J. Russell
banner
jrussellwrites.com
J. Russell
@jrussellwrites.com
JBMSSA Finalist 2022, 2025 | I'm an engineer. I read, I write, and I have a lot of random interests.

jrussellwrites.com

My inactive Twitter is @jrussellwrites

@[email protected]

http://www.youtube.com/@jrussellwrites
Pinned
Needs more radiators.
For any space or numismatics fans, the Alabama, Florida, Maryland, and Texas Innovation Dollars are works of art, and cheap additions to your collections.

The amount of detail on the Saturn V and Shuttle is great. They didn't need to add USA on the Saturn or the SRB details to the Shuttle.
December 28, 2025 at 1:18 PM
Reposted by J. Russell
The Fermi Paradox & Fossil Fuels
youtu.be/Z4sKKQUZcRE
Does the Universe stay quiet because alien species burn through fossil fuels and collapse?
The Fermi Paradox & Fossil Fuels
YouTube video by Isaac Arthur
youtu.be
December 21, 2025 at 2:04 PM
Reposted by J. Russell
Which Stars Could We Live Around? Ranking Every Type of Star
youtu.be/duVP_R5smPQ
From giant O-stars to dim brown dwarfs, we rank every stellar class by how well they could host life, Dyson swarms, and advanced civilizations across cosmic time.
Which Stars Could We Live Around? Ranking Every Type of Star
YouTube video by Isaac Arthur
youtu.be
December 23, 2025 at 2:02 PM
Reposted by J. Russell
The Universe’s Unopened Gifts: Hidden Worlds and the Spirit of Discovery
youtu.be/kqY1LfcWgis
Explore the hidden frontiers of the cosmos — from dark matter and rogue planets to quantum mysteries — and uncover the Universe’s greatest unopened gifts of discovery.
The Universe’s Unopened Gifts: Hidden Worlds and the Spirit of Discovery
YouTube video by Isaac Arthur
youtu.be
December 25, 2025 at 2:00 PM
Reposted by J. Russell
Initial conditions:
m1=63.3 m2=79.7 m3=124.4 (solar masses)
v1x=-4.305 v1y=2.382 v2x=-0.705 v2y=2.88 v3x=-3.009 v3y=6.684 (km/s)
x1=22.0 y1=22.0 x2=-6.0 y2=35.0 x3=26.0 y3=-5.0 (AU from center)
Music: Liebestraum – Liszt
December 26, 2025 at 7:06 AM
In the past year or two, at the urging of my wife, I've reached outside my comfort zone of reading and writing. I live and breathe hard sci-fi. It runs with being an engineer.

Instead I've read some fantasy and wrote a little. I can understand why people appreciate Tolkien and Jordan.
December 19, 2025 at 4:42 PM
Well there goes my 4.0 GPA for my Master’s degree. It is always a material class that I struggle with.
December 19, 2025 at 4:37 PM
Reposted by J. Russell
Vacuum Decay - Escaping the End of Physics Itself
youtu.be/HMw9D3sOhO0
Discover the science behind vacuum decay, the ultimate cosmic doomsday.
Vacuum Decay - Escaping the End of Physics Itself
YouTube video by Isaac Arthur
youtu.be
December 14, 2025 at 2:02 PM
Reposted by J. Russell
Alien Overlords Have Conquered Earth... Now What?
youtu.be/RiZgVgxKZCM
The invasion is over. The aliens won. Now humanity must live under their rule. Explore the aftermath of conquest.
Alien Overlords Have Conquered Earth... Now What?
YouTube video by Isaac Arthur
youtu.be
December 18, 2025 at 2:02 PM
I vividly remember being told in history class that there was a reason the Kennedy administration did not use the word "blockade" during the Cuban Missile Crisis, and there was another reason the Lincoln Administration didn't use it during the Civil War...
December 17, 2025 at 2:40 PM
Working on my submission for the Jim Baen Memorial Short Story Award Contest, and I realized I actually wrote this whole story before, so I guess I'll be editing that instead. Saves me a day or two of writing it up!
December 15, 2025 at 12:57 PM
Reposted by J. Russell
Initial conditions:
m1=72.1 m2=21.6 m3=84.1 (solar masses)
v1x=6.633 v1y=3.952 v2x=4.995 v2y=1.798 v3x=1.21 v3y=-3.761 (km/s)
x1=24.0 y1=35.0 x2=-25.0 y2=24.0 x3=-22.0 y3=-33.0 (AU from center)
Music: Prelude in C-Sharp Minor – Rachmaninoff
December 15, 2025 at 7:06 AM
Reposted by J. Russell
Now I'm worried about my Relaxing Whale Songs.
December 12, 2025 at 4:52 PM
Reposted by J. Russell
Surviving the Death of the Sun - Moving Earth or Finding a New Home
youtu.be/1-ojYJqjd_0
Discover how to move worlds and forge new stars.
Surviving the Death of the Sun - Moving Earth or Finding a New Home
YouTube video by Isaac Arthur
youtu.be
December 7, 2025 at 2:02 PM
Reposted by J. Russell
Bubble Habitats & Zero G Megastructures
youtu.be/Ra1D1AASuD4
Explore the future of living in weightlessness—bubble habitats, floating cities, and zero-gravity megastructures where humanity learns to thrive without up or down.
Bubble Habitats & Zero G Megastructures: Life Floating in an Ocean of Sky
YouTube video by Isaac Arthur
youtu.be
December 11, 2025 at 2:01 PM
Reposted by J. Russell
Brackenbury Books is doing our part! ✋HUMAN MADE is the only way to go, folks.
December 12, 2025 at 1:20 PM
Reposted by J. Russell
Here’s a paywall free link to my feature article in UnHerd:
“Will Trump Destroy NASA?”
It is impossible to do engineering using a post-truth methodology.
Reality IS relevant.
Engineering cannot be based on bullshit. Engineering must be based on truth.

