SELECTED O THER T ITLES BYN EIL D EGRASSE T YSON

AccessorytoWar:TheUnspokenAllianceBetweenAstrophysicsandtheMilitary(2018)WithAvisLang

AstrophysicsforPeopleinaHurry(2017)

StarTalk:TheBook(2016)WithCharlesLiuandJeffreyLeeSimons

WelcometotheUniverse:AnAstrophysicalTour(2016)WithMichaelA.StraussandJ.RichardGottIII

TheInexplicableUniverse(2012)Asix-partvideolectureseries

SpaceChronicles:FacingtheUltimateFrontier(2012)EditedbyAvisLang

ThePlutoFiles:TheRiseandFallofAmerica’sFavoritePlanet(2009)

DeathbyBlackHole:AndOtherCosmicQuandaries(2007)

Origins:FourteenBillionYearsofCosmicEvolution(2004)

WithDonaldGoldsmith

Lettersfroman

Astrophysicist

N E I L D EG R A S S E T Y S O N

Tomymother,whofirsttaughtmehowtowritewithmeaningandimpact.Andtomyfather,whoselifeexperiencenavigatingpeople,places,andthingsconferreduponmethenecessary

wisdomtonavigatealifeofmyown.

IfinthisIhavebeentedious,itmaybesomeexcuse,Ihadnottimetomakeitshorter.

—WILLIAMCOWPER,1704

CONTENTS

Preface

Prologue AMemoir,ofSorts

I.EthosThecharacteristicspiritofaculture,manifestedinitsbeliefsandaspirations.

Chapter1 Hope

Chapter2 ExtraordinaryClaims

Chapter3 Musings

II.CosmosTheuniverseseenasawell-orderedwhole.

Chapter4 HateMail

Chapter5 ScienceDenial

Chapter6 Philosophy

III.PathosAplaintiveappealtoemotionsthatalreadyresidewithinus.

Chapter7 LifeandDeath

Chapter8 Tragedy

Chapter9 ToBelieveorNottoBelieve

IV.KairosApropitiousmomentfordecisionoraction.

Chapter10 SchoolDays

Chapter11 Parenting

Chapter12 Rebuttals

Epilogue AEulogy,ofSorts

AcknowledgmentsIndexofSubjects

PREFACE

Now that people communicate with one another primarily by social media, letter-writing hasbecomealostart.Thegreatestcasualtymaybeourgrowinginabilitytofindwordsthatpreciselycommunicate our feelings and emotions. Why else the need for that burgeoning catalog ofemoticons to supplementourwritten correspondence?A smiley face.A snarky face.Aheart.Athumbs-up.Butwhentheworldstimulatesyourcuriosity;whenyourstateofnotknowingleavesyou restless;when your existential angst overflows; sometimes you just have towrite a full-uplettertosomebody.

Contained herein is a sampling of my correspondence, almost all with complete strangers,spanning more than two decades, with most letters selected from a ten-year period when myemailaddresswaspubliclyaccessible.*Overthattime,mostinquiriescontainedstraightforwardquestionsofscience.ThosewerefieldedbyexpertstaffatNewYorkCity’sHaydenPlanetarium,whereIserveasdirector.Otherletters,mostlyofapersonalnature,includingthosewithspecificreferencetoaspeechIhadgiven,abookIhavewritten,oravideoinwhichIappeared,formthecorpusoflettersfromwhichmyresponsesaredrawn.

Theletterstomethatcommunicatesignificantemotion,curiosity,oranxietyarereproducedinfull.† Other letters, of the rambling type, I summarize for brevity in a single paragraph. SomelettersarewrittenbypeoplewhoareangrywiththeworldorwithsomethingIhavesaidordone.Othersexploreideasandbeliefs.Stillothersaresad,sensitive,andpoignant.Andinmanycasesthere’s a longingwe’ve all experienced at one time or another: the search formeaning in ourlives;anevergreenurgetounderstandone’splaceinthisworldandinthisuniverse.

Added,too,arelettersI’vewritten,nottoanybodybuttoeverybody.Theseincludeletterstotheeditor,mostlyoftheNewYorkTimes,aswellasopenletterspostedtomyFacebookpageandotherpublicplacesontheinternet.OneoftheearliestdatesbacktomyoverlongSeptember12,2001, letterto familyandcolleagues, twenty-fourhoursafter Iborewitness, fromadistanceoffourblocks,totheattackandcollapseoftheWorldTradeCenter’sTwinTowers.

Aboveallelse,LettersfromanAstrophysicist isavignetteofthewisdomIhavemusteredtoteach, enlighten, and ultimately commiserate with the curious mind. It’s the world as viewedthroughthelensofanastrophysicist-educator.Aworldnowsharedwithyou.

*Whenaletterwasreceivedviameansotherthanemail(e.g.,US“snail”mailorsocialmedia),thatmediumisindicated.

†Whensensible,lettersarelightlyeditedforspellingandgrammar.Longlettersarealsoeditedforclarityandlength.Meanwhile,zealouspunctuation,whenissuedforthfromEMOTION,isleftlargelyintact!!!

LettersfromanAstrophysicist

Prologue

AMemoir,ofSorts

Happy60thBirthday,NASAMonday,October1,2018FacebookNote

DearNASA,Happybirthday!Perhapsyoudidn’tknow,butwe’re thesameage. In the firstweekofOctober1958,youwerebornoftheNationalAeronauticsandSpaceActasacivilianspaceagency,whileIwas born of my mother in the East Bronx. So the yearlong celebration of our shared sixtiethanniversaryprovidesmeauniqueoccasiontoreflectonourpast,presentandfuture.

I was three years old when John Glenn first orbited Earth. I was seven when you lostastronautsGrissom,Chaffee,andWhiteinthattragicfireoftheirApollo1capsuleonthelaunchpad.IwastenwhenyousentArmstrongandCollinstotheMoon.AndIwasfourteenwhenyoustoppedgoingtotheMoonaltogether.OverthattimeIwasexcitedforyouandforAmerica.Butthevicariousthrillofthejourney,soprevalentintheheartsandmindsofothers,wasabsentfrommyemotions.Iwasobviouslytooyoungtobeanastronaut.ButIalsoknewthatmyskincolorwasmuchtoodarkforyoutopicturemeaspartofthisepicadventure.Notonlythat,eventhoughyouareacivilianagency,yourmostcelebratedastronautsweremilitarypilots,ata timewhenwarwasbecominglessandlesspopular.

Duringthe1960s,theCivilRightsmovementwasmorerealtomethanitsurelywastoyou.InfactittookadirectivefromVicePresidentJohnsonin1963toforceyoutohireblackengineersatyourprestigiousMarshallSpaceFlightCenterinHuntsville,Alabama.Ifoundthecorrespondenceinyourarchives.Doyou remember? JamesWebb, thenheadofNASA,wrote toGerman rocketpioneerWernhervonBraun,whoheadedtheCenterandwhowasthechiefengineeroftheentiremannedspaceprogram.The letterboldlyandbluntlydirectsvonBraun toaddress the“lackofequal employment opportunity for Negroes” in the region, and to collaborate with the areacolleges Alabama A& M and Tuskegee Institute to identify, train, and recruit qualified NegroengineersintotheNASAHuntsvillefamily.

In 1964, you and I had not yet turned six when I saw picketers outside the newly builtapartmentcomplexofourchoice,intheRiverdalesectionoftheBronx.Theywereprotestingtoprevent Negro families, mine included, frommoving there. I’m glad their efforts failed. Thesebuildingswerecalled,perhapsprophetically,the“SkyviewApartments,”onwhoseroof,22storiesovertheBronx,Iwouldlatertrainmytelescopeontheuniverse.

My father was active in the Civil Rights movement, working under New York City’s MayorLindsay tocreate jobopportunities foryouth in theghetto—as the“innercity”wascalledbackthen. Year after year, the forces operating against this effort were huge: poor schools, badteachers, meager resources, abject racism, and assassinated leaders. So while you werecelebratingyourmonthlyadvancesinspaceexplorationfromMercurytoGeminitoApollo,IwaswatchingAmericadoallitcouldtomarginalizewhoIwasandwhatIwantedtobecomeinlife.

I looked to you for guidance, for a vision statement that I could adopt that would fuel myambitions.Butyouweren’tthereforme.Ofcourse,Ishouldn’tblameyouforsociety’swoes.YourconductwasasymptomofAmerica’shabitsnotacause.Iknewthis.Butyoushouldnonethelessknow that among my colleagues, I am the rare few in my generation who became anastrophysicist in spite of your achievements in space rather than because of them. For myinspiration,I insteadturnedtolibraries,remainderedbooksonthecosmosfrombookstores,myrooftop telescope, and theHaydenPlanetarium.After some fits and starts throughmyyears inschool, where my ambitions seemed at times to be the path of most resistance through anunwelcomingsociety,Ibecameaprofessionalscientist.Ibecameanastrophysicist.

Overthedecadesthat followedyou’vecomea longway.Whoeverdoesnotyetrecognizethevalue of this adventure to our Nation’s future, soon will, as the rest of the developed anddevelopingworldpassesusbyineverymeasureoftechnologicalandeconomicstrength.Notonlythat,thesedaysyoulookmuchmorelikeAmerica—fromyoursenior-levelmanagerstoyourmostdecoratedastronauts.Congratulations.Younowbelong to theentirecitizenry.Examplesof thisabound,butIespeciallyrememberwhenthepublictookownershipoftheHubbleTelescope,yourmost beloved unmannedmission. They all spoke loudly back in 2004, ultimately reversing thethreat that the Telescope might not be serviced a fourth time, extending its life for another

decade.Hubble’s transcendent images of the cosmoshad spoken to us all, as did the personalprofiles of the Space Shuttle astronauts who deployed and serviced the telescope, and thescientistswhobenefitedfromitsdatastream.

Notonlythat, Ihadevenjoinedtheranksofyourmosttrusted,asIserveddutifullyonyourprestigiousAdvisoryCouncil. Icametorecognizethatwhenyou’reatyourbest,nothinginthisworld can inspire the dreams of a Nation the way you can—dreams fueled by a pipeline ofambitiousstudents,eagertobecomescientists,engineers,andtechnologistsintheserviceofthegreatest quest there ever was. You have come to represent a fundamental part of America’sidentity,notonlytoitselfbuttotheworld.

Soaswebothturnsixty,andbeginoursixty-firsttriparoundtheSun,IwantyoutoknowthatIfeelyourpainsandshareyourjoys.AndIlookforwardtoseeingyoubackontheMoon.Butdon’tstopthere.Marsbeckons,asdodestinationsbeyond.

Birthdaybuddy,evenifIhavenotalwaysbeen,Iamnowandevermoreyourhumbleservant.NeildeGrasseTyson

NewYorkCity

I.

EthosThecharacteristicspiritofaculture,manifestedinitsbeliefsandaspirations.

Chapter1

Hope

It’sallyouhavewhenyourealizeyouarenotentirelyincontrolofoutcomes.Butwithoutit,howelsedowecopewiththechallengesoflife?

Coma

Sunday,February25,2007DearMr.Tyson,Ihavelongsuspectedthatwedoliveinauniversethatwantstokillus,soIamnotsurprisedyousaythisinyourtalks,butwhereisthehope,orisn’tthereany?

Ispent13daysinacomain2001andmiraculouslyreturnedtolifetocontinuewithmydearhusband.Hesangmealovesongandinvitedmetoreturn,andIopenedmyeyesandsmiledathim. However, I am forever changed by the extent of information I came backwith from thatsojourn,andmuchofitwasnotgood.Isthe“notgood”partthemajorityofwhat’soutthereinyourview?Ifso,howdoyouenjoylife,ordon’tyou?

Highestregards,SheilaVanHouten

DearMs.VanHouten,Iseetwokindsofhope.Oneofthemisakindofreligioushopewhereonepraysorperformssomekindofculturalritualforthingstogetbetter.

Butthereisanotherkindofhope—it’sthechallengeoflearningabouttherealworldandusingourintelligencetochangethingsforthebetter.Inthisway,it’stheindividualwhoisempoweredtobringhopetotheworld.

Soyes,theuniversewantstokillus.Butontheotherhand,weallwanttolive.Solet’sfindawaytogethertodeflecttheasteroids,findthecuretothenextlethalvirus,mitigatehurricanes,tsunamis, volcanoes, etc. This can only be enabled by the efforts of a scientifically andtechnologicallyliteratepublic.

Therein lies a hope on Earth far greater than ever promised by the act of prayer orintrospection.

Sincerely,NeildeGrasseTyson

Fear

Sunday,July5,2009DearMr.Tyson,Ijustwatchedyouonpublictelevision.Iadmirehowfaryouhavecomeinlife.IhavealwaystriedtodowhatIcouldtohelpothers.Iam38,amotherofthree,andafulltimestudent.Iwasbornandraisedinasmalltownofabout1500.Whenmymarriageof16yearsfellapart,IdecidedtofinishmyAssociateofAppliedSciencedegreeandapplyattheUniversityofWashington’sSchoolofSocialwork.

I am moving to Snohomish on August 1st, and have no job, but have been applying toeverythingIcandaily.Ithithomewhenyoutalkedaboutambition.IhavethreekidstofeedandallIwanttodoisworkandgotoschool.MypassionistoworkinhumanservicesandIhavedonerespitecareandworkedwiththeelderly,butwillworkinfastfoodtogettowhereIneedtobe.

IworryallthetimethatIwon’tbeabletoprovideformychildren,andIamscaredtodeathtomove,butIwon’tletthatstopme.Idon’tcareifIhavetore-applytotheUWeveryyearuntilIam70-years-old,Iwillattendandworkmywaytomymaster’sdegree.Ijustdon’tknowhowtogetridofthissickfeelinginthepitofmystomachthatIwillmoveandfallflatonmyface.

I have the drive and determination. I just need a break—not a free ride, just a job. I wantnothingforfree.Ijustwantajobachancetoworkmywaythrough.

Idon’tknowwhyIamwritingyou.Idon’twantanything,justsomeonetolistentomyfears.Idon’thaveanyonetotellthemto,andmaybeyoucouldunderstand.

Thankyouforyourtimeinreadingthis.LisaKalma

DearLisa,Thepeoplewhofailinlifearethosewhoseambitionswereinsufficienttoovercomealltheforcesthat work against them. And yes, failure is common to us all. But ambitious people use theirfailuresaslessonstoheed,astheypushforwardtowardtheirgoals.

Don’tfearchange.Don’tfearfailure.Theonlythingtofearislossofambition.Butifyou’vegotplentyofthat,thenyouhavenothingtofearatall.

Goodluckonyourjourney,asIofferyoutheopeningquoteinmymemoir,TheSkyIsNottheLimit*

BeyondthejudgmentsofothersRisinghighabovetheskyLiesthepowerofambition

Allthebest,onEarthandintheuniverse.Neil

LosingMyReligionWednesday,April29,2009DearDr.Tyson,IgrewuponacattlefarmintheruralmountainsofNorthCarolina—andattimesIusedtothinkIwasdamnedordisabledbecausethebeliefinahigherpowerjustdidn’t“click.”Iwenttochurch,Sundayschool,andwassurroundedbyreligion ineverydirection . . .yetsomething inme justkeptaskingquestions.

Irememberhavingtolieaboutmybeliefsandwantingtogiveup(sometimesintears)thinkingifIliedaboutitenoughIcouldeventuallybelieve.IwaskickedoutofSundayschoolfor“askingtoomanyquestions.”

But then I started to discover others like myself (although much more intelligent andeducated).Ijustwantedtothankyou—yourwordscanhavesomuchmoreofanimpactthanyoucould fathom.You (andothers)givepeople,whoare isolatedbygeography,hope that theycanstand firm in their non-beliefs and continue to ask questions. I know you are a scientist and ateacher—buttosomepeople,youarehope.

GeorgeHenryWhitesides

DearMr.Whitesides,Thanksforsharingyourpersonalstory.

Itwas(andis)nevermyintenttoconvertanybody’sbeliefsystemonewayoranother.Myaimissimplytoempowerpeopletothinkforthemselves,ratherthantohaveothersdothethinkingforthem.Thereinbloomsthe“soul”ofskepticismandthe“spirit”offreeinquiry.

Iamhappytohavenourishedthisgrowthwithinyou.Aswesayinthecosmos...KeepLookingUp.

NeildeGrasseTyson

OnBeingBlack

Marcsawthequalityofmycontributionsasagoodsignthattimesarechanging,buthewassurethatIhadsuffered,andcontinuedtosuffer,fromracialbiasandprejudice.Helongedforthedaywhenskincolorbecameanirrelevantreferencetoaperson’sidentity.OnChristmasDay2008,heaskedaboutmylifeexperienceasanAfrican-Americanscientist.

DearMarc,Thanksforyournote.

Iamhappytoreportthatreferencestomeasa“black”scientistare,today,extremelyrare—

enough to surprise me that you make any mention of it at all. Of course, if your direct lifeexperiencesuggestsit,thenIcannotreasonitaway,butothermetricsremainstrongindicatorsofmycontention.

Butlet’sgobackafewyears.Forexample, in2001,whenIwasappointedtoaWhiteHousecommissionof12 to study the futureof theU.S.Aerospace Industry, some (especiallycriticsofGeorgeW.Bush)werequicktosay,“theyneededablackperson.”Butwhenyouactuallylookedatthe commission membership, I was the only academic and I was not the only black person—anotherwasa4-starAirForceGeneral.Sothecritiqueevaporatedonanalysis.

In another case, in 1996, while attending an evening gala for my Museum† (I was largelyunknowntothepublicatthetime),aliberal-mindedwomanatmytablesawthatIworkedfortheMuseum—but only high-ranking Museum administrators were in attendance, and so she wasquicktopresumethatIwasheadofCommunityAffairsorsomesuchtitlecommonlyreservedfortoken Blacks. I replied that I was an astrophysicist, Director of the Hayden Planetarium, andProjectScientistfortheRoseCenterforEarthandSpace,underconstruction,afterwhichshehadnothingtosayfortherestofthedinner.

Those kinds of encounters were common then, but simply do not occur anymore, except,possibly, among older people whose life experience was shaped in a Black & White America,ratherthaninsimply,America.Varioushigh-profilebiographicalmentionsofmeinrecentyearsmakenomentionofmyskincolor.‡

So the trends don’t support your contentions, or perhaps, it indicates that your experiencedoesnotrepresentprevailingtrendsandtruths.

Thank you for your supportive comments, and while the struggle continues, the times areindeeda-changin’.

NeildeGrasseTyson

OnIQ

Justafewdayslater,Marccontinued,wonderingaboutthedifferenceinIQscoresbetweenblacksandwhites.He debates it often between friends and family, and soughtmore talking points tohelphimargueagainstit.

DearMarc,Theissueisbiggerthanracevs.IQ.It’smorelikelyaboutthemeaningofIQatall.Havealookatthe book titledGenius Revisited: High IQ Children Grown Up, which studied what became ofhundreds of graduates of Hunter College Elementary school in NYC, a selective public schoolwherethestudentshaveanaverageIQof150+.

Tracking them into adulthood, onemight imagine great achievements among them.Not so.There were no Nobel Laureates. No Pulitzer Prize winners. In fact, no person was singularlydistinguished in his or her field.Meanwhile, they are all successful by any normalmeasure inAmerican society—happilymarried, secure jobs,manager-level orhigher, homeowners, etc.Butonecan’thelpreflectingonwhatdistinguishessingularlysuccessfulpeoplefromothers,becauseif IQmatteredon the level that IQpurveyorsclaim, thenall the shakersandmoversof societywouldbepeopledrawnfromthispopulation.Butthedatashowthisnottobethecase.

IQcorrelatesnicelywithGPAinhighschoolandcollege,butafteryourfirstjob,nobodyeveraskswhatyourcollegeGPAwas.Whatmattersareyourpeopleskills,leadershipskills,real-worldproblem solving skills, integrity, business acumen, reliability, ambition, work ethic, kindness,compassion,etc.Soforme,conversationsaboutraceandIQareofnopracticalconsequence,anymorethanareconversationsaboutraceandhaircolor,orraceandfoodpreferences.

I do not knowmy IQ. It’s never beenmeasured. I graduated 350-ish out of 700 inmy highschoolclass.Sofewteachers(orclassmatesforthatmatter)wouldhavesaidofme,“He’llgofar.”Why?Becausetheeducationalsystemfixatesontestscores.Meanwhile,fortwoyearsrunning,Iamlistedinthe“Harvard100,”acompilationofthehundredmostinfluentiallivinggraduatesofHarvardUniversity.

Goodluckinyourconversationswithfamily.Ifanyofthemhasaquestion,Iwillbehappytotakeastabatit.ButthereareclearlymoreimportantissuesouttheretodebatethanIQ.

NeildeGrasseTyson

100mph

Thursday,May3,2012How’sitgoing,Ty?IfeelIcancallyouthat’causeIfeellikeIknowyoualready.

I’vewatchedliterallyeverysecondofallyourYouTubevideos.Iwouldbeatyourtalks,butmyjobrequiresmetotravela lot.MynameisJarrettBurgessandIplayprofessionalbaseball. I’memailingyoubecauseeversinceIwasfour-years-old, Iwantedtobeanastronaut.You inspiredmeandgavemeconfidenceindoingwhatIlovetodo,despitethepublicandfamilypressureonmetoplaybaseball.Iwanttobeknownfordiscoveriesandmakingadifferenceinscience.Idon’twantbaseballtodefineme.

Keep upwith your videos—you’re even reaching out to people likeme. Yeah, I can throw abaseball100mphfromtheoutfield,orruna60-yarddashin6.2seconds,andhitabaseballover410 feet. Evenwhen I’m on the field, I’m thinking about science. Iwant to pursuemy goal inscience.IneedhelpandaguideonwhatIshouldstartoffdoing.I’m21-years-oldandthemostdedicatedperson,withgreatintegrityand,mostimportantly,anamazingimagination.AndIlovethecosmos.

Pleasehelpme,Neil,inanywayyoucan.Iwillappreciateit.JarrettBurgess

DearJarrett,Thanks for that all-out appeal to connectwith the cosmos. You express a dilemma that afflictsmany insociety:Shouldyoudowhatyou’rebestat?Dowhatothersexpectofyou?Ordowhatyoulovemost?

Ilovebaseball(afewdozenofmyTweetsareonthesubject),soI’dbehard-pressedtotellyouto take your 100 mph arm and study the universe. But I also happen to love what I do. AndbecauseIlovewhatIdo,Iamself-drivenandincentivizedtomakemyselfbetteratiteveryday—withoutlimit.

If Iremembercorrectly,minor leagueplayersmakehardlyanymoneyatall.Soyourtime inthefarmsystemisconceivedtohoneyourskillsinanticipationofbeingcalledup,ratherthantoaccumulatewealth. It seems tome that you could’ve insteadattendedagoodbaseball college,where you can play competitively while simultaneously majoring in astrophysics. If memoryserves,intheearly1980s,RogerClemenspitchedfortheUniversityofTexasatAustin,tookthemtothenationals,thenenteredtheMajorLeague.

Meanwhile,inthe1980s,BrianMayhadasuccessfulcareerasleadguitaristforthelegendaryrockgroupQueen, then—then—then—decided togetaPh.D. inAstrophysics.Earned justa fewyearsago.

I’dbetmostpeoplewhoareencouragingyoutostayinbaseballcarryhighexpectationsthatyou will make tons of money. But that means your career would be driven by the search forwealth,ratherthanthesearchforcosmicfulfillment.Inmyexperience,whenmoneyisthesolecarrot,peoplecanlosesightoflife’sdeepersourcesofhappiness.

Until youmajor inphysicsorastrophysics incollege (takingall theattendantmathcourses)youwillnotknowforsurewhatyou’rebetterat—academicsorsports.Thatwillbeusefultoknow.Ifyou’rebetteratsportsthanacademics,butstill lovetheuniverse,thenreturntoprofessionalbaseball,playfor10yearswhilegettingyourmaster’sdegreeoverthewintermonths,then,likeBrianMay,getyourPh.D.afteryou’vemadetonsofmoney.

Ifyoudelayedprofessionalbaseball,andwenttocollegetomajorinPhysics(whilestillplayingbaseball) that would make headlines—especially in today’s science starved culture. And if itdoesn’t,I’llmakesureitdoes.

Inanycase,IamdelightedtolearnthatIhavehelped,inwhateversmallway,tosustaintherageofyourcosmicflame.

Besttoyou.NeildeGrasseTyson

IfIWerePresident

Duringaparticularlyobstinaterunofcongressionalcacophony, the“SundayReview”sectionoftheNewYorkTimessolicitedresponsesfromnon-politicianstothephrase:“IfIWerePresident...”Whatfollowsistheuneditedversionofmypublishedanswer.

Sunday,August21,2011NewYorkTimes

Thequestion,“IfIwerePresidentI’d...”impliesthatifyouswapoutoneleader,putinanother,thenallwillbewellwithAmerica—asthoughourleadersarethecauseofallailments.

Thatmustbewhywe’vecreatedatraditionoframpantattacksonourpoliticians.Aretheytooconservativeforyou?Tooliberal?Tooreligious?Tooatheist?Toogay?Tooanti-gay?Toorich?Too

dumb?Too smart?Tooethnic?Toophilanderous?Curiousbehavior, given thatweelect88%ofCongresseverytwoyears.

Asecondtradition-in-progressistheexpectationthateveryoneelseinourculturallypluralisticlandshouldholdexactlyyourownoutlook,onallissues.

When you’re scientifically literate, the world looks different to you. It’s a particular way ofquestioningwhat you see and hear.When empowered by this state ofmind, objective realitiesmatter.Thesearethetruthsof theworldthatexistoutsideofwhateveryourbeliefsystemtellsyou.

Oneobjectiverealityisthatourgovernmentdoesn’twork,notbecausewehavedysfunctionalpoliticians,butbecausewehavedysfunctionalvoters.Asascientistandeducator,mygoal,then,isnottobecomePresidentandleadadysfunctionalelectorate,buttoenlightentheelectoratesotheymightchoosetherightleadersinthefirstplace.

NeildeGrasseTysonNewYorkCity

*NeildeGrasseTyson,TheSkyIsNottheLimit:AdventuresofanUrbanAstrophysicist(Amherst,NY:PrometheusBooks,2004).

†TheAmericanMuseumofNaturalHistory,NewYorkCity,whereIhaveservedastheFrederickP.RoseDirectoroftheHaydenPlanetariumsince1996.

‡E.g.,2007Timemagazine’s100MostInfluentialPeopleintheWorld;2008Discovermagazine’s10MostInfluentialPeopleinScience.

Chapter2

ExtraordinaryClaims

Curious about UFOs, cryptozoology, astrology, extrasensory perception? It’s all here. TheCarlSagandictum“extraordinaryclaimsrequireextraordinaryevidence”remainsapotentguide when investigating the natural world for its underlying order. But it comeswith arecurringrisk:knowingenoughaboutasubjecttothinkyouareright,butnotenoughaboutthesubjecttoknowyouarewrong.

ETPhoneHome

Saturday,March8,2009Neil, if theETsareout there,whydon’twesendsomeoneto themoonandMarsandget theirinputonwhotheyareandwhytheyarecomingtoEarth?

Mel

DearMel,UntilsomeonedragsanaliencarcassintoapubliclaborETlandsontheWhiteHouselawn,orontheroofoftheNewYorkTimesbuilding,onecannotjustifythetrillion-dollarexpenseoftravellingtoMarstogreetthembecausetheweightoftheevidenceisincommensuratewiththestrengthoftheclaims.

Neil

AlienAliens

Sunday,November8,2009DearNeilIhavebeenpatientlywaitingformywonderfulscientiststo“prove”thatAliensexist.andIbelieveit is coming, however slowly. And Imight be thinkingway out of the box here—but instead ofalwayslookingforsomethingthatmirrorsus,whynotlookforsomethingthatdoesnot?

MelodieLander

DearMelodieThenumber ofways that lifemight be alive, forwhichwehaveno foundation to select, vastlyexceeds theonewayweknow lifecanbealive.Sowhendesigninganexperimentona limitedbudget,youalwaysstartwithwhatyouknow.

Weknowlifeispossiblewithcarbon-basedmolecules(evidence=us).Wefurtherknowcarbonishighlyabundantintheuniverseandisthemostchemicallyfertileelementontheperiodictable.Sowebeginthere.

Neil

UFOSightingsTrenton Jordan noted that he was losing his skepticism regarding UFOs. The cause? Freshlyreleased video footage from shuttlemissions, in which unexplained objects were flitting aboutoutsidethewindows.Hewasawareofspacedebrisandotherpossibleexplanations,buthegrewconvinced thatNASAmust bewithholding information about aliens that thepublic deserves toknow.HewrotetomeinJuly2008,insearchofargumentsthatmightquellhisskepticism.

DearMr.Jordan,

Thanksforyourkindwordsaboutmylife’swork.Theyarewarmlyreceived.Regardingyourevaporatingskepticismofvisitingaliens:Whenyouseeshapesorlightsthatfly

through the air or through space, and you do not knowwhat they are, they become a UFO—emphasisonthe“U.”Suchsightingssplitintofourbroadcategories:

1. Theobserveriscrazyorotherwisedelusional.

2. Theobserverseesandreportsinaccurately,confoundinganaccountthatwouldbeasimpledescriptionofnaturalphenomena.

3. Theobserverseesandreportsaccurately,butisinsufficientlyfamiliarwithnaturalphenomenatobemystifiedbywhatheorshesees.

4. Theobserverseesandreportsaccuratelysomethingthatdefiesanynormalorconventionalexplanation—constitutingagenuinemystery.

Note that eyewitness testimony is, by far, the weakest form of evidence that a person canpresent in support of a claim. In spite of its high value in the court of law, in the “court” ofscience, eyewitness testimony is essentially useless. Psychologists have known for quite sometimehowineffectivethehumansensesareasdatatakingdevices.Notethatthepedigreeoftheobserver is irrelevant here—as long as he or she is human, the fallibility of observation ismanifest.

Notefurtherthatclaimsofa“cover-up”or“conspiracy”isthebattlecryofpeoplewhowanttobelieve,inthefaceofinsufficientdatatofullysupporttheirclaims.

Anotherwell-known shortcoming of the humanmind iswhat psychologists and philosopherscall“argumentfromignorance.”TheNASAcasesyoudescribecomeclosesttocategory(4)above,sincewehavevideoofstrangephenomena—videothatwetaketobegenerallyreliable,remindingusagainofwhatthe“U”inUFOstandsfor.Onceyouconfesstonotknowingwhatyouarelookingat,nologicallineofreasoningallowsyoutothendeclarethatyouknowwhatyouarelookingat.Andthatincludesassertionsthattheflyingshapes“mustbe”intelligent,technologicallyadvancedaliens from distant planets secretly observing the behavior of Earthlings. You simply bearinsufficientevidencetomakethatjump,howevertemptingitmaybe.

A similar argument from ignorance comes from the Big Bang.When I am asked what wasaroundbeforetheBigBang,Isay,“Wedonotyetknow.”Oftenthereplyis,“Itmustbesomething—itwassurelyGod.”Togofrom“Wedon’tknow”to“ItmustbeGod”isanotherexampleofanargument from ignorance.Thiskindofdisconnecthasnoplace in rational investigations, yet itperenniallypermeatesthethoughtsandstatementsofpeoplewhoalreadyknowwhattheywanttobelieve.

So if the flying mysteries actually turn out to be intelligent aliens, it will not have beendemonstratedbyanyobservationyetbroughtforth.What’srequiredtodrawtheconclusionsyouseekismuchbetterevidenceofthekindthatwouldsurvivethe“court”ofscience:Aliensvisitingmultiple media centers, for example, demonstrating their technology on national television;joiningthePresidentandFirstLadyforastatedinnerorhighteaintheRoseGarden;allowingthemselvestobeCATscannedattheJohnsHopkinsMedicalCentersothatwecanlearnabouttheirphysiology;submittingsomeoftheircommunicationdevicesorotherhardwaretoourmostrespected research laboratories. The day real evidence comes forth, you will not needcongressionalhearingsparadinghigh-rankingeyewitnessesonthesubject.

Until any of that happens, UFO sightings of category (4) are simply intriguing unidentifiedlights and shapes in the sky—perhapsworthyof further study like anymystery in science—butwithout conspiracy theorists invoking cover-ups to bridge all gaps in the data, convincingthemselvesofwhattheyarealreadysureistrue.

ShouldNASAdirectfundstostudythesemysteriousreflectiveobjectsvisiblefromthewindowof spacecraft? Would be nice one day to have a radar device that constantly monitors andphotographs anything of any size that approaches the craft. But there’s so much happeningoutside thewindow of a spaceship—dislodged tools, loose paint chips, particulate fuel exhaustfloatingby.Nottomentionrapid,ever-changinglightingconditions.

Insummary,ifyouwantpublicmoneytoinvestigateUFOsforthepossibilitythattheymaybealienvisitations,thenyouneedmuch,muchbetterevidencetojustifythecause.

Thanksforyourinterest.NeildeGrasseTyson

AGlowingPatternintheSky

InMarch2005,DaveHallidayofNewJerseywroteoffacingnorthwardatnightasateenagerin

themid-1970s,whenhewitnessedwhatlookedlikeastarencircledwithorangedashesprojectingoutward.Hisguessatthetimewasthatmaybehesawaplanetbombardedbyameteorshower.Harboring thismysterious vision for threedecades, hewondered if I could shed some light onwhathesaw.

DearMr.Halliday,You have asked about a 1970s sightings of orange dashes. There is nothing more fickle andunreliable than eyewitness testimony, no matter the pedigree of the person who made theobservation.This iswhyeyewitnesstestimonycomprisesthelowestformofevidenceinscience(curiously,unlikecourtsoflaw).

Forexample,IrecentlyreceivedanemailfromaretiredengineerwhosaidhesawabrilliantmeteorstreakacrosstheBrooklynskyat8:15pmthenightbefore.HewonderedifIhadheardofanyother reports.Sounds likeahighprecisionaccount.However, fiveother city-based reportsplacedasimilarlydescribedeventbetween7and7:30pm.Sounlesstwobrightmeteorscrossedthesky thatnight,somebodyhas thewrongtime.Whenconfrontedwith this fact, theengineernotifiedmethathiswifecorrectedhismemoryand in factwhathesawtookplaceat7:15,not8:15. Notice that this exchange of information is happening 24 hours after the event. Not adecade.Notthirtyyears.Notacentury.Andyouwouldthinkthatreadingthetimewouldbetheleastlikelysourceoferror,sincewedoiteveryday.

Withthisstoryaspreamble,Iknowofnocosmicphenomenonthatwouldcreatetheviewthatyou describe. The closest thing I can think ofmust start with the question: Do you have longeyelashes? If they are wet and you look at a small bright source, the light will pass throughdropletsinyoureyelashesbeforereachingyouriris,andcreateapatternofactivewagon-wheelspokes.Tryit.Thebesteffectcomeswhenrisingupoutofanoutdoorpool.

Anotherpossible source is trace-light illuminationon thebottomof ablimp. In thedark theblimp itself ishardlyvisible,but lightsbeneath it,whicharenormallyused foradvertising,cantakeoninterestingpatterns,dependingonwhattheyareprogrammedtodo.Paleorangewasthecolorofthelightsusedbackthen.

Otherthanthesetwosuggestions,Ihavenofurtherexplanationstoaccountforwhatyousaw,giventhatallyouhaveiseyewitnesstestimony.

Thanksforsharingyourstory.Sincerely,

NeildeGrasseTyson

EndoftheWorld

In July 2009, fifteen-year-old Kale Joyce wrote with great concern about how many peoplebelieved that theworldwould end in 2012, citing the internet and popmedia as purveyors ofthese fears. Though a non-believer in any of it, she nonetheless wanted my views on thepredictionsofNostradamus*andofallthemysterysurroundingtheendoftheMayancalendar.

