Talk:Bill Nye/Archive 1

Archive 1

Another honorary degree

He is about to receive an honorary degree from Willamette University (salem, OR) this May 2011 and will be the commencement speaker to the graduating class. This could just be added to the sentence with the john hopkins reference: He has been awarded honorary doctorates by both The Johns Hopkins University in May 2008 and Willamette University in May 2011. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Snwbrdr642 (talk • contribs) 09:03, 9 May 2011 (UTC)

Untitled

Could we get another picture? Preferably of higher quality? This one just sucks. Sckoodudey2k 23:14, 11 September 2007 (UTC)

I think Nye himself and the self-titled show have enough distinction that their articles should be separate. If anyone agrees, I'll split off the show and refine them both.

I agree. I'd hate to see an episode listing here. ;-) --Mrwojo 15:23, 7 Nov 2004 (UTC)

woops, i did an episode listing before i read this. but i like how this page is turning out, any thoughts about not splitting it? Spencerk 02:49, 31 October 2005 (UTC)

Well something needs to be done, this might be one of the most sloppy articles on wikipedia. it almost warrants a complete reset. The time references are off, things are chronologically out of order, there is poor sourcing, and even at first glance it is painfully obvious that there are at least 20 different contributers with wholly different writing styles. I dont have the time now to perform the necessary edits, but something needs to be done. --Carl Von Clausewitz 07:28, 2 April 2007 (UTC)

Bill Nye booed in Texas

http://bsalert.com/artsearch.php?fn=2&as=1990&dt=1 Old, but I think it should be mentioned in there. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 65.12.186.40 (talk) 05:30, 19 July 2008 (UTC)

No it shouldn't. Gingermint (talk) 23:05, 3 September 2010 (UTC)

Bill Nye the Science Guy Still Used in schools

The article implys that episodes of his show are no longer used in classrooms. They are still used through the high school level, I should know, I commonly see them during classes at my high school, which I am a Junior in. 68.118.180.81 01:13, 31 August 2007 (UTC)

I'm inclined to agree. The article makes it seem like they're no longer used which is definitely inaccurate. 74.110.138.185 18:19, 11 September 2007 (UTC)

Bill Nye and Carl Sagan?

Does anybody know what Bill Nye's relation to Carl Sagan was? All I can find is that he "studied under" Carl Sagan, which could mean many things, from simply taking his class to actually being mentored by him. --NeuronExMachina 04:55, 21 Jun 2005 (UTC)

This [1] just mentions being a studend of his. Bubba73 (talk), 02:53, 4 January 2006 (UTC)

he's said in tv interviews that CS was a big influence on him and that he's recently had dinner with CS's widow. closer than "just a student".

Journalist

I was looking for another person by that name; Google helped me out. I'll put a link at the top.--Joel 20:23, 22 August 2005 (UTC)

???? Gingermint (talk) —Preceding undated comment added 23:06, 3 September 2010 (UTC).

Memes section

Is the section on Memes really needed? Or might it be possible to perhaps merge it in a better location? -[[User:Mysekurity|Mysekurity]] ^{[[additions | e-mail]]} _{01:19, 1 November 2005 (UTC)}

I think it should go completely 209.86.141.232 21:41, 1 November 2005 (UTC)

Shall I conduct a straw poll, or just be bold? -[[User:Mysekurity|Mysekurity]] ^{[[additions | e-mail]]} _{00:25, 2 November 2005 (UTC)}

• its cool, ill remove it

—Preceding unsigned comment added by Spencerk (talk • contribs) 14:48, 2 November 2005

Thanks. If anyone has a problem with this, or feels it should stay, please discuss that on the talk page. Also, Spencerk, please sign your posts. Thanks, [[User:Mysekurity|Mysekurity]] ^{[[additions | e-mail]]} _{01:16, 3 November 2005 (UTC)}

• bill nye was so never married to drew barrymore. i cant believe i even looked that up. what a fool i am. Spencerk 03:28, 26 November 2005 (UTC)

Professional Frisbee-er

I can't remember where this came from, but I heard that Bill used to throw Frisbees professionally.

• in college it seems. he was on the Olympic Windjammers? Spencerk 06:38, 18 December 2005 (UTC)

• • People, it's called ULTIMATE!!! :P

Page Spilt for the TV show

Moved all references of the tv show bill nye the science guy to its own page. Bill nye the science guy formatted it there and put up some images. --munboy 15:52, 18 December 2005 (UTC)

This article should still at least touch on the show and mention his role in it. I added a short summary. --Mrwojo 02:36, 22 December 2005 (UTC)

William S. Nye?

This article should be at Bill Nye. That's the name most people recognize and it's also the way it appears on his shows. --Mrwojo 02:41, 22 December 2005 (UTC)

Is his name William S. Nye or Bill Richards Nye? --QQQ (3-18-06)

William S. Nye according to BillNye.com (see Bill Info). --Mrwojo 07:56, 19 March 2006 (UTC)

That's his name, but we all know him as Billy Nye. Gingermint (talk) 23:07, 3 September 2010 (UTC)

Religious Practices

What religion does Bill Nye follow? In an episode of Family Guy, Brian says he's Jewish.

Please, don't consider Family Guy reliable. He may have been raised in a religion, but from his shows that I've seen I'd say that he is of no religion now. But that's just opinion too. We'd need some reliable source, like Bill himself. Val42 03:05, 10 May 2006 (UTC)

Are you sure Family Guy didn't borrow that joke from the Simpsons? MafiaCapo 23:40, 15 May 2006 (UTC)

For at least some basics listen to Point of Inquiry episode "Changing the world with science education" he seems to argue for separate domains of science and relegion, but that science takes precidence over religion when dealing with the world.

• Of course he did get married (well... sort of) by Rick Warren - seems weird to get someone that recognized for their personal belief to do your ceremony if you, yourself, are non-religious. Just speculation though.

It's really a nonissue, I think. He could very well be religious (especially because of the Rick Warren thing, but despite how obvious that may seem, it's just speculation and that could possibly be because of his wife... who knows). As far as I can tell from the sources he seems to prefer to keep that out of his public life, and he could very well be a proponent of NOMAs, but even that is speculation. 74.5.105.31 (talk) 00:48, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

This doesn't have very much bearing on religion, but instead on lifeviews and philosophies. He was just awarded the Humanist of the Year award by the American Humanist Society. Check http://friendlyatheist.com/2010/06/07/its-bill-nye-the-science-guy/ 76.97.17.36 (talk) 05:20, 8 June 2010 (UTC)

Recent Vandalism

Just to let everyone know there has been some recent vandalism on the Bill Nye page. Please only edit the page if you have something constructive to add. Thanks!—The preceding unsigned comment was added by Chef855 (talk • contribs) .

Right on. Releeshan

Would it be possible to request a temporary protection? Looks like there's been a revert war to try and post that Bill Nye died yesterday, which would be odd, considering the news source I found when I did a lookup of his name (Houston Chronicle) just did a story where he was quite alive and well. Uagent 09:54, 24 January 2007 (UTC)

I've requested semi-protection. Is that good? --Releeshan 11:23, 24 January 2007 (UTC)

Clearly not enough (I saw they denied your request.) Fortunately, someone just beat me to reverting--guys, this is not funny vandalizing a page with a fake death notice.

I just reverted it back to the version by Klassykittychick, as the CNN article didn't seem to exist (and the way it was written seemed a little strange, to say the least). Hazey Jane 21:51, 6 March 2007 (UTC)

Like Mars

an organization that advocates space science research and the exploration of other planets (like Mars).

Any reason why "like Mars" needs to be said here? It looks silly to me. catParade 17:55, 21 October 2006 (UTC)

• Ummm, maybe the writer thinks the readers won't know what the other planets are.... Or maybe, the organization supports exploring Mars over like, Jupiter or something. - CaptainAmerica

Security clearance

"At one time, while working on the A-12 stealth attack aircraft, Nye had level-three security clearance with the U.S. Department of Justice."

The "level-three" is meaningless... does this mean he had a Secret or Top Secret clearance? If so, which one? -GreyGh0st 21:35, 28 October 2006 (UTC)

I suspect, but wouldn't be able to confirm that it means he had Secret, Top Secret, and a special access clearance if the A-12 stealth attack aircraft was a black project 65.96.163.132 02:20, 10 December 2006 (UTC)

Wouldn't that be a Department of Energy clearance? I didn't think the DoJ was developing any aircraft. 72.0.199.31 13:52, 27 January 2007 (UTC)

The "A-12" was the Oxcart (AKA SR-71) and was built when he was less then 5 years old. I'd say this is 100% false. --Oxcart12 00:06, 16 September 2007 (UTC)

Sorry to necropost, but "A-12" referred to the A-12 Avenger II project developed in the 80s and cancelled in 1991, which corresponds exactly to the time when Nye was a consulting engineer. --Mrwojo (talk) 00:29, 3 July 2009 (UTC)

I can confirm that. A-12 is from the 80s and I have heard he was on that project (but I haven't read that anywhere). Level-Three security is hard for me to define as it seems to refer to various levels of security depending on where you are or the project. That said, it is always a high level of clearance. Gingermint (talk) 23:12, 3 September 2010 (UTC)

I hate kids

I am removing this unreferenced sentence in 'trivia', and the trivia category as a whole, since it only has this one item:

During a 2003 shoot of Bill Nye the Science Guy, Nye was overheard saying that "...I hate children, everything on the world would be perfect without those twerps..." by a visiting class on a field trip and the accompanying staff & chaperones (sic).

I assume it is vandalism.

It sound's stupid anyway...(if it was real, then why would he make his show in the first place?) I'm glad its just vandalism. --Mitternacht90 03:38, 2 January 2007 (UTC)

Career description

I have altered the description of Bill Nye to read "science educator" rather than "scientist". In many cases, and certainly in this case, a clear distinction can be made between the work of an engineer and that of a scientist.

I recall hearing a radio interview of Bill Nye, possibly Ira Flatow's Science Friday a few years ago, in which Nye somehow linked his selection as "The Science Guy" to winning a Steve Martin lookalike contest. I don't recall exactly how this happened, so I won't edit the article at this point. However, the article currently leaves one wondering how Nye became "The Science Guy", and this information would be a valuable addition.Axewiki 09:40, 2 April 2007 (UTC)

I actually found both the Steve Martin reference and a statement indicating that "Bill Nye the Science Guy" was born on "Almost Live!" at Bill's official web site, and have added them accordingly.--Jeff-El 00:09, 28 June 2007 (UTC)

NOFX Song?

Just out of curiosity, where is he cited in the song, "Leaving Jesusland?"

• "The fear stricken, born again Christian/They got a vision of a homogenized state/Textbook decline, Intelligent Design/They got Bill Nye on the list to execrate"

MarcelLionheart 17:13, 13 May 2007 (UTC)

Events

I removed a collection of paragraphs from the Personal life, 1998 onwards section. I think it is unnecessary and unencyclopedic to list every event he speaks at; we should restrict our attention to the notable ones. Thoughts? --TeaDrinker 04:38, 10 May 2007 (UTC)

Gigawatt

The actual original pronunciation of Gigawatt is "Jigawatt" same with Gigabyte/Jigabyte sorry Bill, like science... you still rule 71.112.211.218

Not so fast. Wikipedia has its own discussion of the proper pronounciation of Giga Clayt85 (talk) 19:30, 20 July 2009 (UTC)

I have only heard it as Giga in the United States. Gingermint (talk) 23:15, 3 September 2010 (UTC)

Sex Change

Does anyone have any proof that Bill Nye had a sex change, or is it vandalism?
--Oxcart12 20:30, 16 September 2007 (UTC)

I removed the vandalism by Kdentzau
--Oxcart12 20:33, 16 September 2007 (UTC)

Sex change bit still up —Preceding unsigned comment added by 79.73.166.183 (talk) 12:43, 17 September 2007 (UTC)

Wow it's gone now - that was quick! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 79.73.166.183 (talk) 12:46, 17 September 2007 (UTC)

I dont think he had a sex change. But his last name is pretty strange. BLEHHHHHHHHHHHH —Preceding unsigned comment added by 173.9.102.126 (talk) 13:42, 23 June 2010 (UTC)

New TV show

I've heard from Bill himself (he came to our campus) about a new TV show, named "Stuff Happens" or something like that. Does anyone know much more about it?

