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Bill Nye the Science Guy explains why he blocked HHS Secretary RFK Jr. from texting him

Bill Nye is still very serious about science 30 years after his famous show.

Photos by Gage Skidmore/Wikimedia

Bill Nye the Science Guy explains why he blocked HHS Secretary RFK Jr.

Bill Nye has been a household name for decades, though many Millennials likely can't say his name without adding "the science guy" behind it. He played an integral part in the childhood of an entire generation with his television program teaching kids science in a fun, engaging way. The theme song will forever be emblazoned in the minds of those who grew up watching him.

When he made his way to social media with his familiar kindness and humor, people flocked to his pages for the nostalgia but stayed for the knowledge. If there was one thing Nye was going to do, it was stand with scientific evidence no matter what. Due to his love of science and being established as a trusted and pivotal voice in the worlds of science and tech, it wasn't surprising that the Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. would have Nye's phone number. But what is surprising is that Nye blocked him.

Bill Nye; Bill Nye the Science Guy; RFK Jr. vaccines; anti-vaxx; MAHA; HHS Secretary; Bill Nye blocks RFK Jr. Bill Nye leaning against podium speaking at ASUPhoto by Gage Skidmore/Wikimedia

A lot of scientific research is funded through the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Americans also depend on the accuracy of information leaving the office of HHS, whether it be vaccine recommendations, baby formula safety, or protective measures to be taken with a new disease outbreak. The department of Health and Human Services handles nearly everything that has to do with the health of American citizens and everyone who visits the country.

In 2025, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., an environmental lawyer and descendant of the Kennedy political dynasty, was confirmed as the new Secretary of HHS. While his nomination raised concerns due to his anti-vaccine activism and involvement in the Trump administration's Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement, the son of RFK assured Americans he would follow the science. But it would seem that this isn't the case according to the science guy who blocked RFK Jr. from being able to contact him via phone or text.

RFK JR, HHS, health and human services, America, Bill NyeRFK Jr. Photo by Gage Skidmore/Flickr

In a recent interview with Men's Health, Nye explains that the current health secretary would text him on occasion—but at some point the texts got to be out of hand. The magazine describes Nye holding up his iPhone to show multiple walls of text messages from RFK saying, "This is real. That’s Bobby Kennedy Jr.” Turns out Kennedy had been sending him long text messages back to back making an argument for not vaccinating children due to its (repeatedly scientifically debunked) claimed links to autism.

"Just no self-awareness. And if you read these articles he sent, they’re all this speculation about autism and just cause-and-effect, and mercury in vaccines, that maybe there’s a connection. I wrote him back and said, ‘Okay, I’ll read your book. I think you’ve confused causation with correlation. Your friend, Bill.’ And he sent this,” Nye told Men's Health before showing the interviewer more extremely long text messages. “So I wrote, ‘Okay, no more texts.’ And he started again! So I cut him off. He does not have good judgment. He is not suited for this job.”

Nye didn't stop with venting his frustrations around the excessive paragraphs of texts. The mechanical engineer, actor, and author frustratingly pointed out the recent measles outbreak in Texas, which has been attributed to a lack of vaccines that led to insufficient heard immunity.

"There’s an outbreak of measles in Texas. Did you hear about this? It was a religious sect that has historically low vaccination rates, "he says in part before later adding, "Unvaccinated people can, and usually do, spread a disease. And that’s why we have these rules, for public health! It’s not arbitrary."

Billy Nye, Bill Nye the science guy, speech, science, scientistBill Nye speaking. Photo by Gage Skidmore/Flickr

The topic of vaccines, which RFK Jr. not only hit on, but droned on about incessantly via text message, seems to be a sticking point for Nye. He is clearly fired up while speaking to Men's Health about the issue, and it may be due to his own experiences as a child.

"The other thing that’s so remarkable about what’s going on now—I went to elementary school with a guy who had polio. You do not want polio! And the reason you don’t get polio is because of a vaccine that was discovered that keeps you from getting polio! What is wrong with you, man?" Nye said.

He explains the minute risk of contracting the disease from the vaccine, but stresses how rare it is before explaining how things worked before vaccines existed when he was a child. But this isn't the first time The Science Guy has shared his views on vaccines. He's done multiple interviews with outlets like Now This where he explains how vaccines work and was even part of a 2021 campaign to help kids understand how COVID vaccines protected them.

