Stuff that occurs to me

All of my 'how to' posts are tagged here. The most popular posts are about blocking and private accounts on Twitter, also the science communication jobs list. None of the science or medical information I might post to this blog should be taken as medical advice (I'm not medically trained).

Think of this blog as a sort of nursery for my half-baked ideas hence 'stuff that occurs to me'.

Contact: @JoBrodie Email: jo DOT brodie AT gmail DOT com

Science in London: The 2018/19 scientific society talks in London blog post

Thursday 21 November 2019

There's apparently a complaint in with the Australian Commonwealth Ombudsman about the NHMRC's Homeopathy report

Update 4 Dec 2019: I've received a holding letter from the Ombudsman while they consider my request.


Well this'll be confusing :) The Australian National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) released a report on homeopathy in 2015 pointing out that it's not much cop and shouldn't be recommended as a treatment. Lots of homeopaths were very cross about that and apparently three homeopathy-supporting societies* put in a complaint to the Commonwealth Ombudsman the following year, in August 2016, saying that the NHMRC had done wrong.

It's now November 2019 (three years and three months on) and to my knowledge the Commonwealth Ombudsman has not produced a verdict (or indeed a peep) about the apparent complaint.

In April 2017 Edzard Ernst reported on an article in What Doctors Don't Tell You which said that a complaint had been submitted. The Australian Skeptics society tried (in May 2017 and August 2017) to find out if there really had been a submission to the Commonwealth Ombudsman and were told by a source in August there that there was no record of submission.

A news article from ECHAMP on 22 January 2019 said that the Commonwealth Ombudsman's verdict was imminent. Still no sign of it though.

I've emailed the Commonwealth Ombudsman (copy below) to see if I can find out any other information. I'm not an Australian citizen so they might just ignore me, or they might be unable to tell me anything about an ongoing investigation. It's also possible that I've phrased things in the wrong way and I need to get better at FOIA requests!

*The Australian Homeopathy Association, Complementary Medicines Australia and the Australian Traditional Medicine Society. According to the Homeopathy Research Institute these three bodies used some of the HRI's own analysis of the NHMRC 2015 report. The HRI wrote about the complaint to the Commonwealth Ombudsman but the other three organisations appear to have been rather quiet about it.


Dear Commonwealth Ombudsmen and Ombudswomen :-)

I am writing to you under the FOIA scheme to find out about the existence and status of a complaint apparently made by homeopathy societies to you in 2016 about the conduct of and report from the NHMRC. Please note that I am not an Australian citizen (I'm British) so I'm not sure if you will be able to respond to me but if so please let me know if there's a charge, I will be happy to contribute. My questions are in red.

The reason that I am asking if any complaint has been made is because the existence of this submission from homeopathic societies has been called into question by the Australian Skeptics who could find no record of it (in April 2017). They also reported (in August 2017) that it appears that no submission was received by you, so its status is a bit of a mystery!

On the Homeopathy Research Institute's (HRI) page (below) they claim in the first paragraph that the Commonwealth Ombudsman is in receipt of a complaint submission from the CMA, AHA and ATMS August 2016. 1. Please can you confirm if you have received a complaint document from those organisations relating to the NHMRC?

The second paragraph implies that you made an initial assessment of their complaint and found that it was of sufficient merit to warrant an investigation. 2. Please could you confirm that you (a) made this assessment of its merit and (b) found that it warranted further investigation.

3. Could you also confirm if an investigation was launched and what meetings (dates) were set up and with whom (organisations).


Source / Linked PDF for Executive Summary

 A news article from 22 January 2019, from European Coalition on Homeopathic & Anthroposophic Medicinal Products (ECHAMP) indicated that your verdict on this report was 'imminent'. 4. Are you preparing a verdict on any complaint you've received from these homeopathy societies?

Source


5. If so, will such a verdict be made public, and when?

Thank you very much
Jo Brodie






Posted by Jo at 23:44 0 comments
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Wednesday 13 November 2019

I don't think Argos is giving away free Black Friday vouchers today with "shopgift.win"

I've just seen a Facebook post suggesting that Argos is giving away a voucher today only as special deal. The link / URL / address is a little unusual in that it contains argos•co•uk but also has shopgift•win at the end of it, as part of the same link.

argos•co•uk•shopgift•win as opposed to argos•co•uk/shopgift•win

This made me a bit suspicious so I did a WHOIS search to find out a bit more by pasting the full link here http://whois.domaintools.com/

It returned this page http://whois.domaintools.com/shopgift.win telling me that the domain was registered 3 days ago. It also made it very clear (look at the lack of argos in that link) what the domain actually was. So I don't think it's really from Argos. 