Also, I took a couple of pictures that may be of use for this article. Released under GFDL/CC

--WillMcC 03:27, 7 November 2007 (UTC)

Death

is there any legitimate information regarding bill nye's rumoured death from a heart attack? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Tzalumen (talk • contribs) 21:32, 20 January 2008 (UTC)

He is still alive, my mom got his autograph a few days ago at New York International Toy Fair. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Mikqick (talk • contribs) 03:24, 21 February 2008 (UTC)

No he did NOT die. Where did that rumor start??? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 173.9.102.126 (talk • contribs)

Current events

Just a thought. Does anyone know what hes up to today? I read the bit about the carbon footprint but I would like to see a source of some sort. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.83.129.211 (talk) 23:23, 22 March 2008 (UTC) Bill appeared on The Rachel Maddow Show in February 2010. He said some pretty extraordinary things about the theory of man-made climate change, things that I thought should be noted here. I don't think he came off as sounding very smart. He accused climate change skeptics of being unpatriotic and he said some pretty inaccurate things. For example, he claimed that the IPCC had won a scientific Nobel Prize for their work, when in fact they won the Nobel Peace Prize, something else entirely. My edits didn't last long on this page. They were quietly wiped away. Why is that? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.63.134.177 (talk) 20:04, 11 March 2010 (UTC)

family guy

How does a family guy episode confirm Bill Nye as being Jewish at one point? Rds865 (talk) 02:06, 27 April 2008 (UTC)

While it may very well be true (and would make sense for the joke in the episode), it hardly stands as proof that he actually is or was Jewish. After hearing him speak, I would doubt that he is any religion or at least not an active follower of any religion. I'm going to remove that. -Zomic13 (talk) 03:16, 27 April 2008 (UTC)

Jewish does not mean just the religion of Judaism. 74.5.105.31 (talk) 00:40, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

That episode also says Optimus Prime is Jewish so it's probably not to something to take your news from.70.65.150.86 (talk) 03:33, 10 July 2009 (UTC)

It clearly is not a reliable source. The information that he is Jewish was added here by Koavf (talk · contribs), a very experienced user. I'll put a not on his talk page to ask where he got that bit of information. --TeaDrinker (talk) 04:33, 10 July 2009 (UTC)

It was added to the article earlier than that: 19 March 2008. --Mrwojo (talk) 16:52, 10 July 2009 (UTC)

He's not Jewish, at least by ancestry. There's a long family history here of his mother, as told by his mother's brother (Sanford S. Jenkins, Jr.). His father's ancestry isn't Jewish either. I think it's just an internet rumor, or a Family Guy joke. All Hallow's Wraith (talk) 01:29, 8 July 2010 (UTC)

Recent *Official* Bill Nye News

Bill Nye's new TV Show is "Stuff Happens", on the Discovery Channel's new Planet Green network. It launches June 4th (today). The official website for it is http://planetgreen.discovery.com/tv/stuff-happens/

I think it should be added to the page to keep things updated, yeah? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.167.64.155 (talk) 21:48, 4 June 2008 (UTC)

Vandalism

The page just got a semi-large amount of vandalism. Can someone instruct me on how to revert it to its orginal state? Andrewnuva199 (talk) 00:28, 25 September 2008 (UTC)

Yeah it definitely did. Cow zombies? Twitterpated. (talk) 00:39, 25 September 2008 (UTC)

question

Considering Bill Nye's environmentalism, is he a vegetarian? The article states he sometimes frequents a vegetarian restaurant with a friend, but I'd hate to use inductive assumption. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 174.48.210.253 (talk) 18:48, 16 July 2009 (UTC)

I don't think so, but he does advocate eating less meat (recently in Texas no less). Begley, the friend mentioned, is a well-known vegan. The statement seems a little trivial in the article, which could make it give this impression. —Mrwojo (talk) 21:35, 16 July 2009 (UTC)

mechanical engineer

The title "engineer" is not given merely because someone has a college degree in engineering. The proper term for someone with such a degree is "analyst." An engineer must pass a state test to obtain an engineering license in order to use the title - just like doctors and lawyers. Continued representation of the person as an "engineers" requires keeping the license up to date. There is no documentation supporting the statement that Nye is a mechanical "engineer." —Preceding unsigned comment added by 83.251.254.172 (talk) 11:02, 16 April 2010 (UTC)

This is not true AT ALL. What your talking about is Professional Engineering Certification. I work at a company with numerous engineers, all have mechanical engineering degrees, not one has licensing. One is going for it, only because you get paid better/can get into jobs easier. My father is a Mechanical Engineer and doesn't even have a degree. The company I'm talking about works with F-22's, Stryker Tanks, other military stuff. If a Mechanical Engineering license was needed in this state to use the title mechanical engineer, I would know (Florida.) Every engineer I work with, there business cards and listing on the website are either "Mechanical Engineer, Project Engineer, or Senior Project Engineer" Tainted Entanglement (talk) 00:31, 12 September 2010 (UTC)

I know a lot of engineers, meaning people that have degrees in engineering, jobs doing engineering, and job titles that include the word engineer. None of them is certified as a Professional Engineer. No one has ever questioned their right to call themselves engineers. There are some things in the engineering world that only professional engineers can do, like sign off on designs, but the majority of engineering work is done by engineers who aren't certified. Susfele (talk) 01:05, 12 September 2010 (UTC)

Recent appearance on "The Spill: A Crisis in the Gulf"

Just a recommendation to anyone who has the ability to edit the article: Bill recently appeared on a Weather Channel Documentary on the gulf spill "The Spill: A Crisis in the Gulf" (http://press.weather.com/press_detail.asp?id=301) as a guest expert. This should be added to the Post Science Guy section.

－ Kobitate94 (talk) 03:39, 11 July 2010 (UTC)

Dr Who

Bill Nye Recently showed up in the Fifth season of Dr who, Called Vincent and the doctor [[2]] Corhen (talk) 22:23, 11 July 2010 (UTC)

No, that's Bill Nighy, the actor who played Davy Jones in Pirates of the Carribean, and Shaun's dad in Shaun of the Dead. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 81.151.191.249 (talk) 16:54, 17 November 2010 (UTC)

Planetary Society

Bill is now the Executive Director of the Planetary Society. The article should reflect that. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.54.104.18 (talk) 20:23, 13 November 2010 (UTC)

 Done. —Mrwojo (talk) 00:18, 6 December 2010 (UTC)

Personal Life

Why is there no mention of any of the incidents surrounding the end of his relationship with Tindall; surely they are relevant to his biography, and come from somewhat legitimate sources. http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/years/2007/1119071nye1.html http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/12/04/earlyshow/leisure/celebspot/main3572152.shtml Calydon (talk) 12:56, 18 November 2010 (UTC)

November 16, 2010 incident

While the section in "Health" is accurate, it leaves out that nobody in the audience actually tried to help and was instead updating their facebook on their cell phones about it. Would this be appropriate for Wikipedia? 174.16.111.20 (talk) 21:20, 22 November 2010 (UTC)

Museum Exhibit

There is now an exhibit on climate change featuring "Bill Nye the Climate Guy" (called Bill Nye's Climate Lab) at the [Chabot Space and Science Center] in Oakland, CA, USA. Is that something worth mentioning?

The exhibit's website is here http://www.billsclimatelab.org/ (Flash site) 04kerba (talk) 05:10, 12 January 2011 (UTC)

Recent additions about nuclear errors

While this newly-added section about supposedly erroneous statements is interesting, it seems a tiny bit like someone with a pro-nuclear agenda posted them (and referred to documentation put out by nuclear power folks). Does anyone else agree? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 160.36.183.203 (talk) 15:05, 30 March 2011 (UTC)

An IP editor posted the first entry a bit bluntly. I'm not sure if he had an agenda or not. For me, the issue is Nye is a very public person, then held up as an expert by CNN, and he makes several erroneous comments. He made significant errors that I, as a non-expert, recognized immediately. You should watch the source for yourself before inferring they aren't. If he's going to accept the position of being an expert, on a national news network, he needs to have his facts straight. A statement from him saying he made a mistake would be sufficient to restore his credibility, but for now, I believe it is reduced and that's significant.MartinezMD (talk) 15:52, 30 March 2011 (UTC)

Thank you for having a look and making changes. My thought was (and still is): plenty of public figures and experts make mistakes on national television, on the radio, and on the Internet every day. I didn't see why this specific incident merited noting. Is the "Today Show" page updated every time a mic is accidentally left off or a "cut to tape" leads to dead air? It just seems strange to me.

Frankly, I think the way you put it works well, something like: "Although held up as an expert by CNN, Nye has a history of making occasionally fundamentally erroneous comments." ...and then link to something in the media that says as much. Mentioning those specifics in a biography (as it is now) and then linking to nuclear power documentation doesn't seem right. Are editors supposed to be making conclusions and writing about them, or are they simply supposed to be referencing stories and journals by professionals that support what's being written here? Is Wikipedia writing news, reporting it, or merely referring to it?

I apologize if I don't understand exactly, but again, this passage seems different from most others I've read in Wikipedia biographies. I don't really care about Bill Nye one way or the other. Thanks again for your attention. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 160.36.183.203 (talk) 20:47, 30 March 2011 (UTC)

You bring up good questions, and I don't know if I have all the right answers. I was very surprised at his comments, and when I checked here, I saw someone had already made the addition in a somewhat negative manner. I reworded it a little and added the reference. later someone else made more changes.

As editors, we aren't supposed to be making news, but at the same time we can't ignore obvious mistakes that Wikipedia has information to support otherwise. Ideally, some other reliable source can make commentary and we can use that instead. My only involvement in this was to avoid potential libel issues, soften the manner it was written, and include a reference. I defer to other editors therafter. MartinezMD (talk) 01:39, 31 March 2011 (UTC)

Cult Following?

Similar to other 90's actors, Bill Nye is quite popular on the internet among crowds, especially forum crowds. I think this should be mentioned. --dasfeuer

just a note

Was I the only one that thought it said that Bill got married to Yo yo ma? hehe. I know it makes sense now but still, just really a silly little note

Photos

More photographs should be added, including a more formal portrait of Nye.

Marriage

Is Bill really married? Blair Tindall was on the David Lawrence show in LA and said that the "marriage" ended seven weeks after the "wedding". Very sad, if true.

True. They never got a valid marriage license and split up seven weeks later. Smart people with no emotional intelligence. Bill Nye is not married.

More Videos!

please post some videos of Bill Nye The Science Guy! and anything else of him.

Death rumors

Can someone remove the mentioning of his death? That was a false rumor. -Lew19 8:56 P.M., Sunday, October 29, 2006, EST

• Yeah, I heard that a few years ago too, but it was a rumor started by "The Onion" (here: [[3]]

Typographical Error

In reference to his attending high school there is an error in "attending."

