Matt Halstead
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drmatthalstead.bsky.social
Matt Halstead
@drmatthalstead.bsky.social
Nuclear engi-theatre-politi-nerd. I work on spacecraft, missiles, and keeping my 3 kids alive another day. If you can pronounce "nuclear" correctly, we can be friends.
I'm excited to be participating in Stair Climb and need your support to help reach my fundraising goal! Please consider donating to this great cause.

nfff.akaraisin.com/ui/baltimore...
nfff.akaraisin.com
August 30, 2025 at 3:35 PM
Reposted by Matt Halstead
August 22, 2025 at 11:46 PM
The day has arrived! Opening night for Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, performed by the Howard County Summer Theatre!

I hope I see you there!
Tickets: hcst.booktix.com
Joe Dress Rehearsal Photo Montage
YouTube video by Todd Hochkeppel
youtu.be
June 20, 2025 at 6:28 PM
Oh, yeah, this administration is DEFINITELY based on merit and the best, most qualified individuals for the job. DEFINITELY not just who can sufficiently suck up...
Trump Appoints 22-Year-Old Ex-Gardener and Grocery Store Assistant to Lead U.S. Terror Prevention
Counter-terror chief was pulling up weeds just five years ago.
www.thedailybeast.com
June 5, 2025 at 6:04 PM
Reposted by Matt Halstead
The Presidents Budget Request for NASA is out. It’s a bloodbath

Canceled are DAVINCI, VERITAS, Juno, OSIRIS-APEX, US participation in ExoMars and EnVision…

Huge cut to R&A. No funding to begin development of the Uranus Orbiter.

If you’ve ever cared about NASA, time to contact congress.
May 30, 2025 at 8:30 PM
As they complain about scientific journals, they make up fake ones to push non-existent, dangerous science and medicine. This would be funny if it weren't so existentially scary...
US government report cited non-existent sources, academics say
Authors of several studies cited in the report told news outlets they did not write them and the studies did not exist.
www.bbc.com
May 30, 2025 at 1:07 PM
Reposted by Matt Halstead
"The Story of The Atomic Airplane": 13 hours of first-hand presentations and interviews from the team that did the nuclear-powered aircraft project in the 1950s, now digitized and online thanks to Dr. Jake Hecla! whatisnuclear.com/the-story-of...
The Story of the Atomic Airplane
13 hours of first-hand interviews and presentations on the Nuclear Powered Aircraft project, including a full transcript
whatisnuclear.com
May 29, 2025 at 10:13 PM
If you happen to live near Howard County, Maryland, and you enjoy live theatre... Consider coming to our production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat!
#livetheatre #onstage #HCST
May 28, 2025 at 11:26 PM
This. This is the natural progression from the thought that "only Americans can be smart". Basic science and the search for knowledge can't have borders, can't have partisanship.
Scientists have lost their jobs or grants in US cuts. Foreign universities want to hire them
As the Trump administration cut billions of dollars in federal funding to scientific research, thousands of scientists in the U.S. lost their jobs or grants.
apnews.com
May 27, 2025 at 2:47 PM
I usually agree with #NDT, but I'm not sure I do here. I'll grant the first. The second, though, might be better said that we live in a country with an education and (or?) political system that feeds a belief that everyone is the "Main Character™️" and everyone else is out to get them...
May 24, 2025 at 2:37 AM
Every episode of The Pitt I watch makes me think of Jimmy Valvano's ESPY speech...