HelloKale,Theentireliteraturethatsurrounds2012isahoaxperpetratedbyscientifically illiteratepeoplewhoexploittheirrational,primalfearsthatlurkdeepwithinusall.

Theworldwillnotendin2012.NotbecauseIamanauthorityandIsayso.Theworldwillnotend because any sensible, scientifically literate person can assess the rampant absence ofevidenceandmakeuphisorherownmind.

The galactic center, Sun, and Earth align every year on December 21. The Mayans wereclueless about the laws of physics. Nostradamus was even more clueless about the laws ofphysics.Andbesides,hesaysnothingabouttheyear2012.

Youareonly15,buteverydecadesomegroupofpeoplepredictstheworldwillsoonend.Ithashappenedfortheyears1973(acomet),1982(aplanetaryalignment),1991(solarstorms),2000(millenniummadness),andnowfor2012.

Wanttolivealongtime?Worryaboutotherthings,like“AmIeatingwell,”“DoIgetenoughexercise,”and“AmIwearingmyseatbelt?”

Sincerely,NeildeGrasseTyson

Time’sUp

Sunday,September6,2009

DearDr.TysonWesawyourvideoclip fromtheLosAngeles libraryregardingtheSun’salignmentwith the

center of the Galaxy (that happens annually, which makes me feel much better). But can youexplainastowhytheMayancalendarendsonthatdate....aswellasotheroldertextscomingfromtheChineseandNostradamus.Doyouthinktheyhaveanyvalidity?TheysaythattheMayanCalendarwasevenmoreprecisethanourown.

IrisHaleandson,MichaelHale

DearIrisandMichael,It’s the end of whatMayan scholars call the “long count,” begun on August 11, 3113 BC, thebeginning of the universe according toMayan calculations. At the end of the long count, theyimaginedtheendoftheuniverse.

With regard to the beginning of the universe, theywere off by at least 13 billion years. Sothere’snoreasontothinktheywillgettheendcorrect.

Noneofthemmentiontheyear2012.AndallthedoomsdaycometpredictionsviaNostradamusapplytotheyear2000.Ofcourse,noneofthoseapocalypticpredictionscametrue.Furthermore,Nostradamuswriteswithsuchpoetic imprecisionthat forpracticallyanyeventafter ithappensyoucangobackand findapassage that sortofmatcheswhatoccurred,and thendeclare thatNostradamushadspecialpowerstoseethefuture.

If you instead try to usehis books’ content to predict eventswith any accuracybefore theyhappen, his imprecise quatrains fail badly—and do so consistently. This makes the writings ofNostradamususelessasasourceofinsighttotheoperationsoftheworld.

Finally, thecurrentGregoriancalendarusedworldwide isaccurate toaday inabout44,000years.Noothercalendarcomesclosetothis.Sowe’regoodfornow.

NeildeGrasseTyson

DefacingMars

Friday,January5,2007Dr.Tyson,

Iamabigfanofyours,youarearockstartome(kindof).IwouldlovetogetyourperspectiveonthingssuchasgraviticsandCydoniaonMars.IfIcould,IwouldgotoCydoniaonMars!

Also, Iwas reading a book byLindaGoodman and it is calledSunSigns.† Iunderstand thescienceaspectthatyouwererepresenting,butthisladyisontosomething.Mostastrologersareindeedbogus.ButweknowhowgreattheEgyptianswere.TheystudiedAstrology!

Thankyou,Dr.TysonStevieDebe

DearMr.Debe,Gravitics:Adelusionof its adherents,whosebackground inphysics ismeager, atbest—leavingthemtothinktheyhavediscoveredanewforceofnature.

Cydonia,thelocationofthe“faceonMars”:Apassionofitsadherents,whowantsobadlytobelievethatintelligentcivilizationsoncethrivedonMarsthattheycannotsee,orareindenialoftheevidenceagainstit.

As for ancient civilizations, if youwish to go back 5,000 years to cite behavior youwish toemulate,thenconsidersomeotherbaggagethatcomeswithit—theworshipofcats,thedivinityofthePharaohs,theobsessionwithexpensive,overbuilt,triangulartombstones.Andwhileweareatit,whynotincludetheAztecs?Timetoripthepulsingheartoutofvirginstoappeasethegods.Ortimetoeatthefleshofthoseyouconquer,tomakeyoustronger.Andtocompletethescene,whynotdieofdiseaseandpestilencebeforeyouturn40?

Likesomanyotherattributes,astrologywasnotanachievementofthesecivilizations,itwasaculturalliability.

Keepingitreal,NeildeGrasseTyson

PsychicTeleportation

Saturday,November6,2004

Neil,Thisisreallystupid!!!

NewsHeadline:“Airforcereportcallsfor$7.5milliontostudypsychicteleportation”JamesMcGaha,‡MS,FRAS

Director,GrasslandsObservatory

HiJames,At$7.5million,thisrepresentstenminutesofmilitaryspending,outoftheir$400§billionannualbudget. So perhapswe should ask, is there any fraction of themilitary budget that should bereserved for fringe investigations? I recently collected several pages of embarrassingly wrongquotesfrompeople,manyofwhomshouldhaveknownbetter,aboutwhatwasorwasnotpossibleinthefieldoftransportation.Hereareafewexamples:

“Itisentirelyimpossibleformantoriseintotheairandfloatthere.Forthis,youwouldneedwingsoftremendousdimensionsandtheywouldhavetobemovedataspeedofthreefeetpersecond.Onlyafoolwouldexpectsuchathingtoberealized.”

—JosephdeLalande,MathematicianoftheFrenchAcademy,1782

“What can bemore palpably absurd than the prospect held out of locomotives travelingtwiceasfastasstage-coaches?”

—TheQuarterlyReview,1825

“Menmightaswellproject a voyage to themoonasattempt toemploy steamnavigationagainstthestormynorthAtlanticOcean.”

—AstronomerDionysiusLardner,1838

“Manwillnotflyfor50years.”—WilburWrighttohisbrotherOrville,1901

“There is no hope for the fanciful idea of reaching themoon, because of insurmountablebarrierstoescapingtheEarth’sgravity.”

—UniversityofChicagoAstronomer,Dr.F.R.Moulton,1932

Ofcourse,thesequotes, intheend,areaboutperceivedlimitstoourtechnologyandnotthelawsofphysicsthemselves,butthepublic(whofundsthemilitary)doesnotmakethisdistinction.Whatwouldit look like foraphysicist tostandup in frontof theArmedServicesCommitteeofCongress and declare: “Do not spend a dime on psychic teleportation. Itwill neverwork,” butsimultaneouslyconfess,“Butyes,quantumteleportationisreal.”

IncontrastwiththeColdWarera,today’sAirForceis,byandlarge,frugal.They,forexample,abandoned the space shuttle as a principal launch platform for their satellites, citingunreasonable costs compared with unmanned rockets. This, in spite of having influenced theoriginal design of the shuttle itself in the service of their needs. Anothermanifestation of thisfrugality is that if theypay for a study, and find that somephenomenonormechanismwill notwork,theywillnotpayforitagain.

So I have no easy answer to this issue, except that dropping $7.5 million down to $0, onassertionsofimpossibility,comesatasocialandpoliticalcost.

Neil

ParallelUniverse

In the 1990s, while working backstage at a theater, Corinne experienced an unexplainedphenomenon.Shesawamaleversionofherself, lookingstraightather,dressed thesame,andwalkinginthesamedirection.Heregardedherwithnolessfascinationthansheregardedhim.Corinne assuresme that she is psychiatrically stable, and inNovember 2008 simplywonderedaloudwhethershemayhavewitnessedaportaltoaparalleluniverse.

DearCorinne,Thanksforsharingthisaccount.

I’mnotmuchconcernedaboutyourpsychiatricprofile.Somefamousscientistshavebeenwhat

manywouldcallcrazy.Whatmattersisexperiment,noteyewitnesstestimony.Over the years, the methods and tools of science have shown us that, despite what some

philosophers have claimed, a reality exists independent of our perception of it. We know thisbecause,forexample,thelawsofgravityarethereandworkeverytime,nomatterwhoisdoingtheexperiment,nomatterwhatapparatusyouusetomeasureit,andtheyworkwhetherornotyouchoosetobelieveinthem.

Essentiallyeveryotherclaimtorealityisoverwhelminglylikelytobepsychologicalratherthanphysical. (Ignoring, of course, hoaxes, other deceptions, or simple ignorance of naturalphenomena.) This includes ghosts, apparitions, spirits, etc. None of these claims survivelaboratoryscrutiny.Theyallsimplygoawayundercontrolledcircumstances.

Soifyoureallydidseeaparalleluniverseratherthanhaveamentalapparition,thenwhatyousawwouldexistindependentofyou,andshouldbemeasurablebyeveryonearoundyou.Butyoudonothaveenoughdatatodemonstratethis.

Nexttimethishappens,besuretoconductsimpleexperimentsonit:

• Canyoucommunicatewithit?• Doesitshowupinamirror?• Diditleavefingerprints?• Didotherpeopleseeorinteractwithit?• Wasthereasmell?• Wasthereasound?• etc.

Allofthiswouldhelptoestablishanexistenceoutsideofyourhead,if,infact,yourexperiencewasrealandnotimagined.

Inanycase,nexttime,bringyourcamera.Andperhapsanet.Sincerely,

NeildeGrasseTyson

MoonsofMarsIn June2005,Tomwrote fromCanadaaskingabouthowtheeighteenth-centuryEnglishsatiristJonathan Swift could have possibly known that Mars has two moons when writing his classicGulliver’sTravels,afull160yearsbeforetheirdiscovery.SwiftgavedetailsoftheirorbitsaroundMars.Might he have had access to some ancient form of knowing that we discount or ignoretoday?

HelloTom,Thanksforyourinquiry.

InthedaysofJonathanSwift,Venuswasknowntohavenomoons,Earthonemoon,andJupiterfourmoons.

IfSwiftweretoguessamoonsequencefortheseplanets,inorderfromtheSun,hewouldnotchoosezerooroneorfour.Thosemoon-countswerealreadytaken.This leavestwoorthreefortheyet-to-be-discoveredmoonsforMars,aplanetthatorbitsbetweenEarthandJupiter.Giventhechoice,Swiftchosetwo,as,Ithink,mostpeoplewould.

Kepler’s¶ lawsofplanetarymotionwerewellknownintheday.AndtheyappliedtoJupiter’smoonsinorbitaroundJupiteraswellastotheplanetsinorbitaroundtheSun.SoSwiftappliedtheselawstoMars’hypotheticaltwomoons.ButSwifthadtoassumeorbitaldistancesforthemboth.Upondoingso,asimplecalculationgivesacorrespondingperiodofrevolutionforthem.IfyoucheckhiscalculationyoucanverifythatSwiftdidhishomework—correctly.

Butwhatmanypeoplefailedtocheckwaswhetherhegottherightdistancesinthefirstplace.Hedidnot. In fact,hewaswayoff, indicatingthathe,assuspected,hadnopremonitionalclueabouttheactualmoonsofMars.

Ifyouarecurious,theinnermostmoon,Phobos,orbitsat5,800milesfromMarsasopposedto12,300miles(3diameters)asSwiftsaid,andtheoutermostmoon,Deimos,orbitsat14,600milesfromMarsasopposedto20,500miles(5diameters).

Sincerely,NeildeGrasseTyson

PerpetualMotion

InDecember2008,Shawnwantedtorunbymehisideasforaperpetualmotionmachine.Hewasconfidentthatthelawsofthermodynamicsarenotassacrosanctasphysicistsclaim,andthatifoilcompaniesfindoutabouthisidea,theywillsuppressthediscovery.SoShawnsoughtmyhelptobringhisinventionforward,inwaysthatcanchangetheworld.

DearShawn,TheU.S.PatentandTrademarkOfficenolongeracceptsproposalsforperpetualmotionmachineswithoutaworkingmodeltodemonstratetheinvention.Why?PerpetualMotionmachinesviolatelong-establishedandwell-testedlawsofphysics.

So if you have an idea for one, you cannot realistically expect any scientifically educatedpersontogiveitattention.

This leavesyouwithone,andonlyoneoption: tobuild itanddemonstrate it. If themachineworksasyousay,thenpeoplewillbeatapathtoyourdoor.

Sincerely,NeildeGrasseTyson

Shawnrepliedwithsomeattitude,declaringthatatonetimeeveryonewassurethatEarthwasflat, that the atom was indivisible, and that DC current was the only option to distributeelectricity.AndthatmaybeIwasstubbornlyclose-mindedinmyreply.Inanycase,hewishedmegoodluckinmyendeavors.

DearShawn,Manyoryourassumptionsderivefromanincompleteunderstandingofhowscienceworks.Intheeraof“modern”experimentalscience,which isbasically traceable fromGalileoandSirFrancisBacon# onward (the past 400 years), there is tested science that has achieved consensus andthere is frontier science. The frontier science changes monthly, if not weekly, awaiting goodenough data to resolve the controversies. The tested science, that for which consensus ofobservationsandexperimenthasemerged,doesnotchange.Whatcan,andoftendoes,happenisthatnewideasextendtherangeofpreviouslytestedideas,butitdoesnotundothem.

Inyourshort listabove,theflatEarthandthe indivisibleatompredatemodernscience.Andcrude oil in lamps andDC current are not tests of scientific principles. They are technologicalapplicationsofscienceawaiting improvementsuponthem.Butnewtechnologiesdidnotviolateestablished lawsof physics.Theyare (and continue tobe) technological innovationshappeningwithintheknownlawsofphysics.

Mostimportantly,thehistoryofscientificdiscoverytellsusthatyourquestismisguided,sotheburdenofproofis100%onyourshoulders.

Don’tletmestopyou.LikeIsaid,goaheadandbuildthething.Ifyousucceed,youwillhavedemonstratedaheretoforeunknown lawofphysics.Thesearerare,butalwayswelcomeonthescene.Andyouwillbecomerichandfamousovernight.

Andthanksforthat“goodluck,”butintruth,I’mnottheonewhoneedstheluckhere.Sincerely,

NeildeGrasseTyson

DogonPredictions

Monday,July30,2007Dr.Tyson,mynameisPhilDabney,ateacherfromLakeTaylorHighSchool,connectedtoNorfolkPublicSchools.ImetyoutodayatthePhysicsConventioninGreensboro,NorthCarolina.

Thankyoufortheoutstandingdeliveryyoumadetoday.Iwasparticularlyimpressedwiththe“meet the studentswhere they are at” approachwhen it comes to education. Thismay be themainreasonwhyyourbooksaresopopularwithallagegroups.

Duetotimeconstraints,IwasunabletoaskyouaquestionconcerningtheDogon’spredictionofthestarSiriusbeingabinarystarbeforeitsconfirmationviatelescope.IbelievethiswaswelldocumentedbytwoFrenchanthropologistsinthebook,ThePaleFox.**

Wouldyoucommentontheveracityofthisprediction?Thanksforlistening.

Allthebest,PhilDabney

DearMr.Dabney,Happytooffersomeperspectivesonyourinquiry.

Aswe know, the starSirius, the brightest in the nighttime sky,was important to theDogontribeofMaliinWestAfrica,andtootherculturesaswell,includingtheancientEgyptians,wheretherisingofSiriusintheskyjustbeforetheSun(termedthe“heliacalrising”)signaledthetimeofyearwhentheNilewouldfloodthevalleybringingneededwatertotheirdesertclimate.Infact,thiseventsignifiedthenewyearoftheEgyptiancalendar.

Withouttheassistanceoftechnology, it isphysically impossibleforthehumaneyetoseethebinarycompanionstar toSirius,knownas “Sirius-B.”Sirius-B’sbrightness fallsbelow the lightdetection limits of the human retina. But more importantly, the huge difference in relativebrightness between the two stars leaves Sirius-B lost in the glare of Sirius-A,much theway afireflygoesunnoticedinsunlight.Also,theseparationbetweenthetwostarsissmallerinanglethanwhatcanberesolvedbythelensofthehumaneyeball.Theselimitsaresetbythephysicsofsightandnotbythebiologyoftheindividual.

Sirius-B was discovered in 1862. At the time, two things were true: the event was widelypublicized,with page-1 news stories all overEurope. And at that time,Europeanmissionaries,explorers, and imperialists were common all throughout Africa. Note that the FrenchanthropologistsyourefertocameupontheDogonafterthediscoveryofSiriusB.

Theseare the fundamentalsof thecase.TheRutgersUniversityhistorianandanthropologistIvanVanSertimahaswrittenabout theDogon†† and invokes heavy doses of speculation in hiseffort to credit the Dogon with Sirius-B’s discovery. This includes the specious claim that thesunlight-absorbing power of melanin in the skin of Black Africans imbued the Dogon withheightenedpowersofperception.

SoeithertheDogonhadpre-cognitionofSirius-Bviasomemysterious,andstillundiscoveredway of knowing, unique to them in the world, or another European visitor (anthropologist orotherwise) cameacross theDogonbefore theFrench ones did, saw that the starSiriuswas intheirculture,andsharedwiththemthehighlypublicizedrecentdiscoveryofSirius-B,yetdidnotwriteaboutthisencounter.TheDogonimmediatelyadoptintotheirculturethisextrainformationabouttheirfavoritecosmicobject,andtheFrenchanthropologistscomeuponthemlater,startledbytheDogon’sdetailedknowledge.

Furthermore,ifyoureadotherelementsofDogoncultureandstoriesofnature,noneofthemhave the precision of information that Sirius-B enjoys within their culture. Their stories areromanticandpoeticandringjustthewaycreationmythsdofrommostcultures.

WhilewedonotknowforsurewhethertheDogonwerevisitedbyinformedEuropeansbeforetheFrenchanthropologistsgotthere,theevidencestronglysuggeststhis.AnyothersuppositioniscarryingAfrocentrismfurtherthanthedatawarrant.

Thanksforyourinquiry.Besttoyou,

Neil

Bigfoot

InJanuary2008,AlexsoughtmyviewonwhetheralargehairyapecouldactuallyberoamingthePacificNorthwest.

DearAlex,Atatimebeforetheworldwasfullymapped,Europeanexplorerstoldgreattalesofnewplantsandanimals,especiallyintheirjourneysthroughAfricaandAsia.Theycollectedwhattheycouldand brought it back for research and display in museums. New large animals were beingidentifiedfrequently.ThiswasthebeginningofNaturalHistoryasanacademicdiscipline.‡‡

Afterall landmassesoftheworldweremappedandsettled,thediscoveryrateofnew,exoticcreaturesdroppedprecipitously.Thisoffersastrong indication thatall large (land)animalsareknownanddocumented.Thenewlandspeciesthatarediscoveredannuallytodaytendtobesmallanimalsormildvariations(e.g.sub-species)amongwell-documentedones.

Occasionallylargeseacreaturesarefound,butthisisunderstandablesincewedonotliveinthesea,anddonotpersistentlymonitortheseafloorforlife.

Sothelikelihoodthatalarge(land)animalhasgoneunnoticedinmoderntimesisnearzero.NeildeGrasseTyson

Alexrepliedwithgreatskepticismofmyclosed-mindedviews,whileremindingmethatthePacificNorthwestcontainsthreemillionacresofunmonitoredforest.Hefurthernotedthatonecannotdiscounteverysightingofalargehairyapeasnonsense.Andassuch,theremustbesomethingtoitall.

DearAlex,

I commented on the rate of discovery and documentation of large animals. Sightings withouttangible evidence (such as a dead body for the lab, or hair, for example) do not constitutediscovery.Eyewitnesstestimonyiswellknownamongpsychologistsandscientiststobetheleastreliableformofevidenceofthemall.Hence,itisstronglydiscounted,astheresearcherpatientlyawaitsthepresentationoftangibleevidenceinsupportoftheextraordinaryclaim.

Notethateverysightingmaybereal.Butwithoutabody,orotherfirmevidencethatdoesnotpivotonhumanperception,theclaimsareuselesstotheresearchscientist.

FYI:“useless”isnotthesamewordas“false.”Until somebodyproduces biological tissue (evenbig-foot poopwould be a start) fromwhich

DNAcanbeextracted,thereisnotmuchabiologistcandowiththeclaims.Ifyoufeelconfidentthatthereareeight-foot,undocumented,prehistoricapesrunningaround

thePacificNorthwest,youshouldmountexpeditionstofindthem—youdon’thavetokill it; justcaptureone.

Youreffortswillbebetterspentinsearchofusefulevidencethanintryingtoconvincepeopleofwhatyouthinkistrueintheabsenceofit.

Neil

SixthSense

Tuesday,February6,2007DearDoctorTyson,I’mreadingyourbookDeathByBlackHole.§§Firstletmesaythatyourwritingstyleisjustlikeyourspeakingstyle—clear,understandableandpleasant.IjustmissthelaughingIhearwhenyouareinterviewedlive.Second,Imustcommentonwhatyousaidaboutthesixthsense.

Theheadlineweneverseeis:PSYCHICWINSLOTTERYAGAIN.

Iwitnessedmy grandmother,who had “the gift” and used it just like her other senses. Sheknewwhenpeoplewerecomingtovisit,soshechangedallthebedsandboughtmoregroceries.She knewwhether or notmy fatherwas going to be home for dinner or not and set the tableaccordingly. She would wake up when the cow was calving and bake pies when visitors werecoming. All of this was a sense to her—not a “Psychic Hotline” kind of thing, but an extraperception thatshe took instride just likeherother fivesenses.Shewas fromIrelandandhergrandmotherwasthesameway.Itwashowtheylived.

My father could always tell when women were pregnant, often even before they knewthemselves(andno,itwasn’tbecausehemadethemthatway).Perhapsthathadtodowithmicro-changesorpheromones,buthediditallthetime.

Anyways,I’msureyouhaveheardlotsofthesekindsofstories.Frommyownobservations,theonlykindofsixthsenseIbelieveinisaratherprimitivekindoffeelingthathelpsusgetalong.

Thanksforallthework.KathleenFairweather

HelloKathleen,Thankyouforyourtestimonial.Iwillnotstandindenialofyouraccountofyourparents’powersofperception.

Butineverycasewherethesepowersarestudiedinthelab,thepowersfail—ormorepreciselystated, the people who claim to have such powers do no better than chance in experimentsdesigned to test them. Decades of articles in the magazine The Skeptical Inquirer¶¶ havedocumentedthis.

Soeitherthepowergoesawayundercontrolledcircumstancesorthepeoplearerememberingthehitsandnotthemisses—oneofthemostcommonperceptionfailuresofthehumanmind.Awell-studiedphenomenonbypsychologists,itcovers,forexample,peoplewhohavepremonitionsaboutafriend’shealth.Youcall,onlytodiscoverthatyourfriendisinthehospital,ornotfeelingwell.

When these events do happen, they become powerful memories that supplant one’srecollectionsof failures.Like I said, there isanentire literatureon this,which I cannot reviewhere.Buttheexperimentalmethod,tellingusmoreaboutourselvesthanwecandetermineonourown, iswhat enabled society tomove from thedaysof superstitionandwitchburnings (wherewomen were believed to have ungodly powers) into the era of empirical inquiry, birthing theindustrialrevolutionandmodernlife.

Allthebestinyourpursuitsofmind,

body,andspirit,NeildeGrasseTyson

*MicheldeNostradamus(1503–1566),Frenchphysicianwidelybelievedtohavethepowerofprophesy.AuthorofLesProphéties(1555),containing942poeticpassagesthatmakepredictions.JohnHogue,ed.1997,Nostradamus:TheCompleteProphesies(London:ElementBooks,1997).

†LindaGoodman,SunSigns(NewYork:BantamBooks,1985).

‡JamesMcGaha(USAFRetired)isanacquaintanceandfellowskeptic,withalonghistoryofdebunkingclaimsthatUFOsarevisitingaliens.Here,Ireininhisskepticism...justabit.

§TheUSmilitarybudgetfor2004was$400billion.Sincethen,thebudgethasincreasedto$600billion,byfarthelargestintheworld.Threetimesthatofthenextcountry(China)andmorethanthenexttencountriescombined.

¶JohannesKepler,aGermanastronomerandmathematician(1571–1630).

#SirFrancisBacon(1561–1626),Englishscientist,philosopher,andstatesman.

**M.GriauleandG.Dieterlen,ThePaleFox(Baltimore,MD:AfrikanWorldBooks,1986).

††IvanVanSertima,BlacksinScience:AncientandModern(Abingdon-on-Thames,UK:TransactionBooks[nowRoutledge],1991).

‡‡Ofcoursenaturalhistoryasatopicofinterestgoeswayback.TheRomanauthorandnavalcommanderPlinytheElderwroteabooktitledNaturalHistory(ca.AD79)thatcompiledallancientknowledgeofthenaturalworldintoonevolume.AndLeonardodaVinci(1452–1519)himselfwasalsoanacuteobserverofnature.

§§NeildeGrasseTyson,DeathbyBlackHole:AndOtherCosmicQuandaries(NewYork:W.W.Norton,2007).

¶¶TheSkepticalInquirer,abimonthlymagazinepublishedbytheCommitteeforSkepticalInquiry(Amherst,NY).

Chapter3

Musings

Randomthingspeoplethinkareactuallyacategoryuntothemselves.

Complexity

Friday,March8,2019HelloGuru:Irecentlysawadaddy-long-legs,whichremindedmethatheandIhaveacommonancestorwaywayback.

Our huge subsequent divergence was triggered by many, many trillions of random DNAmutationsandhelixexpansions,ofwhichsome3billionnucleotides survive ineveryoneofmytrillionsofcells.Andthose3billionmustbeinthesinglecorrectsequencetomakeme,developme,runallmyphysiologies,andevendictatemyinstinct.

Howcouldamere3gigabytesdoallthat.IttakesfarmorejusttorunmyiPhone.Those3gigsdon’tseemtobeenoughtojustdictatehowmybrain’s100billionneuronsand

theirtrillionsofsynapsesbehave.

MyreligiousfriendshaveaneasyanswerwhichIdon’taccept.Bestwishes,

JoshS.Weston

Josh,Simplesetsof“rules”canleadtoextraordinarycomplexity.

For example, people in a capitalist society generally valuemoney. Add to this a few simpleeconomic tenets, such as “buy something and sell it for more,” coupled with a basicunderstanding of “supply& demand” and lo and behold, you have a corner grocery store thatoffers ten varieties ofmilk, obtained from farmshundreds ofmiles away, delivered to you in asupplychainviarefrigeratedtrucks,andavailabletoyou24/7.

Youcansaythatthecreatoroftheuniversehasyourhealthasapriority,andestablishedthishighlycomplexsystemateverystep,justtomakesureyoudrinkfreshmilkdaily.Oryoucansaythatgreeddrivesitall.

Butwait,there’smore...Howaboutthefactthattheentireuniverseiscomposedofjust92elements?Or that there are only four fundamental forces of nature? (strong, weak, electromagnetic,

gravity)Orthatthereareonlyfourclassesoffundamentalparticles?(quarks,electrons,neutrinos,and

photons)Orthatnearlyallbehaviorofelectromagneticwaves(light)canbederivedfromasetoffour

equationsthatallfitonaPost-it®note?Soyoucanbeawedbythecomplexitiesmanifesttheworld,oryoucaninsteadbeastonished

athowsimpleitallis.Neil

Spirals

PauletteB.Cooperdescribedherselfasmathchallenged.Inspiteofthis,shecouldnothelpbutnotice the ubiquity of spiral shapes in the universe, from galaxies to hurricanes to the spiral-generatingFibonaccisequence.*Shewrote inMarch2006 to see if theywereall connected insomecosmicway.

HelloPaulette,One of the great challenges of cosmic discovery, and discovery in general, is knowing the

differencebetweenwhenthingslookthesameandwhentheyarethesame.Spiralgalaxiesandhurricaneshavenothingwhatevertodowitheachother, inspiteof their

similar appearances. Additionally, you can have a two-armed spiral galaxy, but a two-armedhurricanehasneverbeenobserved.

More importantly, the forces that are at work in the two regimes are entirely independent.Those that make hurricanes involve pressure differences in the atmosphere, the heating ofoceanicwaters,andtheCoriolisforcewhichpushescloudssideways,makingthecircularpatternsyousee.Inagalaxy,therelevantforcesareentirelygravitational,andthespiralpatternistracedbynewbornstars.

Considerotherthingsthatlookalike.WhenSirWilliamHerschel,inthe1800s,firstsawdotsoflightthatmovedslowlyacrossthesky,heknewtheycouldnotbestars,buttheylookedlikestarsthroughhis telescope, sohe called them“star-like,”which inLatinbecomes “aster-oid” or justasteroids. Their similar appearance through a telescope eyepiece was irrelevant to what theyactuallyare.Starsarebillionsoftimeslargerthanasteroidsandoperateunderdifferentforcesofnature.

Anotherattempttosaythingswerethesame(butwerenot)occurredwiththeearly ideasofwhat atoms might be—imagined as mini solar systems, with the nucleus as the Sun and theelectrons in “orbit” around it. Early textbooks showpictures of this concept.But the laws thatdescribetheatomhavenothingwhatevertodowiththelawsthatdescribeplanetaryorbits.Notonlythat,theanalogyleftamisleadingimprintonthevocabularyofatomicphysics.Forexample,we describe electrons as occupying “orbitals,” even though their paths are best described by“clouds.”

Soyes,appearancescanbedeceiving,andit’salwaysbestinsteadtoask,“Whatisthething?”ratherthan“Whatdoesthethinglooklike?”

Sincerely,NeildeGrasseTyson

Roots

In February 2014, Henry Louis “Skip” Gates Jr., a professor of African and African AmericanStudiesatHarvardUniversity, invitedmetoparticipateinhisPBSseriesFindingYourRoots, inwhichheexploresthegeneticheritageofnotableAmericans.Thegoaloftheseriesis“tomarrytop-notch genealogywith cutting edge genetic science to reimagine themeaning of race.” Theimpressive list of celebrities who had already participated included Martha Stewart, OprahWinfrey, Mike Nichols, Samuel L. Jackson, Barbara Walters, and Chris Rock. I declined theinvitation.

I happen to know Professor Gates personally, via not-for-profit boards on which we haveserved,andsoIwascandidinmyreply.

HiSkip,Thanks for this invitation to participate in your immensely successful series. It’s so widelyembracedandtalkedabout.

Forme,however,Ihaveanunorthodoxphilosophyregardingroot-finding.Ijustdon’tcare.Andthat’snotapassiveabsenceofcaringit’sanactiveabsenceofcaring.Sinceanytwopeopleintheworld have a common ancestor—depending on how far back you look, the line we draw toestablishfamilylineageisentirelyarbitrary.

WhenIwonderwhatIamcapableofasahumanbeing,Idon’tlookto“relatives,”Ilooktoallhumanbeings.That isthegeneticrelationshipthatmatterstome.ThegeniusofIsaacNewton,thecourageofJoanofArcandGandhi,theathleticfeatsofMichaelJordan,theoratoricalskillsofSir Winston Churchill, the compassion of Mother Teresa. I look to the entire human race forinspirationforwhatIcanbe—becauseIamhuman.Idon’tcareifIamadescendentofkingsorpaupers,saintsorsinners,thebraveorcowardly.MylifeiswhatImakeofit.

SoIrespectfullydeclineyourinvitation,butIdosoknowingthateversinceAlexHaley,mostpeoplefindthispastimetobeimmenselyenlightening.AndIwillnotdenythemthisinsightandrevelationtotheirpast.SoImostlykeepthesesentimentstomyself.

Continuedsuccesswiththeseries.Best,always,

Neil

BC/AD

InApril2009,Lionel,anardentatheist,†expressedhisfrustrationanddisapprovalatbeingforcedto reckon calendar time on religious foundations, specifically Christian traditions. He wantedsciencetocomeupwithamoresensiblesystemoftimegivenwhatweknowtodayabouttheageandoriginofEarthandoftheuniverse.

DearLionel,Thanksforsharingyourthoughtsonthismatter,andforinquiringaboutmine.Severalpointstoconsider:

1. MosttimereckoningforthedistantpastofEarthandtheuniversedoesnotreferenceaparticularcalendaratall.Itsimplycountsyearsbeforethepresent.Forexample,nobodysaysEarthwasformedin4.6billionyearsBC.Wesimplysayitformed4.6billionyearsago.Sameholdstrueforgeologicalandbiologicaltime-keeping.

2. TheoriginofEarthspannedatleastahundredmillionyears.Soaprecisedateandtimetostartacosmiccalendarwouldbemeaningless—likeattemptingtocelebratethenanosecond(billionthofasecond)thatyouwereborn.Thetimeittookyoutoexitthebirthcanalvastlyexceededthismeasureofthings.Sowesensiblyrecordbirthsonlytothenearestminute.

3. Fortimesanddateswithinrecordedhistory,theChristianGregoriancalendaristheinternationalstandard,inwhichBC,writtenfollowingtheyear,standsforBeforeChrist,andAD,writtenprecedingtheyear,standsforAnnoDomini,Latinforthe“YearofourLord.”Othercalendarsexist—Jewish,Muslim,Chinese,etc.,inwhichtheyeachlinkthezero-pointoftheircalendartosomeeventintherespectivereligionorculture.Butthosecalendarstodayaremoreceremonialthanpractical.

4. TheGregoriancalendaris,quitesimply,themostaccurateandstablecalendareverdevised.TheJesuitpriests,appointedbyPopeGregorybackinthe16thcentury,didabang-upjobintheircalculations.TheycorrectedthefailingJuliancalendar,inwhichthespringequinoxhadback-driftedoverthecenturiesfromthefamiliardateofMarch21,toMarch10.ThecorrespondenceofthespringequinoxwithMarch21isforeversecured,neverdriftingmorethanasingleleapdayinonedirectionoranother.Meanwhile,othersystems,especiallylunarcalendars,intermittentlyneedtointroduceentiremonthstoreconcilethetimekeepingwithEarth’slocationinorbitaroundtheSun.

Whenyoudosomethingright,andyoudo itbetter thananybodyelsebeforeyou,youget tonameit.Anyatheistsofthedaywerenotintocalendars.Ofcourse,they’veneverreallybeenintocalendars. So atheists are out of this loop, except for the introduction of BCE andCE—BeforeCommonEra(replacingBC)andCommonEra(replacingAD).

ConsiderthatHandel’sMessiahisamongthegreatestchoralworksevercomposed.SotooisBach’sMassinB-Minor.YetneitheroftheseworkswouldexistwereitnotforsomebodyinspiredbyJesus.Thisdoesnot (orat leastshouldnot)subtract fromthebrilliance, thebeauty,andthemajestyofthesegreatworksofmusic.

Furthermore, as an atheist, you surely use the words: “holiday” and “goodbye,” yet theiroriginscomefrom“holyday,”and“godbewithyou.”

Asinanythinginlife,youmustchooseyourbattles.Somay I recommend that youadoptCEandBCEand leave it at that? Instead,devote your

energies to the real battlefield—the “sanctity” of the science classroom in the face of religiousfundamentalistswhoperenniallyattempttoinfluencethesciencecurriculumwithreligious-basedphilosophies.

Sincerely,NeildeGrasseTyson

SkiesOverIraq

Monday,March5,2007DearNeil,MynameisDerrickPhilips.IamaPrivateFirstClassintheArmy.IamcurrentlydeployedoutsideofBalad,Iraq.IaskedmywifetosendmeacopyofyournewestbookandsinceIreceivedittwodaysago,Ihavenotbeenabletoputitdown.Currently,Iamchargedwiththemundanetaskofpullingguardduty.Aftermygrueling12-hourdayofwatchingmuledrawncartsandstandinginonespot, Igetanopportunitytositdownandopenyourbook,DeathByBlackHole.Iamsurethatalotofpeopleareenjoyingitinasmanywaysastherearepeoplereadingit.Ithinkthatyoumightliketohearmyuniquewayofderivingpleasurefromit.