Edit request on 27 August 2012

add "American Icon" to the intro Bentyler3 (talk) 17:05, 27 August 2012 (UTC)

Not done: please be more specific about what needs to be changed. A boat that can float! (watch me float!) 17:48, 27 August 2012 (UTC)

Scientist

Nye calls himself a scientist,[4] (the media has adopted this title as well) but I'm skeptical of his credentials. Two definitions of the word "scientist" follow: Merriam-Webster: "a person learned in science and especially natural science: a scientific investigator"[5] OED: "A person with expert knowledge of a science; a person using scientific methods."[6] Nye is an engineer, has apparently never done any scientific research (I didn't find any published articles), so he is not a scientific investigator or a person using scientific methods. His television programs aim to explain scientific concepts in an entertaining fashion to the common audience. Can it be really claimed that he is learned or an expert? Mvaldemar (talk) 18:49, 30 August 2012 (UTC)

I think you're reaching WP:SYNTH here. It's not our job to determine what he is or is not, it's what's verified by sources. Jauerback^dude?/_dude. 18:55, 30 August 2012 (UTC)

I completely agree, Jauerback. InedibleHulk (talk) 20:14, 30 August 2012 (UTC)

I obviously can't find you source stating he is NOT a scientist. However, I believe the media sources base their information on Nye's own bio, and are thus not very reliable. Is Nye a member of any scientific bodies or associations that could validate his status as a scientist? Mvaldemar (talk) 20:36, 30 August 2012 (UTC)

I don't know. Is there any policy (Wikipedia or otherwise) that says someone must be "validated" by an organization before we can call them a scientist? Do you have anything other than your opinion to suggest news organizations base their opinion on his bio, and not the fact that virtually the entirety of his public career has revolved around him demonstrating his knowledge of science? Who says scientific investigations must be published in a journal? Given the number of sources calling him a scientist, you'll have to find something explicitly refuting (or at least arguing) this to have it removed. InedibleHulk (talk) 21:45, 30 August 2012 (UTC)

The man has a bachelor's of science degree. I think that is fair enough to call him a scientist.--Licourtrix (talk) 00:15, 31 August 2012 (UTC) Furthermore engineering is defined here on wikipedia as "Engineering is the science, skill, and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and also build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes." By Merriam-Webster as: "2 a : the application of science and mathematics by which the properties of matter and the sources of energy in nature are made useful to people "--Licourtrix (talk) 02:12, 31 August 2012 (UTC)

Cesium

I deleted the claims that Nye was wrong about cesium. Please see WP:OR WP:SYNTH. This is a classic Wikipedia no-no.

Nye may have been wrong, but the only way you can mention it on Wikipedia is to find a WP:RS who says that he was wrong. You can't look up the specs and challenge them yourself. Original sources aren't WP:RS.

How do we know that the Wikipedia editor who made that addition knows anything about the subject? The editor may have misinterpreted the original documents. --Nbauman (talk) 14:39, 2 September 2012 (UTC)

Yep. InedibleHulk (talk) 15:02, 2 September 2012 (UTC)

We can look for a source perhaps... http://www.fair.org/index.php?page=4335 MartinezMD (talk) 15:07, 2 September 2012 (UTC)

That seems satisfactory. Still, the onus is on any editor adding any claim to back it up with a citation. It was right to delete it uncited. InedibleHulk (talk) 15:26, 2 September 2012 (UTC)

I agree. It needed a proper citation and it was the correct action to remove without a good source. I found once and restored the entry with the citation added.MartinezMD (talk) 16:21, 3 September 2012 (UTC)

Blair Tindall's profession

In this article Blair Tindall is listed as an author. In her own article, however, she's listed as "oboist, performer, producer, speaker, and journalist." Could someone look into this discrepancy? Igomes (talk) 12:47, 26 September 2012 (UTC)

The career section says she wrote a book, which received some praise. A journalist is also a sort of author. But she seems to be most notable as a musician. I'll fix that here. InedibleHulk (talk) 18:27, 26 September 2012 (UTC)

Overlinking?

Several terms have recently been un-Wikilinked. This is said to be done per WP:OVERLINK. However, this guideline is clear that if a topic is particularly relevant to the article's topic, it is exempt from being removed on the listed grounds. Nye's hometown seems certainly relevant to him to me. So does his American nationality and the war in which his parents served (which isn't covered by OVERLINK, even if it was irrelevant). Thoughts? Objections? Support? InedibleHulk (talk) 23:29, 30 October 2012 (UTC)

Linking is rationed for the benefit of readers. Otherwise, we'd be linking professors, appearances, and popular media. Sorry, it's not a play-thing. Tony (talk) 23:40, 30 October 2012 (UTC)

I'm talking about three specific terms here, not the ones you've (ironically?) linked. I don't want those linked in the article, either. How does it benefit readers to exclude these particular topics? And what does your last sentence even mean? InedibleHulk (talk) 23:47, 30 October 2012 (UTC)

If it were an obscure town in Maryland, that might be more appropriate as a link. But Washington DC is a major world city. The more that is linked, the more dilute the valuable links become. This fact underlies why linking is chosen judiciously on en.WP. Tony (talk) 00:58, 31 October 2012 (UTC)

Yeah, it's a major city. But it's relevant, and the guideline says (in no uncertain terms) it shouldn't be unlinked in this case. How could it be more relevant? That's to say, how is the Washington article going to be linked from any person's article, if we go by this example? Looking at all the other existing links with no alleged significance in this article, it seems weird that you would be adamant about removing one Wikilink for which I've explained the significance, AND have shown is not prohibited by policy. I hope this isn't a "me vs you" thing, in your eyes. Just trying to help Wikipedia here. InedibleHulk (talk) 01:48, 31 October 2012 (UTC)

As for valuable links, how do we decide what "valuable" means without imposing our judgment on readers? Personally, I find Ellen Degeneres' article (linked here) utterly worthless. Many others as well. But who knows what one of a few billion readers might be interested in? If I see Ellen linked beside Alex Trebek, I don't consider Trebek to seem less valuable. Or Boeing or gigawatt or whatever. I can't grasp this dilution concept, but I'm trying.InedibleHulk (talk) 01:53, 31 October 2012 (UTC)

This is ridiculous. I can't believe there is an edit war going on about overlinking. Is it really worth potentially getting blocked for? I've requested page protection for the this until you guys can agree on something. Jauerback^dude?/_dude. 03:26, 31 October 2012 (UTC)

Yeah, it's a bit baffling to me, too. InedibleHulk (talk) 03:30, 31 October 2012 (UTC)

That's cute. Feigning astonishment at the disruption you've caused. I think I'm at 3 reverts, so I'll leave it be for now, but you don't get to ignore guidelines just because you don't like them. The MoS can certainly be overridden by IAR, but you'll need to provide a valid rationale for ignoring it. The fact that you like the link to D.C. isn't gonna cut it. Joefromrandb (talk) 03:57, 31 October 2012 (UTC)

You've got it backwards, bud. The guideline supports my side. You've been ignoring. Re-read the first paragraph here, "this guideline is clear that if a topic is particularly relevant to the article's topic, it is exempt from being removed on the listed grounds." It's not about me liking Washington, it's just relevant. I've explained this enough to you already. InedibleHulk (talk) 16:59, 31 October 2012 (UTC)

OK. One more time. The guideline is not on your side. I have explained this to you; Tony has explained this to you. It amazes me that you're having so much trouble with this, particularly as you have written word-for-word why it is an example of WP:OVERLINKING: "If a topic is particularly relevant to an article's topic". "Washington D.C." is not particularly relevant. Your argument is that "he grew up there and is a fourth-generation resident". That is in no way a reason to link it. (Just like your other overlinks: "United States", "Americans", and "World War II".) If he and his four generations of relatives were directly germane to the District and its history, you would have a case. They are not. They simply lived there. Links are not for casual browsing. They are used to point the reader to germane topics that may help them gain a more comprehensive understanding of the topic about which they are reading. Reading the Washington D.C. article will not help the reader gain a better understanding of Nye. Overlinking like this clutters the text and dilutes high-value links. As for your WP:OTHERCRAP argument about "Ellen DeGeneres", "Seattle", ect., these are marginal, but if you feel that these links should be removed, I certainly have no objection. Joefromrandb (talk) 06:05, 6 November 2012 (UTC)

I've now protected this. I know you're aware of 3RR and are dancing around it, but edit warring goes beyond 3RR, and many of you are right on the brink. Sort the problem out here, or people are likely to get blocked. If yuo're getting nowhere, use dispute resolution to work through it. GedUK  12:34, 31 October 2012 (UTC)

Persistent Death Rumors

There are persistent rumours that Billy Nye has died, include a large number on Facebook. The issue seems to have been started by an Onion Article. I think it would be appropriate to have a section explaining the origin of the death myth, and that he is not dead.

http://www.ibtimes.com/bill-nye-uses-fame-after-death-hoax-warn-against-teaching-creationism-instead-evolution-video-795321 http://www.gossipcop.com/bill-nye-dead-august-2012-death-science-guy-died-rumor-rip-twitter/

That's just my two cents, it's what I came to this article looking for.

Mystic eye (talk) 16:25, 8 November 2012 (UTC)

And when you didn't read he was dead, you figured it out, right? Mission accomplished, no mention necessary. This would be feeding trolls. InedibleHulk (talk) 16:48, 8 November 2012 (UTC)

Awards section needs editing.

The award section mentions that Bill Nye will be receiving an honorary doctorate on May 20th 2013. Should be changed to has received. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 192.210.10.253 (talk) 19:49, 11 June 2013 (UTC)

The award section should also list his award from the American Humanist Association: "Nye received the 2010 Humanist of the Year award from the American Humanist Association." Sources: http://freethoughtblogs.com/lousycanuck/2010/06/08/bill-nye-humanist-of-the-year/ http://www.atheistnexus.org/forum/topics/bill-nye-the-science-guy?xg_browser=iphone — Preceding unsigned comment added by Samiam18 (talk • contribs) 15:31, 22 July 2013 (UTC)

Dancing with the Stars

On Monday Night September 16, 2013 Bill Nye will make his debut on ABC's Dancing with the Stars. He will join first time professional partner Tyne Stecklein as she also makes her Dancing with the Starts Debut. Thegib95 (talk) 20:53, 4 September 2013 (UTC)

Cool. Should be added after it airs. InedibleHulk (talk) 23:00, 4 September 2013 (UTC)

BIll Nye publication history

My edit to this article keeps being removed, and I'm not sure why. I am citing Bill Nye's own CV that he has a non-existant publication record. It is not accurate to label Bill Nye a scientist when he holds neither a non-honorary doctoral degree, nor has he ever published a peer-reviewed article (again, sourcing his own CV for this information, which can be found on the official Bill Nye website). Thus, it is simply misleading to call him a scientist in Bill Nye's introductory paragraph, as that implies he has contributed to academia, when he has in fact not. He is an educator and an entertainer, but it can be plainly read from his own CV (again, I keep reiterating that for a reason) that Bill Nye has never published a scientific paper.

So, the introductory paragraph calls him a scientist; I left that in there, but added a small remark about his publication history. Again, I my source is Bill Nye's CV located on the official Bill Nye website. Please stop reversing my edit for having no source, because I have included a citation. If you are going to undo my edit again, despite me sourcing Bill Nye's CV on his own website, then you should remove the bit about him being a scientist, because he really is not, and to label him as such is simply inaccurate.

Thank you.

Where does it say a scientist needs to be published to be a scientist? I don't see it in these 29 dictionaries or in the Scientist article. It would be inaccurate to call him an academic, but we're not doing that. Just a scientist, like many sources refer to him. InedibleHulk (talk) 06:40, 4 February 2013 (UTC)

I had wondered about that. I always assumed he was actually a scientist, but I don't think 'helping develop' a sundial and holding a few patents (shoes and magnifying glass?) makes him a scientist. Perhaps an amateur inventor or something. But we all know why he's called a scientist. Makes him more legit when he's giving speeches people like.

I think being a scientist requires at the least actually doing some science, if not being educated in any science. Preferably someone who actually has a scientific career. And 'honorary' awards, or, lol, 'being called a scientist' do not count.