unherd.com/2025/12/how-...
Will Trump destroy Nasa?
unherd.com
December 10, 2025 at 12:59 PM
Reposted by J. Russell
At issue is whether internet providers can be liable for their users' committing copyright violations using its services. n.pr/4pJUZLq
Supreme Court weighs copyright fight between music industry and internet providers
At issue is whether internet providers can be liable for their users' committing copyright violations using its services.
n.pr
December 1, 2025 at 11:20 AM
I found out last week that it's possible to play a 4,500 year old board game (the Royal Game of Ur) online (royalur.net).

I remember seeing a video by the British Museum on YouTube about the game years ago. (youtu.be/WZskjLq040I?...)

The future is a very interesting place!
December 1, 2025 at 4:58 PM
Reposted by J. Russell
Ark Swarms - Dispersing Humanity Across the Stars to Prevent Extinction
youtu.be/LqO3QqiBkrM
To colonize the Milky Way, humanity must travel in fleets, not alone. Ark Swarms shows how interstellar swarms can secure our future among the stars.
Ark Swarms - Dispersing Humanity Across the Stars to Prevent Extinction
YouTube video by Isaac Arthur
youtu.be
November 23, 2025 at 2:01 PM
Reposted by J. Russell
Orbital Farms: Humanity’s Next Agricultural Revolution
youtu.be/ylev6rRSubM
Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!
As humanity expands into space, we’ll need new ways to grow food. Explore how orbital farms could sustain billions—on Earth, Mars, and beyond.
Orbital Farms
YouTube video by Isaac Arthur
youtu.be
November 27, 2025 at 2:02 PM
Reposted by J. Russell
Beyond Alpha Centauri -  Exploring Nearby Stars
youtu.be/CXjofVtsvsg
Humanity’s first interstellar missions may reach Alpha Centauri—but what comes next? Explore nearby stars, colony plans, and how we’ll build civilizations beyond our stellar neighbor.
Beyond Alpha Centauri: Exploring Nearby Stars
YouTube video by Isaac Arthur
youtu.be
November 30, 2025 at 2:02 PM
I always thought it was a rock between the proto-Earth and Mars, so that's cool.
November 21, 2025 at 12:56 PM
Reposted by J. Russell
New work pinpoints origins for the planet Theia, whose ancient collision with Earth likely produced the moon
Lost Planet Theia that Created the Moon Came From the Inner Solar System
New work pinpoints origins for the planet Theia, whose ancient collision with Earth likely produced the moon
www.scientificamerican.com
November 20, 2025 at 8:14 PM
Reposted by J. Russell
The Future of Humanity: What Will We Become?
youtu.be/pMwtrxpqH_Y
From cyborgs to hive minds and civilizations of pure thought, we trace the possible futures of our species through the next trillion tomorrows.
The Future of Humanity - What Will We Become?
YouTube video by Isaac Arthur
youtu.be
November 20, 2025 at 2:01 PM