On Wednesday night, throngs of students, faculty members and Starkville residents poured into Lee Hall Auditorium. The program wasn’t set to begin until 7:30 p.m., but it only took a few minutes after the doors were opened for every seat to fill and for the gatekeepers to be forced to turn away later arrivals.A casual observer may have been inclined to believe a rock act or a presidential candidate was going to emerge from behind the auditorium’s curtain to appease the masses. But this was no concert or rally. This crowd of energetic fans had arrived to witness … a science lecture.
Bill Nye “the Science Guy,” star of the wildly successful self-titled television program in the ’90s, had arrived at Mississippi State.
“Everyone’s very excited to come in,” Campus Activities Board student director Patrick Young said. “We had a nice little stampede when the doors opened.”
Many of the audience members were long-time fans of Nye and were extremely excited about catching a glimpse of their childhood hero.
Clad in a homemade Bill Nye T-shirt, undeclared sophomore Allison Forks said she was a huge fan of Nye.
“I watched him when I was a kid. It brings back childhood memories. He made me like science,” she said.
Forks wasn’t the only one who had dressed for the occasion. Many audience members sported lab coats and bow ties in honor of Nye. Stargazing wasn’t the only motive people had for attending the show, however. Some had actually come for the content of the lecture.
Armstrong Middle School student Rex Ames had only recently come across Nye’s work and would receive extra credit in his science class for attending the lecture.
“I didn’t even know about him at first,” Ames said. “I researched him. He’s brilliant in science. He’s so funny, and you can learn at the same time. It’s really cool.”
Nye’s visit was brought about by the Global Lectures Committee. His diverse appeal was a major factor in his selection Young said.
“Last year we had Robert F. Kennedy Jr., which caused a little bit of controversy,” Young said. “This year we wanted to make it a little more low-key and bring someone the whole campus could enjoy.”
At 7:30, Nye was announced and came forward from backstage wearing his signature attire to thunderous applause. Aided by a large PowerPoint presentation, he proceeded to speak on the topic of climate change in a manner very familiar to those who grew up with his television show – fast-paced, eye-opening and riddled with humor. Cracks about bow ties and stories about his father’s obsession with sun dials mixed seamlessly with data and charts concerning the current global warming situation – along with suggestions for overcoming it – to constitute Nye’s lecture. A lengthy question and answer session followed. The first few topics addressed remained loyal to the subject of climate change, but they soon strayed to include whether his television show was ever coming to DVD and if the sun was really going to eventually burn out. “Yep!” Nye replied with a shrug.
Nye’s departure signaled another round of enthusiastic applause.
“[This lecture] was probably the only time I’ve ever willingly listened to someone talk about science and the future,” freshman communication major Anna Smith said.
Nye expressed pleasant surprise at the warm welcome he received from university students and attributed his long running success to his inclusion of humor.
“It’s very cool,” he said concerning the enthusiastic crowd. “I still don’t quite get it. The fundamental thing is you have to entertain first. Although we took it seriously [on the television show], we did our best to have fun. It still makes me laugh.”
Nye says that, though he’s given the lecture at other universities before, each time is unique.
“[The lecture] is never the same twice,” he said.
Sections of the lecture concerning rising gas prices, including a recent headline declaring four dollars a gallon to be in the near future, were new additions to the show.
Nye expressed warm feelings toward the university and his trip here.
“My Mississippi State experience has been fabulous,” he said. “You have an outstanding engineering school and an outstanding university.