131.203.134.73 (talk) 07:40, 14 May 2013 (UTC)

One does not have to have publications to be a "scientist." One does not have to have "contributed to academia" to be a scientist. NorthBySouthBaranof (talk) 07:42, 14 May 2013 (UTC)

But, North', you don't say what one must do to be a scientist. Surely one must write something to be an author. Surely one must make a film to be a filmmaker. Surely one must do science to be a scientist. What actual science has Nye done? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.223.130.60 (talk) 01:32, 26 June 2013 (UTC)

We don't need to, or even get to, decide whether he's a scientist. That's up to the reliable sources. "Scientist" is sourced but I can't check it because it's behind a paywall. Kendall-K1 (talk) 13:20, 1 October 2013 (UTC)

Currently, the only source for calling him a scientist is that there is some news article that labels him a scientist. But the article doesn't actually cite any evidence for this, it just call him that. Since there's no widely-accepted definition of "scientist", the fact that the article calls him one is not evidence for anything. (Similarly, if you found a reliable source that calls him "impressive", this would not be evidence for calling him impressive here.) So I'm removing this reference.Jess (talk) 20:08, 10 October 2013 (UTC)

Probably best, per WP:CITELEAD (at least until the claim is challenged). But if there really is no widely-accepted definition of "scientist", how could any source provide evidence for or against? InedibleHulk (talk) 20:32, 10 October 2013 (UTC)

Podcast Appearances and Interviews

2013

Nerdist

• Dan Casey (June 14, 2013). "Nerdist : Man of Steel Press Conference (Bonus episode!)". www.nerdist.com (Podcast).

Bill Nye with Nerdist talking about science fiction technology from Star Wars, Star Trek, and Jurassic Park.

We are poised to make another astonishing discovery in physics akin to Isaac Newton and the motion of particles and Albert Einstein and the speed of time. And who knows what the relationship of dark matter and dark energy is to us, beings that seem to be made of positive matter rather than anti-matter? There’s a whole world out there to be discovered.

Point of Inquiry

• Chris Mooney (September 10, 2013). "Bill Nye - In Praise of Reason (and Skepticism)". www.pointofinquiry.org (Podcast).

Bill Nye speaks with Chris Mooney (journalist) on CFI's Point of Inquiry about finding the next great challenge that will serve to inspire the next wave of scientific progress.

• Josh Zepps (November 18, 2013). "Bill Nye The Science Guy". www.pointofinquiry.org (Podcast).

Bill Nye speaks with Josh Zepps on CFI's Point of Inquiry discussing his early career and delving into politics.

Woodstock Wolf (talk) 05:56, 5 December 2013 (UTC)

Podcast Interviews

Would it be appropriate to add a section outlining Bill Nye's appearances on various podcasts?

There are probably more than just these few, but I'd think this could be a starting point.

I'm new to Wikipedia, so I'd appreciate assistance in building the citations and other information correctly. I'm planning to relisten to the two episodes from Point of Inquiry to see if there's a good quote to add here. The Nerdist episode is transcribed at the link, so a little easier to find a quote. Woodstock Wolf (talk) 06:26, 5 December 2013 (UTC)

Woodstock Wolf, instead of a section for the various podcasts, try gleening what you can from the interviews and adding the citations and quotes to the body of the article. Try looking for things said that will add substance and clarity to the body. Sometimes it will be something in his early life, influences or just booster something already said. Add what you think seems right and other editors that also have this on their watchlist will expand or reduce your edit. You are doing the right thing as a new editor to ask on the talk page, but go ahead and see what you come up with, it can always be changed. Thank you for trying to improve the article. Sgerbic (talk) 16:16, 5 December 2013 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 5 February 2014

Favorite color: Green Azshanta (talk) 15:49, 5 February 2014 (UTC)

Not done: we do not include such trivia. Arjayay (talk) 17:49, 5 February 2014 (UTC)

Citation 61 (about attending swing dance events in Rochester, NY) references a forum thread in which the OPPOSITE fact is reported - he has never danced at Stompology in Rochester, NY. However, it does report that Mister Nye has danced at local and national swing dance events in other cities, most notably New York City. MissJassyChelle (talk) 01:39, 6 February 2014 (UTC)

Signature

Is it appropriate to have Bill Nye's signature on this page? I am not sure if it adds anything of value, and why it is here in the first place, but I know that I would not be happy if someone were to add my signature to my wiki page. Potential fraud implications? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Atshal (talk • contribs) 20:42, 16 February 2014 (UTC)

Relevant Material

Apparently there has been a lot of vandalism on this page, so it is currently in protected status. But the following relevant material should be added to this article. Hopefully, someone with the ability to edit the article will add this material:

On 14 September 2011, The Climate Reality Project's[7] 24 Hours of Reality[8] first aired via internet a "Climate Change 101" video[9] that purports to detail "a simple lab experiment" in which two identical bottles irradiated by identical lamps at identical distances, one of which is filled with a higher concentration of CO2, show that the temperature of the air in the bottle with more CO2 rises more quickly than the other bottle. At 1:09 through 1:16 on the video what appears to be two thermometers are shown side by side and Bill Nye in narration says, "within minutes you will see the temperature of the bottle with the carbon dioxide in it rising faster and higher." Video analysis showed, however, that the two thermometer images are of the same thermometer copied side by side with the video rates manipulated to make it look like one is rising both faster and higher than the other and that the single thermometer in the two images was not even filmed inside either of the bottles.[10] Subsequent replications of the experiment suggest that the entire experiment was fabricated.[11]

This video is problematic in both its outright deceptiveness and also because it purports to be a simple experiment that can be replicated by students, when in fact the results of the experiment as shown in the video cannot be replicated.96.241.60.132 (talk) 01:45, 6 March 2014 (UTC)mjd

It's not relevant when a reliable third party doesn't offer any critique verifying your concerns. The source you link specifically stipulates they don't have Nye's material list, etc. See WP:RS MartinezMD (talk) 02:03, 6 March 2014 (UTC)

Bill Nye, who claims to be a "science educator" narrates a video containing scientific fraud and you claim it is not relevant to a discussion of Bill Nye? Contrary to your statement, however, the third party is reliable (the blog site is the winner of Best Science and Technology Blog three years straight) and provides exquisite and detailed critique of the experiment, the fraudulent video techniques employed, and the results of replicating the experiment. So detailed in fact as to suggest you really didn't read the materials. For instance, you point out that there was no list of materials provided for the experiment, suggesting that the experiment therefore could not have been replicated correctly. Setting aside the fact that this obviously is a much harsher criticism of the original experiment than the replication, the person who replicated the experiment clearly pointed out that the materials list had been replicated at great effort and provides images of each component to compare to the video to demonstrate having replicated it. So, the materials list criticism isn't valid to begin with. Further, it's a scientific truism that if a scientific result cannot be replicated with a suitable replacement of materials the experimental result must be demonstrating some basic property of the experimental setup and not the underlying principle itself. As an obvious example - the earth's atmosphere does not come out of a CO2 bottle nor is it contained in a cookie jar nor is the sun a heat lamp designed for use with reptile cages - therefore by your logic the experiment narrated by Nye can't say anything relevant about the earth's atmosphere - is Nye therefore further prevaricating by saying the experiments demonstrates something meaningful about global warming (because he does)? Your argument has to cut both ways or neither. Science doesn't work one way one day and another way on another day. That's the antithesis of science. And if all of this doesn't convince you, how about this blog by Bill Nye himself where he admits the "experiment you can easily do on your own" could NEVER have worked because of the bad choices made in the MATERIALS LIST you complained wasn't replicated correctly - "The Climate Project people used jars with lids that were too thick, the thermometers were not well placed, and the volume of gas in each vessel was greatly diminished by the presence of handsome, but voluminous globes and pedestals. When I’ve done this in the past, my apparatus did not have any of these shortcomings, so I got *different* results."[12]But none of your actual criticisms say anything about the fraudulent video used to claim that the temperature in the jar containing CO2 rose faster than the jar without CO2 - regarding which Bill Nye at the same source indirectly refers to and excuses away as "corner cutting" and admitted that Anthony Watts was correct in showing that the actual demonstration didn't demonstrate anything - just wrong in the conclusions drawn from demonstrating the experiment couldn't have worked as the video claimed. So, please remind me of why your criticism is either correct or relevant? The fact that Bill Nye not only narrated a fraudulent video purporting to demonstrate a scientific principle that it in fact didn't AND that he has admitted that the video is both fraudulent AND that the experiment as shown could never work is quintessentially relevant in commentary on his career as a claimed "science educator." If you want to add text to the effect that Nye later admitted the video was fraudulent ("cutting corners") and explained himself that the public video he, of his own free will, narrated depicted an experiment that never could have worked while stating it is, "an experiment you can do yourself," then feel free to do so - just do it straightforwardly without sugar-coating it.96.241.60.132 (talk) 05:05, 6 March 2014 (UTC)mjd

I could see some point in having a contradiction, if we mentioned Nye's original experiment. Since that doesn't seem notable, this doesn't either. More something to be argued in the comment box of a video or story about the specific thing. Sorry if you'd already explained notability and I missed it. That was pretty bulky. InedibleHulk (talk) 07:19, 6 March 2014 (UTC)

How can Nye's association with a fraudulent video be unnotable?96.241.60.132 (talk) 00:26, 13 March 2014 (UTC)mjd

Reasonable - as long as the if is couched in language like "Nye claims to have successfully performed the experiment in the past with more appropriate apparatus" unless there are reliable third party accounts of the experiment and its results. So, who is going to put it on the main page. This in NOT a trivial and unimportant issue. Nye claims to be a science educator and in a very public very well funded medium described an experiment could be done by high school students and claimed a result for that experiment that he later admitted isn't possible so an informational source like Wikipedia has a duty to document this to help keep public schools from wasting time and resources. Perhaps this WILL encourage the experiment be done but result in a teacher going elsewhere to find out how to do the experiment correctly. I guess a link from Nye (if such a thing exists) describing the appropriate experimental setup (with bill of materials) would be helpful.96.241.60.132 (talk) 00:20, 13 March 2014 (UTC)mjd

Of course what I said was bulky, by the way. I had to refute several incorrect criticisms. None of those defenses belong in the text on the actual page. The original text is a good start on what should be on the page, with the extra caveats as needed, and not any of the second round of text.96.241.60.132 (talk) 00:22, 13 March 2014 (UTC)mjd

By the way, the video and the experiment it depicts, which Bill Nye has publicly admitted are a fraud and won't work, respectively, is still being shown proudly at the Smithsonian Magazine website: http://www.smithsonianmag.com/videos/category/3play_1/climate-change-101-with-bill-nye-the-science/?no-ist - remind me again why it's irrelevant to point this out as a sham?96.241.60.132 (talk) 00:36, 13 March 2014 (UTC)mjd

Bill Nye is not a scientist.

