melissacreate23.bsky.social - Profile | ThreadSky | a Reddit-style client for Bluesky

"Forget chatbots: research suggests reading can help combat loneliness and boost the brain" theconversation.com/forget-chatb...

submitted 3 days ago • 1 comment

My good friend, mentor, and occasional running partner @matt-sd.bsky.social is writing a book on how to understand, measure, and actually maximise #Social #Impact. It’s going to be a must-read for the sector, so feel free to politely (or persistently) nudge him until it’s out.

submitted 2 days ago • 1 comment

An 89-strong coalition of environment groups has warned that reduced biodiversity rules would mean the vast majority of housing developments would no longer need to compensate for nature loss news.sky.com/story/govern...

submitted 2 days ago • 15 comments

As a reader, I am finding Kobo Plus a good alternative to Kindle Unlimited for those of us wanting to move away from reliance on Amazon. It's also a better deal for authors because it does not demand exclusivity the way KU does. Here are some authors available there! ⬇️

submitted 3 days ago • 5 comments

Love dancing? Hate dancing? If you're #autistic, age 18+, in the UK, please take part in our survey (designed with autistic project advisors). We want to hear about why people don't dance, dancing at home (kitchen disco anyone?), socially, or at dance classes. For more info: tinyurl.com/Aut-dance

submitted 3 days ago • 2 comments

“If these plans go ahead, 700,000 families already living in poverty will face further devastation,” they write. “This is not reform; it is cruelty by policy.” I couldn’t agree more! #Disability #Labour #MECFS #FND www.theguardian.com/society/2025...

submitted 3 days ago • 2 comments

Voters overwhelmingly think ALL Americans should have access to vaccines — not just those who are immunocompromised.

submitted 2 days ago • 307 comments

What are the team reading this week, then? First up, Bert is reading "The Book of Form and Emptiness" for next week's book club. It's about a teenager who starts hearing voices after the untimely death of his father. - Michael

submitted 3 days ago • 2 comments

Gertrude Jekyll is doing well this year #RoseWednesday

submitted 2 days ago • 1 comment

Millions in the UK are one pay day from disaster youtu.be/6qm7lVRhgZg?... The UK is a country of massive wealth inequality, with all the stress landing on those the wealthy think to be the undeserving poor, which is most of us.

submitted 2 days ago • 3 comments

Core research under ‘intense pressure’ in spending review Experts predict more directed funding but “no one’s expecting any increase in the R&D budget” www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-p...

submitted 2 days ago • 0 comments

#WeatherWhiplash is another one for our climate vocabulary. Unfortunately the term #ClimateChange doesn't even appear in the National Curriculum for England up to KS3 so we'll just add it to the list. It is beyond time to put #ClimateInEducation. Tick tock 🔥 🌍 ⏰ www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

submitted 3 days ago • 0 comments

How does the brain reorganize in the context of age and AD? Are functional changes in age and AD similar? Are these changes dynamic across the age/AD spectrum? We unpack these questions in a sample of N=973 with AD biomarkers Preprint: tinyurl.com/ymv8s7h8 ⬇️🧵 1/

submitted 3 days ago • 3 comments

I work for Scottish Book Trust and we’re running a survey for parents/teachers/kids book enthusiasts about how they find books for kids. I’d be enormously grateful if anyone can spare 5-10 mins to share their thoughts. #KidLitUK forms.office.com/e/EdVhWA0T0n

submitted 9 days ago • 7 comments

Parents, carers, teachers or anyone who's interested in kids books - if you have a spare ten minutes, can you fill in this form about how you find new kids books? Scottish book trust do great work trying to get new and interesting books to kids, which includes finding ways to recommend books.

submitted 2 days ago • 4 comments

Farage plans to cut spending on the NHS hugely by putting the burden of paying for their own care on the sick, via a private insurance system. What is the appeal of paying no tax on the first £20k of your income if your health insurance premiums are enormous?

submitted 3 days ago • 3 comments

You know the feeling when you post a little advert for your own book, and it barely gets a 'like' . . . then you post a throwaway clip of a paper plate, and it gets over 500 'likes'. 😆😅 erm, anyway, here's me with a baboon. * Art Shaped is available on Amazon and most online booksellers. 🤔 #edusky

submitted 3 days ago • 4 comments

Today the Supreme Court cleared the way for the federal government to transfer thousands of acres of national forestland including a Native American sacred site, to Resolution Copper a mining company owned by Rio Tinto and BHP. The land holds deep spiritual significance for the Western Apache tribe.

submitted 2 days ago • 1714 comments

Have just spent a couple of very enjoyable hours dipping into these for the umpteenth time. Every primary school teacher needs to read them, not just English leads! @suchmo83.bsky.social explains things with such clarity and purpose.

submitted 4 days ago • 2 comments

The Common or ‘English’ Oak (Quercus Robur) is the national tree of Germany. And obviously England But also Poland, Romania, Belarus, Croatia, Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Serbia & Moldova

submitted 4 days ago • 5 comments

Also spotted ⁦‪in @whsmithofficial.bsky.social ‬⁩on Liverpool Street Station 🎓🦂 #TheExaminer looks so cool on-shelf 😎🦂🎓

submitted 5 days ago • 1 comment

UK child poverty taskforce set to recommend return of Sure Start scheme

submitted 5 days ago • 11 comments

This Queen Anne church was drawn from my car. On June 7, from 11-3p, I'm offering an Urban Sketching workshop through Mercer Island Visual Arts League. We'll start with a demo/lesson then head out to draw on location with indoor/outdoor drawing options. www.MIVAL.org/classes.

