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Thomas Cheney

@thomascheney.bsky.social

2.4K followers 1.9K following 3.5K posts

Academic, (outer) Space Governance at Northumbria University. Legal geography and environmental humanities of space governance (space resources, planetary protection, astrobiology, settlement etc). Working on project 'Life the Ultimate Frontier'. He/him.

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Thomas Cheney @thomascheney.bsky.social · Jan 24

Now that I've signed the contract and its properly official, very excited to announce that I'm writing a book for Bloomsbury Academic titled: Space, the Final Resource Frontier? The Governance of Planetary and Extraplanetary Natural Resources which should be published sometime in 2028 (ish)

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Thomas Cheney @thomascheney.bsky.social · 2h

its one of those things in movies and TV shows that always amuses me, if the President orders the military to launch nuclear weapons they're not going to not do it because the Secretary of Energy of which ever bumbling cabinet secretary they've got in the scene refuses to hand over his 'code'!!!

Reposted by Thomas Cheney

Foreign Policy Research Institute @fpri.bsky.social · 3h

Humanity’s exploration of space has pushed the boundaries of science since the start of the rocket age. It has also blurred the lines between peace and war. buff.ly/LCtNij5

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Thomas Cheney @thomascheney.bsky.social · 4h

wife and i have been rewatching stargate atlantis and i think they erred in making Sgt Bates a Sgt, his open antagonism towards Sheppard would feel less odd if he was a Captain or better yet a Major himself

Reposted by Thomas Cheney

Daniel and Kelly's Extraordinary Universe @dandkuniverse.bsky.social · 9h

How might aliens perceive the Universe?

Daniel and Kelly talk about how aliens might experience the Universe and how it might shape their science, a topic from Daniel's new book "Do Aliens Speak Physics?"

www.iheart.com/podcast/105-...

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Thomas Cheney @thomascheney.bsky.social · 9h

and we live in a society and a culture driven by the visual and the aesthetic and so that needs to be in the forefront of any movements consideration - think about how ICE attacking people dancing in inflatable clown costumes looks vs ICE bravely defending themselves against the antifa mob

Thomas Cheney @thomascheney.bsky.social · 9h

Disagree completely, fascism is all about aesthetic and core to that aesthetic is being tough and strong, no one looks tough or strong staring down a weirdo in an inflatable frog - a confrontational, violent approach on the other hand gives them exactly what they want - "see they are violent thugs"

talia jane ❤️‍🔥 @taliajane.bsky.social · 22h

as charming and whimsical as some will view this, it bears noting that absurdity—not militancy or might—are what people have chosen to repeat from the portland standoffs against ICE.

why is that?

what purpose does this serve?

a mini 🧵:

50501: The People’s Movement ❌👑 @50501movement.bsky.social · 1d

The Portland Frog army has now infiltrated Tulsa, OK and they’ve made an unlikely alliance with the T-Rex infantry and Sharks on Hoverboards mercenary forces.

This is truly terrifying.

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Thomas Cheney @thomascheney.bsky.social · 10h

thing is if we are screwed and solar geoengineering is the only solution there isnt really a downside to waiting, solar geoengineering can (and should) be a last resort

Reposted by Thomas Cheney

Dr. Aaron Thierry @thierryaaron.bsky.social · 10h

We'd be calling forth the #Climate Leviathan

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Dr. Genevieve Guenther (she/they) @doctorvive.bsky.social · 10h

The thing about solar geoengineering is that once you start you cannot stop *ever* unless somehow you have already removed all the multi-billions of tons of carbon emitted since the day you started.

If you stop at the higher CO2 concentration you get virtually instantaneous catastrophic heating.

Dr. Aaron Thierry @thierryaaron.bsky.social · 12h

"If geoengineering works well initially & you see this temperature drop, the tempempation to keep going & extracting fossil fuels will be greater than ever, because it will seem that you have a technologically that can cut off the link between temperature rises & fossil fuel combustion."

Overshoot & Climate Breakdown - Wim Carton & Andreas Malm | #39

YouTube video by Jesse Damiani

youtu.be

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Thomas Cheney @thomascheney.bsky.social · 14h

they've done a very good job at not communicating to anyone about it - had I not seen people talking about it on here I probably wouldn't have found out until I planned my next trip

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Thomas Cheney @thomascheney.bsky.social · 14h

Good, full solidarity with them, the British Library staff are absolutely amazing - and the way the BL and the Government have responded to this cyberattack is appalling both for the BL as a world renowned institution and as a reflection of government cybersecurity policy!

Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 15h

'The British Library...has taken years to recover from a major cyberattack that disrupted its services and restricted access to its collections. The walkout is set to take from 27 October to 9 November, coinciding with the two-year anniversary of the cyberattack.'