He has had no pier-reviewed study published, nor does he possess a masters or doctorate degree in science. In fact, his own personal website does not list him as a scientist and he has been clear in the past that he is an actor and not a scientist. Thus, the label of him as a scientist on this page is inaccurate. The page is protected so editting this is not possible, and others making the same point on this talk page have been sensored. The reason givven for this is that he is referred to in popular culture as a scientist. In my mind this sets a very dangerous pressident; if I get some blogger somewhere to call me a scientist, does that make me one? Apparently yes, according to this website. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 50.184.20.107 (talk) 03:16, 12 January 2014 (UTC)

I have to agree. He is a science educator and advocate, but not a scientist. A scientist works to gather new knowledge in his given field. Can we get other opinions so we can remove the label of scientist without edit warring?MartinezMD (talk) 03:43, 12 January 2014 (UTC)

Interesting. I look forward to reading other opinions. The page is not protected from people who are registered with accounts in good standing. Also the comment about getting a "blogger somewhere" is a bit out of line, WP does not work like that, otherwise every page here would start "... is an incredibly talented and beautiful person..." Sgerbic (talk) 17:02, 12 January 2014 (UTC)

I'm going to raise a few points. Webster's Dictionary defines a scientist as a person who is trained in a science and whose job involves doing scientific research or solving scientific problems[13]. His work on the MarsDial is the only thing listed on the page which could arguably technically fall under that. His field is listed here as mechanical engineering, and the hydraulic pressure resonance suppressor he developed makes it clear that he is actually an engineer. It is very common for an engineer to assist in solving scientific problems since science and engineering tend to go hand in hand. This should not therefore take every engineer who works on something related to science and turn them into a scientist. That would be silly. If anything, he should be described as "an American science educator, comedian, television host, actor, writer, and engineer". --Teksura (talk) 20:32, 17 January 2014 (UTC)

I'm okay with this.Sgerbic (talk) 21:06, 17 January 2014 (UTC)

Instead of repeating the opinions, policies and definitions in Section 44 and 51 of the talk archive, I'll just acknowledge them. InedibleHulk (talk) 02:40, 18 January 2014 (UTC)

And Wikilink them. InedibleHulk (talk) 17:00, 18 January 2014 (UTC)

"Pier-reviewed"? "Sensored"? I can't take you seriously, sorry. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 99.254.14.236 (talk) 05:40, 15 March 2014 (UTC)

Passive Censorship and Abuse of Wikipedia

I clearly described a situation where Bill Bye contributed to an obviously fraudulent video. It was claimed this wasn't supported by the third party source referenced, which the rebutter obviously didn't read forcing me to describe in detail each point of support in the reference for the multiple proofs the video was fraudulent. This second posting was responded to with a claim that it wasn't relevant. This forced me to post multiple new evidences including Nye himself actually admitting the experiment couldn't have and didn't work - proving the video's own claim of success (narrated by Nye!) to be fraudulent. All sourced. This was met with a claim that it wasn't notable. This was, frankly, a weak excuse to censor criticism of Bill Nye. This further claim that Nye participating in a fraudulent video claiming to prove a scientific theory Nye publicly supports resulted in a rejection of interest in action because, surprise, the conversation was now too long. So repeated requirements to better and more thoroughly defend a point which was made very clearly and documented thoroughly with the first pass then becomes ignored because repeated refusal to act has now resulted in too much discussion.
This is a poor excuse for informational standards and blatant censorship on Wikipedia. There has clearly been vandalism in the past on this page so it is understandable that editing of the page has been locked. If this locked editing is now, however, resulting in reverse vandalism - the inability of those not privileged to edit the page to place relevant content on the page - then there is no excuse for the page to be locked for editing any longer.96.241.60.132 (talk) 01:35, 22 March 2014 (UTC)mjd

I'm still lost on the part where anything about the video matters. First we'd need a reason to mention it at all. Then, we'd need to mention it. Then we could worry about details on refuting it. If the whole intent is to cast Nye as a fraud, rather than illustrate the significance of the experiment, that's not encyclopedic. Controversy is fine to note, but only about notable things. InedibleHulk (talk) 16:16, 22 March 2014 (UTC)

I'm lost as to what the possible misunderstanding could be about why the video matters. The video is a fraud. Bill Nye admits the video is a fraud. All of that is clearly documented in multiple locations. The video is still prominently highlighted not only on Al Gore's Climate Reality website but on the Smithsonian website - and purported to be an experiment that school children can and should repeat the experiment. How can that not matter? There is no intent to cast Nye as a fraud unless you think that Nye being associated with a fraudulent video makes him a fraud. But it is a very controversial issue. Please, because there obviously seems to be a clear disagreement here, I've explained repeatedly why the video is notable, particularly because of both its fraudulent nature and the fact that it's prominently featured on the Smithsonian site (funded by tax dollars). If you think it's not notable despite those facts please explain why such a prominently features fraudulent video is not notable. 96.241.60.132 (talk) 02:28, 5 April 2014 (UTC)mjd

Just wanted to reconfirm - the link still works at the Smithsonian website - and I clicked on the "About us" link to see that the Smithsonian bills themselves as "America's national educational facility". And they get to say that because they in fact are funded and administered by the United States government. Remind me how fraudulent information on a US Government website isn't notable?96.241.60.132 (talk) 02:31, 5 April 2014 (UTC)mjd

Pluto

The line "Nye supported the 2006 reclassification of Pluto from planet to dwarf planet by the International Astronomical Union.[50]" should be probably be moved outside of the Scientific work section. It's placement implies that Bill Nye had a direct professional role in the reclassification of Pluto. Instead he was just offering his opinion, as a lay-person, why he thought the reclassification made sense. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Benjamin chilli (talk • contribs) 14:57, 11 June 2014 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 5 August 2014

Clean up the statement about his father, It's rather unclear. 2620:101:80FC:232:2ACF:E9FF:FE1A:CB25 (talk) 02:51, 5 August 2014 (UTC)

Your request is unclear. Which part should be cleaned up, and how? InedibleHulk (talk) 03:14, 5 August 2014 (UTC)

Not done: it's not clear what changes you want to be made. Please mention the specific changes in a "change X to Y" format. Anupmehra -Let's talk! 00:17, 8 August 2014 (UTC)

Americentrism

The sentence “popularly known as Bill Nye the Science Guy” should be changed to “known in USA as Bill Nye the Science Guy” or similar. Being well-known by a nickname name in one country, does not make someone “popularly known as”. If it did, it might set an unfortunate precedent. 89.227.99.247 (talk) 16:29, 23 June 2014 (UTC)

To English speakers "The Science Guy" is common. It's not so much an Americanism as you're making it out to be. Zero Serenity ^{(talk - contributions)} 22:02, 23 June 2014 (UTC)

None of his listed projects have relevance outside USA, and he has no international activities. With 1,380,000,000 English speakers<ref>[Wikipedia on the English language||English Language]</ref> and only 276,434,131 English speakers in USA<ref>[http://www.census.gov/prod/2010pubs/acs-12.pdf US Census 2010]</ref>, the acquisition of the title “English speakers” by this minority is hardly acceptable.

As stated, it could cause problems, as some people are regarded as heroes by some, and vicious murderers by others. E.g. Oliver Cromwell. 89.227.99.247 (talk) 12:03, 24 June 2014 (UTC)

1. NEVER. EVER. Edit someone else's comment on a talk page. This is incredibly rude.

2. You seem to lack any citations yourself for what you have said. If he's not relevant outside the US, show me.

3. When somebody marks the request as answered, don't open it back up until you have a citation showing the change is warranted. Zero Serenity ^{(talk - contributions)} 12:14, 24 June 2014 (UTC)

Not done: please establish a consensus for this alteration before using the {{edit semi-protected}} template. (edit conflict) Bill Nye the Science Guy makes it pretty clear this is what he is popularly known as. — {{U|Technical 13}} ^{(e • t • c)} 12:24, 24 June 2014 (UTC)

Interesting that you choose to use uppercase letters to tell others what is rude, without citing a source for why it would be considered “rude” to add “citation needed” to a bold, false statement without citations. Because I could cite WP:SHOUT. Also interesting that another American comes to your aid, oddly enough by providing evidence to warrant the change. If you look at the offered page, you will find that the person's show was made in one country and shown in the same, one (1) country. I provided three sources to back my claim, and now we have another. Let's get a non-American English-speaker to arbitrate. 89.227.222.253 (talk) 09:19, 25 June 2014 (UTC)

I'm a Canadian, and used to watch his show on TVOntario. We're pretty close to the US, but still a whole other country. And like most English shows on the Internet/international market, this can go anywhere people understand English and care to watch. In an English encycopledia, I think "popularly known as" alone works. Singling out the US by name here seems the biased thing to do, and begs the trick question of what non-Americans call him instead. InedibleHulk (talk) 03:12, 26 June 2014 (UTC)

Not done: please establish a consensus for this alteration before using the {{edit semi-protected}} template. You are welcome to do that, but since there are already three people involved, requesting a WP:3O isn't appropriate. Feel free to open a case at WP:DRN which is the next step in the dispute resolution process. However, continuing to reopen this request without first establishing a consensus (per WP:PER) would be disruptive and may result in your IP being blocked from editing. — {{U|Technical 13}} ^{(e • t • c)} 12:30, 25 June 2014 (UTC)

I challenge anyone on either side of the above debate to legitimately demonstrate exactly how well-known Bill Nye is at either the national or international scale. His show stopped production way back in the late-'90s. It's not out of the question that even in the United States he's not instantly recognizable by the majority of his own compatriots. Maybe he is; or maybe he isn't. How would one measure his notoriety? One must conduct a fair poll to collect representative data. So far I don't see that either side has more than their own intuition. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.223.130.32 (talk) 18:47, 15 August 2014 (UTC)

Nye is not a scientist

Science educator, yes. But not a scientist. Is a high school chemistry teacher a scientist? I think most would say, no. Scientist = conducting original research (doing science).

Here's a source that explicitly says that Nye is not a scientist: http://www.popsci.com/article/science/bill-nye-fights-back?page=0%2C2

"When creationists have lured scientists into debates, the result is usually unsatisfying. They unearth slide after slide of unfounded ideas and data with just enough of a whiff of truth to seem plausible. The scientists then spend most of the time arguing about the ideas on the various slides—in the process, giving them weight—rather than addressing the greater point: that the entire logic is flawed. Better to avoid debates altogether. Unless, of course, you’re Bill Nye. Back in California, he had told me, “I want to destroy him, and I’m in a unique position to do so.” By him he meant Ham. By his position, he meant that, while he may be the Science Guy, he’s not a scientist. He can engage, and so—damn it—he will."

DrFable (talk) 00:41, 26 November 2014 (UTC)

This discussion has already taken place: here and here. Jauerback^dude?/_dude. 14:23, 26 November 2014 (UTC)

Not trying to discredit the guy or anything, but Ryan Bradley can't even tell if this is a washing machine. One moment, "That’s what it must have been. Couldn’t have been anything else." Next, "Too perfect a cube to be a washing machine." Why should we believe he's more certain about who is and isn't a scientist? InedibleHulk (talk) 05:10, 27 November 2014 (UTC)

Modified Carl Sagan's mention.

