Neil deGrasse Tyson AMA

So, so many excellent quotes in that discussion. My favorite:<p>"Kids are never the problem. They are born scientists. The problem is always the adults. The beat the curiosity out of the kids. They out-number kids. They vote. They wield resources. That's why my public focus is primarily adults."<p>Preach it, dude.

Really interesting. A couple of physics things I did not know that Neil mentions:<p><i>1) The fact that an electron has no known size -- it's smaller than the smallest measurement we have ever made of anything.</i><p><i>2) That Quarks come only in pairs: If you try to separate two of them, the energy you sink into the system to accomplish this feat is exactly the energy to spontaneously create two more quarks - one to partner with each of those you pulled apart.</i>

My personal favorite:<p><i>Q: If you could add one course to a student's curriculum, what would it be?"</i><p><i>A: Course title every university should offer: "How to tell when someone else is full of shit"</i>

Q:What is your favorite fact about the Universe?<p>A:That is will never end. That it's on a one way trip of expansion. Something that many find to be philosophically unsettling. My view is that <i>if your philosophy is not unsettled daily then you are blind to all the universe has to offer.</i><p>Priceless

He is one of my heroes. So charming, funny and educating at the same time. His speech on the islam downfall in the 13th century due to some "prophet" claiming that math and devil were interconnected was much enlightening on how religion actually stops scientific progress.

So he's skeptical of the singularity but he thinks we'll be able to live forever in a lifetime or so. Weird.

Anyone interested in NdGT, check out the show he hosts: Nova Science Now<p><a href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/sciencenow/" rel="nofollow">http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/sciencenow/</a><p>You can watch full episodes online, no commercial interruptions after they start. It does a good job at filling the popular science video niche, in addition to Through the Wormhole with Morgan Freeman.

"pedagogical enthusiasm" - my new favorite term.