Welcome Fall 2014 Class!

8/25/2014

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Fall 2014 Chemistry Syllabus

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Today we watched a video in which Stephen Colbert interviewed astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson about science and it's relationship with our society and culture. Here is the video:

In the comments section below. Please share any thoughts, questions, or things that struck you. Feel free to post as much as you want, or to respond to your peers.

58 Comments

Andrew link

8/26/2014 05:12:35 am

Here is a video link to the above video, again.

andrew

8/26/2014 05:13:50 am

Shane

8/27/2014 01:07:10 pm

"Just because you don't understand it doesn't mean you shouldn't look into it."

Liz

8/26/2014 09:02:45 am

"I don't blame the knowledge, I blame the behavior in the face of knowledge."
"If you know what's going on, you are a participant in the universe."
And this is just a comment about DeGrasse Tyson's talks in general, but sometimes it sounds as though we (right now) cannot do anything about our current position in the world, whether it's for global warming or science education. And I understand that it takes a while for these things to pay off, but at times it seems rather hopeless, and that we're falling into a state of horrible-ness.

Fabian

8/26/2014 09:06:36 am

Quotes
1. "Love's what he doesn't know."
2. "I wanna blame the behavior of people in the presence of knowledge."
3. "Some of the greatest poetry is revealing to the reader the beauty in something so simple you have taken it for granted.

Andie

8/26/2014 09:49:14 am

"The absence of knowing is what makes people afraid of science"

Mario Avila

8/26/2014 10:01:00 am

"Part of who we are is what we know."

"Its a way of equipping yourself to interpret whats in front of you."

"Words that make questions, may not be questions at all."

Victor

8/26/2014 10:10:42 am

"At the end of the day, a discovery itself is not moral; its our application of it."
"God is truth, truth is beauty."

Zach Smith

8/26/2014 10:18:04 am

"If God didn't want it in the world then why would he put that atom in the world."
"Who do you want more, the person who can figure stuff out or the person who can recite lots of facts."

Carleigh Smith

8/26/2014 10:20:40 am

1. "If God didn't want it to be there than God wouldn't have put the atom there"

2. "If a human can't understand then science becomes magic to them"

Ezra Haddock

8/26/2014 10:31:06 am

"The world is attainable to us" - Neil Tyson
"Without scientific knowledge, you cannot enhance your life" - Neil Tyson

Samuel Frederick

8/26/2014 10:35:00 am

"Is it better to know or not to know?" -Stephan Colbert

Ryder

8/26/2014 10:40:32 am

"If God didn't want it to be there than God wouldn't have put the atom there"
"Its not only that he loves what he knows, he loves what he doesn't"
"I don't blame the knowledge, I blame the people who use the knowledge."

Natalie

8/26/2014 10:52:22 am

1) Is knowledge always a good thing? (Stephen) I have to say yes (Neil) Why (Stephen) Because it empowers you to react and possibly even to do something about it, if something about it needs to be done (Neil)
2)Just because you don't understand it doesn't mean it's bad for you, go figure out how it works (Neil)

Spencer Dok

8/26/2014 10:53:09 am

1. "Just because you don't understand it, doesn't mean it's bad for you."

2. "When you go to the polls, you can make an informed judgement and you can draw your own conclusions rather than turning to particular T.V stations to have your conclusions handed to you."

3. "Science literacy is an important part of what it is to be an informed citizen of society."

4. Also, he indirectly advised to, basically, "question everything".

Julio Rodriguez

8/26/2014 11:10:27 am

1. The universe is inside us, were made of star stuff

2. E=MC2 is beautiful because it's simple, but yet complext

Julio Rodriguez

8/26/2014 11:18:02 am

Typo Complex at the end of number 2.

E=MC2 because it's simple, yet complex

Nicole Rodriguez

8/26/2014 11:25:43 am

"If you're wielding a hammer, all of your problems look like nails." - Neil Tyson
"Just because you don't understand it, doesn't mean its bad for you." -Neil Tyson
"The more we learn about the universe, the smaller we get." -Neil Tyson

Victoria Anderson

8/26/2014 11:31:48 am

" Is science a thing or a way to look at the world."

"We are a host for bacteria to grow and live it's life."

8/26/2014 11:44:28 am

"Science isn't distrusted for what it does it's what it can do."

Freddie

8/26/2014 12:17:47 pm

"Energy equals mass hardly ever happens in our everyday lives but it happens a lot in the rest of the universe."

TeAndre Allen

8/26/2014 12:29:38 pm

"The job of a poet is to give gratitude for something previously taken for granted"

I really liked this one. It changed the way I think about poetry, and really impacted my whole interpretation of it.

