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We’re back in the Netherlands: the first time we’ve broken out of our bleak little island for over three years. It’s a relief to be in a country where most things seem to work, as they once did in Britain:…
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Cancel culture: Anton Bruckner’s Symphony no. 0
Great artists, we like to think, pursue their vision and practise their craft sustained by an inner self-belief. Beethoven, Picasso or George Eliot may feel moments of blockage or uncertainty, but their confidence carries them through to completion, and they’ll…
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On the writing of blogs
This month gwallter is ten years old, and this is his 598th blog. It seems a good time to look back and reflect on his progress so far. When I started in 2013, blogs were still quite fashionable, and I…
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Afon ar ei gwely angau
Y peth mwyaf trist am ein taith gerdded llynedd ar hyd Llwybr Afon Gwy, o Gas-gwent i Bumlumon, oedd Afon Gwy. Hynny yw, cyflwr amgylcheddol Afon Gwy. Y gwir blaen – gwir na allai neb ei wadu erbyn heddiw –…
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A Dada excursion
One of the pleasures of researching the history of the simple human act of walking is that, just like a good walk, it takes you in unexpected directions. Recently, while considering the prehistory of walking as an artistic activity, I…
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Where it all started: Alfred Russel Wallace in Cwm Nedd
On Sundays I would stroll in the fields and woods, learning the various parts and organs of any flowers I could gather, and then trying how many of them belonged to any of the orders described in my book. Great…
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Richard Sharp: a model man of power
There’s been a lot of talk lately about advances in AI (artificial intelligence) and ML (machine learning), based on the storing and analysis of vast reservoirs of online words (the so-called ‘large language model’). The publication of ChatGPT, which can…
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Sarn Helen, end to end
Several stretches of Roman road in Wales are labelled ‘Sarn Helen’. The one Tom Bullough sets out to walk, in a roughly straight line except for a lurch eastward to Brecon Gaer, is the road that leads from the fort…
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How do you do?
When you meet someone new, and especially when you know you might be spending a long time in their company in future, how do you begin the relationship? Do you try to prime yourself by asking others beforehand? When you…
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Y postmon
Un o’r ychydig swyddi sydd heb newid yn ei hanfod dros y blynyddoedd yw postmon. Mae rhywbeth sylfaenol, anostyngadwy am gerdded o ddrws i ddrws lawr yr heol i ddanfon llythyrau a pharseli i’r trigolion, a thorri gair cyfeillgar â…