Neil deGrasse Tyson

Where ignorance lurks, so too do the frontiers of discovery and imagination

The moment when someone attaches you to a philosophy or a movement, then they assign all the baggage and all the rest of the philosophy that goes with it to you. And when you want to have a conversation, they will assert that they already know everything important there is to know about you because of that association. And that's not the way to have a conversation.

It's okay not to know all the answers. It's better to admit our ignorance than to believe answers that might be wrong. Pretending to know everything closes the door to finding out what's already there.

The urge to want some bit of information to be true often clouds our ability to assess why that information may be false.

On Friday the 13th of April 2029, an asteroid large enough to fill the Rose Bowl as though it were an egg cup, will fly so close to Earth, that it will dip below the altitude of our communication satellites. We did not name this asteroid Bambi. Instead, it's named Apophis, after the Egyptian god of darkness and death. If the trajectory of Apophis at close approach passes within a narrow range of altitudes called the 'keyhole,' the precise influence of Earth's gravity on its orbit will guarantee that seven years later in 2036, on its next time around, the asteroid will hit Earth directly, slamming in the Pacific Ocean between California and Hawaii. The tsunami it creates will wipe out the entire west coast of North America, bury Hawaii, and devastate all the land masses of the Pacific Rim. If Apophis misses the keyhole in 2029, then, of course, we have nothing to worry about in 2036.

Dinosaurs are extinct today because they lacked opposable thumbs and the brainpower to build a space program.

When students cheat on exams it's because our school system values grades more than students value learning.

You know that passage in the Bible that says, __nd the meek shall inherit the Earth_? Always wondered if that was mistranslated. Perhaps it actually says, __nd the geek shall inherit the Earth.

Some molecules - ammonia, carbon dioxide, water - show up everywhere in the universe, whether life is present or not. But others pop up especially in the presence of life itself. Among the biomarkers in Earth's atmosphere are ozone-destroying chlorofluorocarbons from aerosol sprays, vapor from mineral solvents, escaped coolants from refrigerators and air conditioners, and smog from the burning of fossil fuels. No other way to read that list: sure signs of the absence of intelligence.

... and I submit to you, that science, scientific discovery, especially cosmic discovery, does not become mainstream until the artist embraces the fruits of those discoveries.

God is an ever-receding pocket of scientific ignorance.

The problem, often not discovered until late in life, is that when you look for things in life like love, meaning, motivation, it implies they are sitting behind a tree or under a rock. The most successful people in life recognize, that in life they create their own love, they manufacture their own meaning, they generate their own motivation. For me, I am driven by two main philosophies, know more today about the world than I knew yesterday. And lessen the suffering of others. You'd be surprised how far that gets you.

My view is that if your philosophy is not unsettled daily then you are blind to all the universe has to offer.

Down there between our legs, it's like an entertainment complex in the middle of a sewage system. Who designed that?

Don__ know if it__ good or bad that a Google search on __ig Bang Theory_ lists the sitcom before the origin of the Universe

I fear living a life where I could have accomplished something and didn't. That's what I fear. I don't fear death.

There are more stolen bikes in my garage than there are stars in the galaxy.

...people taking the time and energy to ask about what they do not understand - I have renewed hope that society can shed its superstitions and embrace the enlightenment that comes from just a basic understanding of how the universe works.