"this is sixth form poetry, not Keats or Yeats"
This city is alive with music, magic and dance Underpinned with an industrial heart That beats with the vibrancy of scientific discovery. From the transit of Venus to the first railway station, Manchester has a place in the soul of our nation; With Turing’s ‘baby’ computer and the first test-tube baby, This is a city … Read more
You prowl and sniff the air around your pack, With outsized ears you wear just like a crown Atop a cloak of matted, mottled brown; The silence summons heckles on your back. You take the centre stage for your attack, And outline plans to raid the nearest town; You prowl and sniff the air … Read more
Sunbeams two-step over white blankets Gliding painlessly between worlds, Then stray too close to the edge Where looming Arctic waves Trap their latent heat; Ending the dance, And leaving Only Sea. This is a nonet, inspired by recent research that has provided the first quantitative evidence for the “albedo feedback” effect in the Arctic. It … Read more
Balanced on a rock Orange sneezeweed in your mouth; You drop in the heat. This is a Haiku, inspired by recent research which has found climate change responsible for the local extinction of the American pika from California’s Sierra Nevada mountains. The American pika is a small mammal adapted to high altitudes and cold temperatures, … Read more
Hormones are made when we keep fit, Inside our bodies they emit; Imbuing us with strength unbarred, Try not to push yourself too hard. Hooked up to a big P.E.T., Injected with activity; In search of pleasure’s calling card, Try not to push yourself too hard. High settings are not always right, Increasing … Read more
A valley in the sands of time, Beyond a place, a paradigm; A confluence, a new frontier, Where science breaks the bonds of fear. Across the ancient steppes of sheep: A city that we wake from sleep; Their gratitude we now endear, Where science breaks the bonds of fear. With every new idea … Read more
You spin against opaque and barren skies, An ancient god now floating in the deep; Your secrets hidden from our prying eyes, An azure giant frozen deep in sleep. Across your marbled surface storm clouds race, With weathered patterns we are yet to trace; The gloaming peels away your dim veneer, A stolen glance … Read more
The crops that we all need to sustain life Are weakened by upturns in CO2; Engaging in this atmospheric strife Means less nutritious protein can accrue. But will this cause distress for me or you? For those who have the least, the risks are high, Because of greenhouse gases that we spew. And as we … Read more
The empty cupboards of our Universe Are filled with neutral cobwebs of potential; All of them waiting for an opportunity To blaze into life and burn away the haze. The earliest galaxies glimmered quietly As they waited for the fog to disperse; Trailblazers that reveal hidden lines And show us where to turn … Read more
Out amongst the dense, and yet seemingly empty fabric of space the Plasma starts to accrue, piercing through distant lands and unseen skies. Building up into supermassive jets that extend beyond galaxies and perpetually Infiltrate our tiny collective consciousness, every time we happen to revolve. A gentle ripple through the dark drapery splits … Read more