Best Of

Oxford and Cambridge fall out of top three UK universities for first time
https://www.thetimes.com/uk/education/article/oxford-cambridge-oxbridge-latest-university-news-nqfc3xmrh (£££)

1. LSE
   
2. St Andrews
   
3. Durham
   
4. Oxford
   
5. Cambridge
   
6. Imperial
   
7. Bath
   
8. Warwick
   
9. UCL
   
10. Bristol
    

Amazing how little damage the whole Gaddafi thing did to LSE's reputation.

St. Andrews will be top of the table next year, if @Leon’s daughter has her father’s elevated IQ.

Just across the Tay from the 'dee. I hope Leon is not encouraging the carrying of knives and axes.

Dundee did pretty well too in a recent league table (might have been the Graun one).

I imagine it's largely the video game education that they provide? The art school also has a decent rep I think.

A bit niche but they always seem to be the go-to on archeology and crime docs when they need bones studied and skulls “brought to life” so they are either great at forensic archaeology or a bit twisted.

Down to Sue Black probably who was prof of forensic anthropology and anatomy in Dundee for 15 years. My pal painted this portrait of her.

It’s one of those weird choices for kids which a lot don’t have access to school insight to at deep levels - a lot of the time the best university isn’t “the best university”. In my case the career I wanted (at the time) made sense to go to UCL as it was the best place to do it and also had the benefit of being a top university but I can see how often people miss out on a career course (for want of a better way of putting it) because nobody is there to tell them that actually, if you want to do forensic archeology you are best going to Dundee.

I’m hoping that these days with the internet students can research it themselves and find best options but I imagine there are still plenty going for bigger name universities and then losing out on specialised jobs to people who had the info on where was a good conveyor belt.

Back in the mists of time, when maths was witchfraft and magic, I remember Warwick being considered one of the best in the world for certain “types” of maths courses but people insisting on going to Oxford or Cambridge for the cachet, which is fair enough, but it does end up warping the system.

My son’s going through his applications for a second time at the moment (he applied last year, got his A levels and decided on a gap year) and it’s interesting how his assumptions about where’s good are very different to mine, based on his reading of actual subject rankings.

He’s just been to the Durham open day and I’m on the LNER to join him. It was second on his list but perhaps it should leapfrog to the top.

Out of interest what’s he looking to study?

Hear me out.

Maybe getting 50k of debt (or 400k in the US) is actually the whole point of University.

I've been financially stretched many times in my life. When you've thrown your life savings behind a business idea, you have no choice but to make it succeed, otherwise all you have is a crushing mortgage and no job.

If you go to University, you have debt. Which means you have to work, or the debt will keep growing, and growing, and growing.

Indebted people work harder.

Many people don’t end up working in an area related to their degree so the debt seems less worth it . Things are just so much tougher for younger people now .

I went to university as a mature student which meant I really knew what course I wanted to do . I loved it . The perfect blend of learning, great social life and some part-time work to help pay the bills .

I think 18 can be too young to really know what career you want . I finished the year before you had to pay tuition fees so just had the student loan thankfully .

...

She's running...

@acyn.bsky.social‬

AOC: We should be clear about who Charlie Kirk was. A man who believed that the civil rights act that granted black Americans the right to vote was a mistake… His rhetoric and beliefs were ignorant, uneducated, and sought to disenfranchise millions of Americans.

https://bsky.app/profile/acyn.bsky.social/post/3lz7bfj4map2q

Mm. I'm not saying she's wrong, but a right wing politician in 2020 who started a speech "Let's be clear who George Floyd was" might have found their career shortened somewhat. I'm not sure AOC is taking a route which might reassure the sort of voters whom the Dems have lost over the last decade.

Interestingly, Charlie Kirk himself called George Floyd a 'scumbag'.

Didn't know that but I'd have guessed it.

Kirk's exact words were: "I am also going to offer some context and some nuance about the death of George Floyd that no one dares to say out loud. Which is that this guy was a scumbag. Now, does that mean he deserves to die? That's two totally different things — of course not." This was on Oct. 6, 2021. So over a year afterwards.

That doesn't seem unreasonable and well after the fact.

I believe a more legitimate criticism is he has brought up things in relation to the case that have been later found to be untrue e.g. one claim that went viral was the pregnant woman story, Floyd definitely threatened to kill a woman and held a gun to her stomach. It appears unproven if actually pregnant.

Given the 26 billion hours of Kirk debate footage it isn't surprising that you can find something you don't like. I only had a cursory knowledge of the guy, having watched some of the footage, I find it hard to agree with lots of his very "strict" takes on things.

