by Sebastian Moronta Blanco, Staff Writer
For those of you who feel the television world has been lacking in the bow-tie adorned scientist department, Netflix made an incredible announcement just this past week.
In the spring of next year, Netflix will be teaming up with scientist, author, and former PBS show host Bill Nye to bring a new flavor of talk show to the streaming service.
The show will be titled Bill Nye Saves the World, and according to Netflix’s official synopsis, each episode will “tackle a topic from a scientific point of view, dispelling myths, and refuting anti-scientific claims that may be espoused by politicians, religious leaders or titans of industry.”
Many of us grew up watching the old show Bill Nye the Science Guy and have fond memories of its wacky experiments, colorful set pieces, and of course, its killer theme song.
The show, for those who aren’t familiar with it, aired on PBS in the 90ís. Each week Bill Nye explained a specific scientific concept to his viewers, using experiments to create visuals.
Because of its popularity and resonance with young viewers, clips from his show were often used in classrooms and schools. It is used as a learning tool to this day, over a decade after the show aired its last episode.
Nye has kept himself busy since his show ended in 1998 with a continued devotion to educating the populous in science, mostly through entertainment.
Nye has hosted several science-oriented programs and series, namely Greatest Inventions with Bill Nye, The Eyes of Nye, and 100 Greatest Discoveries.
Apart from his work on television, Nye has maintained a presence on the internet, collaborating with content creators on YouTube and other video and science-related sites.
He creates videos to look at different scientific subjects or discuss hotly-debated topics in the science field, including genetically modified foods, climate change, etc.
As of late, Nye has appeared on several podcasts and web-talk shows. Noted astrophysicist Neil Degrasse Tyson hosts a podcast called StarTalk (which I highly recommend) and frequently invites Bill Nye to speak on the show.
In the past he has covered topics in science or talked about his long history working with NASA and space exploration groups.
Often, Bill Nye’s most notable public appearances appear in the form of news stories.
He is an extremely vocal man, and often criticizes or fact-checks statements made by celebrities or public figures in order to stir attention.
For example, Nye made a recent appearance on CNN and criticized the Republican presidential candidates this past April for their denial of climate change.
John Kasich, Ted Cruz, and Donald Trump have all voiced their denial of the full effects of climate change, and Nye has stepped out to speak on it.
He has also criticized an attraction in Kentucky, a structure depicting Noah’s Ark, and has stated that it is a “danger to the nation’s science education.”
He publicly announced that he hoped the ark would never be built, because it would “indoctrinate children into this extraordinary and outlandish, unscientific point of view.”
Nye’s outspoken, enthusiastic, and energetic passion for science, combined with his established recognition with our generation makes him the perfect candidate to host a new science-oriented show for Netflix.
As people from younger generations spend more and more time using à la carte content streaming services like Hulu and Netflix, live programming on cable channels continually receives less attention.
Turning his attention to Netflix is a smart move for Nye, as the generation that he taught science to as children has now grown up into older, Netflix-bingeing college students.
If nothing else, I hope they keep the old theme song.