This sounded interesting so I went and looked up some info on it: So, an astronomer wrote a paper that was essentially sociology research. He used subjective assessments from a panel of assessors who… (View Post)

Disingenuous: he has disclosed it on the ministerial register, but not on the MPs register. The latter requires disclosing the cost. How do you cost a stay in a private villa? You find the cost of a … (View Post)

Not much help being a good delegator if you have no ability to pick competent people to delegate to. (View Post)

I imagine whisky-tasting would have been quite an event with Banks! I (and a handful of others) had a drink with him at the worldcon in Brighton in 1987. It was either the Grand or the Metropole, and… (View Post)

Iain Banks was a great guy, and very good fun to have a drink with. As you might, or might not, expect, had a much less serious outlook on life than Terry Pratchett. (View Post)