM
🔭 Exciting results from my colleagues 🔭
Reposted by Paul McMillan
Our Prof @leighfletcher.bsky.social is giving a plenary talk at the National Astronomy Meeting presenting JWST observations of the solar system's gas giants! #NAM2025
July 9, 2025 at 10:34 AM
Our Prof @leighfletcher.bsky.social is giving a plenary talk at the National Astronomy Meeting presenting JWST observations of the solar system's gas giants! #NAM2025
A sighting of Leicester's @spacecentre.bsky.social Thor Able rocket during a really interesting (and last minute replacement!) talk by Dr Bleddyn Bowen on the politics of space at the UK's National Astronomy Meeting #NAM2025
July 7, 2025 at 11:31 AM
A sighting of Leicester's @spacecentre.bsky.social Thor Able rocket during a really interesting (and last minute replacement!) talk by Dr Bleddyn Bowen on the politics of space at the UK's National Astronomy Meeting #NAM2025
Interesting start to #NAM2025 at a session dedicated to Galactic dynamics, and how "Basis function expansions" are useful tools for this. Speakers keep abbreviating this as BFE, pronounced "Beefy", which is a touch distracting
July 7, 2025 at 10:46 AM
Interesting start to #NAM2025 at a session dedicated to Galactic dynamics, and how "Basis function expansions" are useful tools for this. Speakers keep abbreviating this as BFE, pronounced "Beefy", which is a touch distracting
Some student feedback on my lecturing described it as "S-tier", which I assumed meant it was very bad. It turns out to be the opposite, but I remain a bit baffled. The S does not stand for the word I would expect.
July 2, 2025 at 1:44 PM
Some student feedback on my lecturing described it as "S-tier", which I assumed meant it was very bad. It turns out to be the opposite, but I remain a bit baffled. The S does not stand for the word I would expect.
'if a forklift truck can pick it up, is it even worth lifting weights in the gym?'
I gotta say I find a lot of AI discourse around higher ed very confusing. "if ChatGPT can write your essays is college even worth it?" did people think math teachers were assigning problem sets because *they* couldn't figure out the answers?
June 30, 2025 at 2:27 PM
'if a forklift truck can pick it up, is it even worth lifting weights in the gym?'
Non-hot take: The "AI will kill us" discourse was a distraction from the real problem: it removes the young end of the skilled knowledge workforce. They are harder to train, because AI can do it for them. They can't get jobs, because AI can do it for their bosses. www.theguardian.com/business/202...
Number of new UK entry-level jobs has dived since ChatGPT launch – research
Vacancies for graduate jobs, apprenticeships, internships and junior jobs with no degree requirement have dropped 32%, Adzuna finds
www.theguardian.com
June 30, 2025 at 1:59 PM
Non-hot take: The "AI will kill us" discourse was a distraction from the real problem: it removes the young end of the skilled knowledge workforce. They are harder to train, because AI can do it for them. They can't get jobs, because AI can do it for their bosses. www.theguardian.com/business/202...
I am very much a child of the 90s. Watching the BBC's stream of this set gave me quite literal chills www.theguardian.com/music/2025/j...
Pulp’s secret Glastonbury set review – still the magnificently misshapen oddballs of British pop
Returning to headline the Pyramid for the first time in 30 years, Jarvis Cocker and co are as dark, grubby and joyous as ever, instantly turning the audience to misty-eyed displays of devotion
www.theguardian.com
June 30, 2025 at 9:07 AM
I am very much a child of the 90s. Watching the BBC's stream of this set gave me quite literal chills www.theguardian.com/music/2025/j...