Neil deGrasse Tyson is an American astrophysicist, author, and science communicator. Profoundly inspirational Neil Degrasse Tyson quotes will encourage growth in life, make you wiser and broaden your perspective.
Famous Neil Degrasse Tyson Quotes
The good thing about science is that it’s true whether or not you believe in it.
Knowing how to think empowers you far beyond those who know only what to think. Neil deGrasse Tyson
The problem, often not discovered until late in life, is that when you look for things in life like love, meaning, motivation, it implies they are sitting behind a tree or under a rock. The most successful people in life recognize, that in life they create their own love, they manufacture their own meaning, they generate their own motivation. For me, I am driven by two main philosophies, know more today about the world than I knew yesterday. And lessen the suffering of others. You’d be surprised how far that gets you.
The problem in society is not kids not knowing science. The problem is adults not knowing science. They outnumber kids 5 to 1, they wield power, they write legislation. When you have scientifically illiterate adults, you have undermined the very fabric of what makes a nation wealthy and strong. Neil deGrasse Tyson
Recognize that the very molecules that make up your body, the atoms that construct the molecules, are traceable to the crucibles that were once the centers of high mass stars that exploded their chemically rich guts into the galaxy, enriching pristine gas clouds with the chemistry of life. So that we are all connected to each other biologically, to the earth chemically and to the rest of the universe atomically. That’s kinda cool! That makes me smile and I actually feel quite large at the end of that. It’s not that we are better than the universe, we are part of the universe. We are in the universe and the universe is in us.
I love being wrong because that means in that instant, I learned something new that day. Neil deGrasse Tyson
We are all connected; To each other, biologically. To the earth, chemically. To the rest of the universe atomically.
One of the biggest problems with the world today is that we have large groups of people who will accept whatever they hear on the grapevine, just because it suits their worldview not because it is actually true or because they have evidence to support it. The really striking thing is that it would not take much effort to establish validity in most of these cases but people prefer reassurance to research. Neil deGrasse Tyson
We spend the first year of a child’s life teaching it to walk and talk and the rest of its life to shut up and sit down. There’s something wrong there.
One of the biggest problems with the world today is that we have large groups of people who will accept whatever they hear on the grapevine, just because it suits their worldview not because it is actually true or because they have evidence to support it. The really striking thing is that it would not take much effort to establish validity in most of these cases but people prefer reassurance to research. Neil deGrasse Tyson
Curious that we spend more time congratulating people who have succeeded than encouraging people who have not.
You can’t have people making decisions about the future of the world who are scientifically illiterate. That’s a recipe for disaster. And I don’t mean just whether a politician is scientifically literate, but people who vote politicians into office. Neil deGrasse Tyson
The Universe is under no obligation to make sense to you.
Claiming there is no other life in the universe is like scooping up some water, looking at the cup, and claiming there are no whales in the ocean. Neil deGrasse Tyson
The more I learn about the universe, the less convinced I am that there’s any sort of benevolent force that has anything to do with it, at all.
Intelligent life can’t be all that common because it’s really rare on Earth and especially since we define ourselves to be intelligent. But in the eyes of an alien coming here who has the technology to make it here, they might observe us and conclude that there’s no sign of intelligent life on Earth. Neil deGrasse Tyson
There’s as many atoms in a single molecule of your DNA as there are stars in the typical galaxy. We are, each of us, a little universe.
If you want to assert a truth, first make sure it’s not just an opinion that you desperately want to be true. Neil deGrasse Tyson
I would request that my body in death be buried not cremated, so that the energy content contained within it gets returned to the earth, so that flora and fauna can dine upon it, just as I have dined upon flora and fauna during my lifetime
When students cheat on exams, it’s because our school system values grades more than Students value learning. Neil deGrasse Tyson
I look up at the night sky, and I know that, yes, we are part of this Universe, we are in this Universe, but perhaps more important than both of those facts is that the Universe is in us. When I reflect on that fact, I look up many people feel small, because they’re small and the Universe is big, but I feel big, because my atoms came from those stars.
Pretending to know everything closes the door to finding out what’s really there. Neil deGrasse Tyson
My view is that if your philosophy is not unsettled daily then you are blind to all the universe has to offer.