Firefox also helpfully greys out bits of addresses to highlight what's the domain and what might not be.

shopgift•win is in black text, it's not really argos.co.uk

argos.co.uk is in black
In taking the next screenshot of the anonymised post on Facebook I also spotted the little info 'i' icon beween the red logos and the grey panel at the bottom, on the right...


... clicking on that tells me the same thing as above (useful info from Facebook which is a plus)


The voucher page asks questions and invites you to share a Facebook link - I'd recommend ignoring it. As I didn't find any other information about it on Google, Argos' page or on social media I thought I'd write this up in case anyone else was wondering if it was real and searched, as I did. I'm not exactly sure what the purpose of this is other than to get a link shared and perhaps access Facebook information.




Posted by Jo at 14:29 0 comments
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Sunday 10 November 2019

Support pedestrians at Globe Road / Mile End Road - my submission to Tower Hamlets Local Infrastructure Fund consultation

Update 14 Nov 2019: Found this petition to the GLA (Mayor's office), by Assembly Member Unmesh Desai, from March 2018 https://www.london.gov.uk/petitions/mile-end-roadglobe-road-crossing which says that "We understand these locations are under TfL’s jurisdiction as the A11 [Mile End Road] is a “red route” and that Tower Hamlets Council has also raised these concerns directly, but TfL have said they have no plans to change the traffic signals to introduce a pedestrian phase or any crossings."

tl;dr The Globe Road / Mile End Road pedestrian crossing improvement project

Recently I spotted a large advert near Stepney Green telling me that Tower Hamlets is undertaking a building expansion of some sort, and that developers are required to stump up some cash* for the Local Infrastructure Fund (LIF) with a link pointing to
https://towerhamlets.gov.uk/lif
When I arrive at Stepney Green tube station I have to get across Globe Road which is not easy as traffic comes from three directions and there is no pedestrian-gap in traffic flow. When traffic is turning left (in or out of Globe Road) the traffic coming from a third direction is stopped. When that traffic flow is ON the other one is stopped, but there's no point when the pedestrians have right of way - we just have to watch the road and wait for a gap. It's appalling.

Perhaps counterintuitively there are relatively few accidents or injuries there and I expect this is because pedestrians are mostly extra cautious. I've seen braver (or blither) road-crossers having to pick up speed halfway across when they spot a car bearing down on them, and cars often honk at pedestrians as it is always some car's right of way at that spot.

 I'm glad it's relatively safe but it's useless in terms of supporting walking as it prioritises road traffic to the entire exclusion of pedestrians. I'd like Tower Hamlets to look again at this (I wrote to them about it in 2014 and blogged it here).

 Below is my submission.

 Useful websites
https://towerhamlets.gov.uk/lif points to https://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/lgnl/planning_and_building_control/Infrastructure_planning/local_infrastructure_fund.aspx which points (via a large green 'Take part in the consultation' button) to https://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/lgnl/council_and_democracy/consultations/2019_Local_Infrastructure_Fund_Consultation.aspx at which point you're shown a tiny map and have to decide which area you want. Mine's LIF Area 1 (https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/GSR45/).

These are the projects that have been approved already: https://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/Documents/LIF_Projects_Awarded_Funding.pdf

 My submission
1. I work in the borough
2. I selected "The road network (eg improving road access)" as my priority issue from a long list of important things, I could have selected loads
3. I dissed question 2 a bit ("Q2 is a bit silly, surely. All of these are important but I am writing to you solely about one aspect.")
4. I was asked to pick my top 3 from Q2 but had only picked one so put it again
- Then I was asked to outline my suggested improvement project (see below).
5. Demographic info about me - work locally, age 45-54, female, no health problems, white, straight, no religion, British, single, not pregnant in last year (!) - gosh they want a lot of info!

 I've added bold and emphasis and hyperlinks in the bits below, the form is just plain text. The image wasn't included in the submission but added here for clarity, and to break up the text a bit!

 What is the issue that needs addressing?
Title: The Globe Road / Mile End Road pedestrian crossing improvement project.

Better road crossing markings and traffic control at Stepney Green station, at the junction between Globe Road (B120) and Mile End Road (A11).

