http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CAD25s53wmE&feature=related 1:14:40 to 1:26:50 is one of the most amazing if not the most amazing speech I've ever heard and I am comparing this to such giants as Christopher Hitchens, Douglas Adams or Carl Sagan. It seems like Neil deGrasse is seen so rarely when compared to the mindblowing, funny, educational and entertaining goodness he almost magically spouts every time you see him. I want more of him and less of Miley Cyrus. Thank you.
People are genuinely stupid. I kinda like it the way it is. If stupid people got involved in things like politics all we'd have more Tea Party.
Every village has their batch of idiots; ours in the USA just happen to be proud of their status more often than not. Cool vid, Higgs. Is the rest of it like that one speech? Because I may just watch it all.
shame, the main currency of media is entertainment, not knowledge. people who have truly made a difference in the world or are attempting to make the world a better place get shoved aside in favour of a drugged up movie star who beats his wife or something like that. the sad thing is that people have this huge aversion to "learning" and as soon as they find out they are seeing something "educational" like a documentary or a speech (or... DUN DUN DUN... school!), they run away from it as quickly as they can. what a shame. very few people i know actually find learning to be entertaining.
Celebrities are usually musicians, actors, and comedians. These people are remembered by the masses through fan sites and news. The celebrities you are referring to are not media. Sure they don't get a spot on MTV for people to learn about them, they don't get fan sites, and they don't have kids putting posters of them on their walls. However, what they have and no celebrity ever will have. Is the history books. When ever someone speaks of their theories or talks about their opinions and discoveries. It won't be on a news station nor will kids or adults talk about them in passing or at their parties. Instead they will learn about them in schools, colleges, and in universities. These individuals will have their names live for ever in the history books, and centuries from now a student will be reading about their discoveries. They will learn how these people make a difference, and many will aspire to be like them. Their achievements may go unnoticed by the masses now, but the masses of the future generations will know their name and their accomplishments. That is the difference here and something you should consider. They may not have fame now, and people may not know their names at the moment. But they will be remembered forever. These seldom few are the people that many think about while in college. Looking into their own futures wondering what they want to study and what they want to do with their lives. They will look at these great individuals with tremendous respect and aspire to become like them, and to match their achievements. No one will look down on them for their social lives or for their personal history. Instead people will look past these things and see only what made these individuals with respect. Something no one in Hollywood can ever obtain.
Dr. deGrasse is a celebrity amongst the right crowds. If you talk to someone living in America (I don't know about other coutries) that wants answers to where we came from and don't settle for fairy tales...yes, he is very well known. The man has been on the Discovery channel many times. The issue is that people are idiots. "Did you hear about these Copernicus and Galileo guys?" "No." "They say that the Earth is not the center of the solar system and they have evidence of this." "lawl, evidence. My priest makes me feel good about myself and says it isn't true." "What evidence does he....." "RWAAAAR OLD BOOK!" deGrasse will be known world wide in another 50-100 years as education; and not superstition, grows.
