New-Cleckit Dominie
@ncdominie.bsky.social
University maths teacher (failed academic); very amateur local history; slightly worse photography. Uaireannan beagan Gàidhlig cuideachd. Same handle on the elephant site. Web: http://www.dominie.scot.
Pinned
Luath.
11 October 2011 to 15 November 2025.
Run free, my best of hounds. Run free.
11 October 2011 to 15 November 2025.
Run free, my best of hounds. Run free.
I didn't truly understand this until I had to help an octogenarian friend who'd been unable to access her email and thus half her friendships for six months, simply because the interface had changed and she was trying to find her way round it using a screen magnifier on an eight-year-old laptop.
I am going to be banging this drum forever, but holy shit moving menus is evil from an accessibility standpoint. It sucks for those of us who can see and aren’t in any stage of senility, but if you can’t see it’s the fucking worst.
November 19, 2025 at 9:08 AM
I didn't truly understand this until I had to help an octogenarian friend who'd been unable to access her email and thus half her friendships for six months, simply because the interface had changed and she was trying to find her way round it using a screen magnifier on an eight-year-old laptop.
It's a weird morning to be a Scottish person who's not particularly into football.
November 19, 2025 at 7:40 AM
It's a weird morning to be a Scottish person who's not particularly into football.
Comparing this with the US show of the same name makes me wonder what modern longform telly would do with, say, Macbeth.
Enter SEYTON.
SEYTON: The queen, my lord, is dead.
[Cut to SEYTON's childhood. The main plot will resume next season.]
Enter SEYTON.
SEYTON: The queen, my lord, is dead.
[Cut to SEYTON's childhood. The main plot will resume next season.]
The first episode of House of Cards was broadcast on this day in 1990.
November 18, 2025 at 8:45 PM
Comparing this with the US show of the same name makes me wonder what modern longform telly would do with, say, Macbeth.
Enter SEYTON.
SEYTON: The queen, my lord, is dead.
[Cut to SEYTON's childhood. The main plot will resume next season.]
Enter SEYTON.
SEYTON: The queen, my lord, is dead.
[Cut to SEYTON's childhood. The main plot will resume next season.]
Well-known Marxist agitator Andrew Carnegie would like a word.
I can’t remember who said it, but like 10 years ago someone said “if public libraries didn’t already exist, the concept would be treated today as preposterous left-wing gobbledygook,” and I think about that a lot
November 18, 2025 at 3:43 PM
Well-known Marxist agitator Andrew Carnegie would like a word.
Apparently we have a new chatbot, which people are using to give advice about university policies because our search facility is incapable of finding anything.
We have been warned that "the accuracy of the generated output depends on all webpages being accurate".
This cannot possibly go wrong.
We have been warned that "the accuracy of the generated output depends on all webpages being accurate".
This cannot possibly go wrong.
November 18, 2025 at 2:57 PM
Apparently we have a new chatbot, which people are using to give advice about university policies because our search facility is incapable of finding anything.
We have been warned that "the accuracy of the generated output depends on all webpages being accurate".
This cannot possibly go wrong.
We have been warned that "the accuracy of the generated output depends on all webpages being accurate".
This cannot possibly go wrong.
And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,
Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?
Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?
This mural has gone up in Kingston, ostensibly for Christmas but AI has ensured it's actually to celebrate the return of our dark lord Cthulhu
November 18, 2025 at 10:48 AM
And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,
Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?
Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?
Current status: Sam Vimes, but only from the ankle down.
My last pair of boots were not a good investment.
My last pair of boots were not a good investment.
November 18, 2025 at 8:41 AM
Current status: Sam Vimes, but only from the ankle down.
My last pair of boots were not a good investment.
My last pair of boots were not a good investment.
The ominous mass of Etna, capped with snow and belching steam, rises behind *checks notes* Rothesay.
November 17, 2025 at 7:45 PM
The ominous mass of Etna, capped with snow and belching steam, rises behind *checks notes* Rothesay.
In common with every camera-wielding lifeform in Glasgow, I have seen the Rebel Bear's latest piece.
