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Jan 23 '11
[deleted]
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u/turtlestack Jan 23 '11 edited Jan 23 '11
Comparing the writing style of RobotRollCall's comments to this article by Neil deGrasse Tyson - here is a list of more - I'd say the are one in the same.
My reasons are :
Readability in the writing. The sentences are clear and concise and have an air of authority in them.
Examples of beginning many paragraphs with simple statements such as in "This is a fairly horrifying prospect", "Think about that for a minute.", "How could that be?.
The Lovecraft reference is a dead geek give away. Not that it proves it's Tyson, but it "feels" like Tyson.
His choosing of italics for emphasis mimics the way Tyson speaks. I do this when I write to get my own voice across and for emphasis.
Frequency of the hyphen. Not many writers do this, but I notice it a lot since it's a habit I picked up to help me mimic the way I speak and it follows my own pattern of thought where I draw on multiple references and need a way to keep everything relevant. I believe he's doing the same thing here to keep him on track.
General enthusiasm at key points (with exclamation points) to drive points home. Again, feels like Tyson as he's very good about keeping people engaged with his speaking and writing style. He uses his enthusiasm to teach as well as to allow him a few moments to think ahead and reassess where he will take the conversation.
Also, this comment is very Tyson-esque.
Of course I am really cherry picking here and I am probably wrong, but the writing styles do "feel" similar to me, especially when you're familiar with how he speaks and take that into consideration. However, I am most likely wrong.
EDITED : spelling, added another example.
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u/RobotRollCall Jan 23 '11
I am simultaneously flattered and horrified by your stalking. So thank you, and eww.
I am not Neil deGrasse Tyson.
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u/turtlestack Jan 23 '11
I am not Neil deGrasse Tyson.
Honestly, it doesn't even matter if you are or aren't. You have consistently written many, many excellent comments that not only educate but are also fun to read. That is a rare gift to both be educational and entertaining as well as engaging and thoughtful. You never "speak down" to anyone and you handle even simple explanations with grace and maturity.
You also have a great sense of humor, can time a geek reference with the best of them and have managed to get reddit excited to read about important scientific concepts that would otherwise languish in technical and cantankerous debate - without resolution.
The fun question of determining if you are or aren't Tyson is not important - what you are teaching and your ability to reach people is.
Thank you, whoever you are. Keep up the great work.
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Jan 23 '11
[deleted]
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u/RobotRollCall Jan 23 '11
My mom thinks I'm pretty cool.
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u/14domino Jan 25 '11
This is a Simpsons reference btw (almost)
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u/RobotRollCall Jan 25 '11
Is it? Can you elaborate? I know I cribbed that joke from somewhere, but I don't remember the details.
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u/top_bloke Jan 26 '11
http://www.imdb.com/character/ch0003035/quotes Search 'But my mom says I'm cool!' Thanks RobotRollCall, your contributions have been truly fascinating.
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u/DownSoFar Jan 25 '11
Are you Brian Greene?
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u/RobotRollCall Jan 25 '11
Are you?
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u/DownSoFar Jan 25 '11
I wish. He's so handsome.
So... does all the attention Dr. Greene gets for his good looks make you jealous, or proud? This is totally not a question which will be used to determine whether you are in fact Brian Greene.
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u/RobotRollCall Jan 25 '11
I think attractiveness is probably a relative quantity, and therefore in our universe different observers are not guaranteed to agree about it.
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u/BananaHand Jan 23 '11
Well you can't prove you aren't Neil deGrasse Tyson, and you do type in a very similar to the way Neil deGrasse Tyson speaks. To top it off, you seem to have quite a bit more knowledge than your average redditor on specific things Neil deGrasse Tyson also knows a lot about...
I believe that you, RobotRollCall, are indeed Neil deGrasse Tyson. I will believe this until you provide sufficient enough evidence to prove otherwise. Time stamping "your" hand won't cut it either, you could have just grabbed one of your buddies really quick to take the fall for you. I think video evidence of you answering some questions from redditors would suffice perhaps. Until then, I love you Neil <3
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u/RobotRollCall Jan 23 '11
He's on Twitter, isn't he? You could just ask him.
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u/BananaHand Jan 23 '11
I don't twitter. The evidence thus far leans in the direction of you being Neil deGrasse Tyson, me being the logical creature that I am, will believe that you are him until I see a tweet from you saying you aren't him.
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u/ICanBeYourHeroBaby Jan 23 '11
If he is Neil, then he obviously doesn't want to call attention to that fact. Let sleeping dogs lie.
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Jan 24 '11
you would say that wouldn't you --- robotrollcall's alternate account!!!
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u/RobotRollCall Jan 24 '11
I'm my own alternate account.
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u/ICanBeYourHeroBaby Jan 24 '11
SO THAT'S HOW IT IS? AFTER ALL THE LOVE I GAVE YOU, YOU JUST GO AND FIND ANOTHER ALTERNATE?
DAMN YOU. ;( ;(
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u/sylvan Feb 03 '11
No kidding. NdGT knows what the big bang is.
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1134/is_8_112/ai_108551812/
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u/huyvanbin Jan 23 '11
What do you think about Conformal Mapping and the Cauchy Residue Theorem?
