Bill Nye came to Pitt last night

Bill Nye was a very important part of the lives of many 90’s kids. He had a talent for combining teaching with humor while also making science a very approachable subject for younger people. Last night, he came to Pitt, and he hasn’t changed at all. Sure, his jokes and lecturing were geared towards college students, rather than elementary students, but he still had the same energy that captivated the millions of kids that grew up watching his television show. The child within me was filled with joy.

The entire program lasted for about an hour and forty-five minutes, twenty minutes of which were used to answer questions submitted by the audience through social media outlets. He began his presentation going over the history of his family, specifically, his parents’ roles in World War II and his father’s interest in science.

What aspects of science, you ask? Specifically, sundials. Bill Nye’s father was obsessed with sundials, so much so that he wrote a book dedicated to the device and joined the North American Sundial Society. Because that’s a thing. Bill Nye is now a member, and has dedicated much of his personal and professional life to creating and studying sundials. If it was anyone else talking about sundials, I probably would’ve fallen asleep. But it was Bill Nye. I might join the North American Sundial Society.

Then, he dove into what would be the meat of his presentation, climate change. He talked about the vulnerability of earth’s ozone layer the rise in average temperature since the early twentieth century, and the buildup of carbon dioxide within the atmosphere. Never before has mankind been so wasteful and destructive- especially within the United States. While the rest of the world is advancing their infrastructure and usage of alternative energy, the United States is failing to improve in this way, Nye argued. He cited Upton Sinclair, who famously said, “it is difficult to get a man to understand something, when his salary depends upon his not understanding it.” With so many conservative members of the government still accepting money from the fossil fuel industry, our country is having an extremely difficult time with the transition to renewable energy.

Bill Nye also took a jab at the three remaining GOP candidates and their opinions on climate change.

“Kasich isn’t sure, Trump thinks it’s a conspiracy from China, and Cruz thinks everything is a conspiracy.” The statement was met with laughs and applause from the crowd, as well as a few “Zodiac Killer” chants.

Nye stressed the importance of the youth vote, arguing that although conservative views go against younger, more liberal views, the Republican nominee will be “courting the youth vote when the general election rolls around.” It was refreshing to hear such an important figure place such significance on an age group that is so often ignored in the political sphere.

“You can change the world,” he said multiple times, and I think we all started to believe that. I mean, here he is, our childhood hero, telling us that we can change the world- and it’s true. Our generation will dictate the future of space exploration. Our generation will dictate the path of politics. Most importantly, according to Nye, our generation will dictate whether or not we continue on the path of fossil fuels and conceding to the oil and gas industries or whether we invest in renewable energy. The jobs that would be lost with the downfall of fossil fuels can be easily reinvested in wind, solar, and geothermal power. It is so feasible, and Bill Nye made that extremely clear. He inspired us, college students, the same way he inspired us when we were in elementary school. Or, in my case, at science camp.

But the best part of the night, by far, was when he responded to a question about his best college experience.

“That’s kind of none of your business,” he answered. “I’m still in touch with her, though.”

He then proceeded to take a selfie. What an evening.