I am about an hour north of Baghdad. This is a place in your book that has gotten a fewreferences.‡ I am able to talk to some of the local people who are well aware of their pastsignificanceintheroleofthesciencesandgivethemopportunitytospeaktomeofmanyotherthings that Iwaspreviouslyunawareof, thathave transpired righthere inmy temporarybackyard.Theseconversations,thatarespawnedfromtheknowledgeimpartedbyyourbook,leavemefeelingmorelikeaheavilyarmedtourist,ratherthananoccupyinginvader.

Abooklikeyours,Iimagine,leavespeoplewantingtogazeuponthestarsandreflectonsomeofwhattheyhavejustread.IhavediscoveredthatthenightskyisteemingwithalotmorethanIever thoughtpossible,whenI turnonmyNightVisionGoggles.Howmanyofyourreaderscansay that theywere inspired to use defense technology to relax after a long day atwork?Well,someIimagine.

Anyhow,yourbookhasinspiredmetothink,tousemyheadforsomethingotherthanjustanearspacer!IhavetothankyouforhelpingtostaveoffmyboredomforpartoftheyearthatIamhere.

Iamhighly interested in this subject,but seriouslyunder-educated. I amdoing independentresearchintoourcosmossothatIcanrelaythisinformationtomychildren.Theyseemtosharemyfascinations,andwithaminimal investmentofa telescope Icanseea lotofseriousqualitytimecomingfromthatendeavor.

Inshort,IjustwantedtowritetoyouandthankyouforthecontributionthatyouhavemadetoMYwareffort.

Sincerely,PFCDerrickPhilips

DearPFCPhilips,ThankyouforyourkindwordsaboutmylatestbookanditsrelationshiptoyourserviceinIraq.It’sanhonortohelpyourtimepass.

Withregardtoyournightscope—connectionsbetweenastrophysicsandthemilitaryextendfarbeyond most people’s awareness. I am working on a book now that highlights the countlessconnectionsthatexistbetweenthem.§

And yes, Baghdad has deep history in the sciences, especially in mathematics—algebra inparticular.Furthermore,next timeyou lookupatnight (asyoumayrecall fromthebook), two-thirdsofallstarsthathavenames,arenamedinArabic,enabledbymajoradvancesinnavigationathousandyearsago.

Themostenduringthingaboutbeinghumanisthediscoveryofcosmictruthsthattranscendculture,politics, religion, and time, forming the corpus of knowledge andwisdom thatwe callcivilization.

Allthebest,onEarthandintheuniverse.NeildeGrasseTyson

SeeingStars

The “Metropolitan Diary” is a weekly feature of the New York Times in which readers shareuniquetalesofcitylife,asIdidbackin1993.

Wednesday,December15,1993NewYorkTimes

DearMetropolitanDiary:An elderly woman with a strong Brooklyn accent recently called my office at ColumbiaUniversity’sDepartmentofAstronomy toaskaboutabrightglowingobject shesaw“hovering”outside herwindow the night before. I knew that the planet Venus happened to be bright andwell-placedinthewestforviewingintheearlyeveningsky,butIaskedmorequestionstoverifymysuspicions.Aftersiftingthroughanswerslike,“It’salittlebithigherthantheroofofMarty’sDeli,”Iconcludedthatthebrightness,compassdirection,elevationabovethehorizon,andtimeofobservationwereindeedconsistentwithherhavingseentheplanetVenus.RealizingthatshehasprobablylivedinBrooklynmostofherlife,IaskedherwhyshecallednowandnotatanyofthehundredsofothertimesthatVenuswasbrightoverthewesternhorizon.Shereplied,“I’venevernoticeditbefore!”

Youmustunderstandthattoanastronomerthisisanastonishingstatement.Iwascompelledtoexploreherresponsefurther.Iaskedhowlongshehaslivedinherapartment.“Thirtyyears.”Iaskedherwhethershehaseverlookedoutherwindowbefore.“Iusedtoalwayskeepmycurtainsclosed,butnowIkeepthemopen.”Naturally,Ithenaskedherwhyshenowkeepshercurtains

open.“Thereusedtobealargeapartmentbuildingoutsidemywindowbuttheytoreitdown.NowIcanseetheskyandit’sbeautiful.”

NeildeGrasseTysonManhattan

LucyintheSkywithDiamonds

Wednesday,June10,2009I’mGeorgetteBurrellandI’msevenyearsold.IsawyourspecialonhowPlutoisadwarfplanet.Ithoughtthatitwasverycool.Iheardofaplanet(orstar)calledLucythatisabigdiamond.Myquestionishowwouldscientistsknowaboutwhatitisifit’ssofaraway?

Thanks,Georgette

Excellentquestion,Georgette.Many dead stars are made of carbon (they are white dwarfs). Under high pressure, pure

carbonturnsintodiamond.Thesestarshavestronggravity,whichputstheircarbonunderhighpressure.Sowecanusemathtocalculatethestarmightjustbemadeofpurediamond.

Neil

I’dRatherDirect

Tuesday,July22,2008DearMr.Tyson,I am a member of the Writer’s Guild of America, currently working on a script aboutinterplanetary travel. IhaveseenyouonnumerousTVspecialsand Iamabigadmirerofyourfranknessinobservations.Onethatstruckme,andinturnmademeseekyourcounsel,wasyourmatter-of-factsummationofwhatifsomethinggoeswronginspace—youranswer:“Youdie!”

IamworkingonascriptaboutanastronautwhoissentofftoJapetus,thethirdlargestmoonof Saturn, to investigate a mysterious alien transmission from the surface. Here’s the thing—Iwanttogetitright.Iwantthistobeasaccurateaspossible.Couldyouanswerafewquestionsabouttheinherentdangersofsuchalongspacetravel,frombothinsideandoutsidetheship?

Sincerely,AndreiAnson

1. HowlongwouldittaketogettoJapetus?

DearAndrei,Thanks for your questions. How long to Iapetus? Any amount of time you choose. An energy-minimizingballistic trajectorywouldtakeabouttenyears.But if fuel isnoobject, thenyoucanaccelerate formost of the trip, then use fuel to decelerate—this gives you artificial gravity enroute,andyoucouldgetthereinayearortwo.

2. Inmyscript,Ihaveanewshuttlemeetingupwiththespacestationtoaffixitsnewfuelsupply.HowwouldtheyactuallygettoJapetus?Slingshot,etc.?

InEarthorbit,youalreadypossesshalf theenergytogetanywhereelse inthesolarsystem.Inotherwords, the energy necessary to achieveEarth orbit is exactly half the energy it takes toleaveEarthentirely.Slingshotmaneuversareforspacecraftthatdonotlaunchwithenoughfueltoreachtheirdestination.Theytakelongerthanballistictrajectoriesbecausetheirtotaldistancetraveledcanbetwicewhatitwouldotherwisebe,astheyfalltowardstheplanetsandmoonsthatwouldprovidetheneededgravityboost.

3. Howfastcouldwehavethemgoing?Is39,000mphtherealisticlimitthesedays?

Anyspeedatall.It’sjustamatteroffuelavailabletoaccelerateanddecelerate.EscapevelocityforEarthis25,000mph.ThatshouldgetyoutoIapetusin10years.

4. Howwouldtheygetback?

You need even more fuel to get back than to get out there. You’d have to refuel at Saturnsomehow.Saturn’satmospherecontainsmoleculesthatyoucoulduseforthispurpose,includingwater.ButyouwouldneedafactorythatcouldseparatetheHfromtheOinH2O.Thenthetwoelementscanbecombinedinarocketmotor,toformrocketfuel.Ortheycouldjustgetfuelfromanalienfillin’station.

5. Whatwouldhappentoourhero,Tom,ifheweretobestuckinspaceforthenexttwentyorsoyears?Physicallyspeaking.

Nothing.Unlessherunsoutoffood.

6. Andlastly,howcouldIcrippletheshippermanently?

Onescenario:youuseSaturn’satmospheretoaero-brake(seethe1984film2010:TheYearWeMakeContact),butaholedevelopsinthefuselageandhotairleaksintocriticalenginepartsthatpermanently damages the throttle controllers and fuel tank. You have fuel initially. You haverocketmotors.Youjusthavenocontrolofhowmuchtheyfire.Andthenallthefuelleaksawayashespinsoffintooblivion.

7. Iwasthinkingsomedebrisfromanasteroidthatjustmissestheship.Butitsnearbydebrisdoescausedamage,renderingtheshipuseless.Or,quitefrankly,istheresomekindofotherwaytostrandthem?Iknowat39,000mph,mostthingswouldjustprobablyobliteratetheship,somethingIdonotwanttodo.

Unlikely.Asteroidsare fewandfarbetween.Orrather,space isvast,so theyareactuallymanyandfarbetween.YoucouldinsteadslingshottheshiparoundSaturn,enroutetoJupiter,butthenit accidentally gets catapulted through the field of Trojan Asteroids, which Jupiter hasgravitationallytrappedinorbitaroundtheSun.Theshipthensufferscollisiondamagethattheyare unable to repair—perhapswith lost fuel. Then requiring the aerobrakingmaneuver aroundSaturn, since the shipwould not have enough fuel to decelerate. This ensures thatMajor Tomdoesnotleavethesolarsystemaltogether,anddiesinorbitaroundSaturn.

Haveaniceday!NeildeGrasseTyson

WorstEverWednesday,July8,2009DearMr.Tyson,Ijustwantedtoknow:whatdoyouthinkistheabsoluteworstcinematicoffendertoscience?Tomake iteasy,wewillexcludeallmoviesof thepre-2001:ASpaceOdysseyperiod, so youdon’thavetonameEdWood’sfilmography.AndwhataboutthemovieArmageddon?Thatmoviesuckedonbothascientificandartisticscale.

Anyway,Ihopeyouhavetimetoreply,sinceIknowyouarebusy,butIamunfortunatelyaverycuriouscreature.Ithankyouforyourtime.Keeponrockin’inthefreeworld.

ChrisBostwick

DearChris:Disney’s 1979 filmTheBlackHole.Worst ever—given how fertile the scientificmaterial was—untilthe1998filmArmageddon,whichviolatesmorelawsofphysics(perminute)thananyotherfilmintheuniverse.

Neil

AViralBlunder

Tuesday,January8,2019DearDr.Tyson,

We’dliketobeginbyintroducingourselves—SamyukthaandIaretwoNYCmedicalstudents

and, more importantly, museum aficionados who frequent the American Museum of NaturalHistory. We are writing to inform you about a small but substantial inaccuracy on one of thedisplays.Regardingarhinovirus, theboardreads“Rhinovirusesareamongthemajorcausesofthe common cold. They consist of DNA surrounded by a protein coat.” However, a rhinoviruscontainsRNA(ribonucleicacid)andnotDNA(deoxyribonucleicacid)astheboardstates.

Weacknowledgethatthismayseemtrivialanddonotmeantosoundnitpicky,butwhetherornotaviruscontainsDNAorRNAisactuallyoneofthemostfundamentalwaysinwhichvirusesareclassifiedanddistinguished.Itaffectstheviruses’modeoftransmission,modeofreplication,stability,andphysicalcharacteristicsamongothercoreproperties.Therefore,wedecidedthiswasimportantenoughtowritetoyouabout.

Sincerely,SamyukthaGuttha&AneekPatel

DearSamyuktha&Aneek,EverybodyknowsthatvirusescarryRNAandnotDNA—except,apparently,forallofuswhowroteandreviewedthepaneltextaswellasthetensofmillionsofpeoplewhohaveseenthisexhibitsinceopeningday,247moonsago.

Ievencheckedmyoriginal files tosee if therewasa transcriptionerror.Thatwaywecouldblamethefabricatorsoftheexhibitinsteadofourselves.But,alas,itwasthesubmittedtextthathadtheerror.

So...wherewereyouboth,twentyyearsagowhenwemountedthatpanel?Couldhaveusedyoubackthen!

Thanksforthesharpeyes.Andwe’llgetrighttofixingthattext.

Neil

SamyukthaandAneekreplied...

Thank you so much. We were around 2 years old back then, but you definitely should havereachedout!

BreakingUpIsEasytoDo

AnopenlettertoallmyfellowemployeesattheAmericanMuseumofNaturalHistory.

ThursdayAfternoon,May4,2006DearMuseumCommunity,Asyoumayalreadyknow,“countless”comets(perhapsasmanyastrillions)orbittheSun,alongwitheverythingelse.Thepublicwilltypicallyhearonlyaboutthosebrightenoughtoseewiththeunaidedeye,or,ofcourse,thosethatareabouttohitsomething.

Unlikethenear-circularorbitsofplanets,mostcometstravelonhighlyelongatedtrajectories,crossing other people’s orbits as they plunge in and out of the inner solar system. Madeprincipally of ice, as a comet nears the Sun’s heat its outer layers evaporate, creating anenormous ball of reflective gas—the “coma.” These gases also stretch through interplanetaryspace,formingthecelebratedcomet’s“tail.”

Wehaveagood ideawhatcometsaremadeof,butwedonotknowhowsolid theyare.Therange of structural integrity among the solar system’s comets is surely wide, just as somesnowballswillstickwell,whileotherswillcrumblethemomenttheyleaveyourhand.

Justnowbecomingvisibletothenakedeye,cometSchwassmann-Wachmann3intendayswillcome within seven million miles of Earth—thirty times the Earth-Moon distance. From thestresses of being a comet this time around, its nucleus has begun to disintegrate, laying baredozensof smallerchunksof ice,eachcreating itsownmini-comaandmini-tail.On the sky, theleadcometfragmentanditstailnowspanseveraldegreesinangle,whichisfiveorsixtimesthewidthofthefullMoon.Havealookatthisstunningimageofthecomet,takenwiththeHubbleSpaceTelescopetwoweeksago.

Visibility from light-polluted citieswill bepoor.But if you live in rural areas,Schwassmann-Wachmann3 shouldbeaneasy target foryou,withorwithoutbinoculars.Thisweek, itmovesacross theconstellationHercules.Nextweek, itcrosses theadjacentconstella tionLyra. If youfacesouth,bothconstellationswillsithighinthesky,severalhoursbeforesunrise.

Andcontrarytotheannouncementsofdoomsdaywebsitesandheavilyforwardedemailalarms,

thiscometposesnoharmtoEarthlings.Asalways,keeplookingup.

NeildeGrasseTyson

*Fibonacci(ca.1170–ca.1250),Italian(Pisa)mathematician,mostfamousforthenumberseriesthatbearshisname,whereeachentryisthesumofthetwopreviousentries;i.e.,1,1,2,3,5,8,13,21,34,etc.

†a-theist:literally,“withoutGod.”Neverlikedtheterm.Oddforwordstoexistthattellyouwhatyouarenot.Isthereawordfornon-golfers?Non-chefs?Non-astronauts?

‡DuringtheGoldenAgeofIslamofamillenniumago,theintellectualcenteroftheworldwasBaghdad.

§NeildeGrasseTysonandAvisLang,AccessorytoWar:TheUnspokenAllianceBetweenAstrophysicsandtheMilitary(NewYork:W.W.Norton,2018).

II.

CosmosTheuniverseseenasawell-orderedwhole.

Chapter4

HateMail

AboutathirdofallcorrespondenceIreceivequalifiesasfanmail.Occasionally,theoppositearrivesinmyinbox.

AnApology

Monday,June18,2012DearDr.NeildeGrasseTyson,IamwritingtoyoutodeeplyapologizeforanastybutsterncoloringIsenttoyou,12yearsago,whenIwas10-years-old,callingyoua“bigpoo-poohead”fordemotingPlutoasaplanet.*Pleaseacceptmysincerestapologies,forIamahugefanofyourworkanddeeplyregrethurtingyourfeelingswithsuchviciousandharshwords!

Sincerely,MichaelC.Hotto

DearMichael,I have only a vague memory of that particular letter—my file cabinet brims with suchcorrespondence. But I nonethelesswarmly accept your apology, knowing that youwere simplybeinghonestaboutyourfeelingsatthetime.

Sincerely,Neil

AnAppeal

Fall2006.Athird-graderwritingfromPetersElementarySchool,Plantation,Florida.

AtthetimethisletterarrivedinmyofficeattheHaydenPlanetariumIwasbusyfieldinghundredsofsuchlettersanddidnotreply.ButhadIdoneso,thisiswhatIwouldhavesaid:

DearMadeline,If anybody is livingonPluto, I assureyou they still exist, evenafterPluto’sdemotion toDwarfPlanetstatus.Sononeedtofearfortheirlives.Also,ifPlutoisanybody’sfavoriteplanet,thenitcan simply become their favoriteDwarf Planet.No harm there. But in any case, you are rightabout the textbooks. They will all have to be changed. Bad for book buyers. But good forpublishers—theygettosellyouthebookagain.Andhereismyactualsignatureincursive.ItsaysNeilD.Tyson.Gottastartsomewhere.

Yourfriend,

MoonLover

Friday,January6,2007Dr.Tyson,Heardyouon theRadio thismorning, repeating thestandardshibbolethsaboutbothMarsandtheMoon.Itisparticularlydisappointing,inyourcase,listeningtoyoubashingtheMoonwhen,asanastrophysicist,youknowbetterthanmostthattelescopesdeployedonthedarksideoftheMoonwould faroutstripanyothermeansofstudying thecosmos,mostassuredly includingtheHubbletelescope—placingequipmentonthelunarsurface,wecouldnotdreamofandwouldhavenoneedtoputanythingintoorbitatfarhighercosts.TheMoonishumanity’sstepping-stonetothenextleapinourevolution.Makingusintoatrue

spacefaringspecies,whichwillresult inaverynewandbetterunderstandingofwhoandwhatweare,andourshareddestiny.When I lookup in thesky,Dr.Tyson,andsee the fullMoonsobright and so close I can almost touch it, I certainly don’t think of some dead useless massfloatingintheheavens.WhenIlookupontheMoon,Ithinkofitbeingtheyear2050or2075withlightstwinklingalloverthelunarsurface—theclearevidencethatanewsocietyisrisingthere,transforminghumanitydownhereonEarth.

Bestwishes,ArthurPiccolo

HelloMr.Piccolo,Thank you for your candid remarks. Allowme to restate some issues forwhich there is broadconsensusinthescientificcommunity.

1. WithoutatmosphereoranyhistoryofrunningwaterontheMoon,oranylikelihoodofsubstantialquantitiesofwaterwithintheMoon(likeaquifers,etc.),oranylikelihoodoflifeasweknowit—orcanimagineit—givenitscollision-inducedformationmechanism,thereisnodebateaboutwhethertheMoonisdead,comparedwithMars.

2. TheMoon’sprimaryscientificinterestisgeologicalandnotchemical,biological,orastrophysical,unlikeforMars,whereitisalloftheabove.

3. ThescientificreturnstoastrophysicsfromourpresenceontheMoonwillbemeager,giventhecosttogetthere,asdiscussedatlengthinarecentworkshopIattendedthatexploredthisverysubject,titled“AstrophysicsEnabledbytheReturntotheMoon.”YoucanGooglethetitle.Radiotelescopesonthefarside(FYI:thereisnopermanent“darkside”)ledthelist.Andafewotherinterestingprojectsgotpeople’sattention.Butoverall,wewillbepiggybackingexplorationmissionsbecausewecan,notbecausewehavemadeitapriority.Andthegreatestgainstoastrophysicsmaysimplybeaccesstospace-basedarchitecturewithnodirectrelevancetolunarsurfaceactivities.

4. ProofofliquidwaterinMarsisnotwhatmattershere.It’sthattheevidencepointstothisconclusion,andthatisenoughtojustifyfurtherinvestigation.Forifit’strue,thenthechancesoflifeasweknowitonMarsgrowexponentially.

I respect your love for the Moon, but the depth of that love does not change the Moon’sranking as an object of scientific interest among the multidisciplinary community of research

scientists.Again,thankyouforyourinterest.

NeildeGrasseTyson

WeSuckatScience

Thursday,July5,2012ToAMNH†GeneralMailbox

IwasverysaddenedtoreadNeildeGrasseTyson’stweetyesterday,IndependenceDay:

Tyson has been serving American and world science well, even coming into his own as aspokesperson.Whatseemsanattemptedjokeisdisappointingasaspokesmanderidesandmocksanationof scientists, especiallywhile servingat thepublicplatformof theMuseum.Whilehisinsulting statement was made from a private account, he should not represent the AmericanMuseumofNaturalHistoryaslistedinhisbio.

Thankyouforyourtimeinansweringmyconcern.JeffProvine

DearMr.Provine,Thanks for your note of concern. I have several reactions to the issues you raise. I tend to becandidinpersonalcorrespondence,soIhopeyouviewitasrefreshingratherthanabrasive.

1. EverymetricofAmerica’sperformanceontheworldstageofscience,technology,engineering,andmath(STEMfields)amongindustrializednationsputusinthebottom10%.Wealsohaveanever-growingfraction(nearing50%)oftheelectoratethatdeniesthediscoveriesofsciencewhentheyconflictwiththeirpoliticsand/orreligion.SotoimplythatIhavesomehowmisrepresentedthestateofAmericanscienceissimplyfalse.

2. Thebackstoryhere,knownwelltopeoplewhofollowmywritings,isthatwebeganconstructionoftheSuperconductingSupercolliderinthe1980s.Thatmachinewasdesignedwith3xthepoweroftheLargeHadronColliderinSwitzerlandtoday,whichisgarneringallthephysicsheadlines.Congresscuttheprojectentirelyintheearly1990s,cripplingparticlephysicsinAmerica.That’swhywearebystandersandnotleadersintheseinternationalheadlines.AndallthisfeedsthepotencyoftheTweetitself.

3. YournoteimpliesthattheTweetmayhavesomehowdoneadisservicetoscienceorscienceeducationortoAMNHitself.Thatassumes,inpart,thatothersfeelthesameasyoudoaboutthatsametweet.ButIhavedataonthatveryquestion.TheTwitter-versekeepsfulltrackofreplies,responses,re-tweets,etc.,foreveryTweetthatgetsposted.Withintwelvehours,thattweetwasre-posted(re-tweeted)nearly12,000times.Thisnumberisfarandaway(factorofthree)thelargestrepostingofanyofmyprevious2700tweetsinthelastthreeyears.Sotheresonancewas(andcontinuestobe)veryhigh,anddoesnothappentoalignwithyourconcerns.

4. Noneofthisistosaythatyoursentimentsarenotconceivedoutofdeepcareforourcountry.Allitsaysisthatyourfeelingsarenotrepresentative.AndsoI’mleftwiththequestionofwhetherIalterwhatIamdoingtosatisfythefew,orkeepwhatIamdoing,whichsatisfiesthemany,drawingmoreandmorepeopletohearaboutscience.

5. Ofcoursethatwhichisrightintheworldisnotalways(hardlyever)apopularitycontest.Principlescan,should,anddomatterwithoutregardtosheernumbersofadherents.ButIassertstronglythereisnoprincipleviolatedhereatall.IamcompelledtochangeoratoneorapologizeoradjustonlyifwhatIsayiswrongormisleadingorlibelous,butnotifwhatIsay(Tweet)capturesadeeptruththatrequiresnationalactiontoamend.

Sincerely,NeildeGrasseTyson

I’mNotPaying!

Friday,May16,2008ViaEmailtoRNASA‡Organizers

IhatedeveryminuteofthatawardacceptancespeechbyDr.NeildeGrasseTyson.Ilikehim,andIlikewatchinghimonshowsontheScienceChannel,butIdon’tlikehisapproachtofundingthespaceprogram.Ifspaceexplorationissogreatandsoprofitable,thenwhycan’titexistwithoutstealingmoney

frommeatthepointofagun(taxes)?Whycan’titjustsellallofitsinnovationsandexistwithoutbeingasocialistprogram?HesaystheCassinimissiontoSaturncostsasmuchasAmericansspendonlipbalm...well..

.Ifreakingchosetobuythelipbalm;youforcedmetopayforyourlamespacecraft.WhoeverispreparedtogiveuptheirlipbalmarethepeoplethatshouldVOLUNTARILYpayforspacetravel.Don’tmakemepayforit!Thenmaybethepeople/companiesthatvoluntarilypayforitcanalsobetheonesthatreceivefree,innovative,high-techhelpfromNASA.Spaceexploration,fundedbysocialistmeans,atthepointofagun,makesthiscountryworth

defending?Thatkindofcrapiswhatmakesthiscountryworthabandoning—it’stheoppositeoffreedom.ComparingustoChinaandtherestofEurope,andtheirinnovations—isthatwhatwewantto

become?SocialistsandCommunists,liketheyare?Our country didn’t become great because of socialism and big government; our country

becamegreatbecauseofourrelativefreedom,inspiteofbiggovernmentandsocialism.Thethingthat’s ruining our country now is not freedom. What’s ruining us now is big government andsocialism.AndsocialistslikeDr.NeildeGrasseTyson,tryingtogetthegovernmenttostealmoremoneyfrommetofundhispetprogram.Imean,what if enough losersdecided that itwouldbeagood idea to steal taxmoney from

YOUinordertofundaprogramtoteacheveryoneintheU.S.tospeakSpanish,becausetheyhaveabunchofreasonswhyit’sgoodforallofustolearntospeakSpanishandEnglish?Youwouldn’tlikeit,wouldyou?THAT’SHOWIFEELABOUTSPACEEXPLORATION!Ilikespaceexploration,andit’sprobablyaprettygoodthing—justdon’tforcemetopayforit.

AdamDirkmaat

DearMr.Dirkmaat,Thanks,first,forspendingthetimetowatchmyacceptanceremarksafterbeinggiventheSpaceCommunicatorAwardthispastAprilinHouston.Andthankyouforsharingyourimpassionedviewongovernmentspendingonspaceexploration.YoucommentthattheAmericanspaceprogramistheproductofakindoftax-basedsocialism

forced on disinterested Americans such as yourself. But, of course, all taxation is a form ofsocialism. So your indictment of space exploration is not a unique criticism. Same goes forresearch fundingto theNationalScienceFoundation, theNational InstitutesofHealth,andtheCenters for Disease Control. By that measure, the National Park Service, the SmithsonianInstitution,theNationalEndowmentfortheArts,andthepublicschoolssystemarealsosocialistprograms.Asarethemilitary(sincewenolongersellwarbonds)andlawenforcementagencies.And let’s not forget the Environmental Protection Agency, Veterans Benefits, the interstatehighwaysystem,andairportinfrastructures.Attheendoftheday,Americaisaportfolioofspendingthatcapturesandexpressesthevalues

ofitsresidents,viaitslawmakers.

Whata fascinatingexperiment itwouldbe ifweall paid taxesby checkingboxesona form(which is basically what Congress does for every year’s budget cycle, but they do it with thepopulaceinmind,nottheindividual).Andsupposeitwasnotademocracy,wheremajorityrules,andyouleavetheboxforNASAunchecked.Whathappensnext?Doanti-taxcompatriotscometoyourhomeand removeeverything from it thatwas informed, inspired, influenced, invented, orenabledbythespaceprogram?Thatwouldmakeaninterestingrealityshow:

• Gonearetheintegratedcircuitsoftheelectronicsyouuse.• GoneistheWeatherChannelfromyourcableservice.• Goneisyourawarenessofsatellitemaps(fromanynewssource)thattrackdevelopingstorms,hurricanes,andtornadoes.

• GoneistheGPSsysteminyourcar(timetobuypapermapsagain,ifyoucanfindsomeonewhosellsthem).

• Goneareallbatterypoweredhandtoolsfromyourgarage.• Goneare(some)ofyourlovedonesfrombreastcancerbecausethespace-imagingalgorithmthatdetectscancercellsearlierthaneverbeforewouldnothavebeenusedonthem.

• Goneisthecollisionwarningsysteminyourcar,orinthecaryoumightsoonbuy.• GoneistheinformationtoyouaboutasteroidApophis,whichisheadedtowardEarthrightnow,foracloseapproachonApril13,2036.

• GoneareallsatellitenewsbroadcastsfromEuropeandelsewherearoundtheworldtoyourtelevision.

• GoneisyourawarenessthatsomethingbadhappenedonVenus(leavingitwitha900degreeF.runawaygreenhouseeffect)andonMars(whichoncehadrunningwaterbutisnowbone-dryandfrigid)whichthemselveshaveinformedtheinternationalawarenessofglobalwarming.

• Goneareaerodynamicefficienciesofthewingsonyourairplane(rememberthefirstAinNASAstandsforaeronautics).

• GoneisyouraccesstoGoogleMaps.

Onamorephilosophicallevel...Gone is your knowledge of our place in the universe—the only human pursuit that has

transcendedculture,region,andtime.AllsuppliedbytheHubbleSpaceTelescope,theMartianrovers, and the countless other spacecraft, with and without humans, that have left Earth toexplore.Otherswhodosupportspaceexplorationwouldhaveaccesstothesethings.Butnotyou.All

becauseyouwouldnotannuallycheckaboxthatallocated6/10ofapennyofyourtaxdollar.Thatis the entire allocation to NASA. That is the cost of your access to the universe that you sowillinglydecline.Howmuchistheuniverseworthtoyou?

Sincerely,NeildeGrasseTyson

FeedChristianstotheLions?InDecember2005,Robert,adevoutChristian,tookissuewithDarwinianevolutioninparticular,and the findingsof science ingeneral,whereverandwhenever theyconflictwith scripture.Hewassurethatscientistsseereligiouspeopleastheirenemyandthatifscientistswereincharge,wemightfeedthemalltothelions.ApointthatIthinkwashalf-serious.Myreplywasalongandsustainedresponsetoeachpointthathemade,inturn.

DearRobert,Nothinginbiologymakessenseexceptinthelightofevolution.§Inmoderntimes,withathrivinggrowthindustryofbiotechcompaniesandotherbusinesssectorsthatresearchthefutureofourspeciesinrelationtoallothers,ifyousay,“Idon’tbelievethetheoryofevolution,Ithinkwewereall specially created,” you must brace for the consequences of that view to your ownemployability.If you don’t want to become a scientist, then maybe it doesn’t matter. There are plenty of

professionsthatdonotinvolvescientists.ButasIsaid,theemergenteconomiesaregoingtobescientificallyandtechnologicallydriven,withbiotechfrontandcenter.Ifyou’recominginsayingthattherewasAdamandEve,you’renotgoingtogetpastthefrontdoor.Therearesimplyfewerjoboptionsinindustriesthatrequireaworkingknowledgeofbiology,

chemistry,physics,geology,astrophysics,inordertomakediscoveries.Iseenoreasonwhyotherjobswouldnotbeavailabletoyou.Butthemoreimportantpoint isthatcurrenttrendsindicatethathealthsciencefieldsmaybethefutureofeconomicgrowth,soyouwouldnotparticipateinthiseconomicfertility.

In a nation (America)wherePew¶ polls show that 50% of people believe that therewas anAdam and an Eve as the original God-created humans, and that 90% of people believe in apersonalGodwholistenstoprayers,youhavenofoundationtosuggestthatpopularculturewillstigmatizeyou.You are correct to presume that I celebrate tolerance and diversity, especially of cultures,

languages,traditions,etc.ButyouwantthisoutlookextendedtothesubsetofChristianswhotakethewordoftheBibleasliteraltruth?Atanylevelwhereclaimscanbetested—nomatterwhoismakingtheclaim—theissueisnolongerabouttolerance,it’saboutobjectivetruths.For example, nowhere in the Bible is Earth described as a three-dimensional object. All

referencestoitareflat.Anduntilthe15thcentury,sotoowereallmapsoftheworld,informedbyscriptures.We can celebrate the cultural history of this notion, but it’s objectively false. SameholdsforthevalueofPi.IntheBible,apassage(IKingsVII)canonlybetrueifPiexactlyequals3.0.Butweknowbetterthanthis(sotoodidtheearlierBabylonians,whocalculatedthatPiwasanumber between3 and 4). But just because theBible says Pi= 3, does notmeanPi= 3. Thestatementisobjectivelywrong,andisthereforenotamatterofopinion.ThefactthatthepeoplewhowrotetheBiblemadePi=3andEarthaflatdiscisofsomehistoricalinterestandworthyofstudyinhistoryclass,philosophyclass,orreligionclass.Butithasnoplaceinthefieldofscience,whosegoalistofindtruthsoftheuniversethatsitindependentlyofopinion.NeitherI,noranyoneIknow,haveanyintentinfeedingChristianstothelions,onlyinkeeping

religionoutofthescienceclassroom.Bytheway,thereisnotraditionofscientistsknockingdownthedoorsofSundaySchooltellingthepreacherswhattoteach.Scientistsdon’tpicketoutsideofchurches or shoot people who enter them. Scientists have no tradition of heckling preachersduringsermons.And,bytheway,nearlyhalfofallscientists(intheWest)arereligiousandpraytoapersonalgod.Youalso“accuse”meofbeingreligious—that I follow thereligionof scienceandhumanism.

ActuallyIamagnostic.#ButIguessIdonotknowhowyouareinvokingtheword.AllowmetofindadefinitionbecauseIhatearguingsemantics.Iwouldratherargueideas.HereisonefromWebster’s:

Religion(noun):thebeliefinandworshipofasuper-humancontrollingpower,esp.apersonalGodorgods.

Basedonthatdefinition,ifyouthinkIamreligious,thenI’mnotsureyouknowwhatscienceisorhowandwhyitworks,andwhichhasfoundsuccesspreciselybecauseofanempiricalapproachtonatureratherthanaspiritualone.You declare that neither of us can prove our religious beliefs. But I can (and do) know the

shapeoftheEarth,Moon,stars,anduniverse,theoriginofthechemicalelements,theageoftheEarth and theuniverse, the extinction episodes of the fossil record, the impact of asteroids onEarth,thegeneticcommonalityamongalllifeonEarth,thegeneticproximityofchimpanzeesandhumans, and countless other objective truths about the world. So your assertion is false andshows a lack of education about theprocess of science and thenature of discovery.When thishappens,it’susuallynottheperson’sfault,andistraceabletoeducatorsinyourlifewhodidnotspendenoughtimetrainingyouhowtothink,asdistinctfromwhattothink.Asforeducation,Ithinkthereoughttobeaclassinpublicschoolsonreligion.Itoccupiesan

undeniablysignificantroleincivilization.Commensuratewithmyearlierinterestindiversity,thereligion class should cover all theworld’s faith-based philosophies and belief systems. I think,historically,suchaclasswasomittedbecausereligionsthemselvesarenotfansoftoleratingotherreligions.AndsoreligiousexposurewaslefttoSaturdayorSundayandasafamilyaffair.Which,inretrospect,isprobablyforthebetter.Youcalledmeafraud,whichcompelledmetolookupthatwordtoo.HereiswhatIfound:

Fraud(noun):wrongfulorcriminaldeceptionintendedtoresultinfinancialorpersonalgain.

Idon’tseehowthatwordappliesinthiscase.IthinkIhavebeenquiteopen,straight,andhonestwith you. Yet you took this as a personal attack on Christianity. When in fact it’s simply anobservationonscientificilliteracyinAmerica.Thankyouagainforyourinterest.Imeanthatsincerely,asIhopeisevidencedbythetimeI

spentinreply.NeildeGrasseTyson

*WhileIdidnotpersonallydemotePlutofromplanetstatus,Iwasdefinitelyanaccessorytotheindignity.Thismademeapublicenemyofelementaryschoolchildrennationwide.

†TheAmericanMuseumofNaturalHistory,NewYorkCity.

‡RotaryNationalAwardforSpaceAchievement,conferredatanannualblack-tiebanquetin

Houston,Texas,thecitythatistheheartofAmerica’smannedspaceprogram.Thisletter-writerdidnotattendbutviewedmyacceptancespeechon-line.

§AphrasefirstexpressedbytheUkrainian-bornAmericangeneticistTheodosiusDobzhansky(1900–1975)whoalsohappenedtobedevoutEasternOrthodoxChristian.

