Neil deGrasse Tyson

Neil deGrasse Tyson, the rock star of astrophysics, has made a career out of explaining the universe to the masses. He's held the public's hand through the cosmos, from demoting Pluto to a dwarf planet (a move that, frankly, still stings some of us) to hosting Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey. His ability to make black holes and dark matter digestible for the average Joe is truly commendable, especially when said average Joe spent most of high school physics staring blankly at the blackboard.

While his scientific contributions are undeniable, Tyson's pop culture omnipresence is equally impressive. He's been on The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, and even Stargate Atlantis. One might even say he's achieved a level of celebrity usually reserved for people who don't spend their days pondering the fabric of spacetime. He's essentially the anti-Kardashian of intellectual pursuits.

So, is he a Jew? With a name like deGrasse Tyson, the likelihood is slimmer than a superstring. Despite the vaguely Yiddish intonation of his surname, there's no evidence of Jewish ancestry or identification. He's a scientist, a communicator, and a man who can make you feel simultaneously dumb and enlightened, but not, as far as we can tell, a Member of the Tribe.