Reposted by Duncan BellKim A. Wagner @kimatiwagner.bsky.social · 09/10/2026The performative logic of a public execution is the same as the images of boat-strikes in the Caribbean - state violence as pure spectacle. It is the strategy of a government that rules through coercion rather than consent. www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...washingtonpost.comFort Hood shooter’s execution will be live-streamed, Defense Dept. says“We’ll make sure that people are able to watch it,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Thursday about the firing squad execution of convicted Fort Hood shooter Nidal Malik Hasan. 35718
Duncan Bell @duncanbell.bsky.social · 08/10/2026For those interested in a deeper dive, my book on the history of transhumanism will be published next year.... 030
Duncan Bell @duncanbell.bsky.social · 08/10/2026Indeed! (He's mentioned in my forthcoming book on the subject...) 010
Reposted by Duncan BellDuncan Bell @duncanbell.bsky.social · 07/10/2026I enjoyed talking to David about the history of transhumanism (the first of four episodes) 2198
Duncan Bell @duncanbell.bsky.social · 07/10/2026I enjoyed talking to David about the history of transhumanism (the first of four episodes) 2198
Reposted by Duncan BellCambridge University History Faculty @camhistory.bsky.social · 05/10/2026Professor Alvin Jackson joins Cambridge as inaugural Childers Professor of Irish History and a Fellow @christscollegecam.bsky.social. He brings extensive expertise in modern Irish and British history, particularly the history of home rule, union and unionism in Ireland, the UK & beyond. News link⬇ 183
Reposted by Duncan BellHenry Farrell @himself.bsky.social · 05/10/20261. So this touches indirectly on something that is poorly understood. Rees-Mogg pere and Davidson's book, The Sovereign Individual, is held by some to be a blueprint for the reactionary politics that is unfolding today. In fact the book is drenched in disgust and scorn for nationalist populism ... 24015
Reposted by Duncan BellDuncan Bell @duncanbell.bsky.social · 13/09/2026ARTICLE: Duncan Bell, "John Stuart Mill on Federation, Civilization and Empire," History of Political Thought (2024) go.shr.lc/3EFfrLfgo.shr.lcJohn Stuart Mill on Federation, Civilization and Empire: Ingenta Connect 1254
Reposted by Duncan BellDuncan Bell @duncanbell.bsky.social · 10/09/2026Samuel Butler imagined a war fought between humans over whether to halt the development of intelligent machines, not a desperate "Butlerian Jihad" pitting humans against their machinic progeny. The former seems more plausible than the latter 2556
Reposted by Duncan Bell#HigherEducationPostcard @hepostcard.bsky.social · 01/10/2026Here's a #HigherEducationPostcard of the Senate House, @cam.ac.uk Here's a jigsaw of the postcard: www.jigsawplanet.com?rc=play&pid=... If you like this image, I’d really appreciate a repost – it helps to spread the word! 011
Reposted by Duncan BellDuncan Bell @duncanbell.bsky.social · 29/09/2026JOB: Directorship of the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology / Professorship of Material Culture University of Cambridge www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/directo...cam.ac.ukDirectorship of the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology and Professorship of Material CultureThe Board of Electors invite applications for the Directorship of the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology and the Professorship of Material Culture from persons whose work falls within the general ... 11115
Duncan Bell @duncanbell.bsky.social · 29/09/2026JOB: Directorship of the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology / Professorship of Material Culture University of Cambridge www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/directo...cam.ac.ukDirectorship of the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology and Professorship of Material CultureThe Board of Electors invite applications for the Directorship of the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology and the Professorship of Material Culture from persons whose work falls within the general ... 11115
Reposted by Duncan BellDuncan Bell @duncanbell.bsky.social · 24/09/2026New Effective Altruism HQ just dropped 2878
Reposted by Duncan BellBen Ansell @benansell.bsky.social · 25/09/2026Epochal tweet from the best to ever do it 17821
Reposted by Duncan BellDavid Ornstein @david-ornstein.bsky.social · 25/09/2026🚨 EXCLUSIVE: Manchester City found guilty on virtually all charges relating to breaches of Premier League financial regulations. #MCFC expected to appeal against verdict issued by independent commission. Sanctions undecided, process ongoing @theathleticfc.bsky.social www.nytimes.com/athletic/704...nytimes.comManchester City found guilty on almost all Premier League charges relating to financial breachesCity were charged by the Premier League in February 2023. 1641256391