Pinched from Google Maps




How do you think the issue could be addressed by a new infrastructure project?
The problem: Pedestrians are very poorly served at this junction. There is no crossing. There is no time point in the traffic management signalling pattern that is *for* pedestrians, only for road vehicles. Pedestrians must wait for a gap in traffic to cross. This is easy enough for fit young people and those already familiar with the crossing, but not for older, slower or disabled people. Cars (technically correctly) assume anyone crossing is in their way and honk at people unhelpfully. It is an unpleasant place to be forced to cross.

Background to my submission: I've previously written (in 2014) requesting a new crossing (https://brodiesnotes.blogspot.com/2014/01/crossing-globe-road-near-stepney-green.html) and learned that it had been explored but had been deemed not feasible at the time. I also learned that there are relatively few accidents or injuries at the crossing - perhaps because people aren't sure what to do so behave more cautiously (pedestrians at least). While a lack of accidents is good it doesn't solve the difficulties some residents and visitors will have in walking in that area.

This is a 'sub-radar' problem I think. Because relatively few people are being injured it is easy to assume that the current crossing 'works' - but if you want to encourage and support people to walk then please make it easier for them to do so.

Solution 1: I think a proper crossing is the best and safest given the volume of people going to and from Stepney Green station. It's in constant use. It's a shame if cars are inconvenienced but I think Tower Hamlets should be prioritising non-car transport at this particular spot right by a tube station and also in these 'let's get everyone walking more' times.

Solution 2: indicate to drivers, cyclists and pedestrians that the area does not have a 'crossing cycle' for pedestrians. I don't know of other examples of how this might be implemented (perhaps this will be a pioneering road crossing format, invented by Tower Hamlets transport geniuses!). There are several possible examples -

Solution 2a:  A sign to warn drivers that pedestrians are crossing and to be careful / watch out for them.

Solution 2b: paint the road surface in a different colour, investigate how (temporary?) signage could train pedestrians and drivers about how to use the 'crossing' - basically to remind cars that they don't have any particular right of way over pedestrians. By the way there are no instructions at a zebra crossing as everyone has learned how to use them.

Solution 2c: resurface the road to force a speed reduction as cars enter Globe Road from either Mile End (turning left if coming from Whitechapel) or turning right if coming via White Horse Lane - this is the more problematic traffic route).

Solution 3: Alert pedestrians with a sign pointing out the zebra crossing a few yards away up Globe Road by the post office. This involves an additional walk but may suit some, and it's not particularly obvious that it exists when at the junction.

Solution 4: Force drivers exiting White Horse Lane to turn left onto Mile End Road before implementing some U-turn arrangement on Mile End Road itself so that all traffic entering Globe Road from Mile End Road is turning left

Solution 5: I'm only including the concept of 'flex space' (https://stepsfromthecanal.wordpress.com/2017/05/16/lets-talk-about-flex-space/) or shared space so that it can be discounted as it seems to be not that helpful in practice, and I suspect the area is too small to accommodate such a thing. The blog post linked in stepsfromthecanal is based in Canada but points out some wider problems with flex space.

Misc: I assume a ramped bridge across the road (!) is out of the question but I suppose I should mention it. Helpful to tube users (but not as much use for non-tube pedestrians) would be to have an exit on the same side of the road as the Co-op in addition to the current arrangement, but I realise that might be quite tricky.

Please tell us the exact location of the proposed project (road name, post code etc):
What 3 Words: https://what3words.com/stages.video.under

Google Map - https://www.google.com/maps/place/B120,+Bethnal+Green,+London/@51.5219429,-0.046597,20z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x48761cd78ded20ed:0x26c09ce6a775bb33!8m2!3d51.5246607!4d-0.0486583

I have also previously blogged about this problem https://brodiesnotes.blogspot.com/2014/01/crossing-globe-road-near-stepney-green.html



*Background from this page
 "Tower Hamlets is one of the fastest growing boroughs in the country.

 We know that every new development increases the pressure on things like your GP surgery or your school. It could also mean spaces like parks, roads and cycle paths feel busier than before.

 That’s why we require developers building in Tower Hamlets to contribute to the Local Infrastructure Fund (LIF), a pot of money that is used to pay for projects in the communities where development is taking place.

 We expect the fund to generate around £6 million between April 2019 and March 2020.

 On Monday 30 September 2019, we launched a consultation to find out what you, our residents, think we should be spending our LIF money on. There will be an online questionnaire as well as a series of events held across the borough."
Posted by Jo at 12:30 0 comments
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Sunday 3 November 2019

Christmas 2019: How to watch #Elf in London this December

1. Film listings for Elf
1a. Google Spreadsheet version
2. Sources for listings

1. Film listings for Elf
Saturday screenings are in bold. Any errors or omissions? Please let @JoBrodie know, thanks! Also if you're just interested in the current week's and the following week (when the Elf season starts!) look at LondonNet's listings for Elf.