"If you laugh, you think, and you cry, that's a full day. That's a heck of a day."
May 22, 2025 at 3:35 AM
This DEFINITELY won't lead to someone dying. Definitely....
‘Steroid Olympics’ backed by Donald Trump Jr to debut in Las Vegas
Investors in the Enhanced Games include 1789 Capital and Peter Thiel
www.ft.com
May 21, 2025 at 9:55 PM
Yet another short-sighted decision. Breaking a lease you likely can't break will lead to suits and $$. Remote work for scientists used to lab and office work. The possible loss of decades worth of incredible scientific discovery. Deplorable.

www.axios.com/2025/05/17/t...
Trump administration closing iconic NASA research center in New York
Scientists warn critical work — like the maintenance of global temperature records — is at risk.
www.axios.com
May 18, 2025 at 3:18 PM
Reposted by Matt Halstead
Imagine starting a car that hadn't run in 21 years, that's 15 billion miles away in interstellar space. That's what the NASA team just did with Voyager's thrusters. People are amazing. jpl.nasa.gov/news/nasas-v...
May 17, 2025 at 12:59 PM
Reposted by Matt Halstead
A team at Johns Hopkins APL has developed an AI-powered framework that spots defects in 3D-printed titanium parts before they form. This breakthrough could transform how we build aerospace and defense hardware. jhuapl.link/a08
AI Reveals New Way to Strengthen Titanium Alloys and Speed Up Manufacturing
Johns Hopkins researchers have leveraged artificial intelligence to uncover faster, more efficient ways to manufacture titanium alloy parts while maximizing mechanical performance.
jhuapl.link
May 14, 2025 at 3:10 PM
Pretty cool that I've got a small part to play in getting a nuclear-powered octo-copter to one or Saturn's moons. On Dragonfly!

www.usatoday.com/story/graphi...
NASA's Dragonfly passes key test. A look at its upcoming mission to Saturn's moon
NASA's eight-rotor drone steps closer to reaching Saturn's largest moon Titan. A deep dive into its mission.
www.usatoday.com
May 12, 2025 at 1:50 AM
Bribary in PLANE sight.

I'll see myself out...
Bribery in plain sight.
May 11, 2025 at 10:16 PM
@theanthonydavis.bsky.social, love your podcast with @ronfilipkowski.bsky.social! #uncovered. Most recent one, tho, I think you guys missed something. When Elon was talking about the sun, he meant we'd die by the sun expanding, not roasting by climate change. Elon was off by a few billion years 🤣
May 8, 2025 at 1:46 PM
Reposted by Matt Halstead
When asked if the United States should have a military parade to show off its might, President Eisenhower responded:

“Absolutely not. We are the pre-eminent power on Earth. For us to try and imitate what the Soviets are doing in Red Square would make us look weak.”
May 7, 2025 at 1:05 AM
Reposted by Matt Halstead
Unbelievable morons.

www.npr.org/2025/05/03/n...
May 3, 2025 at 8:32 PM
Reposted by Matt Halstead
Trump has deported a four-year-old US citizen with a rare form of metastatic cancer without medication or consultation with their doctor.
Trump Has Now Deported Multiple U.S. Citizen Children With Cancer
Two families who had lived in the United States for years, including a child with cancer and a pregnant mother, were deported by ICE on Friday.
www.rollingstone.com
April 27, 2025 at 12:56 AM
With all of the 💩 going on in our world, sometimes I just go watch Whose Line is it Anyway. This, by far, is my favorite clip from the show...

youtu.be/wBzwv057GPs?...
Whose Line - Arctic Tern
YouTube video by spiffymage
youtu.be
April 26, 2025 at 12:33 AM
Reposted by Matt Halstead
April 25, 2025 at 5:48 PM
Reposted by Matt Halstead
NASA’s #DragonflyMission, set to explore Saturn’s moon Titan, has passed its Critical Design Review. Led by APL and supported by U.S. industry, government and academic partners, Dragonfly is ready for the next phase and will launch in 2028. jhuapl.link/6a3
Dragonfly Mission Passes Critical Design Review
The Johns Hopkins APL-led team working on the first rotorcraft designed for scientific exploration on another ocean world has passed its Critical Design Review, a major milestone confirming Dragonfly’...
jhuapl.link
April 25, 2025 at 8:53 PM
Reposted by Matt Halstead
PhD Timeline xkcd.com/3081
April 25, 2025 at 3:32 PM