If you’re really successful at bullshitting, it means you’re not hanging around enough people smarter than you. Neil deGrasse Tyson
Knowing how to think empowers you far beyond those who know only what to think.
What I’m saying is, when different experiments give you the same result, it is no longer subject to your opinion. Neil deGrasse Tyson
I want to put on the table, not why 85% of the members of the National Academy of Sciences reject God, I want to know why 15% of the National Academy don’t.
When scientifically investigating the natural world, the only thing worse than a blind believer is a seeing denier. Neil deGrasse Tyson
God is an ever receding pocket of scientific ignorance.
God displayed a sense of humor when he configured the region between our legs an entertainment complex built around a sewage system. Neil deGrasse Tyson
1We are stardust brought to life, then empowered by the universe to figure itself out and we have only just begun.
You get to say that the Earth is flat because we live in a country that guarantees your free speech. But it’s not a country that guarantees that anything you say is correct. Neil deGrasse Tyson
I know that the molecules in my body are traceable to phenomena in the cosmos. That makes me want to grab people on the street and say: ‘Have you HEARD THIS?
I dream of a world where the truth is what shapes people’s politics, rather than politics shaping what people think is true. Neil deGrasse Tyson
I’m often asked by parents what advice can I give them to help get kids interested in science? And I have only one bit of advice. Get out of their way. Kids are born curious. Period.
Just to settle it once and for all: Which came first, the chicken or the egg? The egg, laid by a bird that was not a chicken. Neil deGrasse Tyson
Kids are never the problem. They are born scientists. The problem is always the adults. They beat the curiosity out of kids. They outnumber kids. They vote. They wield resources. That’s why my public focus is primarily adults.
You say you’re worried about kids? I’m not worried about kids, I’m worried about grown ups Children are not the problem here We spend the first year of their lives teaching them how to walk and talk, and the rest of their lives telling them to shut up and sit down. Neil deGrasse Tyson
Whether or not you can never become great at something, you can always become better at it. Don’t ever forget that! And don’t say I’ll never be good. You can become better! and one day you’ll wake up and you’ll find out how good you actually became.
If you need to invoke your academic pedigree or job title for people to believe what you say, then you need a better argument. Neil deGrasse Tyson
When scientifically investigating the natural world, the only thing worse than a blind believer is a seeing denier.
There’s a saying in the scientific community, that every great truth goes through three phases. First, people deny it. Second, they say that it conflicts with the Bible. Third, they say that they’ve known it all along. Neil deGrasse Tyson
Ignorance is a virus. Once it starts spreading, it can only be cured by reason. For the sake of humanity, we must be that cure.
The universe is almost 14 billion years old, and, wow! Life had no problem starting here on Earth! I think it would be inexcusably egocentric of us to suggest that we’re alone in the universe. Neil deGrasse Tyson
Where ignorance lurks, so too do the frontiers of discovery and imagination
The good thing about science is that it’s true whether or not you believe in it. From Real Time with Bill Maher
Down there between our legs, it’s like an entertainment complex in the middle of a sewage system. Who designed that?
Once upon a time, people identified the god Neptune as the source of storms at sea. Today we call these storms hurricanes The only people who still call hurricanes acts of God are the people who write insurance forms.
Dinosaurs are extinct today because they lacked opposable thumbs and the brainpower to build a space program.
We are all connected; To each other, biologically. To the earth, chemically. To the rest of the universe atomically. Neil deGrasse Tyson
When students cheat on exams it’s because our school system values grades more than students value learning.
Knowing where you came from is no less important than knowing where you are going. Neil deGrasse Tyson
Yes, Einstein was a badass.
We spend the first year of a child’s life teaching it to walk and talk and the rest of its life to shut up and sit down. There’s something wrong there. Neil deGrasse Tyson
I love the smell of the universe in the morning.
For me, I am driven by two main philosophies: know more today about the world than I knew yesterday and lessen the suffering of others. You’d be surprised how far that gets you. Neil deGrasse Tyson
If you need to invoke your academic pedigree or job title for people to believe what you say, then you need a better argument.
Every living thing is a masterpiece, written by nature and edited by evolution. Neil deGrasse Tyson
The most boring constellation: Triangulum Australis. A profound lack of imagination any three stars in the sky makes a triangle.
