Hilding Neilson
@astrojipjawej.bsky.social
St. John’s #yyt, Mi’kmaw, astronomer at #munl, trying to understand stars and their stories. Indigenizing astronomy and STEM. views are my own. He/him. hildingneilson.com
A featured panel in this track: "Knowing the Sky: Indigenous Knowledge Systems and the Many Ways We Came to Understand the Cosmos," and so far includes: host Jameeka Marshall, Dr. Ka'iulani Murphy, & Dr. Hilding Neilson. We are very much looking forward to their insights and thoughtful discussion! 🌠
A day later, I’m still weirded out by Star Trek strange new worlds season 4 premiere where they conclude that genocide is cool if it’s (manifest) destiny. I miss Starfleet Academy.
It's wild that we're encouraged to embrace 'Indigenous AI', but imagine if I phrased it as 'Indigenous nuclear war'. "Indigenising" is not the same as decolonising or abolishing systems of harm. Fanon (1961) warned us the native/colonized petit bourgeoisie would align with capital + empire.
What a telling article about the attack on universities in Canada and Australia first and how consults seems to be creating a rigged process breachmedia.ca/a-notorious-... @breachmedia.ca
A notorious consulting firm is selling austerity. Canada’s universities are buying ⋆ The Breach
The Nous Group, an Australian consulting firm, has raked in millions for “fixing” universities in financial freefall. Their solution? Corporatization
breachmedia.ca
I received a message from a former student from one course about a decade ago!, expressing appreciation for a reference letter and telling me a little about the path they’re now on. That message made my week, and it’s so amazing seeing students pursue their goals and dreams.
This is a fantastic article summarizing many of the current issues around the space broligarchy theemancipator.org/2026/07/02/n...
Colonizing the Cosmos
America’s oligarch-driven space race revives foundational sins of imperial conquest.
theemancipator.org
I have been working for the past five years or so trying to better understand the issues around the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence, SETI, and how many of the underlying ideas are built in the western systems of understanding.
Sunspots today, taken with an Unistellar EVscope.
It’s official, I’m being promoted to associate professor starting in September. It’s big accomplishment after such a long bumpy time in academia. #WeAreMUN #DucksOfMUN
NEW: A lot of bad has happened to American science over the last year but nothing comes even close to what’s about to happen if we don’t speak out in opposition to the OMB rule changes and I hope @aaas-socsci.bsky.social @apsphysics.bsky.social and others will launch public campaigns about this. 🧪🔭⚛️
It's the End of American Science As We Know It
We have 45 days to express our opposition to catastrophic changes.
news.chanda.science
Why is writing so hard? I’ve a bunch of deadlines and I keep procrastinating or just stare at a screen . It’s been a challenge for a while now even though I’m writing a number a fair bit. It just seems to take a lot to get over whatever barrier to do it.
NASA is proposing an ambitious plan to build a permanent base on the Moon but underlying it is resource extraction and colonialism. www.cbc.ca/news/science...
NASA reveals first plans for a moon base | CBC News
NASA has provided the first look at its plans for its moon base, which include several robotic missions to the surface of the moon as early as this year.
cbc.ca
I’m excited to announce that new courses at @memorialu.bsky.social @memorialuscience.bsky.social were approved. They are Science 2155: Indigenous Astronomies and Worldviews and Science 3155: Outer Space and Society. These courses are a big part of building astronomy at MUN.
One of those rare beautiful days in St. John’s NL #yyt where I get to see the ducks of Memorial U and do a little solar imaging with a lot of sunspots. #duckstonomy
Folks, I plan to create an Introduction to Cancer Public Course for free access (using videos, streamlined public meetings/forums, etc.) Topics will span the entire story (from basic biology to advocacy), my 20+ yrs of learnings What do you think? #NewfoundlandAndLabrador #PublicOutreach #Cancer
On #EarthDay we often look at our actions on earth to create solutions. But what about our activities among the stars? 🛰✨ Read more from @astrojipjawej.bsky.social on outer space governance, sustainability, the space industry, ethics and Indigenous ways of knowing. gazette.mun.ca/res.../susta...
