Hey Bill Nye! What if I’m not a science person?

High school junior Caitlin is worried. She wants to be a scientist but is struggling with it a little bit in school—is there hope for her career?

 Bill Nye

Bill Nye, scientist, engineer, comedian, author, and inventor, is a man with a mission: to help foster a scientifically literate society, to help people everywhere understand and appreciate the science that makes our world work. Making science entertaining and accessible is something Bill has been doing most of his life.

In Seattle Nye began to combine his love of science with his flair for comedy, when he won the Steve Martin look-alike contest and developed dual careers as an engineer by day and a stand-up comic by night. Nye then quit his day engineering day job and made the transition to a night job as a comedy writer and performer on Seattle’s home-grown ensemble comedy show “Almost Live.” This is where “Bill Nye the Science Guy®” was born. The show appeared before Saturday Night Live and later on Comedy Central, originating at KING-TV, Seattle’s NBC affiliate.

While working on the Science Guy show, Nye won seven national Emmy Awards for writing, performing, and producing. The show won 18 Emmys in five years. In between creating the shows, he wrote five children’s books about science, including his latest title, “Bill Nye’s Great Big Book of Tiny Germs.”

Nye is the host of three currently-running television series. “The 100 Greatest Discoveries” airs on the Science Channel. “The Eyes of Nye” airs on PBS stations across the country.
Bill’s latest project is hosting a show on Planet Green called “Stuff Happens.” It’s about environmentally responsible choices that consumers can make as they go about their day and their shopping. Also, you’ll see Nye in his good-natured rivalry with his neighbor Ed Begley. They compete to see who can save the most energy and produce the smallest carbon footprint. Nye has 4,000 watts of solar power and a solar-boosted hot water system. There’s also the low water use garden and underground watering system. It’s fun for him; he’s an engineer with an energy conservation hobby.

Nye is currently the Executive Director of The Planetary Society, the world’s largest space interest organization.

 

22 May, 2017

Caitlin: Hey Bill. I’m currently a junior in high school and I’m getting ready to apply to college in the near future. I’ve always loved science but it’s never been a subject to come naturally to me and I’ve always struggled in it a little bit. Do you think that there’s a possibility I could pick science as my major and become hopefully a scientist one day in the future despite the fact that it doesn’t come naturally to me? Thank you very much.

Bill Nye: Caitlin, of course there’s a chance for you to become a scientist. What, are you kidding me? Of course, young woman, go for it! There’s all sorts of sciences that I bet will come naturally to you. Chemistry and physics may not be your thing, or maybe they’re your favorite. Statistics always made me crazy although I did it. So yes, there’s a science for you, you’re doggone right.

I would please consider pursuing as many science courses as you can handle. You don’t have to start with 400-level courses, you know, senior in college level courses, just try astronomy. Astronomy is empowering and wonderful. It’s humbling and empowering all at the same time. Try biology. The discoveries being made in genetics right now are amazing and will change the course of human history. Try chemistry. Without chemistry we would not have these textiles and this fabulous glass in these electronics that are enabling us to have this computer conversation. No, just go for it, of course!

The big thing I remind everybody though is algebra. Algebra is really important and it was hard for me too. You’ve just got to practice. You’ve got to practice algebra over and over. And the reason it’s valuable, apparently, research suggests thinking abstractly about numbers enables you to think abstractly about all sorts of things.

So go back if you need to. If you’re a junior just do a little more algebra and I bet you’re more comfortable with the whole idea. And you might change the world. Go get 'em, Caitlin!

What do you do if you're a diehard science lover who dreams of one day donning a lab coat professionally, but you're struggling with the work at school? That is Caitlin's predicament—but that's not how Bill Nye sees it. Your school classes may not come naturally to you, but that's because science is a skill, not a talent. No one is born a scientist, it is something you become over time with hard work, and if perhaps biology isn't hitting home with you, you may find your groove in astronomy. Physics isn't for everyone, but chemistry might be your match. The point is, there is a kind of science for everyone. So to change the world as a scientist, here's what you have to do: #1. Don't give up before it's begun. #2. Study hard and get to college. #3. Practice science as a way of thinking (and algebra specifically) to develop abstract thinking skills. #4. Find the field in which you belong, and start to chip away at change. Bill Nye's most recent book is Unstoppable: Harnessing Science to Change the World.

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Michio Kaku: Genetic and digital immortality are within reach

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Robot pizza delivery coming later this year from Domino's

The pizza giant Domino's partners with a Silicon Valley startup to start delivering pizza by robots.

Nuro
Technology & Innovation
  • Domino's partnered with the Silicon Valley startup Nuro to have robot cars deliver pizza.
  • The trial run will begin in Houston later this year.
  • The robots will be half a regular car and will need to be unlocked by a PIN code.

Would you have to tip robots? You might be answering that question sooner than you think as Domino's is about to start using robots for delivering pizza. Later this year a fleet of self-driving robotic vehicles will be spreading the joy of pizza throughout the Houston area for the famous pizza manufacturer, using delivery cars made by the Silicon Valley startup Nuro.

The startup, founded by Google veterans, raised $940 million in February and has already been delivering groceries for Kroger around Houston. Partnering with the pizza juggernaut Domino's, which delivers close to 3 million pizzas a day, is another logical step for the expanding drone car business.

Kevin Vasconi of Domino's explained in a press release that they see these specially-designed robots as "a valuable partner in our autonomous vehicle journey," adding "The opportunity to bring our customers the choice of an unmanned delivery experience, and our operators an additional delivery solution during a busy store rush, is an important part of our autonomous vehicle testing."

How will they work exactly? Nuro explained in its own press release that this "opportunity to use Nuro's autonomous delivery" will be available for some of the customers who order online. Once they opt in, they'll be able to track the car via an app. When the vehicle gets to them, the customers will use a special PIN code to unlock the pizza compartment.

Nuro and its competitors Udelv and Robomart have been focusing specifically on developing such "last-mile product delivery" machines, reports Arstechnica. Their specially-made R1 vehicle is about half the size of a regular passenger car and doesn't offer any room for a driver. This makes it safer and lighter too, with less potential to cause harm in case of an accident. It also sticks to a fairly low speed of under 25 miles an hour and slams on the breaks at the first sign of trouble.

What also helps such robot cars is "geofencing" technology which confines them to a limited area surrounding the store.

For now, the cars are still tracked around the neighborhoods by human-driven vehicles, with monitors to make sure nothing goes haywire. But these "chase cars" should be phased out eventually, an important milestone in the evolution of your robot pizza drivers.

Check out how Nuro's vehicles work:

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