The only clip of him I've seen was some hackneyed trad-macho nonsense about "only beta guys split the bill on a date." He seemed like a bit of a dick tbh. But I guess that's no barrier to maga stardom.

Edit so as not to get cancelled - his murder was a terrible crime and a tragedy, no ifs or buts.

I detest splitting the bill on any occasion. I just find it unspeakably crass. I have paid for dinner for six (including me) more than once to avoid it. Obviously if it's more than that my scruples have to bow to my bank balance.

I like both paying in full and not paying at all. Worst, from an aesthetic and faff perspective, is divvying up. It's the worst sort of sterile centrism. But it's not 'beta'. That sort of alpha v beta trad-macho talk is one of the worst features of the online maga right. They think it's edgy and cool and a little bit transgressive, but it's a pile of old wank.

Agreed.

The funny thing is that I occupy both ends of that argument - there are people who I see who will always pay (although granted 3 of them are billionaires) and others where I always pay.

The rest of the time it's usually turn and turn about - especially for people who you see fairly frequently.

I don't mind someone else paying the whole bill. I don't even mind the other party doing the tip if I'm buying. I just *hate* the whole dividing up thing, especially 'who had this thing' conversations. Cringe. How can people ruin a good time like that?

I think it's an age (and lack of money thing). When poor I was watching every penny so I would be splitting things up and arguing - now i'm going to quickly grab and pay the bill to avoid the conversation.

That then shifts the relationship into either the bill being paid in whole turn by turn or depending me continuing to pay (based on their finances and how much I like them)

Sir Keir Starmer is giving Hamas a “reward for terrorism” by recognising a Palestinian state, Kemi Badenoch has said.

The Conservative leader said Sir Keir was “incapable of leading Britain on the world stage” and accused him of “economic self-sabotage” in the face of global threats by implementing net zero.

In an essay for The Telegraph on her foreign policy plans, Mrs Badenoch condemned the Government’s decision to recognise a Palestinian state in an attempt to put pressure on Israel for a ceasefire in Gaza.

She said the Conservatives would “never apologise for standing by Israel when it strikes back against terrorism” and accused Sir Keir of being “nice” to hostile foreign powers.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2025/09/19/badenoch-starmer-palestinian-state-rewards-terrorism/

That would have been a fair point if it was done 18 months ago.

It's been nearly 2 years since the horrendous Hamas attacks and Israel continues to collectively punish the people of Gaza. It's right that there are consequences for this. If anything, I'd argue recognising Palestine is too symbolic and more concrete measures should be taken against the current Israeli government.

Hamas are still holding hostages. What measures are being taken to make them release them? Instead the government is rewarding them.

She's running...

@acyn.bsky.social‬

AOC: We should be clear about who Charlie Kirk was. A man who believed that the civil rights act that granted black Americans the right to vote was a mistake… His rhetoric and beliefs were ignorant, uneducated, and sought to disenfranchise millions of Americans.

https://bsky.app/profile/acyn.bsky.social/post/3lz7bfj4map2q

Mm. I'm not saying she's wrong, but a right wing politician in 2020 who started a speech "Let's be clear who George Floyd was" might have found their career shortened somewhat. I'm not sure AOC is taking a route which might reassure the sort of voters whom the Dems have lost over the last decade.

Interestingly, Charlie Kirk himself called George Floyd a 'scumbag'.

Didn't know that but I'd have guessed it.

Kirk's exact words were: "I am also going to offer some context and some nuance about the death of George Floyd that no one dares to say out loud. Which is that this guy was a scumbag. Now, does that mean he deserves to die? That's two totally different things — of course not." This was on Oct. 6, 2021. So over a year afterwards.

That doesn't seem unreasonable and well after the fact.

I believe a more legitimate criticism is he has brought up things in relation to the case that have been later found to be untrue e.g. one claim that went viral was the pregnant woman story, Floyd definitely threatened to kill a woman and held a gun to her stomach. It appears unproven if actually pregnant.

Given the 26 billion hours of Kirk debate footage it isn't surprising that you can find something you don't like. I only had a cursory knowledge of the guy, having watched some of the footage, I find it hard to agree with lots of his very "strict" takes on things.

The only clip of him I've seen was some hackneyed trad-macho nonsense about "only beta guys split the bill on a date." He seemed like a bit of a dick tbh. But I guess that's no barrier to maga stardom.

Edit so as not to get cancelled - his murder was a terrible crime and a tragedy, no ifs or buts.

I detest splitting the bill on any occasion. I just find it unspeakably crass. I have paid for dinner for six (including me) more than once to avoid it. Obviously if it's more than that my scruples have to bow to my bank balance.