The wording about Bill Nye's Cornell education states that he earned a degree in mechanical engineering and that Sagan was one of his professors, implying to me that Sagan taught some mechanical engineering. The statement was cited to a bio on his personal "Bill Nye the Science Guy" website http://billnye.com/#home. However, the link to that page no longer goes to a bio. I looked through the site without finding any other bio, either. There IS a bio on the Planetary Society's site and it's used as a reference for other statements in the article: http://www.planetary.org/about/staff/bill-nye.html I clarified in the article that while at Cornell, he took an astronomy class taught by Sagan (the lucky duck!). I have not yet figured out how to wrangle citations. If someone could change the BNSG bio link to the PS bio, I will be grateful. Thank you, Wordreader (talk) 03:11, 14 December 2014 (UTC)

2008 John Hopkins University honorary doctorate

This claim has been here without source since May 2011. I've looked but not found any contemporary RS claiming this. The oldest article I found PR Newswire on 8 June 2009, stating "Mr. Nye was awarded an honorary doctorate from Johns Hopkins University in 2008, as well as being the school's commencement speaker." But I think they misread their own press release of 29 May 2008, stating "Seniors at Johns Hopkins University recruited William S. Nye, known as "Bill Nye the Science Guy" to speak at the commencement ceremony this week, while former U.S. President George H.W. Bush appeared at Bryant University's commencement in Rhode Island May 17 to speak and receive an honorary doctorate." The doctorate was for Bush, not Nye (who only did the commencement speech), and they mixed up the universities. Thereafter Targeted News Service started claiming it on 19 March 2010, US Fed News and States News Service both joining in saying Nye has a Hopkins honorary doctorate as late as 3 September 2014; no other newspaper on LexisNexis does. On Google the claim that he does only really takes off in 2012, all from non-reliable websites. I can't find any mention of Bill Nye at all at Hopkins university's website at all. Two Targeted News Service articles on 14 January 2009 still claimed Nye only had two honorary doctorates: Rensselaer and Goucher. TNS repeated this on 13 February 2009. The only thing that might still support it is the fact that PR Newswire reported on 14 August 2008 (just 2 months after Nye's speech at Hopkins) that Nye holds three honorary doctorates, although these are not specified. Is this sufficient evidence to delete this claim? Nederlandse Leeuw (talk) 04:41, 31 December 2014 (UTC)

I have added a reliable source, the John Hopkins University website list of all Honorary Doctorate recipients, that is listed by alphabetical order. Here is the link, go the the N's (credited by his full name of William S. Nye, year awarded is given as 2008). http://web.jhu.edu/commencement/honorees/alpha.html Vyselink (talk) 06:02, 31 December 2014 (UTC)

Thanks! I must have missed that page because I only searched for "Bill Nye", not for "Nye, William S.". I improved the referencing of the entire section. A friend and I have been translating this entire article to Dutch (we will probably publish it later today), and we wanted to make sure all references were correct. Happy New Year to you in advance. Nederlandse Leeuw (talk) 14:02, 31 December 2014 (UTC)

No problem. Same to you. Vyselink (talk) 20:55, 31 December 2014 (UTC)

Entompology?

At the end of Nye's Personal life section, it now states "He has been spotted at local dances in the Los Angeles area as well as at nationwide events such as entompology". It is supposed to say "Stompology", which Mr. Nye does indeed participate in. No idea why it was changed from Stompology to a non-existing word. If I could edit this, I would.

Co2metal (talk) 07:04, 6 February 2015 (UTC)

Changed back, altho' had to google "stompology" ... Also, what does being agnostic have to do with it -- added paragraph break. Vsmith (talk) 11:35, 6 February 2015 (UTC)

February 2015

• Wednesday, 10 December 2014, Nye comes off as a bit of a dork in this CBC Q interview with Wab Kinew (click here to go straight to the audio).Civic Cat (talk) 00:49, 5 February 2015 (UTC)

What does this have to do with anything? Zero Serenity ^{(talk - contributions)} 03:41, 5 February 2015 (UTC)

I think he comes off less like a dork when we can't see his lab coat and bowtie. So even if his dorkiness were notable, this isn't exactly significant to it. InedibleHulk (talk) 03:56, 5 February 2015 (UTC)

I note that the reference to his antisemitic remarks on the Bill Maher show was deleted. The reference was sourced, and there are numerous other sources on the Internet, including video, which I have seen. It was an exact quote. What was the reasoning for deleting it. It certainly can't be libelous, because it is a quote of something he said, which the reader can interpret as he sees fit. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Rickcrane (talk • contribs) 18:58, 26 February 2015 (UTC)

Section for other TV and media appearances

Should we have a list of other TV and media appearances made by Bill Nye like many actors have on their pages? Such as his recent cameo in The Big Bang Theory. Thoughts? Comments? War wizard90 (talk) 02:32, 15 January 2015 (UTC)

Sounds about right. InedibleHulk (talk) 04:36, 15 January 2015 (UTC)

In 2004 and 2005, Nye hosted 100 Greatest Discoveries, an award-winning series produced by thinkfilm, a Washington, DC based film production company, (not THINKFilm the bankrupt Toronto-based film distributor) for The Science Channel and in high definition on the Discovery HD Theater. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 96.244.6.219 (talk) 02:04, 1 March 2015 (UTC)

Request for Comments

There is an RfC on the question of using "Religion: None" vs. "Religion: None (atheist)" in the infobox on this and other similar pages.

The RfC is at Template talk:Infobox person#RfC: Religion infobox entries for individuals that have no religion.

Please help us determine consensus on this issue. --Guy Macon (talk) 17:05, 21 April 2015 (UTC)

'house with modifications'

What on Earth is that meant to convey? I just closed my shutters and some windows, thereby 'modifying' my house to reduce insolation and air-exchange heat gain, but I don't imagine that this is what was meant by the sentence: 'Since 2006, Nye has lived in Los Angeles in a house with modifications, though he has also owned a house on Mercer Island.' ... It would be nice to know *what* it is that he's done: Did Nye add solar panels or increase the R-factor of his insulation or add passive-solar heat / water heat or which of the literally infinite 'modifications' that could reduce energy consumption?!?

Hadn't noticed that, but yeah, quite vague. Doesn't even say the modifications have to do with energy. Could just be a guest room or a deck. I've removed it as uselessly uninformative. Hopefully someone else clears it up, I'm a bit curious myself now. InedibleHulk (talk) 01:34, 4 July 2013 (UTC)

I imagine it was part of his friendly competition with Ed Begley. I remember a TV documentary on it, hosted by Begley. SkoreKeep (talk) 21:24, 14 July 2015 (UTC)

why is this article protected

why is this article locked under partial protection? . This article is the equivalent of a blurb you would read on the back of someone's autobiographical book jacket.How can that ever be fixed with such restrictions. It is really weird that a major public figure like Carly Fiorini has no such protection yet this guy, Nye, has protection for his dinky article? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.21.118.199 (talk) 20:47, 28 September 2015 (UTC)

Suggestion for better profile photo for infobox

2011 photo of Bill Nye by US Navy

Suggestion of File:2011 Bill Nye by US Navy cropped to collar.jpg for better photo for infobox.

2011 photo of Bill Nye by US Navy.

Thank you,

— Cirt (talk) 21:15, 7 October 2015 (UTC)

Commons now has several other photos that could possibly be used for the article, arranged by year at commons:Category:Bill Nye and also at commons:Category:Bill Nye facing front. Hope that's helpful to other editors, — Cirt (talk) 21:16, 7 October 2015 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 25 October 2015

In the "Career" section under the subsection "Bill Nye the Science Guy", there is a sentence that reads, "Each of the 100 episodes aimed to teach a specific topic in science to an audience, yet it garnered a wide adult audience as well." Please change the phrase, "to an audience" to "to a young audience" because it will make the sentence clearer by showing that the TV show appealed to a much wider audience than was originally intended. Beatleboy (talk) 04:47, 25 October 2015 (UTC)

Done Cannolis (talk) 06:38, 25 October 2015 (UTC)

Personal life section

I think this section is not up to "wikipedia quality standards", and probably it is not neutral either. I do not like suppressing, but in this case my proposal is just to take out this poor information.--Auró (talk) 18:26, 23 November 2015 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 1 February 2016

He is the coolest guy ever. Banjobob101 (talk) 19:39, 1 February 2016 (UTC)

Not done: it's not clear what changes you want to be made. Please mention the specific changes in a "change X to Y" format. --allthefoxes ^(Talk) 23:22, 1 February 2016 (UTC)

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Obviously astro-turfed info

Not everything about this guy is good - yet non of the negative bits are here. I would not call him a real scientist - should be seen as an entertainer. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 108.243.106.82 (talk) 00:13, 15 March 2016 (UTC) \

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3567104/Climate-change-denying-Weather-Channel-founder-SLAMS-Bill-Nye-criticizing-skeptical-film-Climate-Hustle.html

Article Addition request

I saw a book that was written by Bill Nye but I did not see it on the article. I do not know much about it so could someone please add it?

                    Keslerdo (talk) 02:36, 28 March 2016 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 16 April 2016

Career

Nye began his career in Seattle at Boeing, where, among other things, he starred in training films and developed a hydraulic pressure resonance suppressor for the 747.

Username2342351234 (talk) 01:34, 16 April 2016 (UTC)

Already done It looks like this is already in the article. —C.Fred (talk) 01:51, 16 April 2016 (UTC)

Boeing, highly unlikely

This article should be updated reflecting cited sources. The entry stating he worked at boeing is uncited and highly skeptical at best. Wikipedia is suppose to be an encyclopedia with citation that are verifiable and true. This article has a flare with inane claims and untruths. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2602:306:CE98:1510:4CEF:D74C:D98C:4A0E (talk) 19:18, 16 April 2016 (UTC)

Here is a PBS source confirming he was an "engineer who worked at Boeing." It turned up for a simple Google search for "bill nye boeing," so I would suggest doing a little research before posting on talk pages. Capcapandgengen (talk) 23:19, 22 April 2016 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 24 October 2016

just give me access pls Zathia (talk) 20:11, 24 October 2016 (UTC)

 Not done This page is semi-protected to prevent vandalism and BLP violations by unregistered and new users. You only need to be registered for four days and have made ten edits to become autoconfirmed; once you have become autoconfirmed, you may edit this article. Dustin (talk) 20:58, 24 October 2016 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 24 April 2017

In the section titled "Earlier career in Seattle", in the last paragraph, last sentence, it says "a educational television program", shouldn't it be "an educational program"? Shanqiti (talk) 03:02, 24 April 2017 (UTC)

Fixed. Thanks!--The lorax (talk) 03:22, 24 April 2017 (UTC)

Source not supported by evidence

Priest, Susanna Hornig (2010). "Bill Nye". Encyclopedia of Science and Technology Communication. SAGE Publications — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2620:0:1029:24:95CF:2033:1BCE:9EB5 (talk) 14:59, 3 May 2017 (UTC)

Entertainer not educator

I find it to be highly out of his scope to call him an educator and quite frankly it's a slap in the face to actual educators. Bill Nye holds holds no degree to be an educator, in fact the science that he teaches is largely out of his scope of practice, that being mechanical engineering B.S. Yes he might just be smarter then most of the population, but that does not make him an educator by any means. 2600:100F:B019:FE06:8198:AE76:F1E6:7969 (talk) 00:57, 2 May 2017 (UTC) concerned for future definitions of words2600:100F:B019:FE06:8198:AE76:F1E6:7969 (talk) 00:57, 2 May 2017 (UTC)

Thank you for your feedback. Rklawton (talk) 10:54, 2 May 2017 (UTC)

Would "science communicator" be a better description? BiologicalMe (talk) 17:48, 3 May 2017 (UTC)

Probably ... he does work to "educate" folks about science, but he has no teacher certification nor does he hold a formal university position (that I know of). Though, as he works to educate the public (and politicians) and does a pretty dang good job of it ... Science educator actually fits what he does. :) Vsmith (talk) 00:47, 4 May 2017 (UTC)

Patents

The article states he holds "several patents." He holds two. Researching beyond google shows this. Please fix. A link to a google search result is not a reliable source anyway. 107.145.113.80 (talk) 23:42, 2 May 2017 (UTC)

I actually see a bunch, which actually should be discussed more thoroughly in the article.--The lorax (talk) 00:18, 3 May 2017 (UTC)

I've removed a bit of excess patent stuff from the lead section. Insert it elsewhere if you wish, but not all that detail in the lead section. Vsmith (talk) 11:22, 4 May 2017 (UTC)

you also reinserted the part about him inventing the airplane fuel injector, which is wrong twice. he was working on the Quincke tube (invented in 1886) in the Aircraft horizontal stabilizer drive that was invented by James R. Woodbury in 1978, on the 747 as well as made training videos. You also removed the several inventions he does hold a patent for as "too much for the lead"...for a man known as the science guy? Darkstar1st (talk) 17:13, 4 May 2017 (UTC)

hmm... there is a ref for that, it is wrong? If so change it - I haven't accessed the reference. As to the patents, those could well be added into the body of the article, but that bit was excess for the lead. Vsmith (talk) 18:50, 4 May 2017 (UTC)

Yes, and I did change it, please see the version you reverted. If you want to move the inventions, please do so instead of delete them and the RS. Darkstar1st (talk) 20:03, 4 May 2017 (UTC)

Odd grammar

"Nye Labs, the production offices and set where the show was shot, took place in a converted clothing warehouse near Seattle's Kingdome."