November 17, 2025 at 5:32 PM
In common with every camera-wielding lifeform in Glasgow, I have seen the Rebel Bear's latest piece.
Happening right now: BWV 1178 and BWV 1179!
(Bach compositions with BWV numbers as high as this are typically highly unstable and decay rapidly, releasing fugal radiation in the process. Catch them before it happens.)
(Bach compositions with BWV numbers as high as this are typically highly unstable and decay rapidly, releasing fugal radiation in the process. Catch them before it happens.)
Two newly discovered Bach keyboard works are premiering in 1 hour
November 17, 2025 at 2:10 PM
Happening right now: BWV 1178 and BWV 1179!
(Bach compositions with BWV numbers as high as this are typically highly unstable and decay rapidly, releasing fugal radiation in the process. Catch them before it happens.)
(Bach compositions with BWV numbers as high as this are typically highly unstable and decay rapidly, releasing fugal radiation in the process. Catch them before it happens.)
Reposted by New-Cleckit Dominie
Two newly discovered Bach keyboard works are premiering in 1 hour
November 17, 2025 at 1:02 PM
Two newly discovered Bach keyboard works are premiering in 1 hour
This assignment goes live today, including the new clause.
(Thought: the maths-adjacent-stuff community could usefully crowdsource a list of essay topics to avoid. I'd also nominate "The history of pi" and anything involving Pythagoras.)
(Thought: the maths-adjacent-stuff community could usefully crowdsource a list of essay topics to avoid. I'd also nominate "The history of pi" and anything involving Pythagoras.)
This year I'm adding a new clause to the "mathematical connections in a work of art" assignment, to protect my students' grades and my sanity.
November 17, 2025 at 12:55 PM
This assignment goes live today, including the new clause.
(Thought: the maths-adjacent-stuff community could usefully crowdsource a list of essay topics to avoid. I'd also nominate "The history of pi" and anything involving Pythagoras.)
(Thought: the maths-adjacent-stuff community could usefully crowdsource a list of essay topics to avoid. I'd also nominate "The history of pi" and anything involving Pythagoras.)
I am no doubt very naive, but I think that when someone says they are going to do something cruel, the response "That's OK, they're lying about it" is not a great defence.
November 17, 2025 at 10:53 AM
I am no doubt very naive, but I think that when someone says they are going to do something cruel, the response "That's OK, they're lying about it" is not a great defence.
Tonight's sunset over Bute, with Arran beyond.
Look after each other, people. There is too much darkness out there.
Look after each other, people. There is too much darkness out there.
November 16, 2025 at 9:28 PM
Tonight's sunset over Bute, with Arran beyond.
Look after each other, people. There is too much darkness out there.
Look after each other, people. There is too much darkness out there.
Currently in a Syrian café in Rothesay, because.
November 16, 2025 at 11:54 AM
Currently in a Syrian café in Rothesay, because.
Luath.
11 October 2011 to 15 November 2025.
Run free, my best of hounds. Run free.
11 October 2011 to 15 November 2025.
Run free, my best of hounds. Run free.
November 15, 2025 at 4:35 PM
Luath.
11 October 2011 to 15 November 2025.
Run free, my best of hounds. Run free.
11 October 2011 to 15 November 2025.
Run free, my best of hounds. Run free.
I would like to dedicate this afternoon's splitting headache to (a) D*minic C*mmings, and (b) everyone who thought the second tranche of "D*minic C*mmings money" was going to arrive just because D*minic C*mmings said it would.
November 13, 2025 at 3:30 PM
I would like to dedicate this afternoon's splitting headache to (a) D*minic C*mmings, and (b) everyone who thought the second tranche of "D*minic C*mmings money" was going to arrive just because D*minic C*mmings said it would.
Today's wtf: a student who, instead of doing the questions set for the tutorial, had fed the tutorial questions into ChatGPT and asked it to generate a set of questions that were like the tutorial questions, and was doing those instead.
I no longer understand anything.