submitted 5 days ago • 1 comment

A middle grade fantasy novel about grief. Reminiscent of Alice in Wonderland in the strange creatures found in another world. A book full of imagination and character. #kidlit 💙📚

submitted 10 days ago • 0 comments

A wonderful middle grade book about a young teen with autism dealing with siblings, bullies and life in general. A wonderful main character and one or two (actually, several) awful ones that made me mad! Beautifully written and a must for a school library. ##kidlitUK 💙📚

submitted 7 days ago • 0 comments

Never take seriously those who ridicule low income people for having a smartphone or laptop. “If they’re so poor how did they buy an iPhone???” Because they’re trying to escape poverty, not the 1700s, genius. If you think basic tech access is unnecessary or a luxury, survive a month without it.

submitted 6 days ago • 688 comments

The inevitable housing flip side to that leaked Rayner memo about tax. 'The Treasury source said that “negotiations are ongoing” and noted that there had been a “huge uplift” on capital spending to date.' www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/202...

submitted 6 days ago • 0 comments

Thyme is surprisingly easy from seed and you can start it pretty much year round. It starts slowly but pinch it out and once it gets going it makes lovely little plants. Fabulous for both bees and cooking! 🌱

submitted 7 days ago • 8 comments

When you've really made an effort, but the girl you're trying to impress just isn't feeling it

submitted 7 days ago • 2 comments

Up to 15 different whale species can be spotted throughout the season, including humpbacks, minke, fin and bowhead. (photo; Juan Maria Coy Vergara/Getty Images) Nutrient-rich fjord systems like Disko Bay and Northeast Greenland’s Franz Joseph Fjord and Scoresby Sound Smithsonian Magazine

submitted 6 days ago • 0 comments

Brambles & similar thorny bushes in woodland were humans first ‘castles’ By being trained to create passages in the woodland floor that funnel enemies into dead ends overlooked by higher ground It has the added benefit of creating shelter & food for many woodland residents

submitted 6 days ago • 2 comments

This is the temperate rainforest at Buttermere - rich in lichens, moss and ferns. I also watched a pied flycatcher while I was here. Never seen one before.

submitted 8 days ago • 1 comment

An astonishing middle grade story that swings between hope and heartbreak, #IAmSamim by Fidan Meikle is the story of refugee Samim's fight to find a place of sanctuary. Out today from @discoverkelpies.bsky.social @kirstin-lamb.bsky.social worldssmallestlibrary.wordpress.com/2025/05/22/m...

submitted 8 days ago • 0 comments

AOC: When you wake up in the morning, you will realize that you voted to defund planned parenthood and take away health care from 13.7 million Americans and when this country wakes up there will be consequences to pay for this

submitted 8 days ago • 512 comments

A fabulous, fully colour-illustrated introduction to myths and monsters around the world, Mighty Myths by @tibolota.bsky.social is perfect for KS2 readers and out now. @scholasticuk.bsky.social #KidlitUK #UKKidlit worldssmallestlibrary.wordpress.com/2025/05/20/m...

submitted 10 days ago • 0 comments

Scientists found that during latent CMV infection, CD8+ T cells form distinct memory types in different tissues but unexpectedly follow a shared program in the salivary gland, where the virus hides long-term. rupress.org/jem/article/...

submitted 11 days ago • 0 comments

As fast-paced and exciting as it was on its first release, my review of the special Silver Edition of #Stormbreaker by @anthonyhorowitz.com - the story that introduced the world to #AlexRider. Out now from @walkerbooksuk.bsky.social #KidlitUK worldssmallestlibrary.wordpress.com/2025/05/19/s...

submitted 11 days ago • 1 comment

There’s so much to enjoy in #AFlashOfNeon, an engaging contemporary fantasy novel by @sophiecameron.bsky.social published by @littletigeruk.bsky.social for readers of 10-14. #UkKidLit vsviewfromthebookshelves.home.blog/2025/05/17/r...

submitted 13 days ago • 0 comments

We are writing to let you know about a major new exhibition, Austen & Turner: A Country House Encounter at Harewood House from 2 May to 19 October to celebrate the 250th anniversaries of these two cultural icons. www.bars.ac.uk/blog/?p=6014

submitted 12 days ago • 1 comment

Wales’ temperate rainforests facing ‘extinction crisis’ with rare lichens under threat Just look at those photos of lush deep drifts of green mosses and tell me you don’t want to see these habitats restored to their former glory www.bbc.com/news/article...

submitted 12 days ago • 1 comment

Clump of red campion on the edge of a field ditch, NE Essex for #wildflowerhour

submitted 12 days ago • 1 comment

Carpet of Germander Speedwell flowering in an old and diverse garden lawn. #wildflowerhour

submitted 12 days ago • 0 comments

Just starting Doppelgänger from @naomiaklein.bsky.social and already this gem about why things feel so weird: “It's because our world has changed, but, like a collective case of jet lag, most of us are still attuned to the rhythms and habits of the place left behind.”

submitted 12 days ago • 82 comments

I love my chive hedges. So much so that I've made two (there's another one alongside my polytunnel). They're fantastic for pollinators and gorgeous as well. All grown from division from a single plant. 💜🌱

submitted 12 days ago • 6 comments