Jeff

8/26/2014 12:30:03 pm

1. Steven Colbert: "Is knowledge always a good thing?"
Neil deGrasse Tyson: "I have to say yes."
Steven Colbert: "Why?"
Neil deGrasse Tyson: "Because it empowers you to react, and possibly to do something about it if something about it needs to be done."

2. "Science literacy is vaccine against charlatan's of the world that would exploit your ignorance of the forces of nature."

Nick Warren

8/26/2014 12:54:03 pm

1. Is to know or not to know

2. Words that make questions may not be questions at all.

August

8/26/2014 01:00:31 pm

Scientists are not without moral code.

Krisztina

8/26/2014 01:07:45 pm

“Just because you don't understand it, doesn't mean its bad for you.”

“We are not only in the universe, the universe is in us.”

“We are star stuff, we are stardust”
-Neil Tyson

Noehmi

8/26/2014 02:04:30 pm

"Words that make questions may not be questions at all."

"You have to let them explore."

"The universe is in us."

Gil Tamir

8/26/2014 02:11:42 pm

"Not only was it wrong it was lazy and wrong."

Dyanna MaRIN

8/26/2014 02:12:48 pm

Quotes that struck me
-"Is it better to know or not know?"
- "Just because you don't understand it doesn't mean its bad for you"
-"Is science a thing or is it a way to look at the world?"
-"If you think education is expensive try ignorance"

Michelle

8/26/2014 02:20:21 pm

"If you think education is expensive try ignorence"

Beatrice

8/26/2014 02:57:42 pm

"Just because you don't understand it, doesn't mean it's bad for you."

"I don't blame the knowledge, I blame the behavior of people in the presence of the knowledge."

"At the end of the day, a discovery itself is not moral; its our application of it."

- Neil Tyson

Vivien

8/26/2014 03:30:03 pm

"I like this guy because of what he knows, but even more so of how interested he is in what he does not know."
-Stephen Colbert

"Just because you don't understand it, doesn't mean it's bad for you ... The absence of understanding or misunderstanding is what messes us up."
"Not only are we a part of the universe, the universe is in us."
"It's simple, but it accounts for mighty complex things"
"At the end of the day, would you rather have the person who can rattle off facts for you or the person that can pull understanding from something they've never seen before? Because I'd rather have the person that can figure it out."
"I wonder if I grew up on a farm somewhere, not as a city dweller (with only a dozen or so stars) and had the stars, if overtime it they would have just become wallpaper to me"
-Neil Tyson

I really loved this video, and really loved Neil's passion for science and just how passionate he got when speaking about what he believes in, in what he knows. At the end of the interview, one thought of mine was "this guy gets it". And there was just so much he said worth quoting, I ran out of room on my page. And what he said about poets and what makes then poets, how they make the reader see the complex beauty of something small or simple, something they took for granted, I beileve that's why he was so 'quote worthy'. Because almost everything he said, was doing just that.
"Science is knowlage, it's the art of learning" -Neil

Holly Alvarez

8/26/2014 04:35:53 pm

1. "The more we learn about the universe, the smaller we get."

2. "If you think education is expensive, try the price of ignorance."

3. "The universe is in us."

Bella Fabiani

8/26/2014 09:57:55 pm

"Is science a thing or a way to look at the world?"

"Don't stop your kids from experimenting, exploring, and learning..."

"Education is expensive? Try the cost of ignorance."

"The study is not moral. The application of that is."

"Part of who we are is what we know."

"Just because you don't understand it does not mean it's bad for you."

"If all you have is a hammer, all of your problems look like nails, even if they're not."

"I don't want to be left behind."

Nicholas Luu

8/26/2014 11:52:12 pm

"I don't blame the knowledge, I blame the behavior in the face of knowledge."

Chichi

8/27/2014 12:29:27 am

"Is it better to know or not to know?

"The more we learn about the universe, the smaller we get."

Elam

8/27/2014 09:54:11 am

"Not looking at things in the long run is the beginning of the end of culture."

"Don't say no, ask why."

"Listing a long line of facts does not make you a wise man."

Juan Miguel Rosales

8/27/2014 11:19:03 am

1." The universe is us"

2."Its better to know and not know"

Jaelin

8/27/2014 12:35:31 pm

"I think if you know what's going on, then it's not mysterious, and you're a participant in the unfolding cosmos. Otherwise, you are consumed by it, and you fear it, and you shun it."

"Just because you don't understand it, doesn't mean it's bad for you."

Both of these quotes are talking about mankind's innate fear of the unknown, and how progress can be stinted by that instinct.