Nye doesn't just have a bone to pick with people who are against vaccinations, he is against anti-science and uses his platforms to educate the public. He's testified before congress and debunked conspiracy theories on Big Think. Nye has also ventured back into the entertainment industry with Bill Nye Saves the World, which ran from 2017-2018 and The End is Nye which aired on Peacock in 2022. Nye is a trusted voice for millions of Americans and, while blocking RFK Jr. might appear harsh to some, to others he's simply staying true to science.

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Bill Nye is pulling out all the stops when he talks about climate change. It's glorious.

Bill, Bill, Bill, Bill! Bill Nye the Science Guy!

Photo by Neilson Barnard/Getty Images for National Park Service.

Bill Nye is basically a living touchstone for every millennial science kid (unless you grew up watching Beakman's World, which had fewer music videos and more giant rat costumes).

On Aug. 22, 2016, New Yorkers may have been able to catch Nye at Brooklyn Bridge Park.

Photo by Neilson Barnard/Getty Images for National Park Service.

Nye was there for the National Park Foundation's #FindYourPark event, celebrating the National Park Service's centennial on Aug. 25.

While he was there, Nye extolled the virtues of the national parks while also calling out one of their biggest threats: climate change.

Though the days of on-air experiments and catchy theme songs are now nearly two decades past, Nye has never stopped speaking out about science and reason. And one of the key features of that mission is to keep people aware of how our planet is changing.

"I just got back from Glacier National Park, and there are only a few glaciers left. And the official word is by 2030, they'll all be gone," Nye told The Verge in an interview. "But the park rangers I spoke with — a dozen park rangers over the course of a few days — no, no, five, six, seven years, certainly by 2025, all the glaciers will be gone."

Nye has been on a hot streak lately in his fight against climate change. Here's what he's been up to:

Nye went on CNN to call out the link between climate change and current natural disasters.

After appearing at Brooklyn Bridge Park, Nye stopped by CNN to call out the link between climate change and flooding in Louisiana.

Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images.

"For us on my side of this, this is a result of climate change," Nye told CNN about the recent flooding in Louisiana. "It's only going to get worse."

Though we can't say whether any specific weather phenomenon would or would not have happened without man-made climate changes, it's true that experts are predicting more frequent and more severe floods, droughts, storms, and heat waves as the atmosphere changes.

He ended the interview with a little jab at CNN, whose anchors haven't always supported the science.

Back in July, Nye teamed up with Vocativ to debunk climate myths.

Image via Vocativ/YouTube.

Vocativ dredged up some of the most common arguments against climate change science and posed them to Nye in an entertaining — if a little heavily produced — video. In it he tackles questions about volcanoes, sun cycles, and even pig farts!

In April, Nye put his money where his mouth is while confronting those who reject climate science.

After a meteorologist and climate-change doubter challenged Nye in a 2015 op-ed, Nye offered to bet a total of $20,000 that 2016 would be one of the hottest years ever and that 2010-2020 would be one of the hottest decades.

Looks like he's being proven right, by the way. 2016 is on pace to be the hottest year in recorded history.

It's not all doom and gloom, though. Nye knows of a simple thing we can all do to help fight climate change: vote.

Photo by Neilson Barnard/Getty Images for National Park Service.

"Vote, that's my message. You have to vote. Take your responsibility to vote seriously," Nye told The Verge in Brooklyn Bridge Park.

While Nye declined to say who he thought people should vote for, he encouraged people to take the environment into account while voting this year.

Nye was the voice of science in my childhood, and he's still a tremendous voice of reason today.

His plea for us to vote really matters — this year, our elections have some of the most clearly divided candidates on climate change and science in history.

So if things like heading off greater natural disasters and preserving our natural parks matter to you, listen to Bill Nye: This is the year to do something about it.

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Bill Nye has a plan to make NASCAR better than ever. But can it work?

NASCAR is right up there with football and baseball when it comes to sports Americans love.

Professional stock car racing is fast, thrilling, and a serious moneymaker. In 2012, NASCAR earned $3 billion in sponsorship money, more than double that of the NFL.

Breakneck speed and passionate fans are the cornerstone of this wildly popular sport.

But! Here's an idea: What if those loud, gas-guzzling stock cars were replaced with electric cars?

Take it easy, Tony Stewart. It's just an idea.