Note that some of these screenings are events and so time may be event starting time rather than screening time, check a venue's homepage if in doubt.

Some of the information below has come from Park Circus, the company which licenses the film to venues wanting to screen it. As such they know where it will be shown but the cinemas themselves might not yet be publicising the event so there may be gaps.

1a. Google Spreadsheet version

NOV/DEC 2019

  1. Saturday 16 Nov, 8pm - Backyard Cinema - Christmas at the Snow Kingdom, Wandsworth
  2. Monday 18 Nov, 8pm - Backyard Cinema - Christmas at the Snow Kingdom, Wandsworth
  3. Friday 22 Nov, 4pm - Backyard Cinema - Christmas at the Snow Kingdom, Wandsworth
  4. Thursday 28 Nov, 8pm - Backyard Cinema - Christmas at the Snow Kingdom, Wandsworth
  5. Tuesday 3 Dec, 8pm - Backyard Cinema - Christmas at the Snow Kingdom, Wandsworth
  6. Wednesday 4 Dec, 6.35pm - Prince Charles Cinema, Leicester Square
  7. Friday 6 Dec, 6.20pm - Odeon Beckhenham
  8. Friday 6 Dec, 6.20pm - Odeon Camden
  9. Friday 6 Dec, 6.20pm - Odeon Covent Garden
  10. Friday 6 Dec, 6.20pm - Odeon Greenwich
  11. Friday 6 Dec, 6.20pm - Odeon Kingston upon Thames
  12. Friday 6 Dec, 6.20pm - Odeon Lee Valley
  13. Friday 6 Dec, 6.20pm - Odeon Richmond
  14. Friday 6 Dec, 6.20pm - Odeon South Woodford
  15. Friday 6 Dec, 6.20pm - Odeon Streatham
  16. Friday 6 Dec, 6.20pm - Odeon Uxbridge
  17. Friday 6 Dec, 6.20pm - Odeon Wimbledon
  18. Friday 6 Dec, 7pm - St Katharine Docks Floating Film Festival, St Kats, Tower Bridge
  19. Saturday 7 Dec,  tbc - Empire Walthamstow
  20. Saturday 7 Dec, 3.20pm - Odeon Covent Garden
  21. Saturday 7 Dec, 3.20pm - Odeon Streatham
  22. Saturday 7 Dec, 3.20pm - Odeon Surrey Quays
  23. Saturday 7 Dec, 3.20pm - Odeon Uxbridge
  24. Saturday 7 Dec, 3.30pm - The Soho Hotel
  25. Saturday 7 Dec, 3.50pm - Odeon Greenwich
  26. Saturday 7 Dec, 3.50pm - Odeon Wimbledon
  27. Saturday 7 Dec, 6pm - Prince Charles Cinema, Leicester Square
  28. Saturday 7 Dec, 6.20pm - Odeon Greenwich
  29. Saturday 7 Dec, 6.20pm - Odeon Wimbledon
  30. Saturday 7 Dec, tbc - Odeon Beckenham
  31. Saturday 7 Dec, tbc - Odeon Camden
  32. Saturday 7 Dec, tbc - Odeon Kingston upon Thames
  33. Saturday 7 Dec, tbc - Odeon Lee Valley
  34. Saturday 7 Dec, tbc - Odeon Richmond
  35. Saturday 7 Dec, tbc - Odeon South Woodford
  36. Sunday 8 Dec, 11.30am - The Exhibit, Balham
  37. Sunday 8 Dec, 2pm - South Place Hotel
  38. Sunday 8 Dec, 3pm - Prince Charles Cinema, Leicester Square
  39. Sunday 8 Dec, 5pm - Showcase Cinema de Lux
  40. Sunday 8 Dec, 5pm - Showcase Cinema Newham
  41. Sunday 8 Dec, 6pm - Hush Mayfair - SOLD OUT
  42. Sunday 8 Dec, 7pm - Charlotte Street Hotel
  43. [Monday 9 Dec, 7pm - FEST Camden - not listed on their website but on Design My Night]
  44. Monday 9 Dec, 7.30pm - Picturehouse Ashford
  45. Monday 9 Dec, 7.30pm - Picturehouse West Norwood
  46. Monday 9 Dec, 8.30pm - Picturehouse 
  47. Monday 9 Dec, 8.30pm - Picturehouse Bromley
  48. Monday 9 Dec, 8.30pm - Picturehouse Clapham
  49. Monday 9 Dec, 8.30pm - Picturehouse Crouch End
  50. Monday 9 Dec, 8.30pm - Picturehouse East Dulwich
  51. Monday 9 Dec, 8.30pm - Picturehouse Greenwich
  52. Monday 9 Dec, 8.30pm - Picturehouse Hackney
