The primary reason people watch sports is to have a default topic of conversation to use with strangers or friends
The reason why we watch sports collectively is that it gives you something to talk about with a stranger if the conversation otherwise lags, or with a friend. If everyone was enlightened in a hundred different subjects, then the conversation would never lag because you could talk about leaves and insects... so you're not limited to that.
More from this episode
View episodeThe NFL should require the highest-drafted quarterback to start behind Ryan Fitzpatrick for three games
They should make a rule that whoever drafts the highest quarterback has to start Fitzpatrick for at least three games at the start of the season. So like Trevor Lawrence when he goes to the Eagles, [Fitzpatrick] should have to start for them.
Trey Lance will be a first-round NFL draft pick
Trey Lance is going to be a first rounder probably... This mock draft I'm reading right now has Trey Lance late in the first round to the [Saints].
Sports talk show hosts should be required to wear shirts and ties because unbuttoned collars look unprofessional
I actually think all sports radio talk show hosts should wear shirts and ties. Enough of this unbuttoned top thing. I think you look unprofessional when you do it. I'd rather listen to Max Kellerman be wildly incorrect than somebody that doesn't look like... I can almost see Colin Cowherd's nipples right now.
More from Neil deGrasse Tyson
View profileIntelligence is better defined by curiosity and problem-solving than by memorization
I submit to you that most challenges in this world are best served not by someone who memorized the encyclopedia but by someone who has a deep sense of curiosity and tools to empower that curiosity to figure stuff out.
Suggesting humans are the only life in the universe is inexcusably egocentric
To suggest that we're the only life in the universe would be inexcusably egocentric... Recognizing the likelihood of there being life in the universe is not the same thing as agreeing with UFO enthusiasts.
Eating a steak is effectively eating solar power
Essentially all energy that drives life on Earth's surface comes from the Sun. So if you are a meat eater and you have a steak, the steak came from a cow. Cows are vegetarian; they eat leaves and grains that got their energy from sunlight. So when you're eating a steak, you're actually eating solar power.