Think I'm nutty for even suggesting it? Don't blame me. It's all Bill Nye's idea. In a January 2016 op-ed for Aeon, the TV science guy and beloved bow-tie wearer proposed that NASCAR cars make the switch from gas to electric engines.

Nye, a Southerner and lifelong stock car enthusiast, says he is disappointed by the lack of innovation in racing and suggests that, instead of clinging to outdated modes of technology, NASCAR should embrace the future and make the transition to electric cars.

Bill Nye rocking his traditional bow tie and hand gestures. Photo by Kena Betancur/Getty Images.

"Despite the excitement, NASCAR kinda breaks my heart," Nye writes. "It’s a celebration of old tech." He wishes NASCAR was more like NASA, where the focus is always on the future and innovation.

"I wish NASCAR set up Grand Challenges to inspire companies and individuals to create novel automotive technologies in the way NASA does to create novel space technologies," he says. He even has a plan, a vision, for what NASCAR would look like with electric cars:

"It’s easy for me to imagine an electric race car that completely outperforms a gas-powered competitor. Instead of refueling a gas tank, the electric race car pit crew would change battery packs. The car would be designed to roll up a ramp. The battery pack would be disconnected and dropped out. Moments later, a fresh battery pack would be lifted into place, and off our electric racer would go with time in the pit comparable to what it takes to refuel and service a conventional gas-powered race car."

While this image sounds idealized, the real question is whether it's even feasible. Can electric cars even compete with their gas-powered counterparts?

Yes. Yes, they can.

Electric vehicles are already on track to compete with NASCAR.

NASCAR vehicles are built for speed. They have large, finely tuned engines that can take in huge amounts of air. They run without mufflers and catalytic converters so nothing slows down the exhaust. All the other systems on the car are built to operate at high speeds and temperatures.

All of these factors, along with a skilled driver, allow NASCAR vehicles to get anywhere from 800 to 940 horsepower and go from 0 to 60 miles per hour in about 2.9 seconds.


Jeff Gordon races during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Ford EcoBoost 400 in November 2015. Photo by Robert Laberge/Getty Images.

As Nye points out, the Tesla Model S, a luxury electric car, is capable of producing 530 horsepower and goes from 0 to 60 in 2.8 seconds.

It's not built to perform like a race car and weighs in about 1,000 pounds heavier than most stock cars, but initial tests make it clear that the Model S and other electric vehicles have potential for racing success.

The Tesla Model S chillin' like a villain in a showroom. Photo by Johannes Eisele/AFP/Getty Images.

While electric vehicles can compete with gas-powered vehicles, making the transition across NASCAR wouldn't be easy or affordable.

The speed and power required by the average NASCAR race car does not come cheap. One team, Joe Gibbs Racing, builds engines that cost around $80,000 a piece. One of those engines won't even get you through the nine-month NASCAR season. Not even close. Due to high speeds and punishing conditions, it only takes one or two races before serious engine maintenance or replacement is required.


Crew members for Jimmie Johnson work after a crash during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Hollywood Casino 400. Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images.

Electric vehicles use motors powered by large batteries instead of fuel. While a fuel engine only lasts a couple of races, that's still better than the battery life of electric cars, which would need to have new battery packs installed during races because their range is 270 miles under traditional conditions.

While prices have fallen sharply since 2007, the cost of electric vehicle batteries is still between $300 and $450 per kilowatt hour. To be on par with gas-powered vehicles, researchers say that price would need to fall to around $150 per kWh, a milestone that's expected to be more than five years away.

For their part, NASCAR has taken a few major steps to offset the hefty emissions of their current cars. The 43 cars in the 2015 Daytona 500 used an estimated 5,375 gallons of gas. However, the cars use a biofuel blend made from corn that cuts emissions by 20%; since 2009, NASCAR has planted 370,000 trees, enough to offset their national series racing carbon emissions for the next 40 years.

Representatives from NASCAR and conservation organizations plant a tree for NASCAR's Tree-Planting Program to Capture Carbon Emissions at Michigan International Speedway. Photo by Rusty Jarrett/Getty Images for NASCAR.

Nye also predicts the influence NASCAR's adoption of electric cars would have on the consumer market and the economy.

While still years away from feasibility, a transition like this could give alternative vehicles and the sport of NASCAR racing a serious boost.

Imagine watching dozens of souped-up electric cars race around the track. Nye believes it would inspire fans to seriously consider electric cars for their own needs.

