We have people who believe they are scientifically literate but, in fact, are not. Neil deGrasse Tyson More Quotes by Neil deGrasse Tyson More Quotes From Neil deGrasse Tyson I try to show the public that chemistry, biology, physics, astrophysics is life. It is not some separate subject that you have to be pulled into a corner to be taught about. Neil deGrasse Tyson taughtchemistrytrying The first colony on Mars is not going to be built by a private company. How are you going to make money? You're not. Neil deGrasse Tyson marsmaking-moneyfirsts I simply go with what works. And what works is the healthy skepticism embodied in the scientific method. Believe me, if the Bible had ever been shown to be a rich source of scientific answers and enlightenment, we would be mining it daily for cosmic discovery. Neil deGrasse Tyson religioussciencebelieve The universe is hilarious! Like, Venus is 900 degrees. I could tell you it melts lead. But that's not as fun as saying, 'You can cook a pizza on the windowsill in nine seconds.' And next time my fans eat pizza, they're thinking of Venus! Neil deGrasse Tyson degreesfunthinking If you're scientifically literate, the world looks very different to you, and that understanding empowers you. Neil deGrasse Tyson empoweringdifferentunderstanding Dreams about the future are always filled with gadgets. Neil deGrasse Tyson gadgetsfilleddream Humans aren't as good as we should be in our capacity to empathize with feelings and thoughts of others, be they humans or other animals on Earth. Neil deGrasse Tyson empathyfeelingsanimal Italy valued cathedrals while Spain valued explorers. So worldwide, five times as many people speak Spanish than Italian. Neil deGrasse Tyson italianatheistpeople Do you realize that the 850 billion dollar bank bailout, that sum of money is greater than the entire 50 year running budget of NASA. And so when someone says, 'We don't have enough money for this space probe.' No, it's not that you don't have enough money. It's that the distribution of money that you're spending is warped in some way that you are removing the only thing that gives people something to dream about tomorrow. Neil deGrasse Tyson futuredreamrunning Kids are born curious about the world. What adults primarily do in the presence of kids is unwittingly thwart the curiosity of children. Neil deGrasse Tyson curiositykidschildren How much would you pay...for the Universe? Neil deGrasse Tyson nasauniversepay Some of the greatest poetry is revealing to the reader the beauty in something that was so simple you had taken it for granted. Neil deGrasse Tyson takensimplebeauty We hunger for significance, for signs that our personal existence is of special meaning to the universe. To that end, we’re all too eager to deceive ourselves and others, to discern a sacred image in a grilled cheese sandwich or find a divine warning in a comet Neil deGrasse Tyson cheese-sandwichesspecialwarning I am convinced that the act of thinking logically cannot possibly be natural to the human mind. If it were, then mathematics would be everybody's easiest course at school and our species would not have taken several millennia to figure out the scientific method. Neil deGrasse Tyson takenschoolthinking The most accessible field in science, from the point of view of language, is astrophysics. What do you call spots on the sun? Sunspots. Regions of space you fall into and you don’t come out of? Black holes. Big red stars? Red giants. So I take my fellow scientists to task. He’ll use his word, and if I understand it, I’ll say, “Oh, does that mean da-da-da-de-da? Neil deGrasse Tyson starsmeanfall I think the best thing a parent can do, when raising a child, is simply get out of their way. Neil deGrasse Tyson parentchildrenthinking I don't want students who could make the next major breakthrough in renewable energy sources or space travel to have been taught that anything they don't understand, and that nobody yet understands, is divinely constructed and therefore beyond their intellectual capacity. The day that happens, Americans will just sit in awe of what we don't understand, while we watch the rest of the world boldly go where no mortal has gone before. Neil deGrasse Tyson spaceintellectualwatches I'm optimistic. I see no longer people accepting fuzzy thinking in the world. The change is not that people aren't still saying under-informed things. The change is that if you're in power and you say something under-informed, there are people out there with a voice who will take you to task for having done so Neil deGrasse Tyson bad-assoptimisticthinking 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. Neil deGrasse Tyson movementimportantphilosophy I've known from long ago that the universe was calling me. If you were one of those annoying adults that said, 'Oh, what are you gonna be when you grow up?' I would say, 'Astrophysicist .' And then they'd walk away real quickly. Neil deGrasse Tyson long-agogrowing-upreal