Reposted by Duncan BellBart⚓️ @bartgonnissen.bsky.social · 23/09/2026The Facial Expressions of Tethys by artist Julius von Bismarck. A suspended high-sea buoy that moves in real time. Sensors on a twin buoy out in the Atlantic Ocean send live satellite data to motors inside the museum. This makes the indoor buoy copy the exact, real-time movements of the ocean waves. 10381742846
Reposted by Duncan BellCambridge University History Faculty @camhistory.bsky.social · 21/09/2026Major milestone for the Stirling Building project 💥 The newly fabricated steel frame for the Grade II* listed building's reading room roof is safely installed. Two cranes carefully hoisted the four gigantic steel structures over the treetops to install the building's iconic centrepiece... ⬇️ 162
Reposted by Duncan BellModernism in Metro-Land @modinmetro.bsky.social · 21/09/2026---- Faculty of History Library, Cambridge 1968 James Stirling and Partners buff.ly/oR8ax8t 0297
Reposted by Duncan BellPeter FitzGerald @diddorol.bsky.social · 15/09/2026Eric Schliesser on Spinoza Use of Rhetorical Tropes in Political Theory as Modeling, pt. 2. Spinoza: "They conceive men not as they are, but as they want them to be". ES: evokes Machiavelli's Prince and by contrast Bacon's Advancement of Learning. digressionsimpressions.substack.com/p/on-spinoza...digressionsimpressions.substack.comOn Spinoza Use of Rhetorical Tropes in Political Theory as Modeling, pt. 2The present post presumes familiarity with the concept of a ‘recursive tradition,’ which I learned from Duncan Bell. 032
Reposted by Duncan BellRobert Saunders @robertsaunders.bsky.social · 18/09/2026"UK's 'dismal' Eurovision song choices to be examined by MPs". Surely the solution is obvious... 139221
Reposted by Duncan BellAdam Roberts @adamroberts.bsky.social · 18/09/2026Rich Horton recommends three SF short stories, online & free: richhorton314252.substack.com/p/smart-sffa...richhorton314252.substack.comSmart SF/Fantasy here on SubstackShort stories by Selonick, Kanakia, and Roberts 161
Reposted by Duncan BellPatricia Owens @whitproject.bsky.social · 17/09/2026I'm really biased but I think this is a brilliant article by @politicsoxford.bsky.social DPhil candidate Isabelle Napier academic.oup.com/isq/article/...academic.oup.comFriendship in World Politics: George Padmore, Nancy Cunard, and Dorothy Pizer at the End of EmpireAbstracts. This article develops an historical account of friendship as a political relation central to the twentieth-century project of decolonization thr 052
Reposted by Duncan BellEvan @evansmithhist.bsky.social · 17/09/2026Five years since I wrote this piece on the archival finds that made historians got ‘wut?’. I asked on Twitter and got hundreds of replies. Still one of my most read pieces. theconversation.com/i-asked-hist...theconversation.comI asked historians what find made them go ‘wait, wut?’ Here’s a taste of the hundreds of repliesHistorians, archivists and other researchers got in touch with tales of their archival finds and bizarre research moments. These ranged from the quirky to the disturbing to the profound. 03114
Duncan Bell @duncanbell.bsky.social · 17/09/2026JOB Founding Dean of the Rokos School of Government / Rokos Professor of Government, University of Cambridge www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/foundin...cam.ac.ukFounding Dean of the Rokos School of Government and Rokos Professorship of GovernmentThe University of Cambridge is seeking an exceptional academic leader to become the founding Dean of the Rokos School of Government, alongside appointment to the Rokos Professorship of Government. Thi... 037
Reposted by Duncan BellProf. Dr Beth Singler @bvlsingler.bsky.social · 17/09/2026imho there is an increasing tendency over time for fictional AI to be seen as more sentient as more and more layers of narrative accrue. So 1984's Skynet can be seen as less sentient than 2019's because the latter sits on our experiences of the former. I agree, though it doesn't NEED to be sentient. 1152
Reposted by Duncan BellPast Present Future Podcast @ppfideas.bsky.social · 16/09/2026NEW EPISODE OUT NOW! In today’s episode about 20th century philosophy and biography David talks to the historian and literary critic @lyndseystonebri.bsky.social about the life and thought of Hannah Arendt. What did it all mean for the human condition? Find us at...🎧 ppfideas.com 1219