¶DavidMasci,“ReligionandScienceintheUnitedStates:ScientistsandBelief,”PewResearchCenter,Nov.5,2009,http://www.pewforum.org/2009/11/05/scientists-and-belief(accessedJan.2019).

#a-gnostic:Atermcoinedbythenineteenth-centurynaturalistThomasHenryHuxleyinreferencetoapersonwhoclaimsneitherfaithin,nordisbeliefin,God.Today,itreferencesapersonwhoallowsthepossibilityofaGod,butremainsskeptical.

Chapter5

ScienceDenial

Somepeople don’t like scientists. Somepeople think that science is a nefarious, politicalforce on society. Some people think that science is over-valued and rampant with smugresearchers. Some people are simply in search ofwhat is true. In this chapter, I engagethemall.

MiddleSchoolSkepticism

Sunday,April1,2007DearDr.Tyson,I am a middle school student and I came across a video that featured scientists who wereskepticalaboutglobalwarming.

Mymainquestiontoyouis:doyouthinkthathuman-causedglobalwarmingisrealandworthyoffurtherexploration?

Thankyousomuchforyourtime,RayBatra

DearRay,Therewillalwaysbedissentingscientistsforanynewresearchfindings.Whatmattersmostisthepeer-reviewed,publisheddataandthetrendsinresearchtheyindicate.I’mfamiliarwiththevideoyou reference. It interviews the half-dozen or so leading anti–anthropogenic global warmingscientists,andabunchofothernon-scientists,likepoliticians.

Nothinginprinciplewrongwithdissentingviews.Butsinceglobalwarminghaspoliticalandeconomicramifications,moneyflowseasilytocreatevideosthatfeaturethissubsetofscientists.Ireviewedthepublishedliteraturefromoneofthem.Heissurelyaclimatescientist,butnotinthefield of climate change. His anti–climate change publications are predominantly Op-Eds fornewspapers,andothernon-peer-reviewedpublications.

ComparethatwiththepublicationrecordofNASA’sJamesHansenandthereisnocontestwhoisclosertotheproblem.Couplethatwiththehugebodyofpeer-reviewedliterature,authoredbyclimatechangescientists—andnot justclimateresearchers—andthere isnomeaningfulcasetobemade.Youcanfindafewdissenters,buttheyhavenodata,ortheyareselectiveaboutthedatatheycite.

Scientistsareallhuman,completewithhumanfrailtiesandbiasesandsusceptibilities.That’swhy trends in the data remain the primary commodity of what is true in science, and not theimpassionedtestimoniesofscientiststhemselves.

Sincerely,NeildeGrasseTyson

MoreHarmThanGood?

Thursday,March19,2009Mr.Tyson,Hasthepursuitofscientificknowledgeledtomoreharmorgoodforlifeonthisplanet?

I just want to clarify and make it clear that I don’t intend to attack you or the pursuit ofscientificknowledge.Iamasupporterofscienceanddobelievethattodayitdoesmoretohelpusthanhurt.

My question is more to the fundamental issue of whether we, as humans, have ultimatelycausedpossiblyfataldamagetoourplanetthroughouractivitiesthatwemustacknowledgefallunder the category of scientific pursuit. Gunpowder, coal-fired power, the internal combustionengine,nuclearweapons—thesearescientificcontributionstolifeonEarth.

Idobelievethatthesemayinfacthavebeeninevitableinnovations,insomeway,onceweleftthesavannahandbegandevelopingtechnologythatenabledustosurviveoutsideourecological

niche.But,asyouareadeeplythoughtfulandbrillianthuman,moreevensothanjustascientist,I

wantedtoaskyouifyou’deverconsideredthatquestion:Ifwecouldtakeitallback,wouldn’titreallybebetterforthisplanet?Notjustus,humans,butalllife?

Anyways,thanksforyourexcellentworkinspreadingthewordofscienceinthemodernworld.Whateverwemayhavedonebefore,wecertainlyneedsciencenow!

BestRegards,DakkanAbbe

DearMr.Abbe,Thanksforyourletter.

I think a list of what is good about science will far outweigh the list of what is bad aboutscience.Butwhatactuallymattersisthatscienceisnotinherentlygoodorbad.It’sjustabaseofknowledgeabouthowthenaturalworldworks. It’s theengineeringapplicationsofscience thattake on patinas of good or evil. And since no country with any real power has ever elected ascientistoranengineerasitsleader,thepeoplewhowieldresourcestofundsuchgoodandevilarepoliticians.Soyourquestioncould justaseasilyhavebeenrewordedwiththewordpoliticsswappedinforscience.

Controlofnatureisnotuniquetohumans.Beaverswreakhavocontheirenvironment.Wehaverevisionist comments regarding what they do: “Their dams create a habitat for all manner ofwildlife,”when, in fact, their dams completely change the local ecology. Swarming locusts andcicadasalsocreateimbalancesintheirhabitats.Buttheworstofthemall?Fourbillionyearsago,cyanobacteriatransformedEarth’satmospherebymakingO2inthegreatestecologicaldisruptioninthehistoryoflifeonEarth,killingallsurface-livinganaerobicbacteria.

Human-inducedglobalclimatechangeis(atthemoment)notunstoppable.And,ofcourse,thesolutionwillcomefromscienceandtechnology—viaenlightenedleadership.Justastheproblemarosefromscienceandtechnology—viashortsightedleadership.Butthiscycleisnothingnew.

Wesolvedthefoodshortageproblemintheworld*—whichwasasbigafearattheendofthe19th century asglobalwarminghasbeen in the21st century.Wehavealso (inAmerica)madegreatprogressonthepollutionproblem,afteritwasidentifiedandarticulatedinthe1970s.TheEnvironmental Protection Agency (EPA)was formed to oversee this effort, and now the rivers,lands,andairinAmericaarecleanerthanatanytimesincetheindustrialrevolutionbegan.

Manyworriedthatscienceappliedtofarmingandanimalhusbandrymightevisceratefoodsoftheirnutrientsor flavor.Someof this indeedhappened.So today (inAmerica,butespecially inEurope)there’sahugeandsuccessfulmovementtowardlocalproduceandorganicfarming.

Ithereforeretainaconfidencethatyoudonothave—thatsciencehasthepowertosolvetheproblemsitoccasionallycreates,providedthepoliticalandculturalwillistheretoenableit.

AndImaintain thatwithout theprogressofscience, I, today,wouldbesomeone’sslave,andhalftheworldwouldnothavenotsurvivedpastagefive.Notonlythat,70%ofwhodidsurvivewouldbehardatworkonfarms,barelymakingenoughfoodforthegrowingpopulation.

ButInonethelessthankyouforyourquestion,yourinterest,andyourkindremarksaboutmywork.

Sincerely,NeildeGrasseTyson

Evolutionvs.Creationism

Sunday,August3,2008DearDr.deGrasseTyson,Ihavebeenseeingquiteabitofconflictregardingteachingevolutionvs.creationism.IfI’vereadcorrectly,youbelieveinevolution(whichIdo,too),butdoesthismeanthatyoudon’tbelievein“God”orahigherpower?

IhavebecomesoconfusedaboutwhatIbelieve.IwasraisedCatholicallmylife(wenttoanall-girls Franciscan high school and Marquette University, a Jesuit university), but I have veryserious doubts about a higher power.We are such a speck in the grand scheme of things . . .actuallylessthanaspeck.SoI justwonderwhatyourfeelingsare.IhopeIdidnotaskatabooquestion.IfIdid,I’mtrulysorry.Ifnot,Ilookforwardtoyourresponse.

Thankyou,Dr.deGrasseTyson.Sincerely,

JackieSchwab

DearMs.Schwab,Thanksforcandidlysharingyourangstaboutahigherpower.

Afewpoints...Thetheoryofevolution isnotsomethingto“believe in.”Sciencefollowsevidence.Andwhen

strongevidencesupportsan idea, theconceptofbelief,when invoked theway religiouspeopleusetheword,isunnecessary.Inotherwords,establishedscienceisnotanensembleofbeliefs,it’sasystemofideassupportedbyverifiableevidence.

YoudidnotaskifIbelieveinthesunrise.OrifIbelievetheskyisblue.OrifIbelieveEarthhasaMoon.Thesearenon-controversialtruthsaboutthephysicalworldforwhichtheword“believe”hasnoplace.Evolutionbynaturalselectionisanon-controversialtenetofmodernbiology.It’snotcontroversialamongbiologists,thatis.Amongreligiousfundamentalists,biologicalevolutiondoesnot square with their faith-based belief system, in which they invoke the Bible as an inerrantunderstandingofthephysicalworld.

Thisleadstoclaims,forexample,thatEarthisnomorethan10,000yearsold.AndthattherewasaliteralfloodinwhichallofEarthwascoveredinwater.Noevidencesupportsthis.Notonlythat,allevidencearguesagainstit.Andsooneisleft“believingin”storiesthataredemonstrablyfalse.

Thanksagainforyourinterestandyourquestions.NeildeGrasseTyson

Qur’anicVerses

OnWednesday,June3,2009,TahmidRahim,†aMuslim,respectfullyinquiredwhy,inmyvariousappearances in science documentaries and elsewhere, science in the Qur’an was nevermentioned.HedeclaredthattheQur’ancontainsmanyversesthatreferencespecificdiscoveriesof modern astrophysics, from relativity to the expanding universe. For a book written byMuhammad1,400yearsago,thiswouldbeextraordinary,iftrue.

HelloTahmidRahim,Thanksforyournote.

A great challenge of revealed truths by divine prophets is that nobody has ever made asuccessfulpredictionofpreviouslyunknownobjectsorphenomenabasedonthecontentsofanyreligioustexts.Whattypicallyhappensisthatdevoutpeoplelearnwhatscientistshavediscoveredaboutthenaturalworldandthengobackintotheirreligioustextsinsearchofpassagesthathintatwhatisalreadyknown.Butsincetheextractedinformationcomesafter-the-fact,it’snotusefulto theadvanceof science.Whatyouneed todo, if youareconvincedofQur’anic foresightandinerrancy,iscomeupwithpredictionsaboutthenaturalworldderivedfromQur’anicversethatwillstimulateresearch. Ifanyof itcomestrue(itwouldbea first timeforsuchathing,bytheway)thenscientistswouldbeminingtheQur’anforitsinsightsdaily.

This has never happened—with any religious text—which is why they have no place in thescience classroom.Occasionally,when strongly religious people feel that science conflictswiththeirreligioustexts,theyfighttheconcepts,declaringsomethingiswrongwiththescience.

Comeupwithalistofpredictionsofunknownphenomena,derivedfromtheQur’an,andIwillbehappytooffercomment.Otherwise,scienceandreligiondon’thavemuchtosaytoeachother.

Sincerely,NeildeGrasseTyson

EvidenceforGod

Inalongexchangefrom2008,AndrewMcLemoreexpressedhisenthusiasmforscienceasatoolto peer into God’s cosmic handiwork. But he wondered what level evidence might convince askepticthatthere’sabetter-than-evenchancethatGodexists.

DearAndrew,I think often about what would constitute evidence for God. How about if, after adjusting forincomeandaccesstohealthcare,piouspeoplealllivedlongerthannon-piouspeople?Howaboutwhenaplanecrashes,onlythepiouspeoplesurvive?HowaboutJesuscomeswhenpeoplesayhewillcome?(HissecondcominghasbeenpredictedbyChristians forhundredsofoccasions thathavealreadypassed,spanningthelast2000years.)

Howaboutpeopleprayforpeace,andthenallwarsintheworldstoppermanently?Howaboutgoodthingshappenexclusivelytogoodpeopleandbadthingshappenexclusivelytobadpeople?

HowaboutanearthquakestrikesPortugalonAllSaintsDay,whileeveryoneisinChurch,asitdidin 1755, and it kills only people who are not in Church, rather than the tens of thousands ofpeoplewhowere,aswhatactuallyhappenedthatfatefulmorning.

These eventswould trigger serious (scientific) conversation about the existence of God andhowhetreatspeoplewhoworshiphimversusthosewhodonot.

Sincerely,NeildeGrasseTyson

WhereIstheProof?

In June2008,Rogerarguedheavilyagainst thediscoveriesofscience thatconflictwithbiblicalstatementsaboutevolutionandtheageofthephysicaluniverse.Heevencalledmeanarrogantliar.Basedon thatname-callingalone,ourexchangemighthave landed in theHateMailbinofthisvolume,buthe fundamentallydisputedmajordiscoveriesofmodernscience,which insteadlandsithere,intheScienceDenialchapter.

Roger,Youdoubtalldatingmethodsthatextendtimelinesoftheworldbeyondthatofrecordedhistory.Whateveristhesourceofyourdenialdoesnotholdyourintellectualenlightenmentasitspriority.

Measurements obtained by separate groups using distinctly different methods applyingdifferentprinciplesofinvestigationshaveshownthat:

• theageofmeteoritesis4.55billionyears+/-0.01• theageofmoonrocksis4.55billionyears+/-0.01• theageoftheSunis4.5billionyears+/-0.1• theageoftheoldestcrustonEarth,aplanetthatrecyclesitscrustinandoutofvolcanoes,is4billionyears+/-0.01

Carbon-14isotopedatingiseffectivefornomorethanafewtensofthousandsofyears,andisusefulprimarilyonmaterialthatwasoncealive.Soit’swidelyusedtodatecaveartifactsfromthestone-age times.But the isotopesofvariousotherelementson theperiodic tableareuseful fortimeintervalsofmillions,tensofmillions,hundredsofmillions,andevenbillionsofyears.

After it forms, one canmeasurewhat fraction of a radioactive element decays into anotherelement.Thesearecalleddaughterelements.Thebiggerthefractionofdaughterelementsinthesample, theolder the sample is. It’s that simple.Someelementsdecaymuchmore slowly thanothers,makingthemusefulforreachinganddatinglongerperiodsoftime.

WedeterminetheageoftheSunfromcalculationsbasedonitsmassandtherateitconsumesenergy,twoeasilymeasuredquantities.ThisrequiresknowingthattheSunproducesenergybythermonuclearfusionofhydrogenintohelium.

Noneofthesearecontroversialresults.Weareallontothenextproblems.Iftheseresultssituneasily to some people, I have found that it almost always derives from conflict with a pre-existingexpectationofhowtheuniversemustbe.

You further wonder how, if humans evolved from apes, why apes stopped evolving. Naturalselectiondrives evolution.Andevolution is occurring all aroundus.All the time. It’s best seenamongspeciesthathavefastreproductivecycles,wherevariationscanbeselectedandidentifiedontimescalesshortcomparedwithahumanlife.Thebacterialbranchofthetreeoflifeishuge—muchlargerinvariationthanwhatisfoundamongvertebrates,forexample.Amongbacteriaaswellasviruses,weseespeciationallthetime.SomeofthemorevisibleonesareSwineFlu,AIDS,and Legionnaire’s disease. These afflictions did not exist in nature until they mutated fromprevious forms,becomingnewspecies,enabling them to infect lifenotpreviouslyaccessible tothem.

Not all species are evolving at all times. For example, theCoelacanth (pronounced See-luh-kanth) isanextremelysuccessfulbottom-feedingfishthathasnotchangedsubstantially forthepast 360million years.Horseshoe crabs go back even further—450million years. If you are asuccessful species, there is no driver to influence change.Meanwhile,mammals have changeddramatically over the past 65 million years. When I say dramatically, I mean visually, notbiologically.Wesharemorethan90%identicalDNAwithallmammals,evenmice.

Amongmammalsinthetreeoflifeisthebranchcalledprimates,suchaslemurs,monkeys,andthegreatapes,includinghumans.It’scommonlythoughtthathumansevolvedfrommonkeys.Butthisisnottrue.Weallhaveacommonancestor.Theapethatisclosesttousisthechimpanzee.Inotherwords,chimpsandhumanshavearelativelyrecentcommonancestor.

Asyouwouldexpectfromthisinformation,weare, infact,geneticallyclosertochimpanzeesthantoanyotheranimal intheworld.Contrarytoyourassertionsthatchimpsandhumansare

completelydifferent fromeachother,chimpsandhumanshaveeverymuscleandeverybone incommon.Chimpsandhumansevenhave the same facialexpressions.Butmost importantly,wehave only trifling differences in ourDNA. In fact, genetically,we and the chimps are closer toeachotherthaneitherofusaretothe“OldWorld”monkeysofAfrica.

Icallthistoyourattentionbecauseyourtwoemailstomewerenotintheformofquestions.Theyweredeclarationsofinformation,asthoughdrawnfromsomesourcethatyoutrust.But,likeIsaid,thatsourcedoesnothaveyourscienceliteracyorintellectualenlightenmentasapriority.

Sincerely,NeildeGrasseTyson

*Ofcoursemillionsofpeople,mostlychildren,starveeachyear.Butthisistraceabletobadpoliticsandbrokendistributionchannels,nottoashortageoffoodintheworld.

†Namechanged.

Chapter6

Philosophy

Sometimesyoujusthavetoaskadeepquestion.

AlienHomicide

In February 2007,MichaelCuellar inquired about the legality andmorality of killing a visitingspacealienwhomaybemoreintelligentthanweare.Ordoesmightmakeright?

HelloMr.Cuellar,Idonotclaimtobeanexpertonmorality,butIamhappytoofferanopinionandperspectiveonyourqueries. Yes, itwouldbemorallywrong, unlesswewere starvingwithnoother sourceoffoodandtheirfleshweredigestibletoourstomachs.

Iwould think it’smorallywrong toharmanything, regardlessof itsmeasureof intelligence,withoutreasonsofpromotingyourownsurvivalorthesurvivalofyourkin.Icannotimaginewhowouldthinkthatit’snotwrongtodoso.ThereisagrowingliteratureofSpaceLawthataddressesthemeaningofmurderifyoukillavisitingspacealien,whosecivilrightsarenotprotectedunderanyconstitutionintheworld.

Furthermore,“mightmakesright”isnotthesamethingas“mightmakesmorality.”Nodoubtwe’dhaveahardtimekillingamoreintelligentspeciesthanweare.Ifweassume

theyaremore intelligentcomparedwithus than, say,wearecomparedwithchimps, then theywouldnotfearusanymorethanwefearanuprisinginthemonkeyjungle.

Tokeepouridentitysecretwillbeveryhard,nowthatourradiobubbleismorethan70light-yearsoutthere,andexpanding.

Thankyouforyourinterest.Sincerely,

NeildeGrasseTyson

TruthorMeaning?

Tuesday,September20,2005Dr.Tyson,Iamahighschoolscienceteacher(astronomyandphysics)andatremendousfanofyourwork.

I am also currently pursuingmy doctorate in Educational Psychology (University of Illinois-Chicago). I am engaged in a lively debate this semester as to the role of science in research.Distilled, the question comes down to, “Is science concerned with truth orunderstanding/meaning?”Iwouldvalueyouropiniononthismatter.

BestWishesandClearSkies,KevinMurphy

DearMr.Murphy,Thanksforyournote.

I have never been a big fan of philosophy as applied to the physical sciences in the 20th(+21st) century. I have found common arguments to be based more on word usage and wordmeaningthanonideas,andsohavefoundthediscussionstobelargelyuselesstotheprogressofscience.

SoIrefusetoenterargumentsoverwords.Iwouldratherstatewhatsciencedoes,andleaveyoufreetoattachwhateverwordsyouwishtotheenterprise.Ifweagreeontheword,thenfine.Ifwedonotagreeontheword,theexpressedidearemainsunaffected.

That being said, science seeks all three (truth, understanding, meaning), but primarilyconcernsitselfwithobtainingsufficientknowledgeofhowtheuniverseworkstobeabletomaketestablepredictionsabout itspastand futurebehavior.Computersimulationscansubstitute forpastandfuturebehaviorwhensensible.

Ifwepredictwithaccuracyandprecisionthebehaviorofnature,thenwearesatisfiedwithourworkandmoveontothenextproblem.Iwouldsaythatthemajorequationsofmodernphysicsrepresent cosmic truths. As do the major ideas of how the universe works—quantum theory,relativity theory, evolutionary theory, thermodynamic theory, etc. These truths provideunderstandingforthebehaviorofthingsandtheexistenceofphenomena.

Theword“meaning”ismoreoftenthannottakentobepersonal.Thewaypeopleoftenusethewordspecificallyexcludesscienceanditsmethodsandtools.Butonecanimagineanewkindofphilosophywherescienceisbroughttobearonsocial/political/culturalissues.Forexample,ifyoua-prioriassertthathumanlifeissacred,thendecisionsrelatedtosavingandpreservingitbecomesimplemattersofreason.Ifvacationandhomelifeaddsmeaningtopeoples’lives,thenyouwouldusethemethodsandtoolsofsciencetohelpyoumakedecisionsthatmaximizethisfeatureoflife.Rightnow, these issuesandothersare inefficientlyarguedbypoliticians, religious leaders,andlawyers.

Good luck with your studies. And thanks again for your comments and your interest in myviews.

NeildeGrasseTyson

How?

Wednesday,March16,2005Dr.Tyson,Ihadthepleasureofattendingyour lecture lastnightwithmytwocolleagues.Thetopicof theconvergenceofScience&Religionhas fascinatedmeforyearsasascientistandasareligiousperson.

Iwholeheartedlyagreewithyourconclusionthatusingreligiontoexplainfrontiersofscienceisinherentlyshortsighted.Overthepastseveralyears,Ihavereadbookswhereacommonthemein all of them is a need to separate science’s goals (explaining “how”) and religion’s goals(explaining “why”). When either of the two attempt to explain the others’ main goal, theynecessarilyfail.

One philosophical note: it is my personal feeling (regret), that science is converging withreligionbecauseitisbecomingareligion.Theabsolutefaiththatsciencecanexplaineverything(i.e.“Scientism”)isunfortunatelyembracedbythosewhodonotseetheyarecreatingthisnewreligion.Inpolitics,theprincipalofSecularismcloselyparallelsthis.

ThomasE.Downs

DearMr.Downs,This distinction between “how” and “why,” while resonant with emergent philosophies, is notentirelyclean.Thefollowingarejustafew(pure)“why”questionsforwhichfaith-basedinquiryispowerlesstoanswer,beyondthecatch-allresponseof“BecauseGodmadeitthatway”:

• Whyistheskyblue?• WhydoesthemoonalwaysshowthesamefacetoEarth?• WhydoesVenusgothroughphasesliketheMoon?• WhydoestheSunhavespots?• Whydohurricanesinthenorthernhemisphererotatecounterclockwise?• WhyisAugusthotterthanJune,whentheSun’sraysonEartharemoredirectinJune?

ConsiderfurtherthatIknowofnobookof“why”questions,answeredunambiguouslybyfaith-basedreligiousphilosophy—thatis,“why”questionsansweredinawaythateveryonecanagree.Iffaithisapersonalconstruct,thentherecanbenoagreed-uponbookofanswers.

Activescientistsdonotrunarounddeclaringthatsciencecanexplaineverything.Forexample,nooneofusclaimsthatsciencecanexplainloveorhateorbeautyorvalororcowardice.Butasscienceadvances,thesenotionsmayindeedcomeintotheexperimentalpurviewofscience,justassomanypreviouslyintractablesubjectshavedoneinthepast.Thisisnotanabsolutefaithasyoudescribeit,itisaprevailingconfidencebasedonpastperformanceofthemethodsandtoolsofscience.

Faith,asthetermiscommonlyused,requiresnoexperimentalevidencetoholdabelief.Sotodeclare that science is becominganabsolute, faithbased religiongeneralizes science in awaythat is simply untrue among the actual practitioners of the field. I find this argument usedprincipally when the arguer hears the word “faith” used pejoratively, and so invokes it as anattackonsciencesothatsciencedoesnotretainthatphilosophicaladvantageoverreligion.

ThomasE.Downscontinued...

Finally, don’t get me wrong—as a scientist myself, I realize that “active scientists do not runarounddeclaringthatsciencecanexplaineverything.”However,publicopinion(mostlyaresultofignorance)doesleadtothisconclusionwhenscienceispresentedasanattackonreligion.

YouknowaswellasIthattheintentionofmostscientistsisnotoneofanti-religion,butthereareafewouttherewhorevelinitandthebacklashitcreates.

Onequickclarification.Forsakeofspace,fromMerriam-Webster.

• Why:Forwhatcause,reason,orpurpose.• How:Inwhatmannerorway;towhatdegreeorextent.

Ifollowed...

Tobaseaphilosophyonadictionarydistinctionbetweentworelatedwordsisshakyground.Alltoo often,modern philosophical arguments are traceable to disagreements in the definitions ofwordsratherthanintheanalysisofideasthemselves.

“Whyistheskyblue?”isaquestionthatseeksacause,justasrequiredofthedefinitionabove.Isupposewecouldre-wordthequestiontouse“how,”butthesentencewouldbeawkwardandnotrepresentthewayanyonethinksabouttheprobleminreallife:“HowdoeswhitelightcomingfromtheSunturnblueasitpassesthroughtheatmosphere?”

Fromtheotherdirection,onecouldask:“WhyamIhere?”Acommon,simpleconstruction.ButI assert that this can be turned into “how” questions with similar effort: “How did inanimatematterassembletobecomeanimate?HowdidanimatematterevolvetobecomeHomosapiens?HowdidtherunofHomosapiensleadtome,hereandnow?”

Ithinktherealissuehereisnot“how”or“why,”butthequestionsthemselves,withoutregardto thedefinition of the firstword in the sentence.Wecanmakeabookof questions about theworld that are answered by science. And this book continues to grow exponentially, with adoublingtimeof15years(basedonpeer-reviewedresearchpublicationratesinallsciences).

Isthereabookofquestionswithanswersprovidedbyspiritualinquiry?(Ofcourse,religionhasbeenatitformanythousandsofyears.)Ifsuchabookexists,howbigisit?Isthisbookgrowing?Doesthebookdistinguishitselffromotherwrittenworksthatprobethehumancondition,likethecompleteworksofShakespeare?

SowhileIwillnotdeclarethatsciencecancurrentlyanswerallquestions,thetrendisquiteimpressive, especiallywhen comparedwith religion,which spentmost of its history explainingthings (answering whole categories of questions) via divine forces that, in fact, had naturalexplanations, such as disease, hurricanes, planetary orbits, etc.Note that natural disasters arestillreferredtoinmanyinsurancecontractsas“ActsofGod.”

I note further that religion-bashing occurs primarily among atheists and not by scientists(whilethereis,ofcourse,someoverlap,theloudestatheistsaregenerallynotscientists).Andyet,myreadofmodernculturetellsmethatattacksbyreligiononsciencearevastlymorecommonthanthereverse,contrarytoyourstatement.RecentlyinGeorgia,theschoolboardwantedtoputadisclaimerstickeronbiologytextbooks.ButyoudonotfindscientistsaskingfordisclaimerstobeaffixedtoBiblesinchurch.

Themostvisibleanti-religionscientistIknowisthephysicistStevenWeinberg.Andheisfaroutnumbered by pro-spiritual scientist/writers such as Paul Davies, Robert Jastrow, and JohnPolkinghorne.

AndmayIremindyouthatinthefamousScopes“monkey”trial,*thescienceteacherlostthecase.

NeildeGrasseTyson

Why?Circa2009ViaFacebook

MayIaskyoutwoquickquestions?1. AreyouaSamCookefan?

2. What’syourhonestopinionastowhywearehere?JasonHarris

DearJason,1. I’mnotanymoreofaSamCookefanthanIamofothercroonersintheera.

2. Ineverthinkmuchabout“why.”Whyimpliespurposesetbyexternalforces.Ihavealwaysfeltthatpurposeisnotdefinedoutsideofourselves,butfromdeepwithin.Mypurposeinlifeistolessenthesufferingofothers;advanceourunderstandingoftheuniverse;andenlightenothersalongtheway.

Neil

YinandYang

Circa2009ViaFacebook

Neil,Everything Ihave learnedandobserved in thisworldand in thisuniverse seems to fit into theideaofYin&Yang.Everythingflowsincyclesfrombiologicalandphysicalrealitiestoideologies,to presidents. However, as I understand it, the prevailing astrophysical view of the end of theuniverseisonethatfitstheentropylaw:greaterandgreaterdisorderuntileverythingisbasicallyasspreadoutasitcanget.ThisseemstometobetheonlyexampleofYin&Yangbeingviolated.

Iunderstandthatnothinghasbeenshowntoviolatetheentropylaw.However,theprincipleofyinandyangseemstoworkinsidetheentropylaw.Isthisthecaseinyourmind?Arethereanyoscillatorytheoriesoftheuniversethatwouldallowmetoreconcilethesebeliefs?Whatareyourthoughtsonthematter?

ReidTice

DearReid,Yin&Yangoffersnopredictivevalueunlessyoucaninvokeitsprinciplestosaywhenandwheresomethingwillcycleback.Apartfromthis,myreadofYinandYangisnotthatthingscyclebutthat things are in balance—with opposite forms, themes, ideas, in mutual, though beneficial,tension.

Furthermore,manythingshavenotcycledback—andwillnotlikelyevercycleback.There’snolongeranystate-sanctionedslavery.Kingshavelostmostofthepowertheyoncewieldedinwar,culture,andpolitics.

Marswasonceanoasisofrunningwater.It’sbonedrytoday.Andthereisnoevidencethatitwill ever return to its previous state. Same forVenus, onwhich there’s a runawaygreenhouseeffect,leavingthesurfaceat900degreesFahrenheit.

Wearelivinglongerthaneverbefore.Thisadvanceoftechnology,anditsroleinourlives,isnotareversibletrend.Soyoucannotignoreallthatdoesnotcycle,selectwhatdoes,anddeclareYinandYangtobeanoperationalprincipleofouruniverse.

Neil

IThink,ThereforeIDoubt

Wednesday,May20,2009DearMr.Tyson,Iamsomewhattorn.Ican’tgetnearphilosophywithoutbeingrepelledbyitsun-scientificmusingand empty wordiness. I simply do not understand how one can be so confident that theirparticular explanation for the universe, or consciousness, or the meaning of knowledge isanywherenearcorrectwithoutthenecessaryexperimentationandpeerreview.Canthisfieldbetakenseriouslywhen,todebateanotherperson’spointofview,onemustonlysummonuptheirown,equallyunfounded,ideas?

But,many of these philosophers were also very intelligentmen. Somewere even scientiststhemselves.Certainlyiftheseintelligentmenmusetothemselves,itcouldhavesomemerit.Thisleads tomydilemma: I donot knowhow to reconcile the fields of philosophyand the fields of

science,excepttosaythatphilosophysimplymusesaboutthingssciencehasn’texplainedyet.Tomeitisamorerelaxedandvagueformoftheology.

SoIaskyou:Whatdoyouthinkofphilosophy’sroleintheexplanationoftheworkingsofthemindanduniverse,andinthefieldofscience?

Thankyouverymuchforyourtime.Respectfully,

DanielNarciso

DearMr.Narciso,Mysentiments largelyalignwithyours. Ihaveyet to seeaphilosopher, formally trained in the20thcenturyandonward(viaauniversityPhilosophyDepartment)makeanymaterialadvancesinour understanding of the natural world. They typically carry a level of confidence in theirknowledge that isunwarrantedbydataandobservationsof thephysicaluniverse.Philosophershavenolaboratories.Notelescopes.Nomicroscopes.Theyhavetheirbrainsandarmchairs,andfalselybelievethatthisissufficienttogaininsighttotheoperationsofnature.

I have no comment on other branches of philosophy: ethics, religious philosophy, politicalphilosophy,etc.Ilamentthelossofusefulphilosophersthatpredatedmodernphysics—ImmanuelKant,DavidHume,KurtGödel,BertrandRussell,ErnstMach.Notcoincidentally,thetransitiontouselessnessbeganwhenourexperimentsrevealedaspectsoftheuniversethatnolongerfollowedwhat anyone would call common sense. The tenets of relativity and quantum mechanics, forexample.

Thedayaphilosopher’sconversationonthe“meaningofmeaning”offersusefulinsighttothenextcosmicdiscovery,Iwillbehappytorevisemyviews.

Besttoyou,NeildeGrasseTyson

ExpressYourself

UndatedCommunication—circa2014ViaUSPostalService

To:NeildeGrasseTysonIhaveseenyouontheHistoryChannel,DiscoveryChannel,Iboughtandreadyourbooks.AndIhaveheardyouontheovernightradioshow“CoasttoCoast.”

One thing has remained constant throughout all these media forms; and that is how youcommunicate;thestylethatyouexpressandtransferinformation,whichleadstomyquestion.

Who,what,where, and howhave you learned to communicate so effectively. I have a lot ofinformation (in my head) that I have trouble expressing effectively. You seem to the able toanticipatewhatquestionsapersonmaybethinkingwhiletheyarereadingorlistening—andthenanswertheminthenextsentenceorparagraph.Iwishtolearnhowtobesoforesighted.

Ihaveincludedareturnenvelopeforyourconvenience.TheNumberandUnitdesignationontheenvelopeismyaddressattheTexasprisonwhereIamhoused.

Thankyou,DavidSwaim#1436288

IowaPark,Texas

DearMr.Swaim,Thanksforyourkindwordsaboutmyeffortstocommunicate.

Myeducationalphilosophyisquitesimple.Thinkofaprofessorfacingawayfromyou,droningonwhilewritingon theboard in the frontofclass.Asastudent,especially incollege, it’syourresponsibilitytolearnthematerial.Youarepayingfortheeducation.Soyourlearningskillswill,inmany cases, need to compensate for the absence of clarity or enthusiasm in the professor’sdelivery.That’slecturing.

Now thinkof aprofessorwho facesyou from the frontof the room;whomakeseyecontactwith the audience;whohas invested time and energy thinking about how you think;who paysattention to your attention span; who is aware of what words you know and what words orconcepts confuse you; who knows the demographics of the audience—age, gender, nationality,ethnicity,politicalleanings,culturalleanings,propensitytolaugh,tocry;whocarriessomepop-culture fluency, for easy reference and analogy, but only when teaching the subject can beassistedbysuchreferences.Thatpersonisnotlecturingtoyou.Thatpersonhasopenedconduits

tailoredtothataudienceinthatmoment,andatthattime.That’scommunicating.It’sawaytoseeandfeelwhatsomeoneisthinking,allowingyoutoservetheircuriosityonthe

spot.Also, most things I’ve written for publication passed through at least two editors—English

majorsincollegewhocareaboutthelanguage.InatleastoneofmybooksIthankedmyeditorforhelpingme“tosaywhatImeanandmeanwhatIsay.”

So there are no shortcuts. But you’ll know when you have perfected the task, that’s whenunder-informedpeoplecomeuptoyouandsay,“you’reanaturalatthis.”

Sincerely,NeildeGrasseTyson

*TheScopestrial,TheStateofTennesseev.JohnThomasScopes,July1925.SubstitutehighschoolteacherJohnT.ScopeswasaccusedofviolatingTennesseelawbyteachingevolutionintheclassroom.

III.

PathosAplaintiveappealtoemotionsthatalreadyresidewithinus.

Chapter7

LifeandDeath

Toliveone'slife.

RememberingHolbrooke

NewYorkTimesheadline:

“RichardC.Holbrooke,1941–2010:StrongAmericanVoiceinDiplomacyandCrisis”

Thursday,December16,2010NewYorkTimes

TotheEditor:WhenIgaveAmbassadorRichardHolbrookeapersonaltourofthenewlyopenedRoseCenterforEarthandSpaceandHaydenPlanetariumin2000,Icouldnothelpnoticehowfluenthewasinthedepthandbreadthofhiscosmiccuriosity.

Truescienceliteracyislessaboutwhatyouknowandmoreabouthowyourbrainiswiredforaskingquestions.Laterinthetourheconfessedthat,asanundergraduateatBrown,hestudiedphysicsbeforeswitchingtopolitics.

