Seb FalkMay 106 minRidley (2009–21)On this day 6 months ago my dog died. Grieving a pet is an odd experience. It feels self-indulgent: with all the problems in the world,...
Seb FalkMay 17, 20206 minNew Moon - No Astrolabe!Last week I wrote about how to read an astronomical calendar: what information they contained and what it was used for. This post is...
Seb FalkMay 16, 20201 minThe beauty of medieval numbersFor a bit of fun over on Twitter this week, I made my followers an offer: It was an offer that 60 of them couldn't refuse. Requests...
Seb FalkMay 11, 202016 minHow to read a medieval astronomical calendarWhat do all those columns of letters and numbers mean? This post explains how to make sense of all the information.
Seb FalkSep 3, 20181 minJohn Gower and the GruffaloBack in June I was thrilled to get another chance to broadcast an Essay on BBC Radio 3. This one was about John Gower, “the forgotten...
Seb FalkNov 22, 20173 minGirton College Mappa MundiGirton College, the Cambridge University college where I am lucky to work, owns a full-scale facsimile of the Hereford Cathedral Mappa...
Seb FalkMay 21, 20173 minHeat, Comets, and CollaborationThis post is cross-posted from the Ordered Universe project blog (with different pictures). The 18th Ordered Universe symposium – and the...
Seb FalkDec 21, 20164 minHow short is the shortest day?Happy Yule! As you probably know, Yule (Jól) was the pagan Nordic celebration of the bleak midwinter. And it’s the winter solstice...
Seb FalkJun 22, 20161 minMedieval finger-counting on the BBCYesterday I had an opportunity to present some medieval science on the BBC. I had been asked to contribute to “Free Thinking” on Radio...
Seb FalkJun 20, 20163 minThe start of summer?Facebook greeted me today with this little graphic: Given that this is the radar picture over the UK this morning, it’s not surprising...
Seb FalkFeb 29, 20163 minLeap years and astrolabesSince today is 29th February, a leap-year-themed post is in order. This one answers the question you’ve all been asking: how are leap...
Seb FalkFeb 24, 20161 minMedieval (g)astronomy: my PhD in biscuit formI submitted my PhD thesis last week (and now have a little more time to post on this blog). In large part it’s a study of this...
Seb FalkFeb 21, 20164 minMasculine Mars? Planetary degrees in medieval astrologyI handed in my PhD thesis earlier this week, so I finally have time for a new blog post. It’s another small step towards the blogging...
Seb FalkAug 16, 20155 minHow did an Italian astrolabe end up on the New Zealand passport?A few years ago I enjoyed a blog post in which National Maritime Museum curator Rebekah Higgitt wrote about the “navigation” theme of the...
Seb FalkJul 13, 20151 minGeoffrey Chaucer’s Inspirational AstronomyOK, so I missed Andy Murray’s Wimbledon semi-final. And I missed seeing England hammer the Aussies in Cardiff. But I didn’t care. ...
Seb FalkJun 5, 20151 minAngry Birds in Medieval ManuscriptsI’m just back from two very enjoyable days in Oxford, at the Bodleian Library’s wonderful new Weston Library. Apart from looking at some...
Seb FalkJun 2, 20154 minDrawing up a medieval horoscopeI’ve written a blog post entitled “How to cast a medieval horoscope” before. But I didn’t tell the whole story. Regular readers of this...
Seb FalkJun 2, 20151 minThe Kalamazoo Medieval ExperienceI recently attended my first ever Kalamazoo. This is not a strange musical instrument, or a kind of olive. It is an annual gathering of...
Seb FalkMay 29, 20151 minThe vernacular in medieval astronomy – at KalamazooI recently returned from the International Congress on Medieval Studies. It’s held every year at the University of Western Michigan in...
Seb FalkMar 25, 20154 minHistoric navigational instruments on trialI started this blog when I reconstructed a medieval equatorium. I wanted to understand how it worked, and the best way was to follow the...