Curious that we spend more time congratulating people who have succeeded than encouraging people who have not. Neil deGrasse Tyson
Apollo in 1969. Shuttle in 1981. Nothing in 2011. Our space program would look awesome to anyone living backwards thru time.
The good thing about science is that it’s true whether or not you believe in it. Neil deGrasse Tyson
If each dead person became a ghost, there’d be more than 100 billion of them haunting us all. Creepy, but cool.
We are stardust brought to life, then empowered by the universe to figure itself out and we have only just begun. Neil deGrasse Tyson
In Terminator, only living things can time travel. But my hair is dead. So Arnold should’ve landed in LA not only naked but bald.
I look up at the night sky, and I know that, yes, we are part of this Universe, we are in this Universe, but perhaps more important than both of those facts is that the Universe is in us. When I reflect on that fact, I look up many people feel small, because they’re small and the Universe is big, but I feel big, because my atoms came from those stars. Neil deGrasse Tyson
If aliens did visit us, I’d be embarrassed to tell them we still dig fossil fuels from the ground as a source of energy.
Everyone should have their mind blown once a day. Neil deGrasse Tyson
Principles of modern law assert that you’re innocent until proven guilty. Yet airport security is the exact opposite of this.
If Aliens did visit us, I’d be embarrassed to tell them we still dig fossil fuels from the ground as a source of energy. Neil deGrasse Tyson
I think of space not as the final frontier but as the next frontier. Not as something to be conquered but to be explored.
Just because you can’t figure out how ancient civilizations built stuff, doesn’t mean they got help from Aliens. Neil deGrasse Tyson
According to the song, Rudolph’s nose is shiny, which means it reflects rather than emits light. Useless for navigating fog.
The atoms of our bodies are traceable to stars that manufactured them in their cores and exploded these enriched ingredients across our galaxy, billions of years ago. For this reason, we are biologically connected to every other living thing in the world. We are chemically connected to all molecules on Earth. And we are atomically connected to all atoms in the universe. We are not figuratively, but literally stardust. Neil deGrasse Tyson
4 Just an FYI: Roman Numerals have no zero because it was not yet invented, allowing 2000 to be written efficiently as MM.
The Universe is under no obligation to make sense to you. Neil deGrasse Tyson
Slowest pitch in Baseball to reach catcher? 30mph, thrown at a 45 deg angle. Any slower at any other angle hits the ground.
There’s as many atoms in a single molecule of your DNA as there are stars in the typical galaxy. We are, each of us, a little universe. Neil deGrasse Tyson
If you removed all the arteries, veins, & capillaries from a person’s body, and tied them end to end the person will die.
Principles of modern law assert that you’re innocent until proven guilty. Yet airport security is the exact opposite of this. Neil deGrasse Tyson
Curiously, light loving GREEN plants reject the Sun’s GREEN light, reflecting it back at you, which is why they look GREEN
My view is that if your philosophy is not unsettled daily then you are blind to all the universe has to offer. Neil deGrasse Tyson
If gridiron were a timeline, w/ Big Bang at one goal, then cavemen to now spans thickness of single turf blade at other goal.
I love being wrong, because that means in that instant, I learned something new that day. Neil deGrasse Tyson
So you’re made of detritus [from exploded stars]. Get over it. Or better yet, celebrate it. After all, what nobler thought can one cherish than that the universe lives within us all?
I think of space not as the final frontier but as the next frontier. Not as something to be conquered but to be explored. Neil deGrasse Tyson
The remarkable feature of physical laws is that they apply everywhere, whether or not you choose to believe in them. After the laws of physics, everything else is opinion.
We are part of this universe; we are in this universe, but perhaps more important than both of those facts, is that the universe is in us. Neil deGrasse Tyson
Science needs the light of free expression to flourish. It depends on the fearless questioning of authority, and the open exchange of ideas.
Unlike what you may be told in other sectors of life, when observing the universe, size does matter, which often leads to polite ‘telescope envy’ at gatherings of amateur astronomers.
When your reasons for believing something are justified ad hoc, you are left susceptible to further discoveries undermining the rationale for that belief.
