Happy Birthday, Neil deGrasse Tyson!

Today we celebrate the birthday of Neil deGrasse Tyson! Let's face it, there are a lot of smart people doing important things out there and Tyson is certainly one of them, but it takes a whole other kind of person to show passion for the education of the masses rather than sneer at the people intellectually below them. In a time and place where science remains continuously on trial, astrophysicist and Hayden Planetarium Director Dr. Tyson's dedication as a science communicator makes him a person worthy of celebrating.

Tyson has held many prestigious titles, honors, and awards, yet it is his role as a science communicator that speaks to me the most. He has contributed to a number of excellent educational shows, from NOVA ScienceNOW to StarTalk. He has also written a number of books, most recently Space Chronicles: Facing the Ultimate Frontier (2012), The Pluto Files: The Rise and Fall of America's Favorite Planet (2009), and Death By Black Hole, And Other Cosmic Quandaries (2007). More than providing great educational content, Tyson always seems to hit the nail on the head about the struggles of our education and political system. In an interview with Bill Maher, Tyson mentioned, "I was 12 and I said, 'I wonder what profession all these Senators and Congressmen were.' Law, law, law, law, businessman, law, law. And I said, 'There’s no scientists? Where are the engineers? Where’s the rest of life represented here?'"

About education, I found this segment from one of Tyson's keynote speeches especially touching considering my own vendetta against the constant promotion of A-students at the peril of students who underperform in the classroom.

If this nation is to fulfill its own expectations of math and science literacy among its electorate then I encourage you to look at your students as an entire package, not as a score on an exam you administer. And don't bring forth the smartest children in your class—you know the ones, they get straight A's and win all the science fair contests—and claim that your good teaching had anything to do with it. Student's who get straight A's tend to do so with or without your help. Instead, I want you to tell me what you are doing to inspire the rest of the students in your class.

Think science isn't that important for the average joe? Tyson shared on his website a story about a 14-year-old student at a school science fair. "He invited people to sign a petition that demanded either strict control of, or a total ban on, dihydrogen monoxide.... Yes, 86 percent of the passersby voted to ban water (H2O) from the environment." That would be a big collective oops, people! If we can be so easily fooled, think about the impact it can have on a democratic country where our votes matter.

Tyson also wrote a very moving letter to NASA on the occasion of their shared birthdays a few years ago, it is emotionally charged and representative of the turmoil in America's history with racism and the civil rights movement. My favorite excerpt from this letter addressed to NASA is touching enough to give you goosebumps.

I came to recognize that when you’re at your best, nothing in this world can inspire the dreams of a nation the way you can – dreams fueled by a pipeline of ambitious students eager to become scientists, engineers and technologists in the service of the greatest quest there ever was. You have come to represent a fundamental part of America’s identity, not only to itself but to the world.

In a 1994 letter about the Center for Space Education, Tyson summarized very well one of the important aspects our nation's space program.

I think it can be convincingly argued that nothing in this world has the power to inspire forward thinking and visions of the future the way the space program can. The golden era of space exploration was, no doubt the 1960s, but at that time, the meaning and significance of the space program was somewhat muddled in many urban centers due to the widespread poverty, urban riots, and poor educational systems. In the 1990s, three decades later, the meaning and significance of the space program remains muddled in many urban centers due to widespread poverty, urban riots, and poor educational systems. But there is a fundamental difference. In the 1960s the technology of the future was something that everybody looked forward to. I am not convinced that the same strength of emotions and hope exist today. [...] If you have lost all hope in the youth of today, then it may be more of a statement about your patience level than about the actual state of the next generation.

Are you inspired to inspire yet? Please join me in wishing Tyson a very happy birthday, but most importantly I encourage you to use this day to remember the importance of becoming a science advocate, if not for the whole world then at least for the kiddos in your life. It all starts with a role model and a dream. Tyson, happy birthday and thank you for your tireless contributions to making science cool, important, and inviting to the general public.