Neil deGrasse Tyson: Want to prove aliens exist? Do this.

Neil deGrasse Tyson wants to believe. He just needs to see the evidence first.

  • Are UFOs actually alien spacecraft visiting Earth? They might be, says Neil deGrasse Tyson, but if you want to make that claim you better bring the evidence to support it.
  • Eyewitness testimony is the lowest form of evidence. To measure what is true or not true in the world, we require data -- and when it comes to alien appearances, it's as astronomer Carl Sagan said: "Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence."
  • So what can you do to prove your alien abduction story? Take selfies, live-stream video to the internet, and if you happen to find yourself in a spacecraft getting your "gonads poked", then grab an item from the alien lab as evidence before they release you back on Earth. Neil deGrasse Tyson wants to believe, but not until he sees the data.
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Italy to require schools to teach climate change, in world first

Should other nations start requiring schools to teach climate science, too?


Barbara Alper / Getty
  • Starting September 2020, public schools in Italy will have to incorporate 33 hours of climate-related lessons into their annual curriculum.
  • Italy's education minister said it's part of an effort to place "the environment and society at the core of everything we learn in school."
  • In the U.S., not all states have implemented teaching standards that call for lessons on climate science, but about 80 percent of parents said they support such standards.
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Eyes on the prize: Why optimists make superb leaders

Recognizing the opportunity the future holds can help you better manage the challenges to come.

  • Effective leadership comes from, in part, an understanding of the challenges the future might hold.
  • Because optimists are able to focus the opportunities the future presents — instead of the impossibilities — they make great leaders.
  • An understanding of science plays a part in more clearly seeing the future, which contributes to better decision-making as a leader.
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Youth brain: How does your office view aging?

Getting older — see: looking older — is not ideal in the workplace culture of youthfulness.

  • Professional biohacker Dave Asprey says the healthier you are, the better you're paid at work. So taking care of yourself doesn't just serve the ego, it can also provide for your family.
  • This can differ between men and women, however, as the latter face age discrimination more heavily.
  • Taking measures to benefit the health of your mind and body can get you ahead in the workplace culture of youthfulness.
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‘Cosmological crisis’: The universe may be a closed sphere, not flat

A new paper claims that scientists might be wildly mistaken about the density — and therefore, the shape — of our universe.

NASA
  • Scientists have long considered the universe to be flat like a sheet of paper.
  • In a recent paper, a team of researchers argued that data from the Planck telescope suggests the universe is closed.
  • Still, this claim is far from proven, and some scientists have said the likely explanation is that the data is a statistical fluke.
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