I no longer understand anything.
November 13, 2025 at 1:04 PM
Today's wtf: a student who, instead of doing the questions set for the tutorial, had fed the tutorial questions into ChatGPT and asked it to generate a set of questions that were like the tutorial questions, and was doing those instead.
I no longer understand anything.
I no longer understand anything.
Not only am I now closer in age to the Pope than to most of my students, it seems that his cultural reference points are more familiar to me than theirs.
What's from Chicago, hates Illinois Nazis, and is holy as fuck?
It's the Pope in 1982.
It's the Pope in 1982.
November 13, 2025 at 12:14 PM
Not only am I now closer in age to the Pope than to most of my students, it seems that his cultural reference points are more familiar to me than theirs.
Current pet hatred: Powerpoint slides that wrap important information in this particular combination of managementese and infantile clip-art.
November 13, 2025 at 10:39 AM
Current pet hatred: Powerpoint slides that wrap important information in this particular combination of managementese and infantile clip-art.
Not just me, then.
Every office has an executive tier whose emails are like:
saw on news , , can we replce complianc dept with web 3
and a worker tier whose emails are like:
Dear Jim,
First of all, I *love* this idea! Unfortunately, I spoke with Legal and identified a few issues with this approach. For starters…
saw on news , , can we replce complianc dept with web 3
and a worker tier whose emails are like:
Dear Jim,
First of all, I *love* this idea! Unfortunately, I spoke with Legal and identified a few issues with this approach. For starters…
Well, it's a little clearer now why billionaires are so invested in technology that produces better written emails.
November 13, 2025 at 9:30 AM
Not just me, then.
Reposted by New-Cleckit Dominie
Please remember not to celebrate RLS's birthday today.
You can celebrate the anniversary of his birth, but in 1891 he formally transferred "ALL AND WHOLE my rights and priviledges" in his birthday to Annie H. Ide, a young girl from Vermont who was sad that her own birthday fell on Christmas Day.
You can celebrate the anniversary of his birth, but in 1891 he formally transferred "ALL AND WHOLE my rights and priviledges" in his birthday to Annie H. Ide, a young girl from Vermont who was sad that her own birthday fell on Christmas Day.
November 13, 2024 at 7:30 AM
Please remember not to celebrate RLS's birthday today.
You can celebrate the anniversary of his birth, but in 1891 he formally transferred "ALL AND WHOLE my rights and priviledges" in his birthday to Annie H. Ide, a young girl from Vermont who was sad that her own birthday fell on Christmas Day.
You can celebrate the anniversary of his birth, but in 1891 he formally transferred "ALL AND WHOLE my rights and priviledges" in his birthday to Annie H. Ide, a young girl from Vermont who was sad that her own birthday fell on Christmas Day.
This conversation is making me feel better about the decision-making process in C12th/C13th Glasgow.
1. Build a cathedral on the edge of a steep slope.
2. Decide to extend the cathedral in the direction of the slope.
3. Build an entire extra wedge of cathedral to keep the extension up.
1. Build a cathedral on the edge of a steep slope.
2. Decide to extend the cathedral in the direction of the slope.
3. Build an entire extra wedge of cathedral to keep the extension up.
there is one (1) pre-modern English cathedral with actual legit foundations and it is St Alban’s
in case you’re wondering.
in case you’re wondering.
Ely is built on a hill of mud in a plain of mud. When they wanted to stabilise it to build bigger, they basically reinforced the hill with a sunken wicker fence made of oak trees. The attitude now is "it seems to be working, don't poke it." So far so good.
November 12, 2025 at 7:44 PM
This conversation is making me feel better about the decision-making process in C12th/C13th Glasgow.
1. Build a cathedral on the edge of a steep slope.
2. Decide to extend the cathedral in the direction of the slope.
3. Build an entire extra wedge of cathedral to keep the extension up.
1. Build a cathedral on the edge of a steep slope.
2. Decide to extend the cathedral in the direction of the slope.
3. Build an entire extra wedge of cathedral to keep the extension up.