Icouldnotresistaskinghimwhetherthatexposuretophysicsmadeadifferenceinhiscareeras a diplomat, especially in tense,war-torn areas of theworld that are resistant to negotiatedpeacesettlements.

He answered emphatically “yes,” citing the physics-inspired approach of sifting for thefundamentaldriversofacauseorphenomenon—strippedofallornament.Togetthere,onemustassesshowandwhentoignorethesurroundingdetails,whichcangivetheillusionofimportance,yetintheend,areoftenirrelevantdistractionstosolutionsofotherwiseintractableproblems.

Mr. Holbrooke’s career was a living endorsement for more scientifically literate peacenegotiatorsintheworld.

NeildeGrasseTysonNewYorkCity

DeadManTalking

Wednesday,March27,2019DearCousinNeil,The day after my father died, I went to the funeral home to view his body. He’d been sick fornearly a decade following a series of debilitating strokes and his death, while painful, wasexpected.

WalkingintothefuneralhomeIcouldjustbarelyseehisbodystretchedoutonatableinfront.Igatheredmycourageandknewthetimehadcomeformetosaymygoodbyes.Justthen,Iheardanoldfamiliarvoicesaytome“Whatthef%#kareyoudoingkid?Getoutofhere!”

Istoppeddeadinmytracksandspunaroundonlytofindnoonethere.Iknew thatvoice, itwasone Ihadn’theard in tenyears.Mydad’s strokehad lefthisvoice

foreverchanged;yetIknewtothecoreofmybeingthatthevoiceIheardbelongedtomyfather.Hearinghimuse thewords ‘kid’ and ‘f%#k’alsoconfirmed itwasdefinitelyhim.Healways

calledmekid,andtohim,f%#kwasjustanadjective.Withoutthinking,Isaid(out-loud)“I’mheretoseeyou.”Hesaid,“I’mnotthere!”Istartedto

leaveandstoppedinmytracks,turnedaroundandsaid,“No!IcametoseeyouandI’mgoingtoseeyou!”Hesaid,“Fine,golook.”

As Iwalkedup to thebody Iwasn’t sadanymore.As I lookeddownathim,hisbody lookedwaxyandhis facemisshapenfromthebreathingtubehehadbeenon, Iheardhimsay,“See? ItoldyouI’mnothere.”

HappierandmorepeacefulthanIhadbeenonlyminutesbefore,Iliterallyskippedoutofthe

funeralhome.Yearslater,itstillfeelsrealbutlogicallydoesn’tmakesense.Whatdoyouthinkreallyhappened?

SeanlaiCochraneDelrayBeach,FL

DearSeanlai,Either my first cousin (your dead father) was actually talking to you, or you acousticallyhallucinatedhisvoice.Whilethelatter isfarmorelikelytobethecase,allowmetosuggestanexperimentforyoutoconductifanythinglikethishappenstoyouagain.

Next time somebody dead talks to you, try to have amore informative conversation. Try toglean informationabout thegreatbeyond.Becurious.Askgoodquestions.Herearea fewthatcometomind.

• Whereexactlyareyou?• Isanybodyelsethere?Ifso,who?• Areyouwearingclothes?Ifso,wheredidyougetthem?• Doyoueatfood?Ifyes,thenwhopreparesit?• Describewhatyouseearoundyou?• Howoldareyou?Howisyourhealth?• Istheredayandnight?• Doyousleep?Wheredoyousleep?

If youhave an active, creative, imaginative brain, it’s entirely possible that thehallucinatedvoiceofyour fatherwouldoffer interesting,plausibleanswerstoeachof thesequestions.Sotomitigate thatpossibility, get someone towritea shortphraseona sheetofpaper—like “howdypartner”or“diamondsareforever”—makingsureyoudonotseeit.Thenholditupandaskyourdeceasedfathertoreadit.Youarenowsolicitinginformationthatdoesnotresidewithinyourownbrain.

If you can demonstrate that the dead person knows things (with accuracy) that you do notknow, thenyouwillbecomefamousovernight. Ifyoucan’t, thenchalkup theexperience toyetanotheroccasionwhenourbrainmisleads,distorts,ormanglesobjectiverealities.

Neil

Farewell*Thursday,December24,2009ToallofmyProfessors&Educators,Itmaysaddenyou,butIhopebytheendofthisnote,itwon’t.

Thesimplemedicalfactis,I’maboutdone.I’vebeencarryingsomenuisanceissuesforaboutayear and decided to have them looked into, and the short story is, I’ve got cancer in so manyplacesIstoppedlisteningtothedoctorafterthefirstfour.It’sterminal,andit’sshort-term.

TheonethingI’mgoingtohavetoinsistonisthatIgetno“boo-hoo”email.Iconsidermyselfaprettyluckyguy.Igotoutofcorporatelifein1995,andretiredforgoodin2002,andduringthistime,I’vehadareallyinterestinglife.Forthelastsevenyears,I’vehadmytimealltomyselftostudyscienceandmath,andhelpbeginnersinthesestudies.I’vegotadreamtelescopeandhaveseenwondersinthenightskythatmostotherswillneverseeforthemselves.Throughallthis,theuniversehasgivenmeaspiritualawakeningthatconvincesmethatlifehereonEarthisnothingmorethanaphase.Andasifallthisisn’tenoughofaprize,I’vebeenblessedwitha“twominutewarning”tomakethistransitionasorderlyandmeaningfulaspossible(and,bytheway,timetogainappreciationoftheverymanythingsI’vebeentakingforgrantedforyears).

You people have made the last several years of my life rewarding—with an objective, withdrive,withapurpose.Verymanyfolksspendthelastyearsoftheirliveswithnothingmorethantrying to find something to do. I’m a floor above those folks—and it was the discovery of TheTeachingCompany,†astronomy,scienceandmaththatdrovemetotheseheightsthatIwouldnothavefoundotherwise.No,itwasn’tyoualone—itwasalsomyresearchandmybookstudiesthatpushedmeforward—butitwasyou,collectively,thatprovidedthepropellant.

Ifyoureplytothisemailatall,pleaseletittobetowishmewellinthefantasticadventureI’llsoonbeembarkingon.Mysoulistough,andI’llseeitthrough.

Good luck and thanks to each and every one of you, and don’t ever underestimate yourcontributions.We’lltalkagainontheotherside.

Regards&Farewell,MJ“Morg”Staley

DearMorg,You surely knowbynow that a cosmicperspective offers vistas thatmay serve and sooth yourcurrentstateofbody&mind.

And as the saying goes:We’re all going to die. But only a select few of us happen to knowwhen.

Neil

Postscript:MorgStaleydiedeightmonthslater,inAugust2010.

TheCosmicPerspective

Tuesday,June19,2012Mr.Tyson,Thankyou!

Mymotherispassingawayatthistime.IhavebeenbyhersideasmuchasIcanbe.Ineverhadmuchtimewithher,asshewalkedadifferentroadinlife;shetookmysister’shandandIlostmanyyears.

Afewyearsago,sheaskedto livewithmywifeandme.Weneverreallysharedanythingordiscussedmuch.Butyouhelpedherandmetofindapointofdiscussion.Thankyou.

Wearebornalone,wediealone.It’swhatwedothatmakestheonlythingswetakewithus.Mygreatestthanksbelongtoyou.

Regards,RobertClark

DearRobert,While you haven’t specified, I presume the points of discussion with your mother have beenvarious things I’vewrittenorsaidabout theuniverse.Onegood thing (amongmany)about thecosmos is that it belongs tousall.Asa consequence, themoreyou learn, themoreownershipyou’recompelledtotakeofit.

Onmydeathbed,onethoughtIwillsurelyhavecomesfromtheevolutionarybiologistRichardDawkins.Henotesthatwewhodiearetheluckyones.Mostpeople—mostgeneticcombinationsofwhocouldeverexist—willneverbeborn,andsowillneverhavetheopportunitytodie.

That, and other reflections on our place in the universe, never fail to bringme intellectualenlightenmentandspiritualpeacewhenIseekthem.Iwouldbehonoredifyoureadtheendingparagraphsofmyessay“TheCosmicPerspective”‡ toyourmother, if there’sstill timebetweenyou.Reproducedbelow.

Strengthtoyou,peacetoyourmother,Neil

Thecosmicperspectiveflowsfromfundamentalknowledge.Butit’smorethanjustwhatyouknow. It’salsoabouthaving thewisdomand insight toapply thatknowledge toassessingourplaceintheuniverse.Anditsattributesareclear:

• Thecosmicperspectivecomesfromthefrontiersofscience,yetit’snotsolelytheprovinceofthescientist.Thecosmicperspectivebelongstoeveryone.

• Thecosmicperspectiveishumble.• Thecosmicperspectiveisspiritual—evenredemptive—butnotreligious.• Thecosmicperspectiveenablesustograsp,inthesamethought,thelargeandthesmall.• Thecosmicperspectiveopensourmindstoextraordinaryideasbutdoesnotleavethemso

openthatourbrainsspillout,makingussusceptibletobelievinganythingwe’retold.• Thecosmicperspectiveopensoureyestotheuniverse,notasabenevolentcradledesignedto

nurturelifebutasacold,lonely,hazardousplace.ThecosmicperspectiveshowsEarthtobeamote,butapreciousmoteand,forthemoment,theonlyhomewehave.Thecosmicperspectivefindsbeautyintheimagesofplanets,moons,stars,andnebulaebutalsocelebratesthelawsofphysicsthatshapethem.

• Thecosmicperspectiveenablesustoseebeyondourcircumstances,allowingustotranscendtheprimalsearchforfood,shelter,andsex.

• Thecosmicperspectiveremindsusthatinspace,wherethereisnoair,aflagwillnotwave—anindicationthatperhapsflagwavingandspaceexplorationdonotmix.ThecosmicperspectivenotonlyembracesourgenetickinshipwithalllifeonEarthbutalsovaluesourchemicalkinshipwithanyyet-to-bediscoveredlifeintheuniverse,aswellasouratomickinshipwiththeuniverseitself.WeareStardust.

RobertClarkreplied...THANKYOU.Yourstrengthhashelpedmeverymuchandyourencouragementtomymotherhasnotgoneunnoticedbyher.Mymother’sconditionhasstabilized,butsheisstillinanacutewingofthehospital.

Itseemsthatknowingthosesheadmiredarepullingforherhasencouragedhergreatly.IwillbesittingwithherthisweekendandIwillagainreadthewholeessaytoher.Shewantedtohearall your words, she reacted better to your words than words from the Bible others have beenreadingtoher(Ihatetoputyouundersuchpressure).

Thankyouagain,andalwaysastudent,RobertClark

SoulSearching

InJuly2007,JeffRyanwrotewithquestionsaboutlifeafterdeath.Isthereasouloressenceofourselves that transfers, gainingeternal existence?But,most importantly tohis curiosity,whatdoessciencesayaboutitall?

DearMr.Ryan,Thehumanbodycontainsameasurablequantityofenergy,storedchemically(initsfat,andinallother soft tissue) as well as energy that derives from existing at 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit, atemperaturetypicallyabovetheambientairtemperatureandsustainedwhilealivebythereleaseof storedchemicalenergywithinourbodies.Wealsoharbor trillionsof symbioticandparasiticorganismsonyourskinandespeciallyinyourdigestivetract.

Whenwedie,ourchemicalprocesses(themetabolism)ceasestofunctionandweimmediatelybegin to lose energy to the air as our body cools. The rest of our body makes tasty food formicroorganismsthatarealreadyinourbodyaswellasothersthatareattractedtoit,suchasflylarvae,worms,etc.Overtime,theentireenergycontentofourbodyreturnstotheEarthandtheatmospherefromwhichitcame.

Ifyouarecremated,noneofthisenergyismadeavailabletonatureeventhoughwehadbeendrawing fromnature forourentire life forsourcesof food.Whenyouarecremated, thestoredchemicalenergygetsreleasedintotheatmosphere,heatstheair,andthenradiatesenergyintospace.

For this reason, it ismystrongpreference tobeburied,completing thecycleofenergy thatbeganwithmybirth.

Allofthisderivesfromthechemistryandphysicsofmeasurablequantities.Ifyoubelieveyouhaveasoul,asseveraloftheworld’sreligionsassert,thenitsexistenceis

faith-basedandsoyoucannotappealtothemethodsandtoolsofsciencetosaywhathappenstoit.Unless,ofcourse,youcanmakeatestablepredictionabouthowtomeasurethesoul.This,infact,wasattemptedshortlyafter thediscoveryofX-rays.People,eager toprove their faith inasoul, identified dyingpatients in a hospital andX-rayed themat themoment of death to see ifanythingroseoutoftheirbodies.Theysawnothing.

Sincerely,NeildeGrasseTyson

HurricaneKatrina

January27,2010ViaFacebook

How come everyone is so quick to want to help people in Haiti but it seems everyone hasforgottenaboutthepooranddisplacedpeopleinAmerica?WhynotdonatetoacharitytohelptheU.S.instead?TherearestillpeoplejustasbadoffbecauseofKatrinaasthoseinHaiti,butnoonecaresaboutthem.

RonMarish

DearRon,Scalematters.About2,000peopledied inNewOrleans from the failed levees.Meanwhile, theearthquakedeath toll inHaiti reachedaquartermillion—nearly3%of thatnation’spopulation.

AndsothemagnitudeoftheHaitianearthquakedwarfsthatofKatrina.Personally,Idrawthelinewhenpeoplestepacrossahomelesshumaninthestreettofeedor

adoptastraydog.NeildeGrasseTyson

Postscript: More recent government estimates have reduced the 2005 earthquake death toll tobelow100,000

CuringDisease

RandyM.Zeitmanwasinterestedintheage-olddilemmaofwhetherintellectuallytalentedpeopleshouldpursuetheirowninterestsordevotethatmentalpowertosolvingthepressingproblemsofsociety.HequestionedthevalueofwalkingontheMoonortheHubbleSpaceTelescopeifwestillhaven’t cured cancer, or if we still have a problem feeding the world. In October 2004, Mr.Zeitman(politely)challengedmeonthistensionbetweendoingwhatyouwantanddoingwhatisright.

DearMr.Zeitman,Thankyouforsharingyourcommentsandcriticalperspectives.Ioncefeltexactlyasyoudo,butchanged my mind after I learned some basic (yet not widely appreciated) facts of life and ofsociety.

Youreferredtoacureforcancer.TaxmoneyspentoncanceranddiseaseresearchinAmericaexceeds thatwhichwe spend on space by a factor of ten.When you include private/corporateR&Dspentoncuringdisease,thefactorrisestoonehundred.Soit isnotasthoughwearenotalready investing huge resources into these crucial fields. NASA just happens to be the mostvisibleamongtargetsforyourlineofargument.

NotethatyoudidnotcomparethecostofcuringcancerwithmoneyAmericansspendontheDefenseDepartment,oron farmsubsidies.Whynot?TheDepartmentofDefensespends in tendayswhatNASAspends inayear,not including thecostof veterans’benefits.America spendsupwards of $100billion per year in cashpayments to farmers so that theydonot growcrops.This,itself,ismorethansixtimesNASA’sannualbudget.

Butwhat’smoreimportantthananyoftheabovecomparisonsisthefactthattrulyinnovativesolutions to problems come primarily from the cross-pollination of disciplines. And this cross-pollinationisentirelyunpredictableinitsnatureanditsdirection.Igiveseveralexamplesdrawnfromhealth,butthousandsexist inall fields:Anewcomputeralgorithmfor imageanalysiswasinventedbackwhentheoriginalHubbleTelescopemirrorwaslaunchedandfoundtobedefective.Until theopticswererepaired,applyingthisalgorithmwasthebestwecoulddowiththefuzzyimages.Turnsout,thealgorithmwasshowntobeidealfortheearlydetectionofbreastcancer,enablingdiagnosislongbeforethetrainedhumaneyecoulddeterminethatcancerwaspresent.Fewdoctorshavethebackgroundtoeventhinkaboutcomputeralgorithmsforthispurpose.Andthe same is true for X-ray machines (invented by physicists exploring the electromagneticspectrum), the MRI machines (concept discovered by physicists), and ultrasound devices,developedbythemilitaryforunderseasurveillance.

IwilladdthatmyvisibilityasaBlackscientistserves tobreakstereotypesthat, themselves,takeanincalculabletollonsociety,asopportunitiesandresourcesareclosedoffbecausepeopleinpowerdonotseepeopleofcolorashavingtheintellectualmettletocompeteintheworkplace,inacademia,orelsewhere.

So I could not disagree more with your contention. The facts of how society works arguestrongly against it. To the extent that you represent an otherwise non-vocal minority, I amintriguedbythestrengthofyourconviction.

Weliveinawealthynation.Thewealthiesttheworldhaseverknown.Insomeways,wedefineourculture(passivelyoractively)bywhatwedoasanationasexpressedthroughcongressionalfunding priorities. The National Endowment for the Arts is funded because it contributes adimensiontothequalityoflifeweenjoyasAmericans.Transportationisfunded(evensubsidized)becausewevaluetheeconomicvitalitythatitbrings.TheNationalScienceFoundationisfundedbecauseitdrivesbasicresearchthat,historyhasshown,isafoundationoftechnologicalprogress,especiallywhere corporateR&Ddoesnotgo.TheSmithsonian is fundedbecausewevalue thepreservationofwhoandwhatwehavebeen,toourselvesandtotheworld.Themilitaryisfundedbecausewe(asanation)valueaboveallelsetherealorperceivedsecurityitbrings.TheNationalInstitutesofHealthisfundedbecausewecaregreatlyaboutcuringdisease—andonandon.ItisthismixturethatdefinesAmericaasanation.

IsupposeanotherwaytosetprioritieswouldbetoranktheproblemsofAmerica(andoftheworld) and solve them in order, applying all resources at once. I believe this scenario ismoreresonantwithyoursenseofwhatIshouldbedoingwithmylife.Butthehistoryofthesearchforsolutionsdoesnot support this contention.As I said, themost innovative solutions toproblems

commonly come from outside of the field—from people inspired by different priorities. Thegovernmentknowsthis(primarilythroughfightingwars,andnotthroughsomedeepinsightintohumannature)andvalues it throughhigh investments inpurescience,comparedwiththearts,forexample.

No one has ever suggested that obtaining Hubble images is more important than feedingpeople.But thispremiseseemstostokeyourobjections.Thebestofworlds is todo itall.And,evenwiththeflawsinthesystem,wedoitallbetterthananybody.

Again,thankyouforyourinterestinmyinterview,andIdoappreciateyourcommentsinspiteof(orperhapsbecauseof)ourpointsofdisagreement.

Sincerely,NeildeGrasseTyson

SemperFi

Thursday,March14,2019HiNeil,AlothashappenedsinceIlastwroteyou.§Notsurewheretostart.Someforthegoodbutmostforthebad.

IguesswithallthingsI’llstartwiththegood.Mycareerhasbeengoingamazing.Itookajobflying“FlightForLife”andsavedafewlives!I’mnowbackinLasVegasflyingaschiefpilotforMaverickHelicoptersdoingtoursandshowingpeoplehowEarthwasformedthroughsomeofthelayersintheGrandCanyon.Inthatregardsthingshavebeengreat!

Forthebad,I’mnotsurewheretostarthere.I’vebeenthroughquitealot.Iknowyoudon’tknowmuchaboutme fromour fewemails (other than I’mabig fan). I served six years in theMarineCorpsandinthattimeIlostafewfriends,onewasmybestfriend.IfeltlikeIpaidagoodpricehavingbeenthroughthatcrazytimeinmylife.That’swhenImetmywifeandwehadourdaughter.IwasonCloud9!MywifeworkedfortheNevadatestsiteasanengineerandwewereperfectforeachother.

Shewasdiagnosedwithbreastcanceraboutfouryearsago.Shebattleditforthreeyearslikeachampbutlastyearshelostherfight.IthoughtIwouldbepreparedforitbutbrokeme.Ifitweren’tforourdaughterEllaI’mnotsureIwouldhaverecovered.

Ijustwantedtocheckinwithyaandseehowyouweredoing?Sorryifthatemailwasalittledrab.ButIhopeyou’redoinggood!I’mstillfollowingyouandI’llalwayshaveyourback!

YourfriendJayScoble

Friday,March15,2019DearJay,When you assess all the parts and functions of the body, we should be amazed that humanphysiologyworksatall.Sowhenpartsfail,astheywillforallofusatsomepoint,orevenwhentragedystrikes,as inyourlostfriendsintheCorps,notenoughofusreflectonhowamazingitwastohavebeenaliveinthefirstplace.

Consider further that theHomo sapiens genome is capable of generating trillions of uniquehumans,whichmeansmostpeoplewhocouldeverexistwillneverevenbeborn.Sodeath isakindofprivilegeofthosefewofuswhohaveknownlife.

SuchacosmicperspectiveempowersmetocelebrateeverydayIamalive.AndIshareitwithyou,asakindofscientificsolaceonthelifeanddeathofyourlovedones.

Peacetoyou,Neil

*AnopenlettersenttotwelvefavoriteprofessorsfromtheGreatCoursesvideoseriesthatthisgentlemanwatchedandenjoyed.Mineamongthem.Note:Wecorrespondedsixmonthsearlier,intheParentingchapterofthiscollection.

†NowTheGreatCourses,Chantilly,VA.

‡AdaptedforAstrophysicsforPeopleinaHurry(NewYork:W.W.Norton,2017),205–208.

§Jay’sfirstoffiveemailstomewasin2013.

Chapter8

Tragedy

Thischaptercontains lettersdescribingmy firsthandaccountof theSeptember11,2001,attacksonNewYorkCity’sWorldTradeCenterTwinTowers,writtenprimarilytoassuagetheconcernsofthosewhoknewofmyproximitytothedanger.Thischapteralsoincludesabitaboutconspiracytheoriesandacandidexchangewithamystic.

TheHorror,theHorror*

Wednesday,September12,2001,10:00amDearFamily,Friends,&Colleagues,Myentire family issafe.Weevacuatedour lower-ManhattanresidenceataboutnoonyesterdayandmigratednorthonfoottoGrandCentralTerminal(aboutthreemiles)wherewetookMetroNorthtothehomeofmyparentsinWestchester,fromwhereIwritethismessage.

Welive fourblocks fromtheWorldTradeCenter, inviewofbothTowers,CityHall,andCityHallPark.Ihappenedtobeworkingathomeyesterday.Mywifewenttoworkat8:20am.IleftatthesametimetovoteinNYC’sMayoralPrimary.My9-montholdsonwasathomewithournanny.My5-year old daughterwas attendingher secondday ofKindergarten at PS-234, threeblocksfromWorldTradeCenter.Lineuptimeintheyardwas8:40aminfullviewofWTC-1.

Whenthefirstplanehitat8:50,theyevacuatedtheschoolwithoutincident.InoticedWTC-1onfireinahighflooruponreturningfromvoting,about8:55am.LargecrowdsofonlookersweregatheringalongthebaseofCityHallParkascountlessfireengines,policecars,andambulancesscreamedpast.

I went home, grabbed my camcorder, went out to the street and started filming. I considermyselftobeemotionallystrong.WhatIborewitnessto,however,wasespeciallyupsetting,withindelibleimagesofhorrorthatwillnotsoonleavemymind.

1. IfirstseeWTC-1onfireatahighfloor.Notjustflamescomingoutofsomewindows,butfourorfiveentirefloorsonfirewithsmokepenetratingfloorsstillhigher.

Upsettingenough,butthen...

2. Amongthepapersandmeltedsteelfragmentsflutteringtotheground,Inoticethatsomedebriswasfallingdistinctlydifferently.Theseweren’tpartsofthebuildingthatwerefalling.Thesewerepeople,jumpingfromthewindows,theirbodiestumblinginrapiddescentfromtheeightiethfloor.Inoticedabouttensuchfalls,morbidlycapturingthreeofthemontape.

Upsettingenough,butthen...

3. AfieryexplosionburstforthfromacornerofWTC-2abouttwothirdsofthewayup,perhapsthe60thfloor.Thefireballcreatedanintenseradiativeimpulseofheatfromwhichweallhadtoturnourheads.Frommyvantagepoint,Icouldnotseetheplanethatcausedit,whichhit180degreesontheothersideofthebuilding.NordidIknowatthetimethataplanecausedit.Ifirstthoughtitwasabomb,buttheexplosionwasnotaccompaniedbythetell-taleacousticshockwavethatrattleswindows.Thiswassimplyalowfrequencyrumble.

Asitburstfromthebuilding’scorner,thefireballwassolargethatitextendedallthewayacrosstoWTC-1.Thefactthebuilding’scornerexplodedtellsmethattheignitedjetfuelgotfocusedbythesidesofthefloorintowhichthesecondplaneflew,meetingatthecornerwithincreasedexplosivepressure.Theflameswereaccompaniedbycountlessthousandsofsheetsofpaperthatburstforth,flutteringtothegroundasthougheveryfilingcabinetonmultiplefloorswasemptied.

ThefactthatthesecondtowerwasnowonfiremadeitcleartousallonthestreetthatthefirstfirewasnoaccidentandthattheWTCcomplexwasunderterroristattack.Morbidly,Ihavetheexplosionontapeandthesoundsfromthehorrifiedcrowdsurroundingme.AtthispointIstoppedfilming,andwentbackinsidemyapartment.

Upsettingenough,butthen...

4. AsmoreandmoreandmoreandmoreandmoreemergencyvehiclesdescendedontheWorldTradeCenter,IhearasecondexplosioninWTC-2,thenaloud,low-frequencyrumblethatprecipitatestheunthinkable—acollapseofallthefloorsabovethepointofexplosion.Firstthetopsurface,containingthehelipad,tipssidewaysinfullview.Thentheupperfloorsfallstraightdowninademolition-styleimplosion,takingalllowerfloorswithit,eventhosebelowthepointoftheexplosion.Adense,thickdustcloudrisesupinitsplace,whichrapidlypoursthroughthewarrenofstreetsthatcrosslowerManhattan.

Icloseallourwindowsandblinds.Asthedustcloudengulfsmybuilding,aneeriedarknesssurroundedus—thekindofdarknessyouexperiencebeforeaseverethunderstorm.Ilookoutthewindowandcanseenomorethanabout12inchesaway.

Upsettingenough,butthen...

5. Outsidemywindow,afterabout15minutes,visibilitygrowstoabout100yards,andInoticeaboutaninchofwhitedusteverywhere.That’swhenIrealizethateverysinglerescuevehiclethathadparkeditselfatthebaseoftheWorldTradeCentermustnowbeburiedunder110collapsedfloorsoftangleddebris,andmultiplefeetofdust.Thiscollapsetookouttheentirefirstroundofrescueeffortsincludingwhatweresurelyhundredsofpoliceofficers,firefighters,andmedics.

AsvisibilityincreasedandIcouldnowseethebluesky,therewasblueskywhereWTC2usedtobe.

Upsettingenough,butthen...

6. Idecideit’stimetogetmydaughter,whowastakenbytheparentsofafriendofherstoasmallofficebuilding,sixblocksfartherfromtheWTCthanmyapartment.AsIdressforsurvival:boots,flashlight,wettowels,swimminggoggles,bicyclehelmet,gloves,Ihearanotherexplosionfollowedbyanowall-too-familiarrumblethatsignaledthecollapseofWTC-1,thefirstofthetwotowerstohavebeenhit.Isawtheiconicantennaonthisbuildingdescendstraightdowninanimplosiontwinningthefirst.

Thisdustcloudwasdarker,thickerandfaster-movingthanthefirst.Whenthisroundofdustreachedmyapartment,fifteensecondsaftercollapse,theskyturneddarkasnight,withvisibilityofnomorethanaboutacentimeter.Itwasgettinghardertobreatheintheapartment,butwewerestable.

AtthispointIoffernohopeofsurvivalforanyoftherescuepersonnelwhowereonthescene.

Upsettingenough,butthen...

7. Thecloudsettlesonceagain,nowleavingatotalofaboutthreeinchesofdustoutsidemywindow.Anotherdarkcloudofsmokenowoccupiestheareawheretwo110-storybuildingsoncestood.Thiscloud,however,wasnotthesettlingkind.Itwassmokefromground-levelfires.Atthistimetheairintheapartmentisgettingharderandhardertobreatheanditbecomesclearthatweshouldevacuate—especiallywiththelikelihoodofundergroundgasleaks.Iloadupmylargestbackpackwithsurvivalitems,putmysoninourmostnimblestrollerandleavewithournanny,whothenwalksacrosstheBrooklynBridgetowardherhome.

Igotowheremydaughterwasheld,whichwasupwindfromalldebrisonaquietstreet.Sheisingoodspirits,butclearlyupset.Ihaveacrayondrawingofhers,sketchedwhilewaitingformetoarrive,whichshowstheTwinTowerswithsmokeandfirecomingfromthem,asonlya5-yearoldcoulddraw.“Daddy,whydoyouthinkthepilotdrovehisplaneintotheWorldTradeCenter?”“Daddy,Iwishthiswasalljustadream.”“Daddy,ifwecan’treturnhometonightbecauseofallthesmoke,willmystuffedanimalsbeokay?”

Upsettingenough,butthen...

8. Fromthecalmofanupholsteredcouchintheofficewheremydaughterwaskept,withmysonunderonearmandmydaughterundertheother,Irealizethat,fullyloaded,eachtoweroftheWTCholds10,000people.FromwhatIwitnessed,Ihavenoreasontobelievethatanyofthemsurvived.Infact,Iwouldnotbesurprisedifthedeathtollreached25–30,000.BeneaththeTowersisanentireuniverseofsixsubterraneouslevelscontainingscoresofsubwayplatforms,plusahundredorsoshopsandrestaurants.TheTowerssimplycollapsedintothishole—aholelargeenoughtohavesuppliedthelandfillfortheWorldFinancialCenteracrosstheWestSidehighwayfromtheWorldTradeCenter.

Upsettingenough,butthen...

9. IrealizethatifthedeathtollisashighasIsuspect,thisincidentismuch,muchworsethanPearlHarbor,whereseveralthousandpeopledied.It’smorespectacularlytragicthantheTitanic,theHindenburg,OklahomaCity,carbombs,andairplanehijackings.Thenumberofdeathsinonefour-hourperiodwillbenearlyhalfoftheAmericandeathtollinallofVietnam.†

I reconnected with my wife by 4 PM, meeting her just north of Union Square Park, before wehikedanothermilenorthtoGrandCentralTerminalforourridetoWestchester,aboveNewYorkCity.

I will never be the same after yesterday, in ways that I cannot foresee. I suppose that mygenerationnowjoinstheranksof thosewho livedthroughunspeakablehorrorsandsurvivedtotellaboutit.HownaiveIwastobelievethattheworldisfundamentallydifferentfromthatofourancestors,whoseliveswerechangedbybearingwitnesstothe20thcentury’svilestactsofwar.

Peacetoyouall,NeildeGrasseTyson

Hastings-on-Hudson,NewYork

SunsetontheWorldTradeCenter

Aloveletter,appearinginthe“CityofStars”specialissueofNaturalHistorymagazine.

January2002Rising a quarter of a mile into the sky, the World Trade Center’s twin towers were about fiveblockstall.

Ilivefourblocksfromwheretheystood.Isawthemablaze.Isawthemfall.Allfrommydining-roomwindow,which,within tensecondsofeach tower’scollapse,offered less thanone inchofvisibilitywhile theopaquedustcloudofpulverizedconcreterolledby.Fromthatsamewindow,blueskynowappearswherethetwintowersusedtobe.

TheWorldTradeCenterwasaveritableverticaluniverse.Ithinkaboutitoften.Ithinkaboutthepeoplewhoworkedinthetowers,thetouristswhovisitedtheobservationdeck,thedinersatWindowsontheWorld.Ithinkofallthosewholosttheirlives.

WhenIlookhardforapeacefulwaytorememberthetowers,Icannothelpbutthinkofthemasobservatories.Onthetopfloor,youcouldtypegreetingsintoacomputerthatwouldtransmityour message into space via the north tower’s radio antenna, for all eavesdroppingextraterrestrialstodecode.Thetowersweresotallthatforsomeoneontheobservationdeck,thehorizonwasforty-fivemilesaway.ThisdistancewasfarenoughalongEarth’scurvedsurfacefortheSuntosettwominuteslaterforthepersonontheobservationdeckthanitdidforsomeoneonthegroundfloor.Ifyoucouldhaverunupthestairsatoneflightpersecond,youwouldliterallyhave stopped the sunset. Alas, you’d eventually have run out of breath or run out of floors. Ineithercase,atthatmomentyou’dlosetheSunforthenight,asitsetgentlybelowyourhorizon.

NewYorkCity’stwintowershavelosttheSunforever.ButItakecomfortinknowingthattheSunwillriseagaineachday,asithasdoneatrilliontimesbefore.

WorldTradeCenterAnniversary

Wednesday,September11,2002NewYorkTimes

TotheEditor:WhenI thinkofanniversaries, I thinkofoccasionstorememberpeople,places,andeventsthathavebeenlargelyforgottenoverthepreviousyear.Forme,however,notadayhasgonebywhenIdid not think of the World Trade Center and the thousands of lives lost in its rubble, just fourblocks from my home. So maybe I’ll use the anniversary as an excuse to try and think ofsomethingelseforaday.

NeildeGrasseTysonNewYorkCity

FlagsofOurFathers

Friday,December7,2012NewYorkTimes

TotheEditor:FormostofmylifeI’vewonderediftheDecember7,1941,JapaneseattackonPearlHarbor, inwhich2,400Americansdied,wouldeverfadeemotionally—perhapsastheeventbecamemoreofa distant memory, or as those who witnessed it passed away. On December 7, 1991, PearlHarbor’s fiftieth anniversary, I figured that one remembers tragedy as long as a bigger, morerecent tragedy does not arise to block your view through time. Indeed, ten years later, onDecember 7, 2001, a mere three months after three thousand Americans had died from theterroristattacksofSeptember11,2001,hardlyanyattentionwasgiventoPearlHarbor,exceptperhaps as a yardstick for how to take measure of September 11th. If sustained peace andtranquilityprevails,thatwillbegood,butwillcarrythenecessaryconsequencethatmyviewof9/11itselfwillremainunobstructed,forbetterorforworse.

NeildeGrasseTysonNewYorkCity

HeavyMetal

Tuesday,March31,2009Mr.Tyson,Itisapleasuretobewritingtoyou.I’vebecomeabigfansinceIfirstsawyouonTheDailyShow(maybe TheColbertReport).Mygirlfriend and I verymuchappreciate your views, humor, andapproachtosuchinterestingsubjectmatter.ThereasonIwriteyoutodayisregardingsomeofthedisputedscienceof the9/11events. Iknowyouwere thereon thedayand if this is inanywayinappropriateorasubjectyouwishnottotouchon,Iapologizeandrespectthat.

Myconcernisthemeltingpointofsteelandifthe3towers,includingWTC-7(the3rdtowertocollapse) could have been brought down the way they were without the use of controlleddemolition. Richard Gage, the founder of Architects and Engineers For 9/11 Truth, has a veryinteresting traveling showwhichheuses to try andopenuppeople to the idea that theTradeCenter towerswere indeed brought downby controlled demolition. I encourage you to see hisshowinpersonorspeakwithhimifyoueverhavethechance.

Pleaseletmeknowyouropinion,whateveritmaybe,atyourconvenience.Asubjectlikethiscouldreallyusetheopinionofrespectedmind likeyourself. Ihopeall iswellandthankyousomuchforyourtime!

SimonNaylor

DearMr.Naylor,For any unique event, there will always be elements that one cannot explain, since they occurwithoutprecedent.

But one must always recognize the difference between knowing that something is true,knowing that something isnot true, andnot knowingonewayor another. It’s thenot knowingpart that leaves singular events susceptible to inventive accounts (especially from conspiracytheorists)ofwhatmayhavehappened.