Noah McBride link

8/27/2014 12:58:25 pm

"He loves what he[Tyson] doesn't know" -Colbert

"Absence of understanding science is why people fear science" -Tyson

"Black holes remember what they consume, and recreate whatever was consumed particles" -Tyson

"The study is not moral. The application of that is." -Tyson

Science never has been my favorite subject but this video helped me gain more of an understanding for what it really is and showed me how much it can really be loved and why. I also share the love for Neil Armstrong because of all the stories that had been told to me. I hope I can gain more of a love for science over the year as well as have a good time in class at the same time.

Michelle C.

8/27/2014 01:09:51 pm

"If they don't value science, do they value ignorance?"

"Its simple but it leads to various complex things."

"The universe is in us."

"If you understand it, you are considered a participant. If you don't, then the universe consumes you."

Emily

8/27/2014 01:24:03 pm

"Science- is it better to know or not to know?" - Colbert

What I perceive of this quote is that should we know everything or should we be ignorant? Is it really better to question something that you don't want the answer to?

"Is Science a thing? Or a way to look at the world?"

I guess my answer to this that science isn't just a "thing", but a philosophy. It gives you the truth on things that you may or may not want to know about.

Eve

8/27/2014 01:32:36 pm

"If something gets to complicated for an average person, it's considered magic."

Ximena Ramirez

8/27/2014 01:34:21 pm

"God is beautiful truth is beautiful what do you think is beautiful?"

Ben Mansfield

8/27/2014 03:01:52 pm

"Just because you don't understand it doesn't mean it's bad for you."

"At some point you have to confront data."

Ricardo Villalva

8/27/2014 03:20:08 pm

"We are star dust"
"If people do not value science do they value ignorance?"

Kathaliya

8/27/2014 03:26:51 pm

"Some of the greatest poetry is revealing to the reader, the beauty in something so simple you have taken it for granted."

"Just because you don't understand it doesn't mean it's bad for you."

Taylor

8/27/2014 03:42:06 pm

"Knowledge empowers you to react."
"We do not experience E=mc2 on Earth. Only in the universe where energy and matter are equal."
"If I lived out in the country with the stars and night sky every night, would I have grown up thinking it was wallpaper?"
"Either you know it and are a part of the unfolding cosmos, or you are consumed by it and fear it."
"That thought is so short sided it becomes the beginning and the end of your culture."
- Neil Degrasse Tyson

These quotes make me want to learn more about science. With each quote I was able to come up with more questions challenging myself to dig deeper within these topics. I wished we spent more time in class discussing the interview as there were many metaphors and examples to examine.

Lisa Fortin

8/27/2014 11:43:13 pm

"At the end of the day, a discovery itself is not moral, it's our application of it."

"That absence of understanding or misunderstanding of the power of science is what makes people afraid of it."

Isaiah

8/28/2014 06:26:03 am

"The simplest things can build into he most complex structures"
"energy and matter are interchangeable"
I find these quotes profound and interesting to myself and my scientific mind.

trent

8/28/2014 09:51:10 am

"I don't blame the knowledge, I blame the behavior in the face of knowledge."

Sara

8/28/2014 03:01:37 pm

"I don't blame the knowledge, I blame the behavior of people in the presence of the knowledge."

Jocelyn Kay

9/2/2014 03:21:10 pm

"I don't want to blame the knowledge, I want to blame the behavior of people in the presence of the knowledge."

Jocelyn Kay

9/2/2014 03:25:45 pm

Sometimes the greatest poetry is revealing to the reader the beauty of a simplistic thing that they took for granted."

Quintin Crawford

9/5/2014 04:54:28 am

We were attempting to describe the substance known as oobleck in a scientific manner, determining whether or not to consider as a solid or a liquid without using such words.
We tried many different things to observe the substance directly, what happens when you put it under pressure, or leave it alone? Etcetera. all manners of observation involved handling the substance directly. With each test we were more confused whether or not it was a liquid or a solid because our observations suggested that it was both. In the end our data was inconclusive on whether or not oobleck was either a solid or a liquid, all test concluded that it was both.

Quintin Crawford

9/5/2014 04:56:19 am

I have found out what Oobleck is! it is considered a Non-Newtonian fluid

Andrew

9/7/2014 03:29:31 am

That's good research! We have yet to really understand how non-newtonian fluids work, however.

Cole

9/10/2014 07:36:34 am

I have always wondered, why do we explore our galaxy ?, what is there underneath our galaxy. Why have we not sent a probe above or below earth ?

Welcome Fall 2014 Class!

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