Neil deGrasse Tyson is one of the most famous and vocal scientists of our time. He's also a huge fan of Twitter, and often takes to the social media site to correct bad science on a daily basis and to pass on little-known facts about whatever subject he chooses.
Tyson has spent much of his time on Twitter setting the record straight about things people often misunderstand about science, as well as reminding humans that in the grand scheme of things, we are pretty much nothing.
As if that weren't enough, though, Tyson also uses his Twitter account to correct the bad science of movies, film and television, as well as explain when someone has used bad science in an argument or to make a point.
Though it's easy to simply call Tyson a spoilsport when it comes to some of his Twitter rants, the truth is that he's genuinely trying to educate people, while also serving as the official wet blanket of the social media world.
Tyson's prolific tweeting is like a daily science lesson for anyone who follows him, and here's just a sampling of the movies, TV shows, sports and holidays he's educated us on over the years, whether we wanted him to or not.
Gravity
Tyson went completely off on the film Gravity, starting with some of the film's most mind-boggling points and pointing out where the science isn't just bad, it's outright wrong.
Mysteries of #Gravity: Why Bullock, a medical Doctor, is servicing the Hubble Space Telescope.
— Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) October 6, 2013
Mysteries of #Gravity: How Hubble (350mi up) ISS (230mi up) & a Chinese Space Station are all in sight lines of one another. — Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) October 6, 2013
Mysteries of #Gravity: Why Bullock's hair, in otherwise convincing zero-G scenes, did not float freely on her head. — Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) October 6, 2013
Mysteries of #Gravity: Nearly all satellites orbit Earth west to east yet all satellite debris portrayed orbited east to west — Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) October 6, 2013
Mysteries of #Gravity: Satellite communications were disrupted at 230 mi up, but communications satellites orbit 100x higher. — Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) October 6, 2013
Tyson did eventually admit to liking the movie, but it's probably good that he called out Hollywood for its lack of research on such a big film.
NASCAR
Most NASCAR watchers just want to watch cars race around a track at dangerous speeds while avoiding crashes, but Tyson decided to step things up a notch and turn the sport into a science lesson.
Rubber tires on asphalt grant a maximum speed of about 165 mph in the 24-degree banked turns at Charlotte Motor Speedway. — Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) May 26, 2014
If you travel faster than 165 mph on the 24-degree bank turns at Charlotte Motor Speedway you will skid into the embankment. — Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) May 26, 2014
Spoilers increase the effective weight (traction) over a car's rear wheels at high speed - without increasing the car's mass. — Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) May 26, 2014
Christmas
Tyson also did his best to remind people that not everyone celebrates Christmas, even going so far as to remind people that December 25 is also the birthday of Isaac Newton. Although these tweets became controversial, they were still all in good fun.
QUESTION: ThIs year, what do all the world's Muslims and Jews call December 25th? ANSWER: Thursday — Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) December 25, 2014
On this day long ago, a child was born who, by age 30, would transform the world. Happy Birthday Isaac Newton b. Dec 25, 1642 — Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) December 25, 2014
Merry Christmas to all. A Pagan holiday (BC) becomes a Religious holiday (AD). Which then becomes a Shopping holiday (USA). — Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) December 25, 2014
The Martian
Tyson also pointed out some fallacies in last year's hit movie The Martian, about a man stranded on Mars. Those points, though, didn't come from the movie's science, but some of the smaller details.
Evidence that the @MartianMovie is fantasy: All who make important decisions are scientifically literate. — Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) October 2, 2015
Evidence that the @MartianMovie is fantasy: The USA & China cooperate with one another in Space. — Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) October 2, 2015
In the @MartianMovie #JPL tracks astronauts. Nope, #JSC does it alone. But watching two @NASA centers collaborate - geek gold — Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) October 2, 2015
In the end, though, Tyson praised the movie for its use of science, even going so far as to call it another character in the film.
In the @MartianMovie, they got crucial science right, while enhancing the story by fictionalizing the science that remained. — Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) October 2, 2015
Star Wars
Sure, Star Wars: The Force Awakens is now one of the biggest movies of all time, but that doesn't mean that it uses good science. Most would already argue that Star Wars is more fantasy than science fiction, but Tyson chose to drive that point home with a few well-worded tweets.
In @StarWars #TheForceAwakens, BB-8, a smooth rolling metal spherical ball, would have skidded uncontrollably on sand. — Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) December 21, 2015
In @StarWars #TheForceAwakens the TIE fighters made exactly the same sound in the vacuum of space as in planetary atmospheres — Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) December 21, 2015
In @StarWars #TheForceAwakens, if you were to suck all of a star's energy into your planet, your planet would vaporize. — Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) December 21, 2015
Valentine's Day
Valentine's Day is usually all about love and romance, right? But Tyson reminded us all that sometimes that romance leads to less desirable outcomes.
Venus is the Roman goddess of love & sexuality. And so medical doctors assigned Venereal - "of Venus" to all related diseases — Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) February 14, 2016
From Venus? Then you're Venusian. But the proper term is Venereal. Unfortunately Doctors nabbed it before Astrophysicists did — Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) February 14, 2016
He also reminded us of ancient days, when some groups ate real hearts instead of ones made of chocolate.
I wonder what Cannibals & Aztecs would say, watching civilized people eat symbolic hearts of loved ones on Valentine's Day. — Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) February 14, 2016
Leap Day
If it's a holiday, Tyson has an opinion about it. He also has scores of facts you probably never knew and didn't want to know. But that's what Twitter is for.
Earth takes nearly 365 1/4 days to orbit the Sun. Bank the fraction. Every 4 years add a whole day back to the neediest month — Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) February 29, 2016
According to Gregorian rules, only 1 in 4 century years is a leap year - the rarity of 2000's leap day went largely unnoticed — Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) February 29, 2016
Born on a leap day? You've had 1/4 as many birthdays as the rest of us, but sorry, you're not 1/4th as old. — Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) February 29, 2016
The Leap Day is misnamed. We're not leaping anywhere. The calendar is simply, and abruptly, catching up with Earth's orbit — Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) February 29, 2016
According to Gregorian rules, only 1 in 4 century years is a leap year - the rarity of 2000's leap day went largely unnoticed — Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) February 29, 2016
Photo: Thos Robinson | Getty Images