A location (such as a set for a TV show) doesn't "take place". Suggest "were located in" — Preceding unsigned comment added by 96.237.180.238 (talk • contribs) 16:56, 4 May 2017 (UTC)

Fixed.✅--The lorax (talk) 00:54, 5 May 2017 (UTC)

1977-1986 at Boeing

"while holding his day job as a mechanical engineer still at Boeing" s/b "while still holding his day job as a mechanical engineer at Boeing" — Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.91.65.18 (talk) 20:16, 10 May 2017 (UTC)

Fixed.✅---The lorax (talk) 23:51, 10 May 2017 (UTC)

No Evidence that He's a Mechanical Engineer

It's extremely inappropriate to refer to someone as an engineer who does not have an engineering license. There is no evidence that Bill Nye has ever had an engineering license and it's not something maintained by people in show business. There have been a number of attempts by politically aligned advocates to grant him this false credibility. But responses from Bill Nye himself to challenges to his claim of being an engineer have been in the negative. Referring to him as an engineer is false.— Preceding unsigned comment added by Rogerfgay (talk • contribs) 17:23, 7 May 2017 (UTC)

it could be supposed his main job at boeing was not engineering, rather making training videos as the source I presented mentioned. this article would have you believe he invented "a hydraulic resonance suppressor tube". I corrected this fallacy only to be reverted last week. Darkstar1st (talk) 23:44, 7 May 2017 (UTC)

Nye is in fact a professional engineer. He's mentioned it numerous times, most recently in the very first episode of Bill Nye Saves The World. When a celebrity clams an educational background, the certificate is never asked for on Wikipedia. But maybe if he put up a LinkedIn with the same information, you'd think that is official? Same with the invention, that's cited in several sources per above. Do you have any reliable sources to back up your claim that these credentials are in some doubt or are controversial? Omnibus (talk) 01:27, 11 June 2017 (UTC)

If we limited the title of "Engineer" to those who "have a license" (I assume the author means a P.E.) would be to constrain the profession to less than 0.01% (guesstimate) of those who hold a bachelor's degree in engineering. That's a remarkably narrow definition. I think an engineer is anyone who has a long (minimum of 10-15 years?) track record of being able to re-shape the matter and energy in the world into new objects (even virtual, i.e., software) that are useful to others, accreditation be damned. That includes many "just a bachelor's degree" people and even a few ultra-diligent, non-degreed "technicians" I've known . . . . and excludes a few Master's and Doctorate holders who don't know which end of the scope probe to plug into the oscilloscope. Diplomas are a heuristic, and sometimes heuristics fail (that's why a heuristic is a heuristic and not a firm rule). ~DalotekAffair — Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.91.65.18 (talk) 20:38, 10 May 2017 (UTC)

Invented hydraulic resonance suppressor tube

There's no legitimate evidence of this claim.

agreed, Bill holds several patents, suppressor tube is not one...Darkstar1st (talk) 17:17, 4 May 2017 (UTC)

With whom are you agreeing? Yourself? Omnibus (talk) 12:02, 10 June 2017 (UTC)

Does this count? https://books.google.com/books?id=l1F2AwAAQBAJ&pg=PA533&lpg=PA533&dq=hydraulic+resonance+suppressor+tube+inventor&source=bl&ots=9w7yEs4CPK&sig=FrCwGMPJ-gr2kpxva8qIPZ-ZJWs&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwia-5uqnffTAhXJzVQKHQIMBxIQ6AEIRTAH#v=onepage&q=hydraulic%20resonance%20suppressor%20tube%20inventor&f=false aka page 533 of the Encyclopedia of Science and Techonology Communication volume 1 copyright 2010 143.112.32.4 (talk) 15:25, 17 May 2017 (UTC)dlsk

no, the source is wrong. Anyways the tube he thinks of "as his own" is actually a Quincke tube, which was invented in 1886 by the man of the same name. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georg_Hermann_Quincke Darkstar1st (talk) 19:39, 17 May 2017 (UTC)

Do you have evidence of this being the same tube? Seems like an extraordinary claim. Omnibus (talk) 12:01, 10 June 2017 (UTC)

there is no such part, nor patent for such, although Bill Nye holds several other patents. Try a google image search, if such a device exist, my sincere apologies for my error. Darkstar1st (talk) 14:25, 10 June 2017 (UTC)

Have you searched all of Boeing's patents? The absence of a patent (in your own original research) is not enough to call a cited credential into question on Wikipedia. I'll ask again: as wide as this claim has been made (it's been mentioned in dozens of sources) do you have any that call it into question? Omnibus (talk) 01:29, 11 June 2017 (UTC)

Yes. No. The term hydraulic resonance suppressor tube does not exist, nor does the part. If it did, there would be a patent or at least a photo of one. Darkstar1st (talk) 13:36, 11 June 2017 (UTC)

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Attendance at State of the Union

@Brian Everlasting: one event that has little coverage isn't a reason to include an entire section called Controversy. Besides that one blog post and some online petitions, I see a NY Post article, which is credible. However, this shouldn't be included in the article without his explanation to his followers, found here on Fox News (interestingly…). With so little coverage I'm not sure it should even be included, but maybe in #Other media appearances or #Science advocacy (along with the paragraph about the Planetary Society). Rhinopias (talk) 15:17, 31 January 2018 (UTC)

I agree. WP:CONTROVERSYSECTIONs are generally to be avoided anyway. It can belong in another section in one sentence that he went. – Muboshgu (talk) 15:23, 31 January 2018 (UTC)

GA Review

The following discussion is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

---

This review is transcluded from Talk:Bill Nye/GA1. The edit link for this section can be used to add comments to the review.

Reviewer: Mike Christie (talk · contribs) 11:10, 7 March 2018 (UTC)

I'll review this. Mike Christie (talk - contribs - library) 11:10, 7 March 2018 (UTC)

The article has large chunks of text taken from this source; this is a copyright problem. The text should be removed and replaced with material from other sources. That source dates to October 2015, and does not appear to be a mirror of Wikipedia.

I don't think it is possible to fix this in the time frame of a GA review but will wait for a response before I fail this. Mike Christie (talk - contribs - library) 11:33, 7 March 2018 (UTC)

Hi Mike Christie, can you specify which parts of the article look suspicious?--The lorax (talk) 18:25, 10 March 2018 (UTC)

The Earwig analysis highlights the similarities. Mike Christie (talk - contribs - library) 18:34, 10 March 2018 (UTC)

Okay, I made an effort to remove much of these similarities. Does that look better?--The lorax (talk) 19:30, 11 March 2018 (UTC)

The lorax: I haven't looked, but I just realized that I should also have said I don't think it's a reliable source. Sorry; I hope you haven't wasted your time with those edits. I remembered after I saw your note here that it's a wiki, and usually those aren't reliable. If you can show it's reliable, then I'll take a look at the edits. If not, I'm afraid it'll have to be resourced. My apologies for not saying this up front -- it slipped my mind. Mike Christie (talk - contribs - library) 21:14, 11 March 2018 (UTC)

Seems like every reference is a reliable source, unless I’m missing something?The lorax (talk) 01:14, 12 March 2018 (UTC)

I meant the dancingwiththe stars overlap, but I was misremembering; it looks like it wasn't used as a source. Sorry about that -- I promise to be more careful for the rest of this review. Yes, the overlap with that page is now fixed; Earwig still complains but the overlap is now quotes or phrases that are hard to change, so it's OK. Mike Christie (talk - contribs - library) 11:19, 12 March 2018 (UTC)

I'll copyedit as I go; please revert as needed.

• What makes the following reliable sources?
  • reviewgeek.com
  • mentalfloss.com
  • splitsider.com
  • tvtropes.org (see this)

✅ Cut out all of those, but kept the Splitsider reference, which I'd argue is a reliable news source with an editorial staff per this Nieman Journalism Lab article.--The lorax (talk) 00:41, 15 March 2018 (UTC)

• Not an issue for GA, but you may wish to fix the following dead links [14], [15], [16], [17], and [18].

✅Swapped or removed links.

• Nye entertained audiences with kooky demonstrations like what happens when you eat a marshmallow that's been dunked in liquid nitrogen: I'd cut "kooky"; a bit too colloquial to be encyclopedic voice.

✅Swapped with "comical."--The lorax (talk) 00:41, 15 March 2018 (UTC)

• There are some unsourced sentences in the "Other media appearances" section, and another in the "Science advocacy" section.
• Do we really need to know he supported the reclassification of Pluto as a dwarf planet?
• Nye stated "compared to all of the other herbicides, Glyphosate is pretty benign... there's no difference between allergies among GMO eaters and non-GMO eaters... organic farming takes a lot more water... I've changed my mind about genetically modified organisms": the quote is odd; why are we including references to glyphosate and organic farming? The context is just Nye's support for GMOs.

✅Fixed.--The lorax (talk) 00:41, 15 March 2018 (UTC)

• The science advocacy section has a bit of a proseline problem, with short paragraphs. This is good enough for GA, but if the material can be integrated a little more it would make it more readable. This is also a bit of an issue in the "Other media appearances" and "Personal life" sections.

-- Mike Christie (talk - contribs - library) 11:19, 12 March 2018 (UTC)

• TV Tropes is an usergenerated website so probably not suited as a source for a GA. Disclaimer: I am a member of the staff there. Jo-Jo Eumerus (talk, contributions) 17:41, 12 March 2018 (UTC)

@The lorax: the above are all fixed except for the proseline and the uncited sentences. The prose is good enough for GA, which only requires clear and concise -- I just mentioned it as a possible place to improve the article. Once the uncited sentences are cited I will promote this to GA. Mike Christie (talk - contribs - library) 10:42, 16 March 2018 (UTC)

@Mike Christie: I think all of the sentences in that section are cited now, unless I missed one?--The lorax (talk) 02:41, 17 March 2018 (UTC)

Yes, everything looks good now. Promoting. Mike Christie (talk - contribs - library) 14:47, 17 March 2018 (UTC)

The discussion above is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

title of section "Scientific work"

This section describes no scientific work whatsoever. Besides a couple of engineering projects, it mostly describes advocacy work. I propose to rename this section to "Science advocacy". Bill Nye is not a scientist.--2604:2000:EF51:E200:9912:F2CB:F23F:7625 (talk) 16:18, 30 October 2017 (UTC)

I think that would be a great idea!Mschaffer (talk) 16:02, 20 February 2018 (UTC)

I also take issue with the description of "he invented a hydraulic resonance suppressor tube used on 747 airplanes". Nye did not invent suppressors of this type, he just designed one for a specific purpose. Perhaps it should simply state that and replace "invented" with "designed" If we want to talk about inventions, can someone confirm that the 3 patents by William S. Nye of Seattle are his? 5,515,203 "Educational Lens" 6,895,694 "Toe Shoe" 7,771,294 "Throwing Technique Trainer" Mschaffer (talk) 16:06, 20 February 2018 (UTC)

@Mschaffer: the section title was changed to the suggested "Science advocacy" a while ago. Regarding the latter, the source used explicitly uses the word invented, seen here. Rhinopias (talk) 23:25, 20 February 2018 (UTC)

Book redirects

I went ahead and redirected Everything All at Once and Everything All at Once: How to Unleash Your Inner Nerd, Tap into Radical Curiosity and Solve Any Problem to this article. ---Another Believer _(Talk) 14:42, 18 April 2018 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 29 May 2018

There is some missing data on this person. Grimsonhere (talk) 13:53, 29 May 2018 (UTC)

