The English language is a tricksy thing, replete with sayings that can, on the face of it, appear odd, or that get mangled after many repetitions. I recently heard something about one of these on the excellent The Studies Show podcast, hosted by Stuart Ritchie and Tom Chivers, that made me raise an eyebrow, because they claimed my interpretation of a saying was a myth. The saying in question was 'the exception proves the rule'. I want to come back to that after a brief excursion into another saying that involves puddings. One of the most cringe-making things for me is when I hear someone on the TV or radio say 'The proof is in the pudding.' This is a totally meaningless statement resulting from mangling the saying 'The proof of the pudding is in the eating'. Anyone using the first version needs to be sent to an English Language re-education camp immediately. But the real version itself can look distinctly confusing. We can prove a mathematical theorem, or that ...

After my voluntary break from popular science over the Christmas period, I've also had a dearth of review copies for books out in January. But there's a whole heap of both science and science fiction titles sitting on the review pile - so while reviews themselves are in short supply, here's a few books where the reviews are coming soon: Already published (awaiting copy) - I nto the Great Wide Ocean - Sönke Johnsen - takes readers inside the peculiar world of the seagoing scientists who are providing tantalizing new insights into how the animals of the open ocean solve the problems of their existence. 4 February - Hoodwinked - Mara Einstein - from viral leggings to must-have apps, exposes the hidden parallels between cult manipulation and modern marketing strategies in this eye-opening investigation. Reveals how companies weaponize psychology to transform casual customers into devoted followers. 6 February -  Phenomena  - Camille Juzeau and The Shelf Company - from ...

Parliamentary sketch writers have a very dated style of writing - their 'humour' feels both heavy handed and has a grotesquery more suited to an eighteenth century political cartoon than the modern day. In this book, Quentin Letts (a sketch writer in his day job) does deploy some of this style in his ad hominem remarks about individuals - and I probably disagree with about 90 per cent of his viewpoints (though I'm definitely with him on hymns, the House of Lords and justice being blind). But - and it's a big but - what I do absolutely agree with is that subtitle - 'how the elites betrayed Britain'. Letts highlights the horror of the Establishment when the people turn against them by, say, voting for Brexit or a certain US president. Without supporting either of these it is easy to see why it is happening. Just this morning I heard on a podcast a well-known political commentator (and self-affirmed member of said elite) saying how Brexit remains incomprehensible t...

An infinite series is a familiar mathematical concept, where '...' effectively indicates 'don't ever stop' - for example 1 + ½ + ¼ + ⅛... an infinite series totalling 2. This, though is a short series of posts about infinity. I wrote A Brief History of Infinity  a while ago because it's a topic I've found fascinating since I was at school. To kick off the series, here's the introduction of that book, which summarises why it's a subject that intrigues so many: The infinite is a concept so remarkable, so strange, that contemplating it has apparently driven at least two great mathematicians over the edge into insanity.  In the Hitch-hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams described how the writers of his imaginary guidebook got carried away in devising its introduction: ‘Space’, it says, ‘is big. Really big. You just won’t believe how vastly, hugely, mind-bogglingly big it is. I mean, you may think it’s a long way down the street to the chemist, but ...

REVISIT SERIES -  An updated post from October 2008 The excellent Claudia Hammond has recently done a podcast on the Mondex experiment, an early attempt at a cashless approach to shopping. I took part in this experiment, so it seemed an ideal opportunity to take a look back, both at the experiment itself and how cashless payments differ from what seemed likely in those heady days when contactless and smartphones were in their infancy. Pretty well everyone needs money really, I guess, but what I meant was 'who needs cash?' [The original post was entitled 'Who needs money?'] The irritating chunks of metal that mean I rarely have a pair of trousers that last more than a year without holes appearing in the pockets (hint, trouser designers - stronger pockets, please). And you always accumulate all those copper coins that you can't be bothered to bag up and take to the bank, so they end up in a charity box or gather dust in a big jar. Now, when I first moved to the Swindo...

I get a fair amount of cold selling emails, and recently received one that showed exactly why it's important to check what is going into an email, particularly if the email itself reflects what it is you are trying to sell.  The company in question is attempting to demonstrate how AI can help a business... but all they manage to do is show how it can be a disaster. Here's what I received (to avoid embarrassment I have removed the name and website of the sender who was the owner of a company whose strapline is 'Do you know how to effectively integrate AI into your business': What is clear is they don't know how to effectively integrate AI into their business. It doesn't help that they actually tell us that the email is supposed to include an AI-sourced first line from a 'artical' (sic) they saw. And what did they really appreciate? Their website is slick and clearly has had a fair amount of effort put into it. It's unfortunate that they could demonstr...