My other love: Astronomy

I absolutely love Neil deGrasse Tyson.

From his website:

Neil deGrasse Tyson was born and raised in New York City where he was educated in the public schools clear through his graduation from the Bronx High School of Science. Tyson went on to earn his BA in Physics from Harvard and his PhD in Astrophysics from Columbia.
In 2001, Tyson was appointed by President Bush to serve on a 12-member commission that studied the Future of the US Aerospace Industry. The final report was published in 2002 and contained recommendations (for Congress and for the major agencies of the government) that would promote a thriving future of transportation, space exploration, and national security.
In 2004, Tyson was once again appointed by President Bush to serve on a 9-member commission on the Implementation of the United States Space Exploration Policy, dubbed the "Moon, Mars, and Beyond" commission. This group navigated a path by which the new space vision can become a successful part of the American agenda. And in 2006, the head of NASA appointed Tyson to serve on its prestigious Advisory Committee, which will help guide NASA through its perennial need to fit its ambitious vision into its restricted budget.
In addition to dozens of professional publications, Dr. Tyson has written, and continues to write for the public. He is a monthly essayist for Natural History magazine under the title "Universe." His latest book, Death by Black Hole - and other cosmic quandaries, is a New York Times best selling collection of his favorite essays from the past eleven years. Among the rest of Tyson's eight books is his memoir The Sky is Not the Limit: Adventures of an Urban Astrophysicist; and Origins: Fourteen Billion Years of Cosmic Evolution, co-written with Donald Goldsmith. Origins is the companion book to the PBS-NOVA 4-part mini-series Origins, in which Tyson serves as on-camera host. The program premiered on September 28 and 29, 2004. And beginning in the fall of 2006, Tyson appears as the on-camera host of PBS-NOVA's spinofff program NOVA ScienceNow , which is an acessible look at the frontier of all the science that shapes the understanding of our place in the universe.
Tyson is the recipient of eight honorary doctorates and the NASA Distinguished Public Service Medal. His contributions to the public appreciation of the cosmos have been recognized by the International Astronomical Union in their official naming of asteroid "13123 Tyson". On the lighter side, Tyson was voted "Sexiest Astrophysicist Alive" by People Magazine in 2000.
Tyson is the first occupant of the Frederick P. Rose Directorship of the Hayden Planetarium where he also teaches.

From the squirrel:

He spoke at the 2006 Beyond Belief where he gave a speech about how the universe is not conducive to organic life. With black holes, radiation, and poisonous gases all around how can one say that God created the universe just for us humans?

Check out the other speeches given by folks like Michael Shermer, Richard Dawkins, and Sam Harris.

Another video of Mr. Tyson is with Mark Molaro at The Alcove. Also highly recommended.

His most recent book is Death by Black Hole and Other Cosmic Quandries. I'll be reading this book soon and giving a short review.