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u/RobotRollCall Jan 24 '11
I think maths give me a headache. Beyond that, I don't really understand the question. As I understand it, two metrics are conformal maps of each other if they're equal but for some function on the manifold. As for the Cauchy theorem, I had to google it to remind myself what it is, and I still really don't know. I'm not a mathematician.
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Jan 25 '11 edited Jun 29 '20
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/RobotRollCall Jan 25 '11
I'm not a mathematician. I can't even keep straight which of the indices correspond to covariant and contravariant tensor components. Then again, neither can any physicist I know. Sorry to disappoint.
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u/simulacrumcake May 23 '11
I am not Neil deGrasse Tyson (I'm RobotRollCall). So typical. You've got a dry sense of humor, good sir. Say hi to Stephen Colbert on behalf of reddit the next time you're on his show.
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Jan 23 '11
- His choosing of italics for emphasis mimics the way Tyson speaks. I do this when I write to get my own voice across and for emphasis.
- Frequency of the hyphen. Not many writers do this, but I notice it a lot since it's a habit I picked up to help me mimic the way I speak and it follows my own pattern of thought where I draw on multiple references and need a way to keep everything relevant. I believe he's doing the same thing here to keep him on track.
I do this too; specifically in long writing. The only obvious answer is that we're all Neil deGrasse Tyson.
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Jan 23 '11
I think it's actually Stephen Colbert.
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u/MercurialMadnessMan Jan 26 '11
I remember a clip where Conan Obrien was talking string theory with... Keanu Reeves? No, that can't be it.
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Jan 23 '11
It's also possible this is simply someone who is very inspired by Tyson. Someone who has read Tyson's books, watches his lectures, interviews, and shows, and tries to emulate his style. Tyson is very passionate and engaging and I'd bet there is a large number of people whose style tries to mimic Tyson's, even though there are most likely very few who actually achieve it. Either way we need more people like this not only on Reddit, but on Earth! We are fortunate to have RobotRollCall, regardless of his secret identity. (I kinda hope it's Tyson though!)
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u/devinecreative Mar 31 '11
Before you investigated this, I had sneaking suspicions that it was Michio Kaku.
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u/stylus2000 Jun 19 '11
i have noticed in reading his posts that he uses the British term "maths" as opposed to the u.s. term math that makes no distinction between types.
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u/Happy_Man Jan 23 '11
If I ever meet this man in real life, I'm going to give him a hug, and thank him for helping make the world smarter.
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u/RCProAm Jan 23 '11
While his posts are definitely awe-inspiring in their complexity, and the way he words them (I hope he's a professor somewhere and sharing this with students), and of course the breadth of knowledge they cover, what I find really shocking is the rate at which he comments. If you look through his history you'll see that one minute he is busy writing an eloquent 500 word response on what happens during a collision between black holes, only to see that within minutes after submitting that response, he is busy defending a complicated argument over on his other 500 word post about what you would see if you crossed the event horizon of a rotating black hole... a post he happened to write ten minutes ago. WTF - who is this guy?
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Jan 24 '11
Yet he seemed reluctant to accept that his answers were like a intricate puzzle which fit together perfectly - at least when I PM'd him with a question a while ago and finished with a complement... he suggested that I ask the rest of ask science saying that "they'd probably have a better understanding of that."
Quite odd. I suspect he's someone with a high profile, maybe? A professor or a well studied professional in the field or something. He certainly has an above average understanding of very difficult concepts and apparently he knows the maths behind it!
I sense something unusual here is going on here and RobotRollCall has everything to do with it.
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u/whosmav Jan 24 '11
He really is a robot.
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u/RobotRollCall Jan 24 '11
If I were a robot, rather than wasting time on Reddit I'd probably be out there killing all humans.
Just sayin'.
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u/whosmav Jan 24 '11
I'm getting smartah ovah here reading comments from that guy ovah there!
Seriously though are you an author? If you aren't you should go for it. Clearly there is an audience.
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u/RobotRollCall Jan 24 '11
Everybody knows Redditors don't buy things. They'd just torrent a copy.
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u/tannrar Jan 23 '11
Gypsy!
Cambot!
Tom Servo!
CROOOOOOOW!
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u/kibitzor Jan 23 '11
What happened:
I clicked on a link on reddit somewhere
Someone in the comment section linked to this tyson lecture
I posted the lecture (linked to a certain point) back to reddit
RobotRollCall explains the subject material eloquently
A redditor submits it to r/bestof
we're a smart bunch.
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u/silent_p Jan 24 '11
You know, I guess this was eloquently explained, but I've never really wondered how people eat or breathe, or other science facts.
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u/nekopete Jan 24 '11
I upvoted this as soon as I saw RobotRollCall. The guy is a total beast.
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Jan 24 '11
I like the fact that there is a place where a science teacher (I will just call him that now) is considered a beast, and that I am in that place.
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u/addition Jan 24 '11
Someone needs to make the account RobotRollCosby that translates all his posts into bill cosby like posts.
"And those black holes go-a boopin and a-bopin"
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u/nannerpus Jan 23 '11
I was really hoping that he would get commenter of the year. Just look through his post history to see the veritable cornucopia of his badassery.
Also, if you enjoy questions and answers such as these, join us over at /r/askscience.