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| Bill Nye |
Bill Nye the Science Guy is firing back at conservative talk radio host Rush Limbaugh, who last week on his show proclaimed Nye is nothing more than a talking head on television.
"Bill Nye is not a science guy; that's why he's a TV personality," Limbaugh said after Nye appeared on Piers Morgan Live to discuss tornadoes. "Bill Nye is not a scientist. Bill Nye can explain to kids things like surface tension, why you can fill a glass above the rim and it won't fall over if it's just the right amount. He explains things like that, surface tension. He's not a scientist. He knows it, and everybody else knows it. Doesn't matter."
During a candid interview with Mashable, Nye addressed the remarks — unprompted.
"When Rush Limbaugh says I'm not a scientist I'm charmed — I smirk," Nye said. "Rush, I think you got it wrong. But I've got to tell you I don't follow Rush's comments that closely. I don't hang on his every word."
This is the first time Nye has commented publicly on Limbaugh's statement.
"I was very flattered last week, and I meant to tweet about this, but I dropped the ball because of the holiday weekend," Nye added. "I got a Google Alert for it and it was one of those things where I thought I should do something. ... What am I if I'm not a scientist?"
Mashable also spoke with Nye about social media's role in science, the Internet versus flying cars, Carmen Electra, Kickstarter, how to pronounce "GIF" and much more.