And, of course, conspiracy theorists know the answers before they investigate, whichcontaminates their analysis—seducing them to accept what supports their thesis and reject orignore or not notice that which conflicts with it. This psychological effect is well known inresearchcommunities,whichiswhypeer-reviewissoimportant.

Thecontrolleddemolitionhypothesisrequiredthatthetowerscollapseataneargravitationalfree-fall.Therapid fallof thetowerswaswidelycitedbythe9/11deniersasevidenceof this. Ifoundtheclaimintriguingandtestedit.Fromvideocoverageoftheevent,Itimedthecollapseofeachtower.Theyinfacttookabouttwiceaslongtofallwhencomparedwithfreefall.Thiscanbeestablishedfromequationsyoulearninfreshmanphysics.

I told this to a 9/11 denier on an impassioned email chain and he quickly wrote back, withdozensofpeoplecc’ed,thatIwaslyingandthatIwasincollaborationwiththegovernment.

Meanwhile, the 9/11 deniers are not citing the much-slower-than-free-fall of the towers asstrongevidenceagainsttheircase.

Whattendstofeedthemareunexplainedaspectsoftheday’sevents,stitchingthemtogetherin ways that support their case. Forgetting of course that they are unexplained, and thereforesupportordenynobody’scase.

Sincerely,NeildeGrasseTyson

Symbolism,Myth,andRitual

Sunday,November15,2009DearNeildeGrasseTyson,Ihopeyouwon’tfindthefollowingquestionstoostrange.WhatIamafterisbeingabletoanswer,basedon theresearch I’vedone intoancientandesotericsources,whether theremightbeanymerittotheideathattheattacks(asstrangeasthismaysound)couldhavebeencoordinatedwiththe movements of certain celestial bodies in mind. To be able to write about this possibilitycritically I need an accurate sense of just where these bodies were on the day of and, moreparticularly,during theattacks,whichstarted (for thepurposesofmyresearch)at8:46amandconcludedat10:28am.

I have a strong interest in symbolism, myth and ritual, and thought I would try to bring adegreeofacademicseriousnessand integrity to theconversationontheritualaspectofhumanviolence,howeveritmightbeseentomanifest.Iwouldbeinterestedinanythoughtsyoumighthavetoshare.

Thankyouforanytimeyoumightbeabletogivethis.Sincerely,

TomBreidenbach

DearTom,People perennially over-interpret celestial events. The urge to link terrestrial affairs to cosmicphenomenaisstronganddeep.

Considerthataneventcanberarebutuninteresting.Thishappensallthetimeinthecosmosand fools people into assigningmeaningwhennone is there tobehad.For example, the exactcrescentmoon/Venuscombinationintheskythatappearedacoupleofmonthsagowillnotrepeatfor5,000years.Butthereare5,000otherjuxtapositionsofthecrescentmoon/Venusthatwillalsonotrepeatfor5,000years.Whichmeansyougetsomesortofacrescentmoon/Venuscombinationeveryyear.

Sowhenaneventisdeclaredrare,absentthecontextofthefrequencyofsimilarrareevents,then superstitious people tend to assign irrational significance when none is there. ThenumerologythatfollowedSeptember11,2001(regardingthedateandyear)lookedquitefertile,until you realize that practically any date and year, in the hands of a determined person, willgenerate troves of numerical coincidences, giving the illusion that the date under study bearsspecialsignificance.

And just words of caution, as you look for otherwise unstated metaphysical significance ofearthly events: Terrorist attacks often commemorate previous Earth-based events or attacks,withoutreferencetotheuniverse.

Neil

*AheavilyforwardedemailthatbecamethesubjectofanarticleintheWallStreetJournalaweeklateronthewidespreaduseoftheWorldWideWebtocommunicatethetragicnewsoftheday.

†Myworstfearsforthedeathtollweremuchtoohigh.Iimaginedatthetime25,000deaths—thelossoftwofullyloaded,110-storyofficebuildings.ButtheTowerswerefarfromfullwithpeoplethatearlyinthemorning.Thedeathtollfromallthreelocations—NYC,DC,PA—came“only”to2,998people,with2,606ofthosedyingintheWorldTradeCenteritself.

Chapter9

ToBelieveorNottoBelieve

Thecapacityofthehumanmindtobelieve, intheabsenceoftangibleevidence,knowsnobounds.Thosewhowrotetomeabouttheirbeliefs,inalmostallcases,weretryingtowinme over to their side, but were also authentically curious. As an educator, I had nohesitationengagingthem,butI’malsogenuinelycuriousaboutallthewaysaperson’smindcanbewiredforthoughtinourperennialattempttomakesenseoftheworld.

TheEyeofGod

Friday,May20,2005FromtheInternet...

Godislookingbackintheotherendofthetelescope?NASACALLSITTHEEYEOFGOD

Thiswasentirelytoocoolnottoshare!Thisisarealpicture...

Couldthatbeanactualphoto?Fondregardstoyou&yourfamily,

NikiBranford*

HiNiki,Realphoto.RealobjectinourMilkyWaygalaxycalledthe“HelixNebula,”a.k.a.ngc7293.TakenbytheHubbleSpaceTelescope.Theurgetolookup,seesomethingbeautiful,andcallitGodisstrong.InthefirstcenturyAD,

the famous astronomer and mathematician Claudius Ptolemy felt that way as he studied themotionsoftheplanetsagainstthebackgroundstarsandpenned:

“WhenItraceatmypleasurethewindingstoandfrooftheHeavenlyBodies,Inolongertouchearthwith

myfeet.IstandinthepresenceofZeushimself,andtakemyfillofambrosia.Ӡ

Oneofmyfavoritequotesofalltime.Whathasalways intriguedme,however,areall theotherthingsthatgoon innature, inthis

same universe, yet people do not feel compelled towax poetic about themajesty ofGod. Likerapid-growthcancercells,fatalbirthdefects,killertsunamis,killerearthquakes,killervolcanoes,killerhurricanes,killerasteroids, theEbolavirus, lethalparasites,malaria-carryingmosquitoes,plague-carryingrats,Lymedisease,heartdisease,stroke,appendicitis,speciesextinction...thelistislong—practicallyendless.Andhowabouttheequallylonglistofghastlythingstolookatinnature? Such as a close-up image of the dust-mite, or a close-up view of the underbelly of atarantula,orthesuckingjawsofaleech,ortheslimytrailofabananaslug,ortheflea-infestedunderbellyofadog...andsoforth.SowhenIseetheHelixnebula,Isimplyseeastrikinglybeautifulpartofourgalaxy,butwith

noparticularurgetocreditorblameanybodyforit.Neil

ThinkingforYourself

InDecember2011, on the internet chat universe ofReddit, Iwas askedwhat books shouldbereadbyeveryintelligentpersonontheplanet.Irepliedwitharankedlistofeightvolumes,eachaccompaniedbyashortphraseexplainingwhy.IrankedtheBibleNo.1,butmycommentirkedmany a believer. A few years later, catching up with the comments in the thread, I posted aresponse.

Thelist...

1. TheBible“...tolearnthatit’seasiertobetoldbyotherswhattothinkandbelievethanitistothinkforyourself”

2. TheSystemoftheWorldbyIsaacNewton“...tolearnthattheuniverseisaknowableplace.”

3. OntheOriginofSpeciesbyCharlesDarwin“...tolearnofourkinshipwithallotherlifeonEarth.”

4. Gulliver’sTravelsbyJonathanSwift“...tolearn,amongothersatiricallessons,thatmostofthetimehumansareYahoos.”

5. TheAgeofReasonbyThomasPaine“...tolearnhowthepowerofrationalthoughtistheprimarysourceoffreedomintheworld.”

6. TheWealthofNationsbyAdamSmith“...tolearnthatcapitalismisaneconomyofgreed,aforceofnatureuntoitself.”

7. TheArtofWarbySunTzu“...tolearnthattheactofkillingfellowhumanscanberaisedtoanart.”

8. ThePrincebyMachiavelli“...tolearnthatpeoplenotinpowerwilldoalltheycantoacquireit,andpeopleinpowerwilldoalltheycantokeepit.”

WhyismycommentontheBiblesonon-complimentary?

1. TheJudeo-ChristianBibleislikelythegreatest(single)sourceoftribalisticconflicttheworldhaseverknown.Ihavenoproblemswiththosewhoassertthatpeople’swarpedinterpretationsarewhatisreprehensibleandnottheBibleitself.ButthatdoesnotabsolvepeoplewhobehaveinthesewaysnotfromfreethoughtbutfromBiblicalpassagesassertedtobedivineinorigin.Thisconductgerminateshierarchiesbasedonunassailableauthority—dogma.Whenyouareundertheinfluenceofdogma,yousay,do,andthinkwhatotherstellyouto.Andthat’salwayseasierthanthinkingforyourselforresistingthepowersthatestablishedthedogmainthefirstplace.

2. Ofcoursereligionisnotthesolesourceofdogmaintheworld.There’spoliticaldogma,aswellascultural&ethnicdogma.There’seven,onoccasion,scientificdogma.Butsciencecontainsthemethodsandtoolswithinitselftoferretitout,sodogmainsciencedoesn’tlast

longwhenitarises.Consideralsothatscientistshardlyeverwieldpower.Sowhensciencebecomesdogmainacountry,it’susuallybecauseapoliticalsystemthatisitselfdogmahasadoptedit.NaziGermanyandcommunistLysenkoRussiaare,perhaps,thebestexampleofthis.

3. AreminderthatthetaskIwasgivenwastolistbooksIfeltthataneducatedpersonshouldread—booksthatwouldimpartinsightintothehumanconditionandthetrajectoriesofcivilizationthatderivefromit.TheconductofpeoplewhohavetribalizedafterreadingtheBible—peoplewhohaveparticipatedinakindof“group-think”—areresponsibleforshapinglargeswathsofWesternhumanhistory.Allofwhichleadstomysinglesentencethat“itiseasiertobetoldbyotherswhattothinkandbelievethanitistothinkforyourself.”

Forthesereasons,Imaintaintheintentandsignificanceofthatsentence.RespectfullySubmitted

NeildeGrasseTyson,NewYorkCity

GodandtheAfterlife

Wednesday,November29,2006HelloDr.Tyson,My question to you is (and I’m sure it will seem like a loaded one), do you believe in asupernaturalbeingsuchasGodandtheprospectsofanafterlife?Ifnot,thenwhat,orhow,doyouexplainit(theconceptofreligionandwhysomebelieve)toyourchildren?

AsIhaveponderedthisquestionforsometime,IaskedmyselfthatifGodandanafterlifeisnotreal,thenwhyhasthisconceptbecomesofundamentaltohumansocietiesfromthebeginningoftheirexistence.

Yourtimeandanswerswillbeappreciated,butintheend,Iwillprobablystillsaymyprayersbecausethelittleinvestmentoffaithcan’thurt—justincaseHe’supthereandthereissomethingmoreaftermybodyhaspassedaway.

WebsterBaker

DearMr.Baker,I’ve yet to be convinced by anything I see on Earth or in the universe that anyone or anyintelligententityisincharge.I teach my children about all the world’s major religions. Not pejoratively but

anthropologically,which is, I think, a sensibleway to broach comparative religion. In thisway,theyknowthatwhiletherearemultiplebeliefsystemsintheworldregardingGodandgods,thereisonlyonescience,andthatscienceisthesamenomatteryourbirthplace,onEarthoranywhereelseinthecosmos.IdonotknowwhetherGodisreal.Isimplyknowthatthepeoplewhociteevidenceinfavorof

Godhaveoverlookedthepreponderanceofevidenceagainstit.Other widespread and timeless activities of human societies include war and infidelity and

powerstrugglesandslaveryandexploitation.Justbecausesomethingendureswithinandacrossculturesdoesnotmeanitisgoodorcorrectortherightthingtodoforthefuture.Asfortheurgetobelieveinanafterlife,notethatformostofthehistoryoflifeonEarthyou

didnotexist.Aconditionthatcontinuedrightupuntilyourbirth.That isnotahardthoughttoconsider.Nor is it depressing. You simply had no existence or awareness of anything at all. Itshouldthereforenotbehardtoconsiderthelikelihoodthatthestateofdeathisnodifferent.Asforsayingyourprayers,justincase,itremindsmeofastoryaboutthehorseshoethathung

inNielsBohr’soffice.Thisfamousphysicistwasaskedwhyhe,amanofscience,believedinsuchsuperstitiousthings.He’srumoredtohavereplied,“Theytellmeitworksevenifyoudon’tbelieveinit.”

Sincerely,NeildeGrasseTyson

SeeingEyetoEye

Thursday,September30,2004DearNeil,Hello.MynameisTom.IsawyouonthePBSshowOrigins,whereyoudiscussedthebeginningof

theuniverse.FromasfarbackasIcanremember,Ihavebeenfascinatedbyspace,stars,andthemoon.Iamanamateurradiooperator,andcurrentlyworkforacompanythatspecializesinHAMradioamplifiersandequipment.

Idohavetodisagreewiththewholetheoryofevolutionofthisuniverseandhereiswhy:IamaChristianwhobelievesthatGodcreatedthisuniverseandactuallyspokeitintobeing.I

canbelievethatperhapslifecouldpossiblyexistelsewhere.Iamopentothis.TheBibledoesnotmentionit,butthenagain,itdoesnotmentiondinosaurseither.Yousee,EarthwasverydifferentinthetimeofAdamandEve,beforesinentered.Therewasnosicknessordeath.Animalsdidnotattackoreatotheranimals.Therewerenohurricanes,tornadoes,earthquakes,andotherthings.

Iknowyouthinkthisiscrazy.IwastoldbymyprofessorthatscienceandGodcouldnotmix,butsciencecannothappenwithoutGod.

IhopethatyouandIcanpossiblyseeeyetoeyewithourdifferentviewpointsoforigin,forwebothlovescienceandnature.

Sincerely,TomRodenstock‡

DearTom,Thankyouforyourcomments.Thesubjectoforiginsneverfailstotriggerallmannerofreactions.In the end, people tend to place their own filter on it, in ways that best resonate with theirpersonalworldview.Yourpointofviewderives,ofcourse,fromtheJudeo-ChristianBible(theOldTestament).The

problem here is that plenty of people in the world who are religious believe something else,expressingnolessconfidencethanyoudointheirspecificbeliefsystem.TheAnimists,Buddhists,Confucians,Hindus,Jews,Muslims,Shintoists,Voduns,etc.areeachascertainasyouthattheirbeliefsare themoral,correct,andonlyones tohold.Not tomention thecountlesssectswithinChristianity itself,whosebeliefsand traditionsalldiffer in importantways:Anglicans,Baptists,Catholics,Episcopalians, Jehovah’sWitnesses,Lutherans,Mormons,Presbyterians,SeventhDayAdventists,andsoforth.Inthepast(andeveninthepresent)differencescandriveadherentstocommitmurderagainstanothersectinthenameoftheirfaith.Science,ontheotherhand,isasystemofknowinganddiscoverythatisdecoupledfromyour

nationalityorbirthplaceorancestryorpoliticsorwhoyouworship.It’sasystemofknowingthenaturalworldthatisimmunetoopinion,butnottoexperiment.When you invoke the methods and tools of science, you come up with the origins story as

conveyedbyscientists.Youdon’tcomeupwithanyfaith-baseddescriptionofthenaturalworld.Hadthatbeenthecase,thenscientistswouldhavebeenminingreligiouswritingssinceantiquityforinsightsintohowthephysicalworldworks.Again,thankyouforyourinterest,andcontinuedbestwishesforyourHAMmingituponthe

airwaves.Sincerely,

NeildeGrasseTyson

TheBibleTellsMeSo

BrandonFibbs,aformerdevoutChristianturnedatheist,engagedaformerprofessorfromwhenhe had attended bible college. Certain the Bible is correct on all matters, and that anythingdisagreeingwith theBible amounts to a liberal conspiracy, theprofessor actively deniesglobalwarming, evolution, the Big Bang, and other findings from the frontier of science. Fibbs, aformidablewriterandcommentator,sharedhis1,500-wordreplywithmetosolicitmyreaction.Whatfollowsismyresponsetohisfull-scaleattackonhisformerprofessor.

Sunday,February14,2010Brandon,Your polemic is tight, unforgiving, and well-informed.Would probably be a waste on someoneotherthanaformerprofessor.Mybet isthatyouareoldernowthanhewaswhenhewasyourprofessor.Isthatcorrect?Personally,Itrytospendtwiceasmuchtimetomakethingshalfaslong.Youdon’twanttobe

guiltyofaShakespearean,“MethinkstheGentlemendothprotesttoomuch.”AnotherpointItaketo heart is the adage, “When an argument last longer than five minutes then both sides arewrong.”Aboutglobalwarmingandheavysnowfalls,Icontinuetofinditoddthatpeopleequatesnow

accumulations with cold. The heaviest snowfalls tend to occur between 22 and 32 degreesFahrenheit. At these “warmer” temperatures, water crystals grow larger, are stickier, and

accumulatemuch faster on theground.Sohuge snowfalls are indicationsofwarmsnowstormsnotcoldones.Also,trytoavoidthewordproof.It’scommonlyascribedtowhatscientistsdo.Butitsomewhat

misrepresents what goes on in the process of discovery and confirmation. And it leaves yoususceptible to people saying that “Scientists onceproved thatA is true, but now they sayB istrue.”Thishighlightsthemoderndistinctionbetweenthewordshypothesisandtheory.Scientistsnever“prove”anything.Thiswordhasaspecificapplicationinmathematics,butin

science what we do is demonstrate, with sufficient experiments, that a consensus exists andfurtherevidenceinsupportofanideawouldbeawasteofeffortorfundingsinceotherpressingquestions remain unanswered.When such an experimental consensus emerges the results willneveronedaybeshowntobewrong.Inthemoderneraofscience(thepast400years)allthathappens is that a bigger truth emerges that enclosed the previous ideas and experiments in adeeperunderstanding.Forideasinprogress,wearenowusingtheword“hypothesis”ratherthanTheory,reserving

thewordtheory forbig ideas thatprovidebroadanddeepunderstandingsof theoperationsofnature.QuantumTheory,RelativityTheory,EvolutionTheory.Sometheoriesof the19thcenturystill retain the word “Law,” back when that word was common: Laws of Gravity, Laws ofThermodynamics,etc.Todaytheywouldbecalledtheories.

Neil

p.s.Yourwritingispotent,butyouneverwanttowinanargumentforbeingabetterwriter,orbecause you have a bigger vocabulary than your opponent. In this way, the strength of theargumentrestsonthestrengthoftheargumentratherthanthestrengthofyourliteracy.

APieceofPi

Sunday,November28,2004DearNeil,Youmentionpiinarecentarticleofyours.FormanyyearsnearlyallthebooksonthehistoryofmathematicsstatedthatintheOldTestamentoftheBible,thevalueofpiisgivenas3,aratherpoorapproximation.Yetrecent“detectivework”showsotherwise.

Onealwaysrelishesthenotionthatahiddencodecanreveallonglostsecrets.TherearetwoplacesintheBiblewherethesamesentenceappears,identicalineverywayexceptforoneword,whichisspelleddifferentlyinthetwocitations.

RevertingtotheoriginalHebrew,inIKings7:23itwaswrittenas whereasin2Chronicles4:2 it was written as Elijah applied the ancient biblical analysis technique (still used byTalmudicscholars today)calledgematria,wheretheHebrewlettersaregiventheirappropriatenumericalvaluesaccordingtotheirsequenceintheHebrewalphabet,tothetwospellingsofthewordfor“linemeasure”andfoundthefollowing:thelettervaluesare: =100, =6and =5.Therefore,thespellingfor“linemeasure”in1Kings7:23is =5+6+100=111,whilein2Chronicles4:2thespelling =6+100=106.Usinggematriainanacceptedway,hethentookthe ratio of these two values: (to four decimal places), which he considered the necessary“correction factor.” Bymultiplying the Bible’s apparent value (3) of pi by this factor, one gets3.1416,whichispicorrecttofourdecimalplaces!

“Wow!”isacommonreaction.Suchaccuracyisquiteastonishingforancienttimes.Moreover,rememberhowjustgettingpi=3.14usingstringmeasurementswasquiteafeat.Nowimaginegettingpiaccuratetofourdecimalplaces.Wewouldcontendthatthiswouldbenearlyimpossiblewithtypicalstringmeasurements.Tryitifyouneedconvincing.

Dr.AlfredS.Posamentier,Dean,SchoolofEducationTheCityCollegeofNewYork

DearAlfred,NoneedforyoutoberaptbyTalmudicKabbalistnumerology.Toknow, inadvance, theansweryou are looking for, and then to manipulate a set of preexisting numbers in search of theconnection,isanold,attractive,butdiscreditedmeansofknowingtheworld.Therealmeasureofnumerology’svalue(ifithadany)wouldbetodoallthisinadvance,andthenpredictthevalueforpi (or anything else). But this has never happened. That’s because there is an almost-infinitenumber of ways you can combine numbers to get other numbers. And if you do not know inadvancewhat youareafter, youwillmost surelybedoingcalculations thathavenothing todowithanything.The“power”ofnumerology isseductive indeed.As justoneexampleofmany, theattackson

September 11, 2001, spawned endless numerological excursions, all pointing to some deep

meaningforthetime,date,numberofhijackers,numberoflettersintheirnames,andsoforth.Problemis,thisinformationdidnotexistbeforetheattacks,therebymissinganopportunityto

predictthem.That’sbecauseafter-the-factnumerologicaldeductionscanbemadeforanyeventofanydateofanyyear(youwouldjustcombinethenumbersinanother,equallysensibleway),yettheresultsappeartotheeyeandthemindasamagical,evenmysticalconnection.Otherhot-bedsfornumerologyincludetheKennedyassassination,theshapeandproportions

oftheEgyptianpyramids,theendoftheworld,theattackonPearlHarbor,andD-Day.Sohave fun, but do so knowing that numerology is granting access to entertainment rather

thanaccesstoreality.Neil

Buddhist

Friday,August28,2009HelloDr.Tyson,Iwant tosay that Ienjoyyourvideosverymuch.Andyes Iconsidermyselfa religiousperson.Howcomeyouguysdon’tpickontheBuddhists?It’sonlytheChristians,JewsandMuslims.Ifyouhaven’tguessedIamofBuddhistbeliefs.Notimportant,butitmakesthejokemorefunny.

Iwantmychildrenexposedtootherideasandletthemmakeadecisionforthemselvesastowhattheywanttobelieve.Ionlywanttoteachthemcompassion,andiftheyfollowthatthroughscienceorreligion,goodforthem.

Keepupyourgreatworksir.ToddBaxter

DearMr.Baxter,In my writings (from which the videos are derived) I reference only those who want to bringreligious philosophy into the science classroom. This behavior is common for Protestantfundamentalistsand largelyunheardof inAmericaamongBuddhists, Jews,orMuslims, forthatmatter.Notealsothatnotallbeliefsystemsareequal.Mostaredemonstrablyfalse.Thenotionthatall

beliefsystemsareequalisevidenceforrampantscientificilliteracyinthenation.And you care about compassion—as we all should. But to be devout in one religion almost

alwaysrequires thatyourejectallother religions.Compassion is the last thingyou findduringHolyWars.And,ofcourse, themostprominentstoriesof theOldTestamentshowanythingbutcompassion.

Thankyou,NeildeGrasseTyson

OpenMind

Thursday,August13,2009DearDr.Tyson,Irespectyouverymuch.Ialsolovemychurch.Iamveryconfused.Iwanttoaskonequestion—asamanof science,youaresupposed tohaveanopenmind—is thereANYchanceatall that theEarthisonlyfiveorsixthousandyearsold?

IwouldjustsaythatifthereisnoGodIwould/willfeelawfullyaloneandinsignificant.KevinCarrol

DearKevin,ZerochancethatEarthisfiveorsixthousandyearsold.AsIsayoften,ifyouusereligioustextstopredictfutureknowledgeofthephysicaluniverse,

you will get the wrong answer. But it’s not for want of trying. More accurately stated: everypreviousattemptatthisexercisehasfailed.ConsiderinsteadGalileo’sdictum§:

“InmymindGodwrotetwobooks.ThefirstbookistheBible,wherehumanscanfindtheanswersto their questions on values andmorals. The second book of God is the book of nature, whichallows humans to use observation and experiment to answer our own questions about the

universe.”

Galileowasareligiousman,butwasnonethelesscompelledtosay:

“IdonotfeelobligedtobelievethatthesameGodwhohasendoweduswithsenses,reasonandintellecthasintendedustoforegotheiruseandbysomeothermeanstogiveusknowledgewhichwe can attain by them.Hewould not require us to deny sense and reason in physicalmatterswhicharesetbeforeoureyesandmindsbydirectexperienceornecessarydemonstrations.”

Just tobeclear, theexistenceornon-existenceofGodhasnothing todowith theageof theEarth. Most (> 80%, is my guess) of western religious people recognize this. Those who linkEarth’sagewithwhetherornotGodexistsareasmallminorityofthereligiouscommunity.Theyjusthappentobelouderthanmostothers,givingthe(false)impressionthattheyaremainstreamand represent the majority. There are extensive religious organizations that have publishedstatementsinsupportofEvolution,whichrequiresacceptingaveryoldEarth.Goodluckinyourexplorations.

Sincerely,NeildeGrasseTyson

Proof

Monday,September19,2005thruMonday,May8,2006Hello,Iknowyouareabusymanand Ihopeyouwouldreply tomyhumbleemail.SeeingyouonTVpresentsmewithmixedemotions.

First, I’m happy to see a fellow black man talking about science on such a wonderful andpopularTVprogramsuchasPBSNova(oneofmyfavoriteprograms).Wecertainlyneedtoseemoreblacks in thescientific field,andNova isagreatplace for it. I’manelectronicsengineermyself(startedtwoengineeringcompanies)andIlovescienceverymuch.

Ontheotherhand,Ifeelsorrythatyoudon’tseemtobelieveinGod,andthinkthateverythingcameintoexistencebyrandomchance.Asanelectronicsengineer,Idesigncomplexproductsallthetimeforaliving,andIknowhowharditistodesignsomethingandmakeitwork.Everylastdetailmustbethoughtoutcompletelyaheadoftimeorelseallyougetisfireandsmoke,orgetsued.Icanseenowaythatsomethingascomplexasahumanbeing,DNA,theuniversewithallitsrobustnesscouldhavemadeitselffromrandomchanceorfromaBigBang.

I was wondering why you don’t believe that the universe was created by God? How couldanybodybelievethatsuchacomplexuniversecouldbecreatedbyrandomchance?Frompersonalresearch,Ihavefoundsomanyreasonswhy,scientifically,Godmustexist.

A lotof scientistspanic that ifpeople startbelieving thatGoddesignedeverything, thenwewouldstoptryingtodiscoverthingsbecausewealreadyknowwhodesignedit.

ButknowingthedesignerisGodwouldmakeyouwanttodiscoverstuffevenmore.Iknowalotofpeoplesaythatthingsarebadlydesigned,butIdon’tthinkso.Inaphysicalworldtherearelimitstoeverythingandcompromises,nomatterwhatyoudo(evenGod),physicalthingscannotbeperfectlydesigned.

Forexample,howcananythingphysicalbereallyperfect?Can it surviveeveryattack,can IthrowitintotheSunanditstillcomesoutunscratched?CanIkeepitinwaterforayearanditstillcanlive?CanIkeepitinavolcanoanditstilllives?CanIpoursometoxicwasteonitanditdoesn’tdie?CanIhititwithsomebirdflucombination,AIDSandcanceranditjustboundsoff?Nothingcanwithstandallthat;evenifitcould,thereisalwayssomethingelseintheuniversethatcankillit.

IbelieveGodalreadyknowsthis,sonomatterwhathedid,therewouldbesomethingintheuniverse that could kill his physical creation, so why bother making it bullet proof. Anythingphysical will bemortal nomatter what. This is what it means to be physical. Comeswith theterritory.

Thanksforlisteningtomyramblings!NigelSmith

DearNigel,Themodernintelligentdesignmovement,asexpressedintheDiscoveryInstitutewebpagesandbyleadingIDproponentsinthe2005courtcaseinDover,Pennsylvania,invokesintelligentdesignonlywhenthethingbeingdescribedisunknown(e.g.theoriginoflife).

Ifyoupersonallydeclarethatthingswedounderstand(andtypicallycancontrolorinfluence)are also the work of an intelligent designer, then you operate with no restrictions on what todiscovernext.About good versus bad design—to assert that onemust survive a direct hit by amillion-ton

meteor goes far beyond any example that I give. Anybody with that ability would be “overdesigned” because such a danger is extremely rare. But choking to death is common in ourspecies. So is drowning. So is childhood leukemia. So are (most) birth defects, etc. And noengineer, in his or her right mind, would ever design a system that ingested liquids, solids,communicated,andrespiratedthroughthesameorifice.Soyouaskwheretodrawtheline?Anyrationalpersonwouldputmeteorstrikesfartoonesideofthatline,andchokingtodeathfarontheotherside.I am not in denial of good design. Good design is obvious when it’s there—the opposable

thumb.Stereo-vision.Speech.Ball sockets (shouldersandhips).The shapeand strengthofourskull,tonameafew.Butyouareindenialofbaddesign,notbecauseitisnotthere,butbecauseitfallsoutsideofyourreligiousphilosophy,andarethusblindtoit.Bytheway,youarenotalone.Thishasbeengoingon forcenturies.And there isanentire fieldof religiousphilosophycalled“apologetics”thatcarriesonwiththisbehavior.Itsproponentsarecalled“apologists.”What they do is construct arguments to counter criticisms of Bible passages by loosely

interpreting the literal word, thereby leaving room for the Bible to not sound as though itcontradicts empirical findings of the natural world. A clean example of this is the fact thatnowhere in theBible isEarth referencedasa3Dobject.Andeverywherea reference ismade,Earthissimplyflat—typicallydrawnasacircle,withJerusaleminthecenter,andthelandmassessurroundedbywater in everydirectionon thehorizon, as is clearly stated inmanyplaces andconsistentwithunderstandingsoftheknownworldoftheday.TheapologiststhencitetheBiblepassagecontainingthewords“circleoftheEarth,”andassertthatCirclemeansSphere.But,infact,peopleofthedayknewfullwellthedifferencebetweenthetwo.Sothereinliesanon-convergentpointofourconversation:Youalreadyknowwhereyouwant

toland.AndGodistheretodesignit.IhavenoideawhereIamgoingtoland.AndifthereisaGod of unwavering intelligence, this fact is simply not evident in the book of nature to theunbiasedobserver.Naturalselectionneverclaimsperfectdesign,orevengooddesign,onlyadesignthatismore

effectivethanthatofacompetingspecies,allowingsurvival longenoughtoreproduce.Nothingelsematterstotheprocess.Further,Ineversaidtheuniversewasnotdesigned.Isimplysaidthatifitwasdesigned,then

there is ample (and widely ignored) evidence to demonstrate the designer’s blunders rightalongsideallthosethingsthataremarvelous.

Sincerely,NeildeGrasseTyson

MeaninginLife

In December 2007, Mark, an inmate at the Kentucky State Reformatory, asked perhaps thedeepestreligiousquestionofthemall—IfthereisnoGod,thenhowcanlifehavemeaning?Whoshouldcareifyoueverlived?WhywoulditmatterifanyoneofuswereStalinorEinstein?HitlerorMotherTeresa?IofferedMarkananswer,butwithnopremisethatit’stheonlyanswer.

DearMark,Oftenpeople,especiallyreligiouspeople, lookoutsidethemselvestofindthemeaningoflife—inscripture,inmessagesfromreligiousleaders,religiousrelics,andsoforth.Whenyoudothis,anddo it foryourentire life, itbecomeshardto imagine lifewithout thiskindofspiritualstructureconstructedforyouandaroundyou.Butsupposeyouinsteadlookedwithinyourself?Bydoingso,it’snothardtofindmeaningin

life by doing meaningful things—caring for others less fortunate than you, raising children,accomplishinghardtasksthatgiveyouphysical,intellectual,oremotionalfulfillment.Thedrivetodothis,withoutanyreferencetoreligioustextsatall,canbequitefulfilling.Mypersonalgoalisto leavetheworlda littlebetteroff formyhavinglived in it.Theprospectofmakingthiscometruedrivesmyworkhabitsdaily.Forsomepeople,thesearchformeaningleadstoviolence,abuseofothers,andcrime.These

people range fromselfish tomisanthropic.But those traitsarenot theuniqueprovinceofnon-religiouspeople.Theworldisnostrangertoreligiouswarfare—withabjectslaughterofcountlessinnocentsinthenameofonegodoranother.SoyoursuppositionthatoneneedsGodtobehaveortogivemeaningtolife—whileitmaybetrueformanypeople—iscertainlynotapre-requisitetoafulfilling,law-abidinglife.IaddthatifIhelpanoldladyacrossthestreet,it’sbecausesheneedshelpandIcanprovide

it, not because I amexpecting rewards forhavingdone so, either in this life or inheaven.Mymotivationissimplytocreatemeaningandselfworth—notonlyinmyownlife,butinthelivesofothers.Finally,deeplyreligiouspeoplesometimesask,“WithoutGod,whyshouldpeoplebeciviltoone

another?”or “What’s to stoppeople fromcommittingcrimesorevenmurder in theabsenceofdivine judgment?” There is a simple answer to this: prison. That’s why laws exist, to restrainoffensivebehaviorfrompersontopersonandbetweenpersonandproperty.Thisrecipeworksformost people. In fact, in Europe, there arewhole countries (e.g. Switzerland, TheNetherlands,England,France,Sweden)where religionplayshardlyany role inpolitics, culture,business,orfamily,yettheyenjoyfarlowerratesofviolentcrimethaninAmerica,wheremorethan9in10people say theyare religious. In theseothercountries, the fractionofpeoplewhosay theyarereligiousistypicallylessthan1in10.So rest well, whether or not you are religious, reflecting on the fact that in most western

societies,religionisanaspectofculture,andnotcultureitself.Besttoyou,

NeildeGrasseTyson

*Correspondencewiththesisterofalifelongfriend.

†OwenGingerich,TheEyeofHeaven:Ptolemy,Copernicus,Kepler(Washington,DC:AmericanInstituteofPhysics,1993),55.EpigramhandwrittenbyPtolemyinthemanuscriptofhisAlmagest(ca.AD150).

‡Namechangedbyrequest.

§StillmanDrake,DiscoveriesandOpinionsofGalileo(NewYork:Anchor,1957),173.

IV.

KairosApropitiousmomentfordecisionoraction.

Chapter10

SchoolDays

Atimeandaplacetolearnnewthings,andtoestablishtheintellectualtaprootsoflife.

ATeacher,aStudent,andaChurch-StateDispute

ApublicmiddleschoolstudentrecordedhisscienceteachergivingBibleaccountsofthenaturalworld.Hewentpublicanditmadeheadlines.Normallysilentonsuchmatters,Ihadtojumpin,withalettertotheeditoroftheNewYorkTimes.

Thursday,December21,2006NewYorkTimes

TotheEditor:People cited violation of the First Amendmentwhen aNew Jersey schoolteacher asserted thatevolutionandtheBigBangarenotscientificandthatNoah’sarkcarrieddinosaurs.

Thiscaseisnotabouttheneedtoseparatechurchandstate; it’sabouttheneedtoseparateignorant,scientificallyilliteratepeoplefromtheranksofteachers.

NeildeGrasseTysonNewYorkCity

SpaceCadet

InApril2008,RonaldWard,*anAfrican-Americanmiddleschoolerwithintenseinterestinspacesinceagesix,soughtmyguidanceforhisupcomingsciencefairproject.He’dbeentoSpaceCampmultipletimes.HewantedtobeapilotoranastronautandeverySundaylauncheshisownmodelrocketswithhisdad.Healsohappenstosufferfromaseizuredisorder,whichmadehimthebruntofteasingbyhisfellowstudents,andmayforcehimtoalterhisdreamsofbeinganaviator.Theycalled him names like “space cadet,” “nerd,” and “geek” and told him hewill never become ascientist,mathematician,orengineer,whichhurthisfeelings.