Research Professional News @resprofnews.bsky.social · 1d

‘Livid’ British Library staff vote to strike over pay.

www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-c...

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Thomas Cheney @thomascheney.bsky.social · 14h

god yes, there were many things that I liked about my first job being in a STEM faculty but that they didn't care about grant applications under £250k (so basically everything I applied for) was not one of them...

Reposted by Thomas Cheney

Melina Antonia Buns @melinabuns.bsky.social · 15h

10 days left to apply for this course!

Many amazing scholars will contribute to this course, including @untamed.bsky.social, @dudleymarianna.bsky.social, Abigail Harrison Moore, Alice Owen, and @andersriel.bsky.social!

#envhist #energyhistory #envhum

Melina Antonia Buns @melinabuns.bsky.social · 29d

I am really excited to announce the call for the PhD Course in Energy Humanities!

Held at the @greenhouseuis.net from 1-5 December.

Applications are welcome until 24 October.

#envhum #envhist #energyhistory

Poster showing a wind turbine from frog perspective. The picture is in light pink and blue nuances and announces a PhD course in energy humanities. More information can be found in this website. https://www.uis.no/en/research/collaboration/the-greenhouse-centre-for-environmental-humanities/humanities/apply-for-phd

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Thomas Cheney @thomascheney.bsky.social · 1d

here here, and while we're at it we should restore real English, extract all the French corruption

Paul Bernal @paulbernal.bsky.social · 1d

BREAKING: Shabana Mahmood announces that immigrants will have to recite Beowulf in its entirety in Old English, without notes, before being allowed entry to the U.K.

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Thomas Cheney @thomascheney.bsky.social · 1d

I mean obviously the Democrats are a secret Chinese sleeper cell but the hands controlling 'both sides' surely suggests MAGA are too?

Thomas Cheney @thomascheney.bsky.social · 1d

lol... (been reading up on the Committee on the Present Danger: China because of Greg Autry, and oh boy as if that book wasn't unhinged enough) and does the graphic imply that MAGA is a sockpuppet of China?

Webinar - Civil War 2.0: Xi's Plan for Finishing Off the USA? Hosted by the Committee on the Present Danger: China

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Thomas Cheney @thomascheney.bsky.social · 1d

Ok stupid question but don't the Republicans control both houses of congress and the presidency? How weak ass pathetic do you have to be to let the opposition party shut down the government?

Federal Government Shutdown - Due to the Democrat led shutdown, website updates will be limited until full operations resume

Thomas Cheney @thomascheney.bsky.social · 1d

this was a fantastic discussion, well worth a listen

Jason Herbert @herberthistory.bsky.social · 2d

Comanche Chairman Forrest Tahdooahnippah sat down with me last Friday to talk about Comanche history, culture, and so much more. Our new episode of Reckoning with Jason Herbert drops right now. Share if you dig it. 1/

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Thomas Cheney @thomascheney.bsky.social · 1d

i mean if its that important then perhaps A level english shoould become a universal requirement

The Independent @the-independent.com · 1d

Migrants will need A-level standard English to work in UK

www.independent.co.uk

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Thomas Cheney @thomascheney.bsky.social · 1d

doing my phd got me over the fetishism of books as objects, now i highlight and annoate and dogear with abandon, im a reader not a collector

Thomas Cheney @thomascheney.bsky.social · 1d

oh great can't connect to the 2FA service, guess I won't check my emails this morning

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Reposted by Thomas Cheney

ESA Space Science @science.esa.int · 1d

#ESAJuice reached 30% of its journey to Jupiter! 🙌

What has Juice been up to and what comes next? Read along. 1/8

Screenshot from the Juice bar X account showing a progress bar at 30%.

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Thomas Cheney @thomascheney.bsky.social · 2d

the biggest single thing that got me to where i am today was winning a scholarship to a truly excellent private school, and i was lucky to go to one of the best public schools in PA but the difference was still night and day

Reposted by Thomas Cheney

Andrew D Thaler @drandrewthaler.bsky.social · 2d

You don't have to judge Columbus by the standards of today. His tenure as governor of Hispaniola was so horrific that he was dragged back to Spain in chains to answer for his many crimes.

Plus he never set foot on any land that would ever be a part of the United States of America.

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Michael ᚋᚔᚉᚆᚓᚐᚂ @baoigheallain.bsky.social · 4d

Uni professors should start wearing hi-viz vests so the PM can pose with them as he bails them out.

QM_UCU @qmucu.bsky.social · 4d

*FIFTEEN THOUSAND JOBS LOST*.
If this were in a sector in which the PM could go and do a photoshoot looking like One Of The People, we’d have had a government intervention by now.

LopaLeach @lopa.bsky.social · 5d

Cuts equivalent to 15,000 jobs planned at UK universities – UCU www.timeshighereducation.com/news/cuts-eq...

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