Sustainability and satellites
When thinking about environmental protection and sustainability, we often look at our actions on earth to create solutions. But what about our activities among the stars? According to Dr. Hilding Neil...
gazette.mun.ca
Proud supervisor moment with some of the grad students chatting with CBC’s On the Go about the Artemis II return. The students did an amazing job. #Astronomy #WeAreMUN @memorialu.bsky.social @memorialuscience.bsky.social
Just picking up a little reading for the (hopefully) coming Spring in St. John’s. Excited to have Prof. @chanda.blacksky.app new book - one for me and one for my lab. Can’t wait to read this.
It was great to talk about the Artemis II mission with NTV and some of the connections with Newfoundland & Labrador #WeAreMUN
NTV News@ntvnewsnl.bsky.social · 5mo agoLocal enthusiasts excited to see Artemis II blast off to the moon ntv.ca/news/local-e...
This one gave me goosebumps. Any moment could be the one where a young person starts to see what is possible. Every educator lives for that moment! #WeAreMUN #FundMUN @munfaculty.bsky.social Share yours!
Hilding Neilson@astrojipjawej.bsky.social · 5mo agoWhen I was in grade 8 or 9 a professor from the Corner Brook campus organized a math Olympiad event in my town for students. My team did well in the event and it was one of the first times that I knew I could succeed at university and encouraged my path in astronomy. #WeAreMUN
Imagine what the MUN community could deliver if the @govnl.bsky.social and admin funded and supported the mission of the university #WeAreMUN
Sevtap Savas, PhD🫐 🇨🇦🍁@savaslab.bsky.social · 5mo agoway to go MUN!! why would anyone not invest in you? Not fund you? Despite the cuts since 2016, the MUN community has been delivering ❤️ #MemorialMatters #WeAreMUN @govnl.bsky.social
way to go MUN!! why would anyone not invest in you? Not fund you? Despite the cuts since 2016, the MUN community has been delivering ❤️ #MemorialMatters #WeAreMUN @govnl.bsky.social
Lourdes Peña-Castillo@lpc-nl.bsky.social · 5mo ago"Time [magazine] has ranked Memorial University among the world’s top 300 universities and the second in Atlantic Canada." vocm.com/2026/02/15/2... #WeAreMUN #WorthFunding @munfaculty.bsky.social
When I was in grade 8 or 9 a professor from the Corner Brook campus organized a math Olympiad event in my town for students. My team did well in the event and it was one of the first times that I knew I could succeed at university and encouraged my path in astronomy. #WeAreMUN
MUN Faculty Association@munfaculty.bsky.social · 5mo agoAcross Memorial, we are seeing the real impacts of ongoing funding cuts. Programs are changing. Jobs are being lost. Teaching and learning conditions are under pressure. The impacts are not abstract. They affect our classrooms, our colleagues, and our students.1/3 #WeAreMUN
Across Memorial, we are seeing the real impacts of ongoing funding cuts. Programs are changing. Jobs are being lost. Teaching and learning conditions are under pressure. The impacts are not abstract. They affect our classrooms, our colleagues, and our students.1/3 #WeAreMUN
This group did SO much with a small amount of funding, leveraging significant knowledge and other assets from the university to serve the public. This is what we lose with funding cuts at MUN. #WeAreMUN
Sevtap Savas, PhD🫐 🇨🇦🍁@savaslab.bsky.social · 5mo agoTake a moment and read our report back to community as the Atlantic Cancer Consortium Patient Advisory Committee 💓 It has been an honour to represent and work for the benefit of Atlantic Canadians, particularly those who were affected by cancer www.saltwire.com/newfoundland... #PatientPartners
I had such a great experience getting to visit SNOlab earlier this week, an example of an organization doing fantastic science building on the historical measurements of solar neutrinos to the search for dark matter and life science experiments today. #Science #Physics #Astronomy
Congrats to all the assholes who shit on Starfleet Academy, which had the best first season of a Star Trek show in franchise history, white supremacist homophobic Paramount has cancelled the show and you won and now there is no Trek in production Do you feel like winners? You assholes