 Not done: it's not clear what changes you want to be made. Please mention the specific changes in a "change X to Y" format and provide a reliable source if appropriate. – Muboshgu (talk) 13:58, 29 May 2018 (UTC)

Earlier Bill Nye

I'm wondering if his biographers know, or if any interviewers have ever asked, if Bill is related to a Bill Nye who was a popular humorous author/lecturer of the 19th century. He collaborated with James Whitcomb Riley on two books (I would assume humorous poetry) and toured and lectured with Riley for 2 years. He was quite well known in his day, and one of his stories was included in a collection edited by Mark Twain. Edgar Wilson Nye, popularly known as Bill Nye. rags (talk) 20:55, 4 June 2018 (UTC)

btw, in the Archive, comment #2, "Nye booed in Texas," should be mentioned in the article, imo. I'm a big fan, but every article needs balance, and this one includes no criticism at all. Just sayin' rags (talk) 20:55, 4 June 2018 (UTC)

He is the greatest scientist of all time

My science teacher shows episodes of Bill Nye the Science Guy to the class. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.227.32.178 (talk) 19:24, 23 August 2018 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 14 October 2018

Other media appearances In 2018, Bill made a cameo appearance on the show The Big Bang Theory as himself, together with fellow scientist Neil deGrasse Tyson

source: https://popculture.com/tv-shows/2018/09/24/big-bang-theory-bill-nye-neil-degrasse-tyson-welcomes-season-premiere Ricopaat (talk) 05:19, 14 October 2018 (UTC)

 Done ♪♫Alucard 16♫♪ 15:10, 16 October 2018 (UTC)

Inaccurate phrasing in Personal Life section

Could someone replace "so as to not pass the gene to them" to "so as not to pass the genetic variant to them" in this article? Most everyone has the same genes, but variants of these genes (alleles) are responsible for genetic diseases.

Better? RobP (talk) 23:20, 20 December 2018 (UTC)

Why is this interesting information?

In March 2019, Nye asked Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez a question during her interview at the South by Southwest Festival about political fear and climate change.[110] Nye and Ocasio-Cortez later posed for a selfie in support of the Green New Deal which Nye uploaded to his Twitter account.[111][112]OSB95 (talk) 01:33, 14 May 2019 (UTC)

It is not. --Hob Gadling (talk) 06:00, 14 May 2019 (UTC)

The Climate Reality Project Experiment

Bill Nye and Al Gore's climate change hysteria promotion joint venture debunked:

https://dailycaller.com/2014/08/11/report-bill-nye-al-gore-get-the-physics-of-global-warming-wrong/

https://wattsupwiththat.com/gore-and-bill-nye-fail-at-doing-a-simple-co2-experiment/

2605:A000:1301:89D0:F43E:125:2090:1CA4 (talk) 06:42, 15 May 2019 (UTC)

Neither Daily Caller nor Watts Up With That? are reliable sources on scientific subjects. On the subject of climatology, they pretty reliably get it wrong. You should read scientific journals instead of denialist outfits. --Hob Gadling (talk) 07:09, 15 May 2019 (UTC)

Feedback on term "inventor"

"where he invented a hydraulic resonance suppressor tube"

If he is a patent holder or listed as an inventor on a patent, then he is an inventor. Otherwise, just an engineer. Furthermore, this should have a citation. Muppet1856 (talk) 14:06, 15 May 2019 (UTC)Jeff

Semi-protected edit request on 15 May 2019

Please change "While at Boeing, he invented a hydraulic resonance suppressor tube" to "While at Boeing, he invented a hydraulic resonance suppressor tube", because there is no supporting citation. Patents are a matter of public record and should be cited. Muppet1856 (talk) 14:18, 15 May 2019 (UTC)

This is the supporting citation, it says "invented". Would of course be good to cite the patent as well, but not all inventions are patented. – Þjarkur (talk) 14:28, 15 May 2019 (UTC)

The overall concern is that engineers design things everyday as a course of their profession. One does not include a list of designs in their accomplishments and call them inventions. This would be better with a link to an actual invention. Can anyone find the patent?Muppet1856 (talk) 20:19, 15 May 2019 (UTC)

Citing patents is a bad idea. A patent does not guarantee the thing patented works. We often have to reject patents as sources when it obviously does not - in articles about crackpots who patent nonsense.

The citation of a secondary source above above is sufficient. --Hob Gadling (talk) 02:51, 16 May 2019 (UTC)

 Not done: per above. Gangster8192 01:09, 17 May 2019 (UTC)

Nye is not a scientist

Why does the article refer to Nye as a scientist? [In the same year, Nye made a guest appearance on The Big Bang Theory as himself, together with fellow scientist Neil deGrasse Tyson, in the first episode of the show's final season ("The Conjugal Configuration").[58] ] There should also be a disclaimer at the top that, despite the fact that his tv show was named "Bill Nye, the Science Guy" that he is NOT a scientist. He has a BS in engineering. That does not confer "scientist". And by exploiting his self-chosen name from his television show, his political views on scientific subjects assume more weight than they merit.

Corporations must adhere to "truth in advertising" laws. Someone who wants to be taken seriously on science-related matters should also. It's called "truth". — Preceding unsigned comment added by 165.155.121.26 (talk) 16:31, 6 December 2018 (UTC)

I agree 100%. He also tends to throw around his weight as a 'scientist' by blocking real scientists from talking. Maybe some kind of section on criticism would improve the article?180.190.182.207 (talk) 07:49, 23 December 2018 (UTC)

People with actual advanced degrees who've invented things, taught in actual academic environments, and been published in journals disagree with some of the things he's said, particularly on the implications of global climate change and more greenhouse gases' effects on the health of the planet and humanity. Labeling Nye a scientist or academic falsely puts him on his critics' level while he goes on the talk show circuit pretending the critics don't exist, and the media perpetuates this cycle. 2605:A000:1301:89D0:F43E:125:2090:1CA4 (talk) 06:41, 15 May 2019 (UTC)

Do those people have names, or are they figments of your imagination? --Hob Gadling (talk) 07:09, 15 May 2019 (UTC)

I'm afraid this is a valid critique. Nye has an undergraduate degree in mechanical engineering, which is an applied trade. One can call it an applied science, but it's quite a stretch to therefore say that this makes one a scientist anymore than someone with an undergrad degree in software engineering makes one a scientist. The several honorary doctorates Nye has been granted by various institutions are notable acknowledgments of the cultural contributions he's made in the world of entertainment to popularize science among young children and teens. He shares these distinctions with other public figures who've been given honorary degrees--laypersons, activists, celebrities, politicians, rappers, and other cultural personalities. I have a deep respect for Nye's contributions in that regard. But Nye hasn't published a single piece original work in any academic journal, has never contributed to actual research, hasn't taught a graduate level course, has never worked at accredited institution as a scientist (his appointment to the honorary position of Frank H.T. Rhodes professorship at Cornell obligated him only to two-week visits on campus per year, which he spent delivering a guided tour and lecture to the public). Nye does something more impactful--he simplifies and communicates the work of others in a way that's accessible to a global audience. In the interest of accuracy, however, I strongly suggest removing references to a "scientific career" from the article. He has a well-earned reputation for communicator, entertainer, and cultural critic. But Nye is no scientist. 71.227.177.88 (talk) 06:47, 22 May 2019 (UTC)

While I do understand the point being made is about Bill Nye's "accreditation" or attaining the highest form of degrees, it still does not mean he can't be considered a "scientist". The definition of scientist is: "One whose activities make use of the scientific method to answer questions regarding the measurable universe. A scientist may be involved in original research, or make use of the results of the research of others." Regardless of educational background, anyone can be a "scientist," Is he an expert on climate science or any other scientific field? No. There are people that have the advanced degrees you are talking about, that for whatever reason, attest that human caused climate change isn't real (Which a vast majority of the science community know it is). Bill Nye "makes use of the results of the research of others", despite what you may argue that use to be-- I say to promote awareness and to relay information/data. And let's be clear, there are grade school science teachers that don't even need a masters or doctorate in any specific scientific field in order to teach science. In addition, a BS in Engineering is still Science, (hence "Bachelor of Science"), which I may add, requires an education in Physics. It's like saying you can't be an artist just because you don't have a Master's degree in any given field of art or never had an exhibit at some prestigious art museum. There is no degree for "Artist" nor for "Scientist", they are informal titles. Persistent Corvid (talk) 23:23, 5 October 2019 (UTC)

Edit Request

A bit rusty at this and have never done it from my phone, but there’s an edit issue in the intro that I can’t fix because it’s protected.

“ He has written two bestselling science books on science books”.

Intothefray (talk) <small c|undated]] comment added 05:00, 21 March 2020 (UTC)

 Done Eggishorn (talk) (contrib) 241⁄Failed to parse (syntax error): {\displaystyle ℚ} :55, 26 March 55555 (UTC)

No sources on daughter

I've removed a line about Bill Nye having a daughter named Charity with former partner Blair Tindall. The only sources listed, and the only sources I can find, are SEO spam gossip blogs written by robots. They claim she was born 3 years before Blair Tindall and Bill Nye claim (in court records that are publicly available) to have met, so this sounds highly improbable to me. If anyone has a reliable source, feel free to add it back in. Goyston talk, contribs 06:10, 24 April 2022 (UTC)

Edit request

Several of his books were coauthored. Jack and the Geniuses is credited to him and Gregory Mone on the covers, as well as Bill Nye's Great Big World of Science in the synopsis. I feel it should be added as a note on those books. 2600:6C52:6200:F5F:1C0C:2064:F508:255F (talk) 16:53, 15 August 2022 (UTC)

Wrong state

Washington DC and Washington are two different places so your wrong on his birth place 2601:603:5400:7B10:48A:FD22:C3A3:EF8E (talk) 06:07, 23 March 2023 (UTC)

They are two different places and it's true that he lived in Seattle later in life, but the article says he was born in Washington, D.C. which this source supports. He was born and grew up in Washington, D.C. not Washington State. - Aoidh (talk) 16:25, 23 March 2023 (UTC)

Reads like a Resume?

I don't usually make edits to wikipedia so correct me if i'm wrong but isn't it odd to put something like this as the second paragraph?

Born in Washington, D.C., Nye began his career as a mechanical engineer for Boeing in Seattle, where he invented a hydraulic resonance suppressor tube used on 747 airplanes. 2600:1700:A6B0:6EFF:BD28:C7E3:245C:E23D (talk) 09:15, 27 August 2023 (UTC)

@2600:1700:A6B0:6EFF:BD28:C7E3:245C:E23D I personally think it's fine; the information is true and biographical. None of the words used are WP:WORDSTOWATCH. JacobTheRox (talk) 07:52, 6 October 2023 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 4 December 2023

Grammatical error Caca1327 (talk) 15:59, 4 December 2023 (UTC)

 Not done: it's not clear what changes you want to be made. Please mention the specific changes in a "change X to Y" format and provide a reliable source if appropriate. You need to specify what the error is. RudolfRed (talk) 17:04, 4 December 2023 (UTC)

Edit request

• https://www.beaumontenterprise.com/lifestyle/slideshow/The-pioneering-life-of-Bill-Nye-from-science-197398.php
• "He stayed at Boeing for nine years, through 1986, during which time he invented an airplane part called a hydraulic pressure resonance suppressor tube. The tube— sometimes called a ripple dampener—is a part of 747 jet airliner that dampens noise and pulsations." Oct 30, 2019

2601:646:201:57F0:8D7A:CDA3:E1B5:8B5F (talk) 09:43, 6 April 2024 (UTC)

Daughter

he has a daughter? Charity Nye? Article says he doesn't have children. 2001:1C01:3200:BB00:4D69:9999:9C7E:9220 (talk) 22:29, 17 May 2024 (UTC)