--- title: Bill Nye: Science Will Survive Donald Trump's Administration description: Bill Nye, who has a new documentary, sees President Donald Trump's administration as the "last gasp of the anti-science movement." canonical: https://time.com/4998660/bill-nye-trump-climate-change/ author: Justin Worland article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-10-27T11:00:47.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-08T09:59:06.496Z article:section: Science og:title: Bill Nye Thinks Science Will Survive the Trump Administration og:description: But will it be too late? og:url: https://time.com/4998660/bill-nye-trump-climate-change/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0437bea1814b8cc4/6988e38b22fb851ea9e23709/bill-nye-science-guy-climate-change.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3996 og:image:height: 2248 og:image:alt: bill nye science guy climate change og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Bill Nye Thinks Science Will Survive the Trump Administration twitter:description: But will it be too late? twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0437bea1814b8cc4/6988e38b22fb851ea9e23709/bill-nye-science-guy-climate-change.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Bill Nye Thinks Science Will Survive the Trump Administration > Sponsored content. 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Future Proof is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-futureproof-2026q3/newsletters?i=48a6549a-6d90-40ae-8bf6-2106f30c92f6&cr=time-nl-futureproof-2026q3-v1) ## Video: BILL NYE- SCIENCE GUY Official Theatrical Trailer [Watch (HLS stream): BILL NYE- SCIENCE GUY Official Theatrical Trailer](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/iTZTgVhZ.m3u8) (2:20)  _Published 2017-10-26. BILL NYE- SCIENCE GUY Official Theatrical Trailer_  by [Justin Worland](https://time.com/author/justin-worland/)  ## Justin Worland Senior Correspondent Oct 27, 2017 11:00 AM UTC BILL NYE- SCIENCE GUY Official Theatrical Trailer  by [Justin Worland](https://time.com/author/justin-worland/)  ## Justin Worland Senior Correspondent Oct 27, 2017 11:00 AM UTC [Bill Nye](http://time.com/4458284/bill-nye-climate-change-bet/) is perhaps best known for the zany persona he cultivated for years as a science educator — always filled with cheer for the subject matter at hand. But that fun zaniness disappears in the new documentary [_Bill Nye: Science Guy_ ](https://www.billnyefilm.com/)in a moment bound to send a chill up the spine of anyone who believes that American students should learn basic science. In the film, Nye confronts famed creationist Ken Ham as he undercuts evolution in a conversation with an elementary school-age child at Kentucky’s Creation Museum. “Young woman, I would say to you that there’s a process that humans have developed over millennia by which we know nature and we call that science,” Nye says. But the girl tells Nye she doesn’t buy it. “I believe with Mr. Ham,” she says. Nye told TIME ahead of the documentary’s release that he’s optimistic about the future of science in America as younger generations replace their predecessors in places of power. But still, the incident — like many scenes in the film — is a wakeup call for viewers. “My biggest concern is that this idea that one’s own opinion is given the same weight as what’s scientifically understood,” Nye tells TIME. “We want to be able to get people to evaluate evidence and think critically about events and phenomena they see in nature.” Nye has spent the last two-and-a-half decades trying to do that as a science educator, first as the host of his popular television show _Bill Nye the Science Guy_ and now as a ubiquitous science commentator. The influence of anti-science forces in American society has increased in that time in large part due to a concerted push from some industry groups. President Trump has endorsed many of those views, questioning mankind’s role in global warming and suggesting before taking office that climate change is a “hoax” created by China to gain a manufacturing edge. Since his inauguration, he has declined to speak in detail on the topic. Even with Trump in the White House, and even as outliers like Ham and his followers remain a potent force in some places, Nye is optimistic that younger generations will increasingly embrace science. Still, the question remains whether that change will come fast enough as the threat of climate change looms and governments around the world struggle to address it, Nye says. “As what I hope is the last gasp of the anti-science movement, we have this extraordinary administration with extraordinary people heading up the Department of Education and [Environmental Protection Agency](http://time.com/4998279/company-man-in-washington/),” says Nye. “But that’s going to pass.” How to address people who spread misinformation — or whether to ignore them altogether — is a challenge that faces anyone who communicates about science to a mass audience. And the documentary, which opens this Friday in select theaters, shows the debate over whether Nye should engage Ham and risk bolstering his image. But Nye insists that taking on science skeptics directly is the best way to change minds. He debates Ham on the topic of evolution and walks through the creation museum, pointing out misleading exhibits (no, humans and dinosaurs did not live at the same time). Ultimately, Nye says, it’s the only way. “If we were talking about climate change the way we discuss whatever happened in Niger or the president’s extraordinary tweet of today,” says Nye, “we would be doing something about it.” ## Transcript [00:00] Please join me in welcoming America's favorite [00:00] scientist, Bill Nye, the science guy. Greetings. [ MUSIC ] [00:11] Just the start of things. We're getting things wrapped [00:12] up. It was really the 1990s. I wanted to [00:16] make young people excited about science again. [00:18] Science. Who studied at Cornell University. I [00:22] decided to take astronomy from this famous Professor [00:24] Carl Sagan. He said kids resonate through science, and [00:27] I really embraced that. A lot of my people of my [00:29] generation attribute their interest and love of science [00:32] to Bill Nye We would just see the TV cart come in and [00:35] we'd say, " Bill, Bill, Bill !" The science guy show [00:39] contained the science that excited Bill. The viewer can't [00:43] help but be just as excited as the instructor. I was [00:46] asked to talk about selfie fatigue. I'm pretty [00:52] sure it shortens your life. Science Guy's show is over. [00:56] I've gotta move on to something bigger. Now a days [00:59] I'm talking to adults, and I'm not mincing words. [01:03] Climate is changing, it's our fault, we gotta get to work [01:06] on this. This is where we see the smoking gun. This is [01:10] raising sea level. This is drowning Miami eventually. Bill [01:14] successfully transitioned from Bill Nye the Science Guy [01:17] for kids, to the science statesman. We have liftoff. [01:19] We're going to space. [01:24] Rocket science. That's the bottle I'm drinking with Bill. [01:27] Mission control. Go ahead Bill Nye. I would just like to [01:29] say the following thing, Woo hoo. We are, dare I say it, [01:32] changing the world. Aah! [01:37] [ MUSIC ] Joe Bastardi challenged me to a debate. You [01:39] agree with that? Bill, you don't want to go here. [01:40] Currently, Joe Bastardi is a climate denier. If Joe [01:43] changed his mind, that could be very influential. I'm [01:46] not trying to save the world. Bill Nye himself is not a [01:49] scientist. I don't have a PhD, I talk to the experts and [01:53] hold the evidence in my hand. [ MUSIC ] These [01:57] people who are denying science, especially denying [02:00] climate change, we just can't have this. If we raise a [02:03] generation of kids that can't think critically, we are [02:06] headed for trouble. [ UNKNOWN ] leave the world [02:09] better than you found it. My drawing to do all this Just [02:11] from my parents. I try to be worthy of them. 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