If he created awinning science fair project, hewonderedwhether the kids in schoolwouldstartbeingnicetohim.HefurtherwonderedwhetherkidsmadefunofmewhenIwasinmiddleschool.

DearRonald,Thankyouforthatenthusiastic,personalnote.

Inmycircles,weassigntheplayfultitleof“SpaceCadet”withpride.Andtobecalleda“Geek”ispracticallyabadgeofhonor.Rememberthatoneoftherichestpeopleintheworld,BillGates,is a card-carrying Geek. So too is Mike Griffin, the head of NASA. As am I. So when yourclassmatesmake fun of you for being enthusiastic about everything aerospace, just rememberthattherearehundredsofthousandsofusouttherewhounderstandyou.Andneverforgetthatthe only people who are any good at what they do in life are those who are passionate andpersistent.

Aboutyouroccasionalseizures—theywillcertainlypreventyoufrombecominganastronaut—asdomanycommonmedicalconditions,includingmostchronicailmentsthatrequireprescriptionmedicine to overcome. But they will not prevent you from being smart, from being amathematician, from being an engineer, from being a scientist, or from being the designer ofairplanesandspacecraftusedonthefrontierofdiscovery.

Remember that for every astronaut in space, there are a thousand scientists and engineerswhogot’emthere.

InoticedfromyourreturnaddressthatyouliveintheRockies.ColoradoSpringshappenstobetheheadquartersoftheSpaceFoundation—akindofcenteroftheuniverseforeverythingspace.Among the many things they do is track how space technology becomes everyday products. Istronglyrecommendyouvisit them. Ifyoudo, Ibet theywillsendyouhomewithaboxofcool

stuff—pens,posters,pins,paperweights,andotherponderablesthatyoucanuseinyoursciencefairproject. Iknow,becauseIservedontheirBoardofDirectors,andeverytimeIvisitedtheirheadquarters,Iwenthomewithaboxfullofcoolstuffmyself.

If you visit the Space Foundation, youwill surely get to hang out, even if only briefly, withotherswhohadflatlyignoredthebone-headedpeerpressureoftheirclassmates.

Besttoyou,onEarthandintheuniverse.NeildeGrasseTyson

ElementaryCuriosity

Friday,April10,2009DearNeildeGrasseTyson,Ithinkit’scoolthatyouwritealotofbooksabouttheuniverse.Iwanttoreadthemsomeday.IwanttobeanastrophysicistwhenIgrowup,too.Iaminfirstgradeandamdoingaprojectonmylivinghero.Canyouanswerthesequestionsforme?

Thankyou,GabeMopps

1. Doyouknowwhatcausesthegravitationalpullofplanetsandtheirmoons?

HiGabe,Gravityremainsamysterious force in theuniverse.Whenobjectswandernearanotherobject’sfieldofgravityweinvokeEinstein’sGeneralTheoryofRelativity,whichsaysthatgravitycurvesspace and time.Objects simply follow those curves as theymove. But aside from that, nobodyknowswhatgravityactuallyis.

2. Isitreallyhardtoresearchaboutblackholesbecausetheyareinvisible?

Yes.Sowestudywhateffectblackholeshaveontheirsurroundingregions.Blackholesdothingstospaceandmatterandenergythatnootherobjectsdo.That’showwecanfindtheseinvisiblemonstersintheuniverse.Kindoflikeseeingabear’sfootprintinthesnow,whichtellsyouabearwasthereevenifyoudidnotseethebearitself.

3. Howdoyoudoyourresearchforyourbooksontheseideas?

Read,Read,Read.Think.Think.Think.Read,Read,Read.

4. Ifindallofthesethingsreallyinteresting.

SodoI.

5. IheardthatyoumightbeheadofNASA.

Heardthesamething.Justrumors.Yourfriend,GabeMopps

Thanks,Gabe,foryourinterest.Andaswesayintheuniverse,keeplookingup!

Neil

LookButDon’tTouch

Tuesday,February5,2008Mr.Tyson,Iam13andIwanttobeanenvironmentalengineer.Butwithspacebeingthelastfrontier,itis

goodtobeeducatedaboutspaceandnaturetoo.Idohaveonequestion:Isn’tithorriblenotbeingabletotouchthestuffyoulookat?Allyoucanreallydoisuseyour

eyesfromlightyearsaway.Itmustbefrustratingnotbeingabletobecloseenoughtouseyourhands.

Sincerely,MarcJaruzel

DearMarc,Yes, it can be frustrating to not get one’s hands on the subject of interest. But we learn inastrophysicsthatthetelescopeisnotonlyasgoodasthehands,inmanyways,it’sbetter.

Besides,whowantstotouchaquasar?Orablackhole?Thatwouldnotbeaparticularlysafethingtodo.

Sincerely,Neil

ToKnow

Tuesday,April7,2009Howdoyouknowwhatyouknow?

DavidLunianski

DearDavid,IwasinschooluntilIwas32.AndsincethenIreadalot.Schoolisnotonlyaplacetolearn,butaplace to learnhow to learn.Andat itsbest, school shouldbeaplace to stimulatea lifetimeofcuriosity.

Inaddition,asoftenasIcan,IseekoutpeoplesmarterthanIamtotalktoandhangoutwith.Mywife,forexample,hasaPhDinmathematicalphysics.SheknowsatonmorestuffthanIdoaboutallkindsofthings.AndIwon’thaveitanyotherway.

NeildeGrasseTyson

Stigma

Thursday,July24,2008DearDr.TysonIreadwithinterestyourobservation(intheJuly7,2008issueofTimemagazine)thatimprovingstudentperformanceinscienceandmathrequiresremovingthestigmaassociatedwiththestudyofthesesubjects.

Aftermanyyearsofobservation,Istronglybelievethatamajorcauseofthispoorperformanceis the low levelof respect themediaandsocietyshowto thosewhoexcel inscienceandmath.Afterall,whywouldastudentstrivetoexcelinasubjectthatpossesseslittleperceivedvalue?Forexample,aquickreadingofrecentnewspaperarticlesfindsreferencestovariouspeoplebytitlessuchas“chef,”“officer,”“doctor,”“ranger,”etc.Infact,inthesameJuly7issueofTimemagazineinwhichyourobservationsappeared,no“Dr.”appearedbeforethenameofNeildeGrasseTyson.

As a scientistwith a Ph.D. in theoretical physicswho has taught several thousand studentsover a 35-year period at the University of Minnesota, I have had many conversations withstudentsaboutthissubject.And,duringtheseconversations,ascientist’srelativelylowpositionwithinsocietywasfrequentlycitedasareason(inadditiontosubject-matterdifficulty)toavoidthestudyofscienceandpursueotherprofessionsthatpossessahigher“societalapprovalfactor.”

Asthemostvisiblememberofthescientificcommunity,youareinasuperbpositiontobegintheprocessofalteringthemannerinwhichsocietyviewsscientists.

Thanksforyourtime.Dr.RobertCassola

DearDr.Cassola,Thanks forsharingyournoteabout theexistenceorabsenceofrespect thatscientistsget fromthe public. You make an intriguing point, but certain (repeatable) surveys, as well as some

anecdotal cases I can cite, do not agree with your contention, or rather, would argue thatwhateverneedstobefixed,isnottraceabletotitlesinanyimportantway.

FromSalary.com,wegetaglimpseat today’s toptenmostrespectedprofessions.Ofcourse,forty years ago, soldier and policeman would have been nowhere on that list, so times havechangedforthemtoo.Andasexpected,lawyers,politicians,andsalesmenareabsent.

1. Doctor2. Soldier3. Teacher4. Firefighter5. CEO6. Scientist7. Engineer8. PoliceOfficer9. Architect10. Accountant

Whileothersurveysvaryslightly,scientist,asaprofession,hasbeeninthetoptenforatleast30years.

Overthedecades,therehasbeenarealphaseshiftinhowscientistsareportrayedinmoviesand television. The mad scientist is a fading icon. In television, the shows CSI: Crime SceneInvestigation andNUMB3RS are hit prime-time network crime dramas that feature socialized,attractive,brilliantscientists(chemists,mathematicians,physicists,biologists)inleadingroles.Infact,theenrollmentofgirlsincollegechemistryandmathematicshasincreaseddramaticallyovertheyears theseshowshavebeenhits—e.g. today,48%ofallmathematicsmajors incollegearewomen.

RecentAmerican InstituteofPhysics (AIP)data reveal themedian12-monthsalaryofseniorprofessionalscientists(inresearchacademiaorindustry)tobetwicethatofthemediannationalhouseholdincome.

Inmy lifeexperience,sheddingthe“Dr.” titlehelps todissolveacommunicationbarrierandmakespeoplewanttolearnmorefromyou—providedthatyourpedagogicalmessageisonethatempowers the listener’s capacity to think. If you accomplish this, theywill beat a path to yourdoorregardlessofyourtitle.

Andasyouknow,unlikeinthesocialsciences, inyourandmyprofessions,titlesareomittedfrompublishedresearchpapers—atraditionIhavealwaysenjoyed.Iseeitasatacitrecognitionthat,forexample,anuntitledgraduatestudentmighthaveanideaasimportantasthatofamoreseniorresearcher,andareaderofthepaperwouldnotnecessarilyknowwhowaswhom.

Thatbeingsaid,about60%ofmymedia interviews (printandbroadcast)do invoke the title“Dr.”andarequiterespectfulaboutitwhentheydo.Butinbothcases—whentheydoandwhentheydon’t—theykeepcomingbacktolearnmoreaboutscience,whichis,forme,thebestofallmeasuresofrespect.

Thereismorequalitysciencedocumentaryprogrammingontelevisiontodaythaneverbefore.WhenyoucombinethebroadcastcalendarsofPBS,DiscoveryNetworks(includingtheirScienceChannel), National Geographic, the History Channel, and intermittent network specials onselectedsciencesubjects,thepublic’sexposure,appreciation,andappetiteforsciencehasgrownexponentiallyovertheyears.

Ofcourse,noneofthisaddressestherecurringandparadoxicalfactofourlowtestscoresandothermetrics of poor performance relative to that of other developed nations. But itwould behardtopinthatblameontitlesnotbeingusedforscientists.

So, while your concerns are sensible and precise, the above information does not supportthem,andinparticular,arguesforanoppositetrend.Agoodthing.

Thanksforyourinterest.Neil

NotaShadowofDoubtTuesday,June30,2009DearDr.Tyson,I aman IndianaStatePoliceOfficer, abig fanof scientific endeavors, andmostof all, a fanofyours. Iknowyouareamegascientistandcelebrity,but Iwondered if youwouldspeak tomeabout how I could use scientific applications (ie. observation techniques, crash damageinvestigation,investigativetechniques/discoveries)inthefield(ontheroad—notforensics).Ilikeyourthoughtprocessandwould like toknowifyouwouldsharea“layman”approach intohowyouperceivetheworld.MygoalistobecomeabetterPoliceOfficer/Investigator,butattimesuse

adifferentapproachtogetthesameends.Maybeoneday,whenyouareintheChicagolandarea,Icanmeetyoupersonally.

LawrenceMcFarrin

DearOfficerMcFarrin,Thanksforyournoteabouttryingtousescienceinyourwork.OfcoursethehitTVshow,CSI,initsmultiple incarnations (CSI:NewYork;CSI:Miami;CSI:Cyber), is all aboutusing science tosolvecrimes,althoughtheyusuallyhaveoneortwodeadbodiestodealwithalongtheway,andeveryonenotdeadisotherwisegood-looking.

Inyourspecificcase,Iofferapossiblyunorthodoxreflection...Whatyoushoulddoisnotlearnabouthowtoapplythelawsofphysicstopolicework.Instead,

you should learn the lawsofphysics—“Physics101”ata local community collegeoruniversity.Community colleges, as you surely know, tend to offer course schedules that knowinglyaccommodateworkingpeople,sotheymaybeyourbestoption.

When you learn about motion and gravity and forces and acceleration and statics andthermodynamics and light and electricity, then theways andmeans of how they apply to yourworkwill becomeobvious to you.Theseare fundamental elementsof caraccidents, bar fights,gunshots,andalmosteverythingelseyourdayonthejobmaybring.

I’ve been asked by attorneys to estimate the time a photograph was taken (which mightimplicatethedefendant,dependingontheanswer)basedonlyonthelengthsofshadowscastbytheSunwithinit.Forthatlineofwork,youalsoneedanastrocourse:“Astro101,”whichissurelyofferedrightalongsidephysics,whereveryouchoosetogo.

Theactofsolvingthecourse’shomeworkproblemsis,inaway,aslowre-wiringofyourbrain—ultimately empowering you to use a lens of investigation that’s forged in the operations ofnature.

If youhavenot takenphysicsbefore, nor themath togowith it, then these classesmaybehard.Butifdoingthings“becausethey’reeasy”werepartofyouridentity,Idon’tthinkyouwouldhavechosentobeacopinthefirstplace.

Goodluck.Intheend,youwillnotregretamomentofit.Besttoyou,

NeildeGrasseTyson

GiftedStudents

InOctober2004 I visitedKentStateUniversity’sStarkcampus toparticipate in theirFeaturedSpeakers Series. In my talk I emphasized the value of hard work and ambition to success inschool,job,andlife.DuringtheQ&Asession,Bronwen,astudent,askedabouttheimportanceofgifted education for smart kids from grades K through 12. In a letter sent a week later, shecontinued her commentary, noting that she, herself, was identified as “gifted” from the verybeginningofelementaryschoolandwaspersistently ignoredbyteachers,knowingshe’dgetan“A”withoutextrahelp from them.Becauseof these forces, sheworried thatuntoldnumbersofgiftedstudentswouldneverrisetotheirpotential.Thisformedanoccasionformetoexpandonmyviewsaswell.

HelloBronwen,Thankyouforyoursummaryreflections.

Ihaveseveralreactionstoyourcomments.

1. Tobegiftedinaclassofnon-giftedstudentsisindeedarecipeforbeingignored.Buttobegiftedinaclassofgiftedstudentsis,ineverycaseIknow(andhaveheardof)ameansforthecity/county/statetodevoteextraresourcestothe“needs”ofthegifted.Mycommentsreferredspecificallytogiftedprogramsandgiftedschools,ofwhichtherearemany.

2. Inmyexperience,aprimarymeansbywhichchildrenareidentifiedasacademicallygiftedisbytheirperformanceonIQtestsandstandardizedexams.Ifschoolistoprepareustoachieveinsociety,then,aboveacertainminimumlevelofperformanceonthesemeansofassessment,yourscoresareirrelevanttothekindofcitizenyoubecome—inadulthoodandintheprofessionalworkplace,afteryourfirstjob,nobodyasksorcaresaboutyourGPAorIQorSATscores.Iinviteyoutowalkuptoanyolderperson(30+yearsofage)andposethatquestion.

3. Let’sgoonareasonable,butyet-to-be-confirmedassumptionthatambition,asexpressedthroughadulthood,doesnotdirectlycorrelatewithGPA—likeIsaid,ifitdid,thenallof

society’sgreatestachievers(entrepreneurs,lawyers,actors,comedians,artists,athletes,architects,musicians,statesmen,generals,CEOs,presidents,mayors,senators,governors,communityleaders,authors,directors,producers,etc.)wouldbeoccupiedonly(orprimarily)bythosewhogotstraightA’sinschool.Butthisissimplynotthecase.Soifambitioncanbefoundinalmostanypackage,andsincebydesign,therearemorepeoplewhodonotgetA’sthanthosewhodo,thenperhapssomebody(adedicatededucator)oughttobeinsearchofthosewhohaveit.Orbetteryet,designcurriculathatdevelopit.

4. Notthatyouhaveanyobligationtofollowmyadvice,butinmyopinion,ifyouwanttomakeyourmarkasaneducator,thenwhynotexplorehowtoassess,orotherwisecodeforambition,andnurturethosestudents?Thiswillbeofincomparablygreatervaluetosocietythanyouchasingafter“smart”kidsjustbecausetheyaresmart.

Asaminimum,allIaskisthatthelabel“gifted”bechangedto“kidswhoworkhard,”sothattheclubdoesnotcomeacrossasexclusiveandimpenetrabletothoseoutsideofit.

Allthebestinyourschoolandcareer.NeildeGrasseTyson

Accuracy

Saturday,September25,2004ViaEmail,ForwardedfromtheNaturalHistoryMagazineInbox

DearSir/Madam:I am writing to you from the U. S. Academic Decathlon (USAD). Last year, you granted ourorganization permission to publish an article titled “Dust to Dust,” by Neil deGrasse Tyson,publishedintheMay2003editionofNaturalHistorymagazine,inourcurriculummaterials.

Wehavesincereceivedacoupleofcomplaintsfromoneofourcoachesabouttheaccuracyofthecontent.Iamverymuchhopingthattheinformationinthearticleiscorrect,andthecoachisincorrect,asIwouldhatetohavetoissueanycorrections.

HereisoneofseveralexamplesfromtheCurriculumDirector:

YourarticlesaysthattheSunwilleventuallybecomearedgiantandswell“ahundredfoldinsize.”Oneofourcoachesfeelsthis is incorrect:Whenthesunbecomesaredgiant itwillswelltothepresentorbitoftheEarth,93millionmilesfromthesun.Thesun’spresentdiameter is864,000miles.Ifitincreasesinsizeahundredfold,itwillbe86millionmilesindiameter.Thatmeansitsradiuswillbe43millionmiles,lessthanhalfthedistancetotheEarth’sorbit.

Would itbepossible forsomeoneto look intohisconcerns.Thankyou inadvanceforyourtimeandassistance.Ilookforwardtohearingfromyou.

Sincerely,TerryMcKiernan

DearMr.McKiernan,Thankyouforyourenquiry.Youraiseimportantquestionsthatrelatenotonlytotheaccuracyofquantitiesreportedinmyessaybutalsototheaccuracyofastrophysicalquantitiesingeneral.

Astrophysicsisuniqueamongthesciencesforthesheerrangeofnumericalvaluesrepresentedintheobjectsandphenomenawequantify.Forexample,theagesofstarsspanfromhundredsofthousandsofyearstohundredsoftrillionsofyears,dependingprimarilyonthemassbutalsoonotherfactors.

Thetemperaturesofstarsrangefromathousanddegreesonthesurfaceofthe“coolest”stars,tonearlyabilliondegreesinthecoresofthehotteststars.

Thewavelengthofthelongestmeasuredradiowavesaremetersacross,yetthewavelengthoftheshortestgammaraysarelessthanonehundredbillionthofameter.

Most thingswemeasureorquantify ineveryday lifedonot span thisbreadth.So if yougethalf-offonyourstorepurchase,orifoneitemistwiceaslargeasanother,orifoneobjectmovesthree timesas fastas theother,orcontainshalfasmany items,wepsychologically think theserepresent largedifferences. Inastrophysics,however, thesedifferencesaresmall,knowing thatthemeasuredpropertiesofthingscanrangebyfactorsofhundreds,thousands,orevenbillions.

Whencommunicatingwitheachother inastrophysics,we invokehighprecisiononly if someotherphysicalquantitydependsupon it.Otherwise, theprecision isnotonlydistracting,but inmostcases,observationallyortheoreticallyunjustified.

WhentheSundies,inaboutfivebillionyears,itwillswelltobesolargethatitwillengulftheinnerplanets.The“edge”ofsuchbulbousentitiesareactuallypoorlydefined—whereistheedgeofthecirruscloudoverhead?Whereistheedgeofthefogthroughwhichyoudrive?ThelimitofEarth’satmospherehasnosharpboundaryeither,sopeoplepickavaluethatsuitstheirneeds.That’swhy,ifyoulookupthesizeofEarth’satmosphereinmultiple(independent)places,youwilllikelyfindverydifferentanswers,noneofwhicharewrong.

Inanotherexample,aquestionassimpleas,“howmanyplanetsarethereinthesolarsystem?”doesnothaveanunambiguousanswer.Sixmoons,includingourMoon,arebiggerthanPluto.Notonly that, several objects in theouter solar systemarealmost the same size ofPluto (within afactorof two).Sowhatmattersmore than“howmany?” is“whatare theirvariousproperties?”and“whatfeaturesdotheyhaveincommon?”

And how about the question of when Isaac Newton was born? This too, does not have anunambiguousanswer.Accordingtohismotherandalllocalrecords,hewasbornonDecember25,1642.Butatthetime,England(whereNewtonwasborn)usedtheJuliancalendar.TodayweusetheGregoriancalendar(introducedbyPopeGregoryin1582),whichisshiftedbytendaysfromthe Julian calendar, and not yet adopted in Protestant England in Newton’s time. The ten-daydifferencewouldplaceNewton’sbirthdayonJanuary4,1643,ontheGregoriancalendar.Thetwoanswersaredifferentandlegitimate—hewasindeedbornonChristmasdayinEngland.

Allthisleadstomyfinalpoint.Inspiteofhowscienceistaughtingrade-school,orinspiteofwhatthepublicthinks,scienceisnotsomuchaboutgettingtherightanswerasitisaboutgettingtherightidea.Inacontrivedbutillustrativeexample,ifaskedtospell“cat”onaspellingbee,andyou answered “k-a-t,” you would, of course, be marked wrong even though k-a-t is the actualphoneticspellingof theword.Theproblemhere is thatyouwouldbemarkedequallyaswronghadyouspelledit“z-w-q.”Iconsiderthisfactashortcomingofoureducationalsystem,wherewearenottrainedhowtothinkbutwhattoknow.

Soperhapsforfuturecompetitions,whenscienceisthesubject,youshouldfindquestionsthattest understanding rather than numerical precision. You would be doing a service to the nextgenerationofstudentsaswellastotheintellectualcapitalofthisNation.

Sincerely,NeildeGrasseTyson

*Namechanged.

Chapter11

Parenting

Newly born children do not arrive with instruction manuals. And while hundreds ofprofessionsrequirethatyoubecomepre-certified,anewparent,withnoexperienceatall,isexpected to raiseahealthy,productivechildbywhatamounts toon-the-job training.Thisfactmagnifiesthevalueofsharedwisdomamongparents,alltryingtodothebestjobtheycan.Attimes,thechallengestosuccesscanseemendless.

DoingTime

Sunday,May15,2016CommunicationviaUSPostalService

DearNeildeGrasseTysonAs a father of two bright teens, I write seeking your advice on how to encourage their STEMstudies.Iamservinga92-monthsentenceatSanQuentinforgrossnegligencevehicularmanslaughter,

with an anticipated release date in late 2019. Accordingly, I have very limited opportunities tocommunicate with my precious children—no internet, phone calls limited to 15 minutes, andintermittentvisits.Iwanttoencouragemychildrentostudyscienceandmath.Giventheirkeeninterest inastronomy(oneseekstobecomethe“firstastronautveterinarian”),Ihopeyoucoulddirectmetoresources,websites,ororganizationsmychildrenmayusetogrowandlearn,giventheirpotential.TheconsequencesofmycrimearemanifoldandimpactmychildreninmorewaysthanIcan

fullyappreciatefromSanQuentin.Still, Ihopetostay involvedintheircontinueddevelopment.Anyrecommendationsyoucouldmakewouldbegreatlyappreciated.Mightmykids visit you inNewYork?Achance to seea famous scientist, arrangedby their

father,wouldbeevidenceofmycontinuedloveformychildren—andaspecialadventureaswell.Regards

WayneBoatwright,CDCNo.AN0094SanQuentin,California

CommunicationviaUSPostalService

DearMr.Boatwright,One of the great revelations of parenting: when you have curious, motivated children, theinterventionofagrownupcarriesalmostasmuchriskinsquashingtheirambitionsasitdoesinnurturing them.Deepdownwe know it’s true. As the saying goes,we spend the first years ofchildren’slivesteachingthemtotalkandwalk,andtherestoftheirlivestellingthemtoshutupandsitdown.

Also,toallourcollectivedismay,researchpersistentlyshowsthatparentshaveonlymarginaleffectonthepersonalitythattheirkidsultimatelydevelop.

At your kids’ ages they’re surely internet savvy. NASA is not a hidden entity in the mediauniverse, andYouTube aboundswith clever and interesting science videos. So I havenodoubtyour kids are plugged into the moving frontier of science, in proportion to their depths ofcuriosity.

As forbecominganAstronautVeterinarian, Idon’tknowhowsoonwewillbe takingpetsorfarmanimalsintospace.Butwhenthatdaycomes,spacewillhavebecomearoutinedestination,andwe’llprobablyneedtonsofSpaceVets.

RatherthanarrangetohaveyourkidsvisitontheirnexttriptoNYC,let’swaituntilyougetout,andperhapsyoucanbringthemyourself.Youthenbecomepartofyourkid’smemoryofthatvisit.

Andifsuchatripisnotinthenearfuture,IgivepublictalksinCaliforniawithsomefrequency,withSanFranciscoasoneofmymostloyalfanbases.Iwillbedelightedtomeetandgreetyourtwokidswhensuchanoccasionarises.

Untilthen,asalways,keeplookingup.NeildeGrasseTyson

Postscript:Havingworkedhardtorehabilitatehimself,WayneBoatwrightwasreleased500daysearly having earned “good time” credits, and has since started a Facebook group, The SanQuentinNewsCrew,toserveasamodelforhisprisonpeers.

OnPretending

Monday,March23,2009DearNeil,Iwantmyboytobelikeyou,soIwillhavetopretendIdon’tlikeyou.Thankyouforrepresentingbeingsmartinsuchafavorableway.

Aweakastronomystudent,DougFedinick

DearDoug,Whateverittakes.

NeildeGrasseTyson

StarryStarryNight

Tuesday,March24,2009DearNeil,WhenIwasakid,myfatherandIwouldsitontopofthebiggreenfamilystationwagonandlookatthenightsky.WewouldfindtheconstellationsandIwouldmakeupmyown.MyfavoritewastheFatHobbit.Ihaven’tstoppedlooking.Nowmyfatheriscomingtolivewithme.Idon’thaveastationwagon,butIdohaveafabuloustelescope,whichIusetogetotherpeoplelookingup.Andwhenmydadgetshere,onceagainwe’regoingtogooutside,justthetwoofus,andlookatthenightsky.

LizdelCollado

DearLizdel,Thankyouforsharingyourpersonalandtouchingreflections.

Allthebest,underthecanopyofyourstarryskies.Neil

HomeSchooledManyChristianparentswhohomeschooltheirchildrendosotoensurethatthecurriculumisrichin Biblical views of the natural world. This often throws established science into question,especiallythesubjectsofevolutionarybiologyandtheoriginsoftheuniverse.LisaMcLeanlivedinareligiouscommunitywhereshewashomeschoolingherdaughter,andshewastornbywhatthereligiouscurriculatoldhercomparedwithwhatthediscoveriesofsciencereveal.InAugust2005sheaskedhowIhandletheseconflictswithmyownkids.

DearLisa,Thankyouforyourcandidletter.

Youaskedwhat I teachmychildren.Myanswer is—Idonotworryaboutwhat theyknowasmuchas Iworryabouthow they think.This justmightbe thehighestof all pedagogicalgoals,becausethemostimportantmomentsinlifeoccurattimeswhenhowwethinkwillmattermorethanwhatweknow.

Teachingsomeonehowtothinkishard,andtakesmoreeffortonthepartoftheteacherandstudent.Amongotherthings,itencouragesthemtoaskquestions.Itinvolvesbeingcomfortablewith ignorance, if that happens to be our collective state of knowledge at the time. It involvesexperimentandinquiry.

Idonotteachmykidsaboutmagnetism.Ijustgivethemasackofmagnetsandtellthemtogoandplay.

Idonotteachmykidsaboutcentrifugalforce.Itakethemtoanamusementparkandgoonthespinningrideswiththem.

Idonotteachmykidsaboutchemistry,Isimplyaskthem,Haveyouevermixedbakingsodaand lemon juice together? (Thiscombinationcreatesquiteachemicalreaction—try itwithyourdaughter.)

Whentheirflashlightdoesn’twork,Idonotsay,“Itneedsmorebatteries,”Isay,“Let’stestthebatteriestoseeiftheyaredead.”Wethenputthebatteriesinabatterytestertoinvestigatefirst-hand.

WhentheyaskmeaquestionthatIdonotknow,Ireply,“Let’sfindout,”andwegotoabookorsurftheInternetforanswers.

Iftheybelievesomethingintheabsenceofevidence,Iaskthem,“Whydoyoubelievethis?”or“Howdoyouknowthis?”

For example, right now,my daughter is transitioning out of the tooth fairy stage. She nowthinksthetoothfairyhasbeenherparentsalltheseyears.Thispromptedamajordiscussioninherclass.Sotheyproposedanexperimenttotesttheidea.Thenextpersonwhosetoothcameoutwouldnotnotifyhisorherparents,butwouldsimply takehomethetoothandput itunder thepillow.Anyrealtoothfairywouldknowaboutthis.Butparentswouldnot.Ifthere’snomoneyinthemorning,thentheexperimentstronglyarguesagainsttheexistenceofatoothfairy.Thatisanexampleofhowtothinkmatteringmorethanwhattothink.

Asforyourdirectquestions—theBigBangisthemostsuccessfultheoryofcosmicoriginseverput forth, and has reached consensus in the astrophysics community.We are now on to otherproblems.Thepublicperceptionthatscientistsgofromonetruthtoanotherissimplyfalse.Inthemoderneraofscience—that is, intheeraofexperiments,whenatheoryhasbeenresoundinglysupportedbydata—thattheorydoesnotoneday,allofasudden,becomewrong.Theworstthatcanhappentothetheoryisthatitgetsincorporatedintoalarger,morepowerfulideaofhowtheuniverseworks.SotheBigBangisheretostay,initscurrentformorinaformwhereitplaysapartofalargercosmicunderstanding.

By the way, religious documents are generally referred to as “revealed truths.” And truebelieversof themholdthosedocumentstobedivineandunerring.Thishascausednothingbuttrouble in the history of human culture, particularly when two different religious groups holdconflictingideasofwhatis“truth.”

So, inmy judgment, theword“truth”willnotserveyourchild’sneedsasmuchas theword“investigate,”or,betteryet,theword“explore.”

Withbestwishestoyouandyourfamily,Neil

ScarySmart

Wednesday,July22,2009DearDr.Tysonandanyotherkindbrainiacs,My Aspergers son Jack* is scary smart and could very well be the next Einstein, which is hisnickname. I’mtryingtoreachout toothersupersmartscientistswhomaybeable tohelpJackgrowhisgift.Jack’svocabularyandobsessionsconsistofthingslikeconceptcars,nuclearfusion,biotech, particle accelerators, dark matter, anti-matter, worm holes, black holes, nanobots,creatingcuresfordisease,andlotsofhydrogen!IhavenomeansofnourishingJack’sbrain.Hisspirithasbeenalmostextinguishedbyhispublicschoolenvironment.Iwantsobadly for Jack tohaveconnectionswithotherpeople.Thatcan’thappenwhen the

people surroundinghimcan’t relateorunderstand, orbelievewhathe is talkingabout. Jack isalmost15andonthevergeofseriousdepressionduetohisstruggles,loneliness,andfeelingsofinadequacy.ItmakesmeverysadtothinkthathemaynevergetanopportunitytodosomethingBIGforthisplanet.

Jack’smom

DearJack’smom,PeoplewithborderlineAspergersarenotuncommoninthephysicalsciences,acollectionoffields(chemistry, physics, engineering, astrophysics, geology, etc.) inwhich social talents carries lesscurrencythanintellectualdevelopment.

Consider further that in almost every exampleof anacademicprofessional inmy field, highgradeswerethenorm.Possiblyathirdtoahalfofmydepartmentwasthevaledictorianoftheirhighschool.Andinnearlyallofthosecases,theirprimaryintellectualstimulationcamenotfrom

school,butfrombookstheyreadathome—alone.Thatmodeofsolitudelearningwastrueformeaswell.Soyoururgetogetthepublicschooltoservehisneedsandinterestsmaybefutile.Andin the absence of a private school option for him, unlimited access to books and full computeraccesstotheInternetmaybeyourbestoptionforhim.

As you surely know, one can build an impressive home librarywith notmuchmoney if youregularlyperusethe“remainder”tablesofbookstores—payinganywherefrom$1to$10perbookonallsubjectsoftheworld.

Beyondthesemeasures,fromwhatIknow,Iwillnotassertthatyouhaveaneasytaskaheadofyou.Butit’ssurelynothopeless.

Withbestwishes,Neil

HalfBlack

Monday,March23,2009DearDr.Tyson,IwanttobringmychildrentoNewYorkCity.Iwanttokindlewithinthemthethirstforscience.Tohelpmemeetthisgoal,Iwashopingyoumightcluemeinonthebestdaystobringthem.Iwanttoencourage,withinmychildren,aloveforlearningthesciences—notafearordisdainforallthingsscientific.And,sincemychildrenareone-halfBlack,Iwantthemtohaveyouasoneoftheirrolemodels

ofpossibilities.Often,thereismuchonTVandonlinethatshowsthemthenegativesideoftheirrace,andIwanttocounteractthiswithpositiveinfluences.So,whendoyou thinkwouldbeagood time tobring themtoyourcity,andhopefullyspark

withintheirlittlesouls,apassionforscience?CathyL.Jones

DearCathy,I take theunorthodoxviewthat theconceptofarolemodel ishighlyoverrated.Orrather, rolemodels should be assembled à la carte. I have found skin-color associations, in these moderntimes,domoreharmthangoodinthematuringchild.Topickonepersonforarolemodelandnotanother, for reasons driven by skin color, may preclude entire worlds of ambition from beingrealizedbyyourkids.

If you come to visit, it should not be because I am labeled as Black. But because I am ascientist/educator,andyoucareforthescienceliteracyofyourchildren.

Sincerely,NeildeGrasseTyson

BibleStories

Sunday,February26,2017DearDr.Tyson.IwantedtosendyouanotebecauseIamhavingadiscussionwithmy10-year-oldson.Wehavebeendoingwhatgenerationsbeforemehavedone . . .sendingmychildtoHebrewSchool.Wesendhimsowecanhavehimlearnabouthisreligionandwherehecomesfrom.However,myson,whobythewayisontheAutismSpectrum,saidtomelastnightthatHebrewSchoolisridiculousbecause he does not believe in G-d, he believes in science. He believes that bible stories justcannotbetrue.Andthetruthis,Ican’tdenythathejustmightbeabsolutelyright.When I askedwherehegot a lot of his ideas, he said “Cosmos,” so I knowhebelieves and

respectswhatyouteach.(and,Ithankyouforthat!)MYquestionis...arebothpossible?Doyouthinkthattheremightbeahigherpoweroutthere,orthatscienceandfaithCANfindcommonground?Iask,becauseIrespectmysonenoughforhimtohavehisbeliefs,andIdon’twanttoimpose

anythingonhimthatcannotbeproventobetrue.Iknowyouareabusyman,butIamworkingonbeingagoodparent.Iamsothankfulforyoutakingthetimetoreadthis.

Sincerely,Ingrid

Friday,March30,2018—PassoverDearIngrid,An embarrassingly belated reply to your thoughtful email. The universe has been keeping mequitebusylately,butIdogettoallmyemails—eventually.

Of course in a free country, within limits, you can raise your children how you please, onwhateverbeliefsystemyouchoose.Forthisreason,mostpeopleintheworldwhoarereligious,practicethereligionoftheirparents.Forexample,thechancesofChristiansraisingachildwholaterbecomesMuslim,oraMuslimfamilyraisingachildwholaterbecomesJewishareextremelyrare.ThechildrenwillbemorelikelytogrowupbelievinginnoGodsthanintheGodsofotherreligions.

