That part is amazing enough (think Luke Skywalker in Star Wars), but he spends the last few minutes of his interview talking about the crisis in education, and makes a point that I’ve never heard before: the problem with American education is not bad teachers or poor schools - it’s that learning just isn’t celebrated. It’s not cool to be smart.

If you’ve got a few minutes, click over to Gizmodo to watch this man talk. He’s probably our greatest living inventor, but he’s also got some smart stuff to say.

“Drinking tea is actually better for you than drinking water. Water is essentially replacing fluid. Tea replaces fluids and contains antioxidants so it’s got two things going for it.”

The McCain campaign, keenly aware of the potential of their nontraditional pick, immediately used any criticism of Palin as a sign of sexism.

Come on. Legitimate criticism has been offered against Palin, but there have also been sexist remarks about her fitness to be a mother and a VP (not to mention the terribly unfair remarks about her pregnant daughter). I have yet to hear any McCain folks lump all criticisms into one pile (Palin herself certainly didn’t), and without any corroborating citations, this assertion at the end of the article seems - dare I say it? - less than objective. At the very least it’s sloppy reporting.

…Both Reagan in 1964 and Obama in 2004 were effective because, apart from their personal skills, they added something to their party’s constituency that had not been there before. Reagan began recruiting the “Reagan Democrats,” starting with white Southerners. Obama tried to recruit people tired of divisive partisanship.

Sarah Palin, at least tonight, did not seem interested in bringing anyone new into the fold. A speech that was great in the convention hall. We’ll see how it affects the electoral lineup.