Reposted by Duncan BellDuncan Bell @duncanbell.bsky.social · 29/08/2026NEW PAPER Duncan Bell, "Psychic Socialism: Telepathy, Freedom, and Individuality in Interwar Britain" (2026) Forthcoming in Duncan Bell & Eileen Hunt (eds.), Political Theory and Speculative Literature papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....papers.ssrn.comPsychic Socialism: Telepathy, Freedom, and Individuality in Interwar BritainDraft chapter - a version of this essay is forthcoming in Duncan Bell and Eileen Hunt (eds.), Political Theory and Speculative Literature. <div> <br> </div> < 79123
Duncan Bell @duncanbell.bsky.social · 15/09/2026But the backstory to the Dune novels includes the bloody but successful “jihad” waged by humans against intelligent machines. (I’m not a fan of the later books). That’s the difference from Samuel Butler I was pointing to 000
Reposted by Duncan BellColin Wrafter @wraftercolin.bsky.social · 13/09/2026Any chance your article might be made freely available? Thank you . 101
Reposted by Duncan BellLoubna El Amine لبنى الأمين @loubnaelamine.bsky.social · 15/09/2026Our Critical Exchange on "What is Political Theory Today" is now out in Contemporary Political Theory. It features a lead article by Peter Steinberger and responses by Jeffrey Church, Shterna Friedman, Simone Chambers, and me. link.springer.com/article/10.1...link.springer.comWhat is political theory today? - Contemporary Political TheoryContemporary Political Theory - 0104
Reposted by Duncan Bell#HigherEducationPostcard @hepostcard.bsky.social · 15/09/2026Here's a #HigherEducationPostcard of @theul.bsky.social - Cambridge University Library It'll be all Cambridge for a few weeks now because that's where the alphabet has taken me If you like this image, I’d really appreciate a repost – it helps to spread the word! 01111
Reposted by Duncan BellDuncan Bell @duncanbell.bsky.social · 03/02/2026NEW BOOK! I'm very happy to say that my new book, Utopia, co-written with Douglas Mao, has been published on-line academic.oup.com/book/62279academic.oup.comUtopiaAbstract. Ideal societies, better worlds, more just and peaceful ways of living: these have long been the stuff of human beings’ social dreaming. In this c 1125976
Reposted by Duncan BellDigressionsimpressions @nescio13.bsky.social · 15/09/2026On Spinoza Use of Rhetorical Tropes in Political Theory as Modeling, pt. 2 with shout out to @duncanbell.bsky.social digressionsimpressions.substack.com/p/on-spinoza...digressionsimpressions.substack.comOn Spinoza Use of Rhetorical Tropes in Political Theory as Modeling, pt. 1The present post presumes familiarity with the concept of a ‘recursive tradition,’ which I learned from Duncan Bell. 152
Reposted by Duncan BellWilliam Gibson @greatdismal.bsky.social · 14/09/2026I’ve now lived so much longer than I would ever have expected to that I feel I’m living in the future. This is when I imagined Neuromancer happening. And now the creators of today’s AI warn us that it threatens humanity. 841964388
Reposted by Duncan BellDavid Klemperer @dmk1793.bsky.social · 14/09/2026Really fascinating, this - I was particularly struck by Wells's idea of telepathy as enabling the harmonious resolution of complex problems of social coordination 154
Duncan Bell @duncanbell.bsky.social · 13/09/2026If you send me an email (my address is on my Dept website), I can give you a copy 111
Duncan Bell @duncanbell.bsky.social · 13/09/2026ARTICLE: Duncan Bell, "John Stuart Mill on Federation, Civilization and Empire," History of Political Thought (2024) go.shr.lc/3EFfrLfgo.shr.lcJohn Stuart Mill on Federation, Civilization and Empire: Ingenta Connect 1254
Reposted by Duncan BellBritain and Ireland Association for Political Thought @handle.invalid · 11/09/2026We are delighted to announce that Dr Paul Sagar of Kings College London is the winner of our Mid-career prize! Heartiest of congratulations to him. Our full statement is below. 👇 www.associationforpoliticalthought.ac.uk/biapt-mid-ca...associationforpoliticalthought.ac.ukBIAPT Mid-career prize winner 2026 - Paul Sagar - BIAPTWe are delighted to award the BIAPT Mid-Career Prize to Dr Paul Sagar, who is Reader in Political Theory at Kings College London. Sagar has made a seismic contribution to our field over the last decad... 063
Reposted by Duncan BellBritain and Ireland Association for Political Thought @handle.invalid · 11/09/2026We are thrilled to announce that @shukyingchan.bsky.social is the winner of our Early-career prize for 2026! Our warmest congratulations to her. The competition was fierce this year. Full announcement below 👇 www.associationforpoliticalthought.ac.uk/biapt-early-...associationforpoliticalthought.ac.ukBIAPT Early-career prize winner 2026 - Shuk Ying Chan - BIAPTDr Shuk Ying Chan is a Lecturer in Political Theory in the Department of Political Science at University College London. She was awarded a PhD in Politics by the University of Princeton in 2021 and si... 093