"The market for electric cars would go crazy. Manufacturers could not produce them fast enough," Nye estimates. "We could convert our transportation system to all-electric in less time than it took to go from horse-drawn to horseless carriage, 20 years maybe."

Though Nye is a font of optimism, he may have a point. Race fans are notoriously loyal and passionate. One market research firm reported 40% of fans are willing to switch brands to buy NASCAR-branded or sponsored products. This transition could be the boost EVs need.

NASCAR stopped releasing attendance data in 2012, but many signs point to declining numbers. And while it is still popular, TV ratings for televised races have dipped as well. Perhaps an innovative transition like this would inspire fans old and new to give the sport another look.

Fans watch the NASCAR Xfinity Series Hisense 200. Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images.

Critics will say Nye's plan for an EV NASCAR will never work. But imagine for a moment if it does.

Consider the innovation an idea like this begets, the emissions it could eliminate, the good habits it may inspire. Ambitious? Yes. Feasible? Maybe. Either way, the avenues for opportunity are enough to get anyone's motor running.

Photo by Todd Warshaw/Getty Images for NASCAR.

Family

America's favorite science teacher Bill Nye explains how your dreams work.

You know emojis have taken over when scientists use them to explain how things work.

In a new series from Mashable, Bill Nye, America's favorite science teacher takes a look at the science of dreaming.

When you turn off your alarm clock in the morning, your day is just beginning. You're groggy. You're tired. You hit snooze like a million times (if you're me). But you're awake.

Your brain, on the other hand, never went to sleep. It was busy working the overnight shift.

We've all been there. Image via iStock.

Sometimes you wake up and your dreams from the night before are so vivid. Sometimes they're just straight up bizarre. And sometimes you can't recall them at all.

The average person dreams about four to six times a night, so whether or not you remember them, if you're sleeping, your brain is busy dreaming.

Basically, it's always up to something. One brain would never walk up to another and be like, "Hey brain, what's up?" and receive an "Oh, not much" in response. It'd be more like ... "EVERYTHING IS UP! ALL THE TIME! I'M A BRAIN!"

Or to put the beautifully complex behavior of the brain simply...

Bill Nye has found the perfect emojis to explain just what the heck your brain gets up to at night.

GIF via Mashable Watercooler/YouTube.

Basically, neurologists say your brain can be found in three states:

1. Your brain is AWAKE!

That's your brain RIGHT NOW! That's why you're reading this! And getting lost in Wikipedia rabbit holes and getting distracted by the Internet and living your life. I can't even explain it more because it's so obvious! You're awake! And your brain is too!

She's awake! GIF from "30 Rock."

2. Your brain is in a rapid eye-movement (REM) cycle.

This is a fun one. This is when things start to get weird and dreamy. This is the part of your sleep sleep cycle where your eyes start to move rapidly (ha! rapid eye movement! get it??) and your body goes through many physiological changes. Your limbs become limp and your breathing becomes irregular. This, believe it or not, is the perfect condition for dreaming.

When you're in the REM state, your imagination runs wild. GIF via Mashable Watercooler/YouTube.



3. Your brain is in the non-rapid-eye movement (NREM) cycle.

Non-rapid eye movement doesn't sound as fun because it's considered dreamless sleep, but it takes up more of your life than REM. So you should get to know it.

About 80% of your sleep takes place in NREM. This is when your breathing and heart rate are slow and regular and you are pretty still. This is most likely not the time when you are talking in your sleep or rolling around stealing the covers from your partner. Which they definitely appreciate, by the way.

Word of the day: extrastriate. GIF via Mashable Watercooler/YouTube.

Nye briefly touches on this, but humans aren't the only ones who experience dreams. Animals likely do too.

Most mammals experience rapid-eye movement, so "it is reasonable to suppose that animals have something like what we call dreams," Patrick McNamara, director of the Evolutionary Neurobehavior Laboratory at Boston University, told National Geographic. That's pretty cool to think about.

Scientists are busy discovering more about how the brain works in humans and in animals.

From the amount of sleep disorders faced every day to the effects smartphones may have when you're trying to get some shut-eye, we're giving scientists plenty of material to work with.

While we wait to learn more, just try to get a decent amount of sleep at night. Netflix will be there in the morning. And besides, you're clearly awesome at dreaming, so DREAM BIG.

Here's Bill Nye to explain more about your dreams:

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