  53. Monday 9 Dec, 8.30pm - Picturehouse Central
  54. Monday 9 Dec, 8.30pm - Picturehouse Ritzy Brixton
  55. Monday 9 Dec, 8.30pm - Picturehouse Stratford East
  56. Tuesday 10 Dec, 1.45pm - Prince Charles Cinema, Leicester Square
  57. Thursday 12 Dec, 7pm - Nomad Cinema, Citypoint Moorgate
  58. Friday 13 Dec, 5pm - Rivoli Ballroom, Brockley
  59. Friday 13 Dec, 5.50pm - Prince Charles Cinema, Leicester Square
  60. Saturday 14 Dec, 12.45pm - Prince Charles Cinema, Leicester Square
  61. Saturday 14 Dec, 3pm - Prince Charles Cinema, Leicester Square
  62. Saturday 15 Dec, 6.05pm - Prince Charles Cinema, Leicester Square
  63. Monday 16 Dec, 12.45pm - Prince Charles Cinema, Leicester Square
  64. Monday 16 Dec, 7.30pm - Showcase Cinemas (Cinema de Lux, Newham)
  65. Monday 16 Dec, 8.30pm - Luna Cinema, Kensington Palace
  66. Tuesday 17 Dec, 1.35pm - Prince Charles Cinema, Leicester Square
  67. Tuesday 17 Dec, 8pm - The Exhibit, Balham
  68. Wednesday 18 Dec, 3.40pm - Prince Charles Cinema, Leicester Square
  69. Wednesday 18 Dec, 8pm - The Exhibit, Balham
  70. Thursday 19 Dec, 3.40pm - Prince Charles Cinema, Leicester Square
  71. Thursday 19 Dec, 5.30pm - Luna Cinema, Kensington Palace
  72. Thursday 19 Dec, 8pm - The Exhibit, Balham 
  73. Friday 20 Dec, 1.10pm - Prince Charles Cinema, Leicester Square
  74. Friday 20 Dec, 8.45pm - Luna Cinema, Kensington Palace
  75. Saturday 21 Dec, 3.20pm - Prince Charles Cinema, Leicester Square
  76. Saturday 21 Dec, 4pm - The Exhibit, Balham
  77. Saturday 21 Dec, 7pm - Nomad Cinema, Citypoint
  78. Saturday 21 Dec, 8.10pm - Open Air Cinema Kent
  79. Sunday 22 Dec, 12.30pm - Prince Charles Cinema, Leicester Square
  80. Sunday 22 Dec, 2pm - Charlotte Street Hotel
  81. Sunday 22 Dec, 2.45pm - Prince Charles Cinema, Leicester Square
  82. Sunday 22 Dec, 3.30pm - Exhibit B, Balham
  83. Sunday 22 Dec, 4pm - The Exhibit, Balham
  84. Sunday 22 Dec, 6.30pm - The Exhibit, Balham
  85. Monday 23 Dec, 12.45pm - Prince Charles Cinema, Leicester Square
  86. Monday 23 Dec, 6pm - Prince Charles Cinema, Leicester Square
  87. Tuesday 24 Dec, 3.15pm - Prince Charles Cinema, Leicester Square
LondonNet's page for Elf lists some other cinemas which will apparently be screening the film between Sat 21 Dec and Fri 27 Dec but no other information is available at the cinema's websites, yet.
- Arthouse Crouch End
- BFI Southbank
- Curzon Aldgate
- Olympic Studios

2. Sources for listings
I've been collecting the published screenings of Elf in London for a few years so I now have a collection of venues that have previously screened the film so for those ones I do an occasional trawl through their sites to see if anything has been added. Park Circus own the rights so know who's screening it and have published some of them. Eventbrite and Design My Night sell tickets for lots of pop-up places so worth checking for things Elf-related. Twitter searches, Google. No potential candy cane left unchomped :)

These are pages from venues that have previously screened Elf (so links may be out of date until I fix them and those ones are in bold).
Any errors or omissions? Please let @JoBrodie know, thanks!


Posted by Jo at 09:07 0 comments
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