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Major Impact

I had a chance to watch a Neil deGrasse Tyson show recently and had the most enjoyable time. Tyson balances erudition with entertainment with perfect grace. He can amuse and educate by turn. There were many young kids in the audience and he engaged with a few of them directly. I could not help imagining how lucky they might have felt and how privileged they were to have adults in their life who thought to bring them out to such a show. There was plenty to think about after the show but I mostly mulled over the impact an educator like Tyson can have. 

Every time he goes on the stage talks about hard concepts in a way that is accessible to everyone, he must turn a few young people to math and science - not just for the sake of a degree but to love the subjects. Some others might feel compelled to make their time on earth because life is such an infinitely small blip. Those like me experiencing midlife angst and feeling like time is slipping away without any outcomes, he might inspire to break out of the rut and do something useful. Every good teacher has the ability to bring meaningful change to the lives of those they teach but when the teacher has the star-power of someone like Tyson, the effect is disproportionately large. I was glad to have had the experience. 

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