Sotheurgetoraiseyoursonasadevout,practicingJew,beingoneyourself,isentirelynormalandnatural.Butofcourseyouhave,atmost,only18yearsofdirectinfluenceonhim.Yoursonwillspendmorethaneightypercentofhislifeunderadifferentroofthanyou.

FromwhatIhaveseenandencountered,Judaismmanifestsacrossahugerangeofpractices—fromemboldenedJewswhoenthusiasticallyeatbacontothevarioussectsofOrthodoxJewswho,amongotherpractices,maintainseparatekitchenutensilsfordairyandformeat.Asascientist,Ihavemuchmoreexperiencewithatheist Jews.TheydonotviewtheTorahas thewordofGod.Theyseeitasabookofstories—nottobejudgedfortheirtruthorfalsehood,butasarepositoryofinsightsfromwhichwisdomforlivingone’slifecanbederived.

Thinkaboutit—whenwereadfairytales,wearenotjudgingthemforwhethertheyaretrueornot.Instead,wefoldlessonsderivedfromthemintoourworldviews.Notonlythis,atheistJewswillcommonlycelebratethehighholidayswithnolessritualthanpracticingJews,rightondowntoleavinganopenseatattheSedertableforElijah,andmakingsurethefrontdoorisunlocked,sohecanjustwalkrightinifhehappenstoshowup.

WhywouldanatheistJewdothis?Theanswerisnothard.Ritualsandtraditionsaccountforsomeofthestrongestbindingforcesamongpeoplesoftheworld.AttendingMassonSundaysforCatholics.PrayerfivetimesperdayforMuslims.AncestorworshipfortheAnimistreligions.Onecan participatewithout judgingwhether the events that established the ritual have any literaltruthatall.Theparticipationcreatesasenseofcommunity,whichhasalmostalwayscontributedvalue to civilization. It disrupts civilization only when people require that others share theirparticularrituals,withthreatofforcetoachieveit.

Beingonthespectrumandlikingscienceashedoes,yourbestbetmightbetonotenforcetheliteralism of anything religious, but to keep him plugged into the beautiful traditions of thereligion,andemphasizethevalueofritualasaseedandtaprootofcommunity.Oftenthatalonerepresents the greatest challengewhen raising autistic children—getting them to embrace thevalueofloveandcompassionforpeopleandforrelationships.

Restassuredthatyoucanraiseawholesome, intelligent, law-abidingchildwithoutrequiringhebelievethatMosesturnedastaffintoasnake,orthatmannafellfromheaven.

Goodluck.Inmyexperience,ittakessomeofthattoo.HappyPassovertoyouboth.

Neil

FirstTelescope

Saturday,July18,2009DearProfessorTysonIthoughtI’dpassthisalongtoyou,andthatyou’dappreciatethisstorymorethanmostpeople.Ifnot,apologies.I realized I was over-telescoped and decided to get rid of my 2003 60mm Meade brand

refractingtelescope.ThetownofTombstone,Arizona,issmall,andtryingtosellitwouldprobablycostmore in advertising thananyonewouldbewilling to offer. So, I put up anote in thepostoffice,“Freetoanykid10–17withparent.”Evenwith“free,”ittookfivedaysbeforeIgotacall.This guy called and later came over with his 12-year-old daughter. I showed them how the

telescope and control-box worked, and all throughout this, the kid’s eyes were as big asheadlights. IeventhrewinasparecopyofH.A.Rey’sTheStars†—the firstastronomybookmydadgaveme,waybackin1955.Thekid’sentirefaceconsistedofeyesandasmile.Ineverhadkidsmyself,sotodayIgotabriefglimpseintowhatImissedouton.Andthislittle

girlwillgetalotofglimpsesintoabrandnewuniverse.Fairtrade.

MJ“Morg”Staley

DearMorg,

There’snothingliketherighttelescopeintherighthandsoftherightpersonattherighttimefortherightprice.

Neil

Happy30thAnniversary

16August1982CalligraphyonParchment

DearDad&Mom,

ThismonthIamtoreceivemymaster’sdegreeinAstronomy;AmajorachievementofmylifewhichcannotpassWithoutthedueacknowledgmentoftwoofthemostWarm,caring,andrationalpeopleIknow.

Centralelementsofmypersonality,character,wisdomandperspectiveAretraceabletoeachofyou.Throughoutmytwenty-threeyearquestforthecosmosYouhaveneverfailedtokeepmyfeetontheearth;Topromotemyawarenessoftheaged,Thecrippled,theblind,andtheotherInequalitiesoflifeandofsociety.Allthewhile,yourunfatiguingtoleranceOfmyinterestshasfoundyouDrivingmanymilesfor“thatparticularlens”OrassistingthetransportofmytelescopesInandoutofcars,toandfromthefieldsandupanddownstairs.

Mylifehastakenmemanyplaces;Fromtwenty-twostoriesovertheBronxtoasnow-carvedcircleonPeacockFarm,‡FromtheplainsofMojaveDesert§tothesummitofMountLocke,¶FromtheBronxHighSchoolofSciencetotheHarvardCollegeObservatory,AndfromBellTelephoneLaboratories#totheUniversityofTexasatAustin.LettherebenodoubtthatIcontinuallyfeltyourguidanceaheadofme,yoursupportbehindme,

andyourlovebesideme.Forthenextthirtyyears**mayyoushareeachotherThewayyouhavesharedyourselveswithme.HappyAnniversary.

—Neil—

*Namechanged.

†H.A.Rey,TheStars:ANewWaytoSeeThem(Boston:HoughtonMifflin,2008).

‡Foroneacademicyear,whileIwasinseventhgrade,myfamilylivednotinaNewYorkCityapartmentbutinaprivatesublethomeinLexington,Massachusetts,whilemyfatherwasaone-yearfellowattheKennedySchoolofGovernment.WelivedonPeacockFarmRoad.Ononeoccasion,afteraheavywinterstorm,Ishoveledabackyardpathtocreateacul-de-sacinthesnowlargeenoughtousemyfirsttelescope.

§Duringthesummerbetweenmyeighthandninthgrades,Iattendedanastronomycampforgeekymiddleandhighschoolers,locatedintheMojaveDesert,southernCalifornia,wherewelivednocturnallyasweobservedtheclearnightskiesfromabatteryoftelescopesonlocation.

¶TheUniversityofTexasatAustinownsandoperatestheMcDonaldObservatoryinWestTexas,whichsitsatopMountLocke.Ipennedthistributeingraduateschool,whileobservingthereduringthesummerof1982.

#Duringthesummerbetweenmyjuniorandsenioryearsincollege,IwasaresearchinternintheMaterialSciencedivisionatBellTelephoneLaboratories,MurrayHill,NewJersey.

**Myparentswouldremainmarriedanotherthirty-fouryears,beforemyfather’sdeathatageeighty-eight.

Chapter12

Rebuttals

Everynowandthen,youjusthavetofightback.

MakingtheGrade

My daughter attended and graduated from my high school alma mater. While a junior there,beginninginthefallof2012,shewantedtotakeAPcalculus,buthadnotyettakenaformalclassinpre-calculus,consideredby theMathDepartment tobeastrictpre-requisite.Theprincipal’sletter tomewas a strongly worded defense of the school’s educationalmission completewithplacement exams, assuring that students never step anywhere academically over their heads,leadingtohighgradesforcollegeadmissions.

Whointheirrightmindwouldarguewiththosegoals?Idid.

To:PrincipaloftheBronxHighSchoolofScienceThanksforyournote,whichincludesthestatement:

“Itisourjobtohelpprotectyourdaughter’sGPA”

That’snoble.Butmylifeexperiencetellsmeit’snotthenoblestgoaloutthere.Asascientist,aneducator,andasaparent,Iofferacountervailingquote:

“It’smyjobtoprotectherinterestinlearning”

Atrueloveoflearningneverends.Meanwhile,aGPAendsaftercollegeandcouldn’tbemoreirrelevanttotherestofone’slife.

Mydaughterenjoysmath,andwants to takeCalculusnow,bypassingayearofpre-calculus.Shehasstudiedpre-calculusonherownoverthesummerinanticipationofthis.Yetyouhaveasysteminplacethatefficientlypreventsthisstep.

Idon’tknowwhenitbecamecommonforaschooltostridentlypreventastudentfromskippingtoanadvancedclass.EspeciallyinanerawherepromotinginterestinSTEMfieldsforgirlsisanationalpriority.Moststudentsinmostschoolstaketheeasiestclassestheycanfind—driven,ofcourse,bytheurgetoprotecttheirGPA.I’mcompelledtonotethatmymediocrehighschoolGPAprompted no comment from any teacher about whether I would “go far.” Yet I had a love oflearningthatapparentlyhadvaluetomeandtothecollegeofmychoice,ifnottomyhighschoolteachers.

Noneofusknows forsurehowshewilldoonyourpre-calculusplacementexam.Butdare Irecommendthatthetestscorebeusedasguide, inanticipationofherforthcomingworkloadincalculus,ratherthanasafence,tobekeptclosedforscoresbelowwhatyouhave judgedtobeacceptable.

Ifyouareworriedaboutmydaughter’sGPA,don’tbe.Ifyouareworriedaboutwhatcollegeshewillchoose,orwhatcollegewillchooseher,don’tbe.Worryaboutwhatkindofadultshewillbecome. Because what we worry about is whether her High School nurtures a learningenvironment,withoutrulesdesignedtoimpedeurgesto“gofar.”

Ifmydaughterdoesnotscorewellontheplacementexamyourroleshouldnotbetopreventherfromadvancingbut,perhaps,tostronglyadviseagainstit.Ifshewantstoproceedinspiteofthe caution, then your role should be to support the ambition. But even if you can’t, or if it’sagainstyourpedagogicalphilosophy,it’snoteverychildwhohastwoparentsfluentincalculus,*soherprogressinthisregardshouldbetheleastofyourworriesasPrincipal.

Sincerely,Neil

Postscript: My daughter took a pre-calculus placement exam, offered by the school as acompromise. We do not know how well or poorly she did on it, but they allowed her to takecalculusthatyear,formallyskippingpre-calculus.Shewouldscorea5(thehighestgrade)ontheyear-endAPexam.

B.o.B.andtheFlatEarth

Thepopularhip-hopartistB.o.B.(“beeohbee”)isvocalabouthisflat-Earthbeliefs.Earlyin2016he took to social media with his ideas. Normally I would ignore such a foray, but he got myattention when he claimed that the laws of math and physics show that Earth is flat. In thegeekiverse,thosearefightingwords.

Friday,January27,2016VideoLettertotheRapperB.o.B.DeliveredonTheNightlyShowwithLarryWilmore,ComedyCentral

Listen,B.o.B.,onceandforall,Earthlooksflatbecause,(1)you’renotfarenoughawayatyoursize, and (2) your size isn’t largeenough relative toEarth tonoticeany curvatureat all. It’s afundamental fact of calculus and non-Euclidean geometry that small sections of large curvedsurfaceswillalwayslookflattolittlecreaturesthatcrawluponit.

But this whole thing is just the symptom of a larger problem. There is a growing anti-intellectualstraininthiscountrythatmaybethebeginningoftheendofourinformeddemocracy.Ofcourse,inafreesocietyyoucanandshouldthinkwhateveryouwant.Andifyouwanttothinktheworld is flat go right ahead.But if you think theworld is flat and youhave influence overothers,thenbeingwrongbecomesbeingharmfultothehealth,thewealth,andthesecurityofourcitizenry.

Discovery and exploration got us out of the caves and each generation benefits from whatpreviousgenerationshavelearned.IsaacNewtonsaid,“IfIhaveseenfartherthanothersitisbystandingontheshouldersofgiants.”Sothat’sright,B.o.B.,whenyoustandontheshouldersofthosewhocamebefore,youmightjustseefarenoughtorealizetheearthisn’tf%@#kingflat.

Andbytheway,thisiscalledgravity....<<MicDrop>>

AHorse’sAstrophysicist

Unpromptedbyanymajor incident,aconservative radio showhostand journalist-blogger foralocalpaperservingIdahoFallspostedanarticleinAugust2016,playfullycriticalofallIdo,withthetitle“NeildeGrasseTysonIsaHorse’sAstrophysicist.”Itwasfilledwithpoliticaljabscommonwhenpeoplefromoppositesidesofthepoliticalspectrummeetintheboxingringofsocialmedia.His tract labeled me a liberal atheist, and questioned my academic standing as well as mystatements on climate change. He also criticized a tweet ofmine that referenced the nationalmedal count for the ongoing Olympics, in which I declared that, per capita, some smallercountries were kicking our ass. He viewed this and many other liberal tendencies as anti-American.HisnameisNealLarson,andIwasthefirstreplyinthecommentsection.

Tuesday,August23,2016CommentThread

HelloNeal,First,I’llforgiveyoufornotspellingyournamecorrectly.

Second,andmoreimportantly,Idon’tmindbeinglabeledahorse’sastrophysicist(Iseewhatyou did there), provided it’s based on factual information. Sowhatwemust do is subtract thefalseinformationfromyourarticle,andthenre-assesswhatnameyouchoosetocallme.Ifitstilljustifies“horse’sastrophysicist,”thensobeit.

1. FYI:Thecosmicperspectiveisallabouthavingasecondlookatwhat,onthesurface,appearstobeimportant,special,ego-boosting,etc.TheOlympicmedalcountisnotimmunefromthisanalysis.InfactanevenbettermeasureismedalsperGDPpercapita.Thiswilltellyouhowefficientlyandeffectivelyacountryisspendingitswealthonathleticexcellence.TheTweet,thoughbasedonlyonpopulation,wasaplayfulpleathatwecouldbewinningevenmoremedalsthanweare.

2. Iamagnostic,andactivelydisavowtheatheistlabel,asmultipleon-linevideoscanattest.Evenonerisingthrough3-millionviews.

3. Peoplewhodenyhuman-inducedclimatechangearebadlymisinformed.ThispositionisneitherpoliticallyLiberalnorConservative.It’sfactual.Althoughonecouldarguethatall

thosewhowanttopreservetheenvironmentaretherealconservativesinthisdiscussion.

4. Youuse“Liberal”asatagtocharacterizemypolitics.SinceIhavenoactivepublicpoliticalposition,that’sahardtasktoaccomplish.Climatechangedeniersaremisinformed.Butsoarepeoplewhothinkvaccinesgivesyouautism.Andsoarepeoplewhothinkgeneticallymodifiedfoodsarebadforyou.Thesescience-denyingposturescrosspoliticalboundaries.

5. Iam3xappointedbyPresidentGeorgeW.Bush,servingoncommissionstoadvisehimonthefutureoftheAmericanaerospaceindustry,onNASA,andontheannualPresidentialMedalofSciencewinners.Soyourdisapprovalofmyviewsisnotsharedbyothersontheconservativespectrum.

6. Lastly:myresearchoutputasascientistisnothidden.Youcanfindaneasylinklistingallpublicationsonmywebpage.

Sowhenyoufactorin(orsimplysubtract)alltheseelementsfromyourwriteup,ifwhatremainsstilljustifieslabelingmeahorse’sastrophysicist,then,asIsaid,I’mokaywiththat.

RespectfullySubmitted,NeildeGrasseTyson,NewYorkCity

Postscript:NealLarsonwasultimatelyapologeticandcontriteaftermyreply,bothpubliclyandprivately,andwe’vebecomeemailbuddiessincethen.HehostsTheNealLarsonShowonradioandpodcastandcontinuestowriteoccasionalnewspapercolumns.

Don’tHaveaCow

AfterIpostedthisshorttweet,onSunday,August7,2017:

the popular musician (and vegan activist) Moby launched a barbed attack from his Instagramaccount.

ViaInstagram

Whenoneofyourheroesbreaksyourheart.NeildeGrasseTyson,really?YoucanTweetthatandmakelightoftheunspeakablesufferingexperiencedbythehundredsofbillionsofanimalskilledeachyearbyhumans?Orthefactthatanimalagriculturecauses90%ofrainforestdeforestationandcontributesupto45%ofclimatechange?OrthataccordingtotheWorldHealthOrganizationand theHarvardMedicalSchool, adiethigh inanimalproducts leads toheartdisease, cancer,anddiabetes.Forasmartphysicist,NeildeGrasseTyson,yousoundlikeanignorantsociopath.

Moby

Myreply...

Friday,August18,2017FacebookNote‘MobyvsTyson’

MycowTweetwasintendedtoexposeabluntreality:Acowisnotamechanicalmachine.It’sabiologicalmachine.Abiologicalmachinewith onepurpose (actually, of course, twopurposes ifyouincludeitasasourceofmilk),andthatistoeatgrass(or,ofcourseotherfoodstocks),growbig,andbeslaughteredforfood.Theyaregenerallynotkeptaspets.Theydon’trescuepeopleintrouble.Theydonotassistthehandicapped.Andwhat’sremarkablehereisthatcowsdon’texistin the wild. They have never existed in the wild. Farmers genetically engineered them tenthousandyearsagofromnow-extinctox-likeAurochsintheserviceofcivilization.

SotheTweetis100%truthfulandaccurate.Theintensityofreactionstoittellsmethatpeoplepresumed I was trying to get them to agree with some opinion I carry. But the Tweet isfundamentallyopinion-neutral.Curious thatonlya fewpeople took theopposite reaction to thecowTweet,ofhowdiabolicalwearetodothiswithanimals,andthatitshouldstop.

InoticedsomethingsimilarwhenIpostedthisopinion-neutral tweetafteroneof thehorrificschoolshootingssomeyearsago:

Thereactionthatfollowedwashighlyilluminatingtome.Presumingmetobeanopinion-forcingpundit,peopleangrilyinterpretedittheirownway,passingjudgmentonmyintent.ThereactionsdividedevenlyonwhethertheythoughtIwasdefending(orattacking)thefreemarket,thefirstamendment’sprotectionoffreespeech,orthesecondamendment’sprotectionofgunownership.Asmallerpercentageofpeople,perhaps20%,sawitaswritten,withreactionssuchas,“Thanks.Ineverthoughtaboutthatinconsistency!”

If anybody cares about my opinion, I note here that in countries founded on freedom, andwhere there is resistance to government control of its citizenry (such as the USA), it may beeasier to engineer solutions to problems than to get a hundredmillion people to change theirbehavior. A possible solution, for which there has been great progress, is the laboratorymanufactureofmeatproteins,whereapersoncanenjoyasteakthatnevercamefromanylivingcreature—atopicexploredinahighlypopularepisodeofStarTalkthatIhosted,featuringtheone-and-onlyTempleGrandinandPaulShapiro,VPoftheHumaneSociety.

So, I don’t quite knowwhat to say to peoplewho react explosively in the face of objectivetruths,attackingthepersonwhodeliverstheinformation.Butwhat’sclearisthatwenowliveinaworldwheredifferencesofopinionleadtofightsratherthanconversations.

NeildeGrasseTyson,NewYorkCity

Postscript:Mobywouldlaterapologize,citinghisInstagrampostas“unnecessarilyharsh.”

KeepOffdeGrasse

In August 2009 I was chided by Nzingha Shabaka for keeping (and using) my French middlename.HerAfrocentricsensibilitieswouldhavenoneofit,seeingcolonialnamesasasourceoflowself-esteem in the African-American community. I try to pick my battles, as my reply surelyindicates.

DearMs.Shabaka,Thanksforsharingyourardentconcerns,butIremainconvincedofShakespeare’saphorism:

“Arosebyanyothernamewouldsmellassweet.”

I thinkwe should allwork hard to ensure that substancemattersmore than labels—that’s thesocietyIstrivetolivein.

Besttoyou,NeildeGrasseTyson

HollywoodNights

Wednesday,July22,1998NewYorkTimesOp-Ed

NowthatNewYorkCityisrelativelysafefrommuggers,Hollywoodhasresortedtomonstersandmeteorstotriggerend-of-the-worldfearsinurbanmovie-goers.Butunlikeromanticcomediesoraction-adventure thrillers, most disaster films pluck the fruits of science for their storylines.Deadly viruses, out-of-control DNA, evil aliens, and killer asteroids are all common themes inrecentfilms.†Unfortunately,afilm’sscientificliteracyhardlyevermeasuresuptoitsplot.

AmItheonlyonewhocares?I’mnottalkingaboutsimplebloopers,suchaswhenaRomanCenturionhappenstobewearing

awristwatch.Thesemistakesareinadvertent.I’mtalkingaboutignorantbloopers,likereversingthe sunset to pretend you have filmed a sunrise. These are not time-symmetric events. ArecinematographerstoosleepytowakeupbeforetheSunandgetthereal footage?Andwhy is itthatmoviemeteorshavesuchgoodaim?Earth’ssurfaceisseventypercentwaterandoverninety-ninepercentuninhabited,yetanincomingmeteordecapitatestheChryslerBuildinginoneofthissummer’smovies.

Andwhyis itthatJamesCamerontookthetimetogeteveryimaginabledetailcorrect inhisfilmTitanic— fromtherivetstostateroomstothedinnerware—yethegotthewrongnighttimesky? Actually, he comes close. What could be the constellation Corona Borealis (the NorthernCrown)isshownoverheadonthatfatefulnight.Butithasthewrongnumberofstars.Butworsethanthis,thelefthalfoftheskyisthemirrorreflectionoftherighthalfofthesky.SotheuniverseinTitanicisnotonlywrong,it’slazy.

Butwhy?I’dbet thecostumeswereresearchedtobeprecisely thestylesof theperiod.Hadsomeonebeenonboardwearing lovebeads,bellbottom jeans,anda largeafro,youknowthatviewerswouldhavecomplainedloudlythatCameronhadnotdonehishomework.AmIanylessjustifiedinmyoutcries?

MygripesarenotjustwithHollywood.WhataboutthosemajesticstarsintheceilingofNewYorkCity’sGrandCentralTerminal?Ratherthanjustadmittingthatthebackwardsconstellationswereamistake,asigninthelobbyduringrenovationtellsus,“Saidtobebackwards,[theceilingis]actuallyseenfromapointofviewoutsideoursolarsystem.”Butaseconderrorhasnowbeencommitted in an attempt to cover up the first: no point of view in our galaxywill reverse theconstellationpatternsofEarth’snightsky.Asyou leave thesolarsystem,andtravelamongthestars, all that happens to Earth’s constellations is that they become scrambled and whollyunrecognizable.

Whatsocietyneedsarescientificallyliteratereviewers.Whyshouldacriticbelimitedtosayingthings like, “The characters stretched credulity” or “the tonal elements clashed with theemotional flavorof thesetdesigns”?JustonceIwanttohearacriticsay,“Flyingsaucersdon’tneed runway lights” (as was depicted inClose Encounters of the Third Kind‡), or “TheMoonphasesgrewinthewrongdirection”(aswhathappenedinL.A.Story§),or“AnasteroidthesizeofTexaswouldhavebeendiscoveredtwohundredyearsago”(aswasshowninArmageddon).Onlythenmightthepublicbegintoappreciatetherolethatthelawsofphysicsplayineverydaylife.

If youwant towriteabook,makea film,orengage inapublicartproject, and if thisworkmakesreference to thenaturalworld,all Iask is thatyoucallyourneighborhoodscientistandchataboutit.Whenyouseek“scientificlicense”todistortthelawsofnature,Iwouldpreferyoudidsoknowingthetruth,ratherthaninventingastorylinethatiscloakedinignorance.Youmaybesurprisedtolearnthatvalidsciencecanmakefertileadditionstoyourstorytelling—whetherornotyourartisticobjectiveistodestroytheworld.

NeildeGrasseTysonNewYorkCity

*MywifehasaPh.D.inmathematicalphysics.

†Specifically,Armageddon,TouchstonePictures,1998,andContact,WarnerBros.,1997.

‡CloseEncountersoftheThirdKind,ColumbiaPictures,1977.

§L.A.Story,TriStarPictures,1991.

Epilogue

AEulogy,ofSorts

LettertoDad*Saturday,January21,2017RepassRemarks

DearDad,Thank you for a lifetime of wisdom you’ve bestowed upon me, drawn from moments,circumstances,andincidencesinyourlife.Withyourpermission,I’llshareafewthatforme,riseaboveallothers.I’veneverforgottenthestoryofyourhighschoolgymteacher,whohighlightedyourbody-type

as one thatwould notmake a good runner in the track and field unit of class. Your reaction?“NobodyisgoingtotellmewhatIcannotdowithmylife.”Youimmediatelytookuprunning.Youalsoran inHitler’sBerlinStadiumfor the1946“GIOlympics.”Thepost-warworldwasnotyetready for a traditional Olympics, so this special event contested soldier-athletes of the varioustheatersofconflictaroundtheworld.Andbycollegeyoubecameworldclassinmiddledistanceraces,atonetimecapturingthefifthfastesttimeintheworldforthe600-yardrun.Drawinguponthat example for inspiration, I have overcome the most negative societal forces on my life’sambitions.I’veneverforgottenthestoryofyourbestfriendJohnnyJohnson,alsoatrackstar,competing

inameetagainsttheNewYorkAthleticClub.Intheday,theyofcourseadmittedonlyWASPs,soathletic Blacks or Jews instead competed as teammates for the Pioneer Club, founded for thatpurpose.AsJohnnycamearoundthelastturninthequartermile,hewasaheadoftheNewYorkAthleticClubrunnerbyseveralstrideswhenheoverheardthefellow’scoachaudiblyyell tohisrunner,“Catchthatnigger!”Johnny’sreplytohimselfwassimpleanddirect,“Thisisoneniggerhe ain’t gonna catch!” and lengthened his lead to the finish line.What todaymight be calledmicro-aggressions,backthenwereparlayedintoforcesofinspirationtoexcel.Fromthatexample,I’veusedsuchoccasionsinmylifetoexcelbeyondeventheexpectationsIholdformyself.YoutoldofimmigrantGrandma’sworkasaseamstress.Grandpa’sworkasnightwatchmanfor

the food service companyHorn&Hardart. A good thing, because hewould occasionally bringhomeleftoverfoodwhenthemoneywastight.Yourstoriesofstrifewereneverhate-filled.Neverbitter. Instead, theywerehope-filledand inspirational—conveyedwith tentativeconfidence thatthe arc of social justice will continue to bend towards righteousness. I carry that vision forsociety’sfutureintoeverydayofmylife.You studied hard in school, and took your interest in social justice all the way to your

appointment as Mayor Lindsey’s Commissioner of New York City’s Human ResourcesAdministration. Journalists don’t write articles about news that does not happen. But theprogramsyouenabledintheinnercity,empoweringtheyouthduringthepowder-kegyearsofthelate1960s,ensured thatanyunrestordisturbancewouldbemild.Sureenough,NewYorkwascalm compared with what went down in Watts, Newark, Detroit, Cincinnati, Milwaukee, andespecially in Chicago,Washington, DC and Baltimore, for which Federal troops were called toquell the violence. You worked behind the scenes on this, with your only reward the quietknowledgethatthenation’slargestcitydidnotburnduringthemostturbulentyearsofthemostturbulent decade in American history since theCivilWar. Striving to dowhat is right,withoutregardtowhotakesnotice,shouldbeamodelforusall.Your stories and perspectives about navigating the people, politics, funding streams, and

legacies of institutions deeply informed my (successful) efforts to create, from whole cloth, abrandnewDepartmentofAstrophysicsat theAmericanMuseumofNaturalHistory.Youtaughtmethatinlife,it’snotgoodenoughtoberight.Youalsomustbeeffective.Forthat,Inowcounttheformationofthatdepartmentasoneofthehighestachievementsofmyprofessionalcareer.SoDad,this“thankyou”letterindeathissimplypublicnoticeofwhatI’vealreadythankedyou

for in life:bestowinguponmeguidingprinciples for livingmy life to the fullest, andalong theway,whenpossible,lesseningthesufferingofothers.IknowIwillmissyou,becauseIalreadydo.

CyrilDeGrasseTysonOctober1927—December2016

*Basedonaeulogydeliveredtofriendsandfamily,HolyTrinityCatholicChurch,NewYorkCity.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

IthankmyliteraryagentB.Lernerforhersupportandenthusiasmfromthebeginningtotheendofthisproject.IalsothankL.Mullen,forthepersistentbookkeepingnecessarytoassemblethearchive fromwhich this book is drawn, alongwithmy office assistantsM.Gambardella andE.Stachow,whoservedasbackupsupportateveryturn.IfurtherthankmyeditorJ.GlusmanofW.W. Norton, who continues to value our publishing relationship. I also thank N. Reagan and T.Disotell fortheiranthropologicalexpertiseandS.Soterforhischaracteristicallycriticalreadoftheentiremanuscript.Most importantly, I thankall thosewhose letterswere included for theirpermissiontoreproduceourcorrespondence.Someofthesequeriesarepersonalandsensitive,addressingone’sfickleandoftenchallengingpathwaystohappinessandsuccess.Theirinclusioninthisvolumejustmightbenefitotherswithidenticalorsimilartrajectoriesthroughlife.

INDEXOFS UBJECTS

“Pagenumberslistedcorrespondtotheprinteditionofthisbook.Youcanuseyourdevice’ssearchfunctiontolocateparticulartermsinthetext.”

Aliens“AlienAliens,”MelodieLander,23“ETPhoneHome,”Mel,22“AGlowingPatternintheSky,”DaveHalliday,27“UFOSightings”TrentonJordan,24

Astronomy“BreakingUpIsEasytoDo,”NeildeGrasseTyson,69“ElementaryCuriosity,”GabeMopps,188“FirstTelescope,”MorgStaley,217“LookButDon'tTouch,”MarcJaruzel,190“LucyintheSkywithDiamonds,”GeorgetteBurrell,62“SeeingStars,”NeildeGrasseTyson,61

Biology“Complexity,”JoshS.Weston,50“CuringDisease,”RandyM.Zeitman,134“Don’tHaveaCow,”Moby,228“AViralBlunder,”SamyukthaGutthaandAneekPatel,68

Buddhism“Buddhist,”ToddBaxter,172

Careers“Fear,”LisaKalma,10“IfIWerePresident,”NeildeGrasseTyson,20“100mph,”JarrettBurgess,17“SpaceCadet,”RonaldWard,186“Stigma,”Dr.RobertCassola,191

Christianity“BC/AD,”Lionel,55“TheBibleTellsMeSo,”BrandonFibbs,167“LosingMyReligion,”GeorgeHenryWhitesides,12“Proof,”NigelSmith,175“SeeingEyetoEye,”TomRodenstock,165

Conspiracy“HeavyMetal,”SimonNaylor,152

DeathandDying“TheCosmicPerspective,”RobertClark,129“DeadManTalking,”SeanlaiCochrane,124“Farewell,”MorgStaley,127“RememberingHolbrooke,”NeildeGrasseTyson,123“SemperFi,”JayScoble,138“SoulSearching,”JeffRyan,132

Education“Accuracy,”TerryMcKiernan,200“ExpressYourself,”DavidSwaim,118“GiftedStudents,”Bronwen,197“Half-Black,”CathyL.Jones,212“HomeSchooled,”LisaMcLean,208“MakingtheGrade,”NeildeGrasseTyson,221“NotaShadowofDoubt,”LawrenceMcFarrin,195“OnIQ,”Marc,15“ScarySmart,”Jack’smom,211“SpaceCadet,”RonaldWard,186“WeSuckatScience,”JeffProvine,80

Films“HollywoodNights,”NeildeGrasseTyson,232“I’dRatherDirect,”AndreiAnson,63“WorstEver,”ChrisBostwick,67

God“TheBibleTellsMeSo,”BrandonFibbs,167“EvidenceforGod,”AndrewMcLemore,101“Evolutionvs.Creationism,”JackieSchwab,98“TheEyeofGod,”NikiBranford,157“GodandtheAfterlife,”WebsterBaker,163“MeaninginLife,”Mark,179“OpenMind,”KevinCarrol,173“Qur’anicVerses,”TahmidRahim,100“SoulSearching,”JeffRyan,132“ThinkingforYourself,”NeildeGrasseTyson,160“WhereIstheProof?,”Roger,102

Islam“Qur’anicVerses,”TahmidRahim,100“SkiesOverIraq,”PFCDerrickPhilips,58

Judaism“BibleStories,”Ingrid,214

Mathematics“APieceofPi,”Dr.AlfredS.Posamentier,169

NASA“Happy60thBirthday,NASA,”NeildeGrasseTyson,1“I’mNotPaying!,”AdamDirkmaat,83

Paranormal“Coma,”SheilaVanHouten,9“DeadManTalking,”SeanlaiCochrane,124“ParallelUniverse,”Corinne,36“PsychicTeleportation,”JamesMcGaha,34“SixthSense,”KathleenFairweather,47“Symbolism,Myth,andRitual,”TomBreidenbach,154

Parenting“BibleStories,”Ingrid,214“DoingTime,”WayneBoatwright,204“FirstTelescope,”MorgStaley,217“Happy30thAnniversary,”NeildeGrasseTyson,218“LettertoDad,”NeildeGrasseTyson,236“OnPretending,”DougFedinick,207“StarryStarryNight,”LizdelCollado,207

Philosophy“AlienHomicide,”MichaelCuellar,106“How?,”ThomasE.Downs,109“IThink,ThereforeIDoubt,”DanielNarciso,116“MeaninginLife,”Mark,179“MoreHarmThanGood?,”DakkanAbbe,95“Spirals,”PauletteB.Cooper,52“ToKnow,”DavidLunianski,191“TruthorMeaning?,”KevinMurphy,107“Why?,”JasonHarris,114“YinandYang,”ReidTice,115

Physics“PerpetualMotion,”Shawn,40

Planets“AnApology,”MichaelC.Hotto,75“AnAppeal,”MadelineTrost,76“DefacingMars,”StevieDebe,32“MoonLover,”ArthurPiccolo,77“MoonsofMars,”Tom,38

Politics“AHorse’sAstrophysicist,”NealLarson,225“HurricaneKatrina,”RonMarish,134“MiddleSchoolSkepticism,”RayBatra,93“RememberingHolbrooke,”NeildeGrasseTyson,123

Pseudoscience“BigFoot,”Alex,45“B.o.B.andtheFlatEarth,”NeildeGrasseTyson,224“DogonPredictions,”PhilDabney,42“EndoftheWorld,”KaleJoyce,29“PerpetualMotion,”Shawn,40“Time’sUp,”IrisHale,31

Race“DogonPredictions,”PhilDabney,42“HalfBlack,”CathyL.Jones,212“Happy60thBirthday,NASA,”NeildeGrasseTyson,1“KeepOffdeGrasse,”NzinghaShabaka,231“OnBeingBlack,”Marc,13“Roots,”HenryLouisGatesJr.,54

Religion“BibleStories,”Ingrid,214“Qur’anicVerses,”TahmidRahim,100“ATeacher,aStudent,andaChurch-StateDispute,”NeildeGrasseTyson,185

WorldTradeCenter“FlagsofOurFathers,”NeildeGrasseTyson,151“HeavyMetal,”SimonNaylor,152“TheHorror,theHorror,”NeildeGrasseTyson,141“SunsetontheWorldTradeCenter,”NeildeGrasseTyson,149“Symbolism,Myth,andRitual,”TomBreidenbach,154“WorldTradeCenterAnniversary,”NeildeGrasseTyson,151

Copyright©2019byNeildeGrasseTyson

Epigraph:1704March/April,PhilosophicalTransactionsoftheRoyalSocietyofLondon,ALettertoDr.EdwardTysonfromWilliamCowper,page1586.PrintedforS.SmithandB.Walford,PrinterstotheRoyalSociety,London.

PhotoofCometSchwassmann-Wachmann3onpage71:NASA/JPL-Caltech,W.Reach(SSC/Caltech).

PhotooftheHelixNebulaonpage158:NASA,WIYN,NOAO,ESA,HubbleHelixNebulaTeam,M.Meixner(STScI),andT.A.Rector(NRAO).

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