Now
Living
- In South Birmingham, UK.
Working
- As a senior research data scientist at The University of Birmingham.
- As a consultant research neuroscientist with the Kymata Research Group at the (recently renamed) University of Cambridge Mind and Brain Institute.
- As a freelance graphic designer, currently working with consultant and entrepreneur Eleanor Turney, and artist and game designer Tori Truslow.
You can see more about my work on my professional website.
Volunteering
- With the Birmingham Green Party. We recently got 19 city councillors elected across Birmingham, and had the largest vote-share of any party in the city — the best ever result!
Reading
- Titus Groan by Mervyn Peake. One I read as a youth and loved but remember sufficiently little to revisit almost fresh.
- Dragons and Dreamsellers by Krista Joy, with my kids. They are really enjoying it, but it’s a little bit scary so I have to keep reading ahead to reassure them it’s ok.
- Typeset In The Future, by Dave Addey. Exactly my kind of coffee-table book. Well-researched and funny.
- The Age Of Surveillance Capitalism, by Shoshana Zuboff. Like a few other books in a similar vein which I’ve read, this feels like the author did a colossal amount of research, and felt the need to include it all within the text. Dense, extremely long, somewhat overwrought, a bit repetitive, but still of interest. I do tend to read this to get to sleep, but I still enjoy it.
Just finished
- X+Y, by Eugenia Cheng. I thought this had a good core idea, and one which I think I’ll keep in my mental toolkit. But it was quite long in a way I often find these kind of pop-sci books. I thought the previous book of hers that I read was a little better paced. I enjoyed it though.
- Look to Windward by Iain M. Banks. I really like Iain M. Banks, and this one was one of the better Culture books I’ve read. Very philosophical.
- Psalm for the Wild Built by Becky Chambers. Interesting to read this direct, humanist book immediately after Look To Windward. It was such a tonal change I found it a bit jarring. But I enjoyed the book a good deal and intend to read the sequel.
Playing
- 868-BACK by Michael Brough. It’s very good, if you like this kind of thing.
- Ring Fit Adventure, with my kids.
- Alba: A Wildlife Adventure, also with my kids. (I already played it.)
- Hades 2 (Switch version).
- Obduction, very slowly, with my family. Playing each of Cyan Worlds’ games together is a tradition we’ve upheld since I was a child — we love them.
What’s a now page?
Here’s what I was doing previously: