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... informed ignorance provides the natural state of mind for research scientists at the ever-shifting frontiers of knowledge. People who believe themselves ignorant of nothing have neither looked for, nor stumbled upon, the boundary between what is known and unknown in the cosmos.

Neil deGrasse Tyson

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Neil deGrasse Tyson
Age: 66
Born: 1958
Born: October 5
Actor
Astronomer
Astrophysicist
Cosmologist
Non-Fiction Writer
Philosopher
Physicist
Science Communicator
Science Writer
Teacher
Trekkie
The Bronx
New York City
Neil Tyson
Mind
State
Unknown
Stumbled
Believe
Known
Boundaries
Boundary
People
Knowledge
Ignorant
Frontiers
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Scientist
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Natural
Neither
Shifting
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Research
Cosmos
Ever
Looked
Provides
Nothing
Ignorance
Scientists

More quotes by Neil deGrasse Tyson

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Today, scientists sound the alarm on other environmental dangers. Vested interests still hire their own scientists to confuse the issue. But in the end, nature, will not be fooled.
Neil deGrasse Tyson
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The only accounting we had of the origins and the structure of nature was Biblical Genesis.
Neil deGrasse Tyson
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I've known from long ago that the universe was calling me. If you were one of those annoying adults that said, 'Oh, what are you gonna be when you grow up?' I would say, 'Astrophysicist .' And then they'd walk away real quickly.
Neil deGrasse Tyson
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So what is true for life itself is no less true for the universe: knowing where you came from is no less important than knowing where you are going.
Neil deGrasse Tyson
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Once you have an innovation culture, even those who are not scientists or engineers - poets, actors, journalists - they, as communities, embrace the meaning of what it is to be scientifically literate. They embrace the concept of an innovation culture. They vote in ways that promote it. They don't fight science and they don't fight technology.
Neil deGrasse Tyson
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We live in a world where not everyone has the urge to help others... It is OK to encourage others to pull themselves up by the bootstraps, but if you do, just remember that some people have no boots.
Neil deGrasse Tyson
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People like it when they understand something that they previously thought they couldn't understand. It's a sense of empowerment.
Neil deGrasse Tyson
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When you are a hammer, all of your problems will look like nails to you.
Neil deGrasse Tyson
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God is an ever-receding pocket of scientific ignorance that's getting smaller and smaller and smaller as time moves on.
Neil deGrasse Tyson
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Speaking as just simply an American who cares about the economic health of our country, I see one of the surest ways to bring wealth and prosperity to the country is to innovate in science and technology.
Neil deGrasse Tyson
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The news media reported the $250 million as an unthinkably huge waste of money and proclaimed that something was wrong with NASA. The result was an investigation and a congressional hearing. Not to defend failure, but $250 million is not much more than the cost to produce Kevin Costner's film flop Waterworld.
Neil deGrasse Tyson
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I agree that we should go back to the moon and on to Mars. We should treat all objects in the solar system, including comets and asteroids, as exploration targets.
Neil deGrasse Tyson
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When asked about which scientist he'd like to meet, Neil deGrasse Tyson said, Isaac Newton. No question about it. The smartest person ever to walk the face of this earth. The man was connected to the universe in spooky ways. He discovered the laws of motion, the laws of gravity, the laws of optics. Then he turned 26.
Neil deGrasse Tyson
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I don't want to die ... I don't want to die poor. Two great motivators in the history of human cultures.
Neil deGrasse Tyson
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I remain fearless of airplanes after 9/11. But during a trip to Los Angeles on a Boeing 767, I couldn't keep my mind from drifting: What's the largest piece of this airplane that could crash into the World Trade Center, explode out the other side, and survive intact? The landing gear? My computer battery? My belt buckle? My wedding ring?
Neil deGrasse Tyson
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UV is bad for molecules because its high energy breaks the bonds between a molecule's constituent atoms. That's why UV is bad for you, too: it's always best to avoid things that decompose the molecules of your flesh.
Neil deGrasse Tyson
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The miniaturization of electronics, which ultimately was driven by the marketplace, was started by NASA, because it costs money to get something into orbit. So you want to trim your electronics, miniaturize your electronics, miniaturize your satellites.
Neil deGrasse Tyson
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Once you've got the makings of a star, gravity draws leftover gas and dust into a giant swirling disk. The dust continues to stick together, clumping into rocky asteroids, which eventually become orbiting rocky planets. And voila: a solar system!
Neil deGrasse Tyson
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Our history, in the cosmos and on planet Earth, was shaped by countless events, some obviously epic, some seemingly trivial, yet all vital in getting us to this point, here and now, the people we are today.
Neil deGrasse Tyson
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When your reasons for believing something are justified ad hoc, you are left susceptible to further discoveries undermining the rationale for that belief.
Neil deGrasse Tyson