Reverend Tyson Goes Hard

It's been a while, I know.  But I simply could not let this one pass by.



What I would love is for all of you to watch all of this.  But if not, at least give a bit of attention to what Dr. Tyson says around 38:23.  It's the same message that was the thesis of his Senate testimony a few weeks ago.  I feel it's the most important message regarding the state of our economy I've heard since 2000.

I had this argument with someone a couple of weeks ago.  An iPhone, as useful as it is, is NOT true innovation.  And without true innovation, we have no reason to complain.



peace.

Reverend Tyson Takes It to the Hill

A few days ago Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson testified before Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation committee. Here is the testimony and q&a in its entirety.

For some reason, I can't stop thinking that Dr. Tyson should be sitting not in the testimony seat but rather as a member of the committee itself. I hope the people in Congress have the enthusiasm and foresight to take some real action based on the Dr.'s remarks. This stuff is d*mn important.

peace.

Red Rover

A few days ago NASA launched its most complex and ambitious Mars rover, nicknamed Curiosity. Here is wonderful, albeit nerdy, animation of how the mission might go.

For more information regarding Curiosity's design and mission, see here.

You know, I dig this. I'm all about sending rovers and probes to other bodies in the solar system. However, the last generation of space exploration included the mission to put a man on the moon. If we aren't working towards that same goal in respects to Mars, then what is NASA for? Like Dr. Tyson says, "We don't name schools after robots."

Personally, I hope Curiosity saves Spirit. That would be cool.

peace.

Reverend Tyson and General Colbert

I can't think of a better duo.



I'm pretty sure Dr. Tyson has been the most frequent reoccurring guest on Stephen Colbert's Colbert Report on Comedy Central. However, Stephen never has a chance to interview folks out of character, which is what makes this clip so fantastic. And as you will see, Colbert is just as brilliantly funny here as he is on his show. This is a wonderful interview.



peace.

Neil deGrasse Tyson Takin' it To 'Em

I've been gone for a couple of days. Most of my energy recently has been dedicated to rehearsals for a show. Things are moving along incredibly well, but there has been little time for thought and reflection on ideas and topics currently occupying my interest.

So, allow me to humbly offer a bit of my science hero Neil deGrasse Tyson.

All this info on this particular lecture can be found here on the youtube page for this video.

I'll be back tomorrow with the Emcee of the Month.

Thanks for stickin' with me.

peace.

Reverend Tyson For The Win

Tonight I'm hanging back. I had a great day meeting with the cast of a play in which I'll be performing around the holidays. So, I think I'll allow myself some time to slow down and sit with the resonance of the day.

So while I goof off, I offer to you another Neil deGrasse Tyson video that I've recently discovered. He's in exceptionally fine form with this one.

Enjoy!

peace.

Reverend Tyson, Take it Away!

I have a fairly significant audition tomorrow, so I'm going to hit the sack early tonight. So I'll let my homie Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson take the reins until tomorrow.

This is my absolute favorite youtube video of Dr. Tyson. He not only speaks about the intricacies of disseminating scientific curiosity, but also a bit of the sociopolitical consequences of choosing astrophysics as a profession.

Stellar.

peace.

Reverend Tyson Does It Again

It's waaaaaaaay too late for me right now, especially considering I have a duty to perform tomorrow. So I leave you tonight with one of my heroes, Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson.

This is science literacy at its absolute best.

peace.

The Latest from Reverend Tyson

Why did they hook him up with the erudite set? What's with the fake fauna in the window?

It's been a while since I've checked up on my main man Dr. Tyson. So tonight I cranked out a youtube search, filtered the results by upload date, and this was the first interesting clip that popped up.

A few days ago I was talking with someone about the Drake Equation (See here.) in a conversation involving the search for extraterrestrial life. In that same discussion, we also covered the possibility of living organisms under the ice surface of Europa, one of the moons of Jupiter. We even got around to speculating the possible intellectual capacity of galactic travelers that may have swung by Earth. In each of this bits of the discussion, the information I've learned while listening to Dr. Tyson proved to be a welcome addition to our talk.

I'm quite excited I've found this set of lectures from Dr. Tyson. When he speaks during his guest appearances around the country, he doesn't really have time to elaborate on much of the information he presents. The nerd in me looks forward to Dr. Tyson expanding upon many of the topics I've heard him highlight over the years.

You know, I keep a growing list of astrophysics questions on my iPod just in case I bump into him.

Yup. I'm a big dweeb.

peace.

Osmosis

Every night I go to sleep with a video or movie playing as I doze off. It's usually something I've seen a few times before so I don't have to process too much new information and I try to begin in a new place every night. I've found this allows my mind to stay restfully aware of something happening so as not to wander from thought to thought. When attempting to fall asleep without a movie or a video, my thoughts keep me uncomfortably awake for quite a while.

For a while during my senior year of high school my nightly movie was Die Hard with a Vengeance. The next big one was The Hunt for Red October, and after that I was using Porco Rosso. Since I got my iPod touch, I've been making a move towards extended youtube videos and Top Gear episodes on streetfire.net.

Tonight it will be this:

I've yet to make it all the way through this video, but I've been chipping away at it for a couple weeks now. My hope is that perhaps, somehow, I'll absorb on some of Dr. Tyson's brilliance by osmosis. Maybe I'll be smarter in the morning.

!!!

peace.

Reverend Tyson

Whenever I find myself lacking in inspiration to perform or write or practice, there are a few key thoughts or ideas that usually help me get back in gear. Recent events in my professional progress have jostled me a bit and I've noticed feeling a bit weighted down. But tonight, I'm feeling somewhat rejuvenated as I've revisited the stories, thoughts, and musings of one of my current heros, Neil deGrasse Tyson.

Dr. Tyson is the director of the Hayden Planetarium inside the American Museum of Natural History in New York. He's written 11 books, including Death By Black Hole: And Other Cosmic Quandaries and The Pluto Files: The Rise and Fall of America's Favorite Planet. He's appeared on The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, Late Night with Conan O'Brien, The Rachel Maddow Show, and half a dozen other television programs enlightening audiences about the fascinations of the universe. He's also the host of NOVA scienceNOW on PBS. For a full bio, check this out.

He's also one of the best storytellers of our time.

He has a way of talking about the universe with colors and textures that arrest me with interest. There's no way I'm not going to listen to what he says. He makes the most complex scientific theories refreshingly digestible without watering down their importance. But what's most important, he has fun discussing the universe with people. From what I can tell, he doesn't seem to mind people asking him questions about the cosmos. He's an educator, and he's good at.

I could go on and on about Dr. Tyson's dopeness, but I'll save that for another night. It's much better now if you have a chance to see for yourself.

So for your viewing pleasure, a bit of Dr. Tyson doing what he does. I hope you enjoy.

peace.

Quick Blog Post

I've got some real work to do. I was just cast in a show and I have to memorize my part by next week. So yeah, I'm hitting the books hard until I'm out of the woods.

Between now and then I will still post, but be prepared for them to be significantly truncated. I'm incredibly sorry, but it's a necessary evil.

Oh well...

Be sure to go here and check out last night's interview of one of my heroes, Neil deGrasse Tyson. We'll get to him soon.

Oh, and apparently we have a new astrology chart. Oh no. My world will never be the same. (add sarcasm)

peace