Tom Roper

The ides of March are come Ay, Caesar, but not gone.

Might they actually appoint a real librarian to run our national library this time? Not holding my breath

James Renshaw on stories of the first Marathon-runner youtu.be/hAnLzsHyYU0?si… via @YouTube

19th-century advice to young boys at Uppingham School on how to learn, why we do and don't learn, and how to write good Latin sentences.

Trust paid management consultant more than £500k ift.tt/YcoGOQl

Hunter, R., Booth, A. & Wood, L. Searching smarter, not harder: leveraging AI to enhance literature searches for theory-driven reviews—A methodological case study. BMC Med Res Methodol (2026). doi.org/10.1186/s12874…

@DurrellSociety @inimitablepgw No, it's from Very Good Jeeves, and refers to a man

@tomroper @inimitablepgw Voluptuous She looked as if she had been poured into her clothes and had forgotten to say ‘when’. — The Inimitable Jeeves

She looked as if she had been poured into her clothes and had forgotten to say "when".

@CILIPinfo Trying to understand why some events are full. If our Zoom licence is adequate for an AGM with potentially hundreds of attendees, surely there’s no need to restrict numbers?

What's on at #CILIP this week? Our spotlight is on CILIP Members' Fest, a jam-packed programme of online events, 'ask us anything' sessions & in-person networking. All events are open-access so - CILIP member or not - it's free of charge. See all listings: ow.ly/KPHi50Yk82o

£150,000 for 72 library authorities = £2,083 each!

The impact of library closures goes far beyond book-lending unison.org.uk/news/article/2…

@CILIPinfo Tried to book a place on Health misinformation crisis but got a message to say it’s full

🎉 Welcome to CILIP Members’ Fest! 🎉 Today we kick off a whole week of FREE, open‑access events — from workshops to Ask Us Anything sessions, networking, skills sessions & more. 🙌 There’s still time to sign up — check out the full programme! 👉 cilip.org.uk/page/MembersFe…

@ArmandDAngour Think I recall Martin Amis using it in one of his earlier novels, so still used in 1970s, at least.

“He (or she) was the cynosure of all eyes” was a phrase one encountered quite often in my (reading) youth. Probably stopped being used in the 1960s and has become thoroughly obsolete.

The study of Greek metre has so long been dogged by mind-melting jargon and swamped with tedious technicalities. But it need not be thus: we can step outside and see metrical species in their natural habitat. Come take a tour of these prosodic wonders! antigonejournal.com/2022/07/field-…

Cooper & Premji (2026) Reforming the presentation of conference proceedings: a plea to end the madness DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.18593615 thesearcheruk.com/blog/reforming…

Martin Speake has reached settlement with Trinity Laban, who have acknowledged his email had no racist intent and that protected philosophical beliefs must not be discriminated against. A significant moment for academic and artistic freedom in the UK. #FreedomInTheArts

@Oldpanks @ArmandDAngour Very much so. Don’t think they have the bookstall on the market anymore, though

@tomroper @ArmandDAngour Is David's Bookshop in St Edward's Passage still with us ?

This was Watersones bookshop Oxford. Stuffed with thousands of books until it shut down last month. What a sad sight.

To The Pious Memory of those worthy Patriots that had kill'd the Tyrant, and deliver'd their Country from his Arbitrary Sway

By chance, I was listening to Tucker Zimmerman, as I saw the news of his death