2013 Nationals Opening Ceremony Keynote Speaker

[chalker7]

As we continue our preparations for the 2013 National Tournament at Wright State, we have come to a point where we need to make decisions on the opening ceremony keynote speaker. While we have a few ideas already, we thought it might be a good idea to ask you all who you think would be the best keynote speaker. A little explanation of why they would be good would also be helpful, as if we can't get the ideal person, we can at least try to get the qualities you're looking for.
Also, the Mythbusters are out. We already tried, it's not happening.

[chalker]

As we continue our preparations for the 2013 National Tournament at Wright State, we have come to a point where we need to make decisions on the opening ceremony keynote speaker. While we have a few ideas already, we thought it might be a good idea to ask you all who you think would be the best keynote speaker. A little explanation of why they would be good would also be helpful, as if we can't get the ideal person, we can at least try to get the qualities you're looking for.
Also, the Mythbusters are out. We already tried, it's not happening.

Or you could post a response in the OTHER thread about this, which my brother apparently decided to ignore;) http://www.scioly.org/phpBB3/viewtopic. ... 75#p207088

[chalker7]

As we continue our preparations for the 2013 National Tournament at Wright State, we have come to a point where we need to make decisions on the opening ceremony keynote speaker. While we have a few ideas already, we thought it might be a good idea to ask you all who you think would be the best keynote speaker. A little explanation of why they would be good would also be helpful, as if we can't get the ideal person, we can at least try to get the qualities you're looking for.
Also, the Mythbusters are out. We already tried, it's not happening.

Or you could post a response in the OTHER thread about this, which my brother apparently decided to ignore;) http://www.scioly.org/phpBB3/viewtopic. ... 75#p207088

I didn't ignore it....this is just much easier to consolidate over here and I didn't want to hijack someone else's thread.

[Infinity Flat]

Again, I would love to see Neil deGrasse Tyson, if that is at all possible.
Phil Plait would also be a good one in my opinion.

[quizbowl]

Bill Nye!

[Luo]

I wholeheartedly second the call for Neil DeGrasse Tyson. His attitude towards science and learning in general are an inspiration for me and many other aspiring scientists and engineers. From what I can tell, Mr. Tyson jumps at the chance to instill scientific passion and a propensity for critical thinking in young minds, and hopefully the magnitude of a Science Olympiad National Tournament will be enough to attract him to speak. Neil DeGrasse Tyson is in the vanguard of promoting scientific education and literacy, and I believe he would be a perfect fit for the keynote speaker position at SONT 2013.

[LCovington]

I liek Tyson

[Luo]

I outlined some further suggestions for SONT 2013 in my post on the other thread: http://scioly.org/phpBB3/viewtopic.php? ... 20#p207120

[Lily Essence]

Also, the Mythbusters are out. We already tried, it's not happening.

Aw, Mr. Chalker, you just read my mind. The whole time I was reading your post, I kept chanting "Mythbusters! Mythbusters!" in my head until that sentence. >.>

Okies, past that...

Wow, Neil DeGrasse Tyson would be an absolutely amazing keynote speaker (and a great way to end my scioly career as a senior). Me and my family have so much respect for that man, and he's a great public speaker. I'm sure if he decided that us Science Olympians were worthy of his speech/advice/whateveryouhappentocallitwellitllbeawesomeanyhow, many would treasure it for a long time to come.

Bill Nye would be a great jump into the past, since I'm sure every Science Olympian has watched him be awesome in his videos. It'd be like elementary school again, except this time, I'll finally be old enough to really appreciate it all. (Also, Bill Nye is quite a bit older than he was when he made those science videos we all know and love. It'll be like finally realizing that we're really the next generation of scientists).

A suggestion from myself would be Michio Kaku. You guise might remember him from the Symphony of Science videos. I personally follow and watch most of his videos from bigthink and although his syntax pattern isn't as grabbing as Tyson or Nye's, I believe that he has much insight that he could share with us.

Else, if you wanted to look through the Science and Tech section of BigThink or literally any of the TED: Ideas worth spreading videos for someone inspiring.

On a smaller scale (since I honestly have no clue how famous these people may be outside of their fancircles) I would love to suggest:

The Vlogbrothers Hank and John Green from SciShow and CrashCourse
I absolutely love these two's speech syntax since they enunciate and really get to the point when they need to without becoming too dry. Their humor is kind of acquired, but I am always engaged when I watch their videos. (However, I'm honestly not that confident of their public speaking skillz since I remember a terribly awkward portion of an interview by John Green about his book... he may speak completely differently when he doesn't have script and an editing program...) They love talking about important but often overlooked topics in science and everyday life and I just thought they'd be awesome to have...

Sal, founder of Khan's Academy would be an experience. Who here has used one of Sal's videos? *raises hand* I kind of remember him saying that he wants a focus on the learning and not on him, so IDK about how willing he'd be to come and speak to us, but he is a really respectable and humble man. I'm sure that he would have a lot to tell us about in terms of knowledge, learning, and success.

As well as Vi Hart the self-proclaimed "Mathemusician". Just watch some of her videos and I'm sure you'll see why she charms the toes off me.

Lastly, I'd like to suggest any of the guys that work with Vsauce. Some of the most interesting 20 minutes of my life are spent listening to them. How awesome would it be for them to come and talk about our brains?

Okies all done. Even if I don't make nats next year, if any of these people are speaking, I'll stay up until morning to watch online.

[LoopQuantumGravity]

A suggestion from myself would be Michio Kaku.

I agree, he would be great!
Also, it would be awesome to see Neil DeGrasse Tyson as the keynote speaker.