Skip to content

Neil deGrasse Tyson on the Mysteries of #Gravity

Scientists can be harsh film critics, as evidenced by Neil deGrasse Tyson’s recent evisceration of the film Gravity on Twitter. 
Sign up for Big Think on Substack
The most surprising and impactful new stories delivered to your inbox every week, for free.

Scientists can be harsh film critics, as evidenced by the astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson’s recent evisceration of the film Gravity on Twitter


In a series of Tweets, Tyson listed various “mysteries,” which included the question of why Sandra Bullock’s character, a medical Doctor, would be servicing the Hubble Space Telescope.

Another mystery: “When Clooney releases Bullock’s tether, he drifts away. In zero-G a single tug brings them together.”

And another: “Nearly all satellites orbit Earth west to east yet all satellite debris portrayed orbited east to west.”

And perhaps the greatest mystery of all:  “Why anyone is impressed with a zero-G film 45 years after being impressed with “2001:A Space Odyssey”

Nevertheless, “my Tweets hardly ever convey opinion,” Tyson wrote. “Mostly perspectives on the world. But if you must know, I enjoyed

Sign up for Big Think on Substack
The most surprising and impactful new stories delivered to your inbox every week, for free.

Related
The hospital where Rainn Wilson’s wife and son nearly died became his own personal holy site. There, he discovered that the sacred can exist in places we least expect it. During his talk at A Night of Awe and Wonder, he explained how the awe we feel in moments of courage and love is moral beauty — and following it might be the start of our spiritual revolution.
13 min
with

Up Next
So here’s some savvy conservative commentary on Saturday Night Live’s  hilarious fake promo for the new season of the HBO hit Girls.  Introducing a needed note of realism into the show is the new […]