Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Vanessa Braganza

@vanessabraganza.bsky.social

3.2K followers 110 following 310 posts

'The real Robert Langdon' | writer and future civil rights lawyer | 📖 THE SECRET-SEEKERS: A BOOK DETECTIVE'S QUEST out from HarperOne 2026 | PhD @harvard, JD @columbialaw

Posts Media Videos Starter Packs

Pinned

Vanessa Braganza @vanessabraganza.bsky.social · Nov 13

Hey #bluesky, you heard it here first: your friendly neighborhood book detective is working on a brand new discovery--another day, another mystery to be solved.

Stay tuned...🧐

#academia #history #books

Shaily Patel @vox-magica.bsky.social · Nov 13

hey, do you think it’d be cool to read about women’s ciphers, secretly subversive jewelry, and tudor court intrigue?

it’s extremely cool. check this out this gift link & follow @vanessabraganza.bsky.social. she’s working on a new discovery right now!

Decoding the Defiance of Henry VIII’s First Wife (Published 2022)

Using a process she called “early modern Wordle,” a scholar claims to have uncovered a hidden message from Catherine of Aragon in a book of jewelry designs.

www.nytimes.com

Vanessa Braganza @vanessabraganza.bsky.social · 5h

Good! It really is. :) Can't wait to tell you about it.

Vanessa Braganza @vanessabraganza.bsky.social · 6h

Happy birthday! 🎉🎊🎉🎊

Vanessa Braganza @vanessabraganza.bsky.social · 6h

I'm being a ham and building a bit of suspense, but I promise to reveal who she is when the piece comes out!

1 1

Vanessa Braganza @vanessabraganza.bsky.social · 7h

NB #chicago folks!

End The Genocides @wfwhuman.bsky.social · 8h

ICE out terrorizing Rogers Park and Edgewater in Chicago this morning. Lotsa watchers in the streets too!

Vanessa Braganza @vanessabraganza.bsky.social · 8h

#bookhistory

Vanessa Braganza @vanessabraganza.bsky.social · 8h

Me when the temperature drops to 60 in early October: (busts out overcoat and Christmas carols)

Also me when Mariah Carey comes on Spotify shuffle the same day: Okay, I might have overreacted a tad... 👀

a woman in a red dress is standing in a glass container

ALT: a woman in a red dress is standing in a glass container

media.tenor.com

Vanessa Braganza @vanessabraganza.bsky.social · 9h

Very excited to be teaming up once again with my editors at Smithsonian Magazine on a story about a brave young woman who broke a barrier for all women who became published writers. This one will be out next year!

@smithsonianmag.bsky.social #women #herstory

2 5 21

Reposted by Vanessa Braganza

Joe Okonkwo @joeokonkwo.bsky.social · 9d

"Write what you know will always be excellent advice for those who ought not to write at all. Write what you think, what you imagine, what you suspect!" — Gore Vidal, born on this day in 1925 #AmWriting

2 5

Vanessa Braganza @vanessabraganza.bsky.social · Aug 4

The summers have always been humid, but I remember when there was maybe one freak day in the 90s in an entire summer. We thought that was hot, it must be nuts now.

Vanessa Braganza @vanessabraganza.bsky.social · Jul 9

You're speaking my native language here.

Reposted by Vanessa Braganza

Kat Tenbarge @kattenbarge.bsky.social · Jun 21

Elon saying he’s going to reprogram his chatbot’s view of history is a perfect example of why these kinds of AI products aren’t the neutral “tools” people always defend them as. They’re little political projects reflecting the ideologies of their creators

130 2.5K 8.2K

Vanessa Braganza @vanessabraganza.bsky.social · Jun 21

Count me in!!

Vanessa Braganza @vanessabraganza.bsky.social · Jun 20

Interesting fact for everyone: the War Powers Resolution (1973) accordingly places limits on the President's ability to deploy troops without Congressional authorization.

Question for #law folks: any writing you recommend on how drone/other unmanned warfare limits the War Powers Resolution?

Vanessa Braganza @vanessabraganza.bsky.social · Jun 20

It bears pointing out that the power to declare war is vested solely and explicitly in Congress. (U.S. Const., art. 1, sec. 8, cl. 11) #law #constitution

Vanessa Braganza @vanessabraganza.bsky.social · Jun 20

It bears pointing out that the power to declare war is vested solely and explicitly in Congress. (U.S. Const., art. 1, sec. 8, cl. 11) #law #constitution

1 2

Vanessa Braganza @vanessabraganza.bsky.social · Jun 8

Yesterday. The street where I live. #nyc

Vanessa Braganza @vanessabraganza.bsky.social · Jun 3

It's criminally underrated. I don't understand how it hasn't got a massive fan base.

Vanessa Braganza @vanessabraganza.bsky.social · Jun 3

Pro-tip: you need Ruth Wilson's Mrs Coulter in your life. HBO His Dark Materials ftw.

a close up of a woman 's face with showtime written on the bottom right

ALT: a close up of a woman 's face with showtime written on the bottom right

media.tenor.com

Vanessa Braganza @vanessabraganza.bsky.social · Jun 3

Been thinking about this lately: "Maybe you need to ask yourself: 'how secretly furious am I?'"

#women #womenempoweringwomen
youtu.be/TOEEHUjBwNQ?...

FKA Twigs & Minnie Driver read letters from the Ask Polly column about the secret fury of nice women

YouTube video by Letters Live

youtu.be

Vanessa Braganza @vanessabraganza.bsky.social · Jun 3

This is low-key me with Michael Caine.

Vanessa Braganza @vanessabraganza.bsky.social · Jun 1

Without downloading any new pics, where are you mentally?

Vanessa Braganza @vanessabraganza.bsky.social · May 27

Unpopular opinion: there's something oddly calming about Bluebooking over your morning tea. This might become my version of yoga. #law #lawschool

Vanessa Braganza @vanessabraganza.bsky.social · May 25

We did Humprey's Exec, Morrison, Dellinger, and the Wilcox and Harris briefs. I found it hugely useful that we got the full picture.

Vanessa Braganza @vanessabraganza.bsky.social · May 25

--which makes it vital to get good at sweater-knitting, otherwise there's nothing ti stop everything from getting unwound and staying that way. Teach us how the sweater is supposed to be put together so we can put it back together when the time comes. We want to learn.

Vanessa Braganza @vanessabraganza.bsky.social · May 25

If it's any consolation/inspiration, I told my intro ad law professor that learning ad law this spring was like someone teaching you how to knit a sweater while someone else is unraveling it at the other end--1/2

1 1

Vanessa Braganza @vanessabraganza.bsky.social · May 25

Just one semester of intro administrative law has turned me into the nerdiest possible version of someone's dad. #adlaw #law

Vanessa Braganza @vanessabraganza.bsky.social · May 25

But sadly, till then, the Overton bark is worse than its bite?