Santa Claus ‘badly chosen’ his reindeer, says astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, confusing Twitter users over Christmas

Neil deGrasse Tyson is known for his in-depth knowledge of the mysteries of the universe, but his take on Christmas-related topics seems to be less popular, having argued that Rudolph the red nosed reindeer was in fact female.

The famous astrophysicist launched a scandalous tweet on Christmas Eve accusing Santa of zoological ignorance.

“Both male and female reindeer cultivate antlers. But all male reindeer lose their antlers in late fall, well before Christmas, ” the scientist wrote, concluding: “So Santa’s reindeer, all of which sports antlers, are therefore all female, which means that Rudolf was badly sexist. “

Santa Claus does not know zoology:

Both male and female reindeer cultivate antlers. But all male reindeer shed their antlers in late fall, well before Christmas.

So Santa’s reindeer, all of which sports antlers, are therefore all female, which means Rudolf was badly sexist. pic.twitter.com/fkHqhJM7dY

– Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) December 25, 2020

The provocative comment sparked a cerebral exploration of long-established Rudolph doctrine.

“Neil doesn’t know Rudolph’s story. It first appeared in 1939 and it had no antlers, “ lis one of the many responses that challenged the tweet.

Others have consulted original texts, noting that in “Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer”, published in 1949, the magical flying mammal had “Only tiny heels” for woods.

“He probably abandoned them in late fall and they grew back early due to genetic mutations,” noted a Santa Claus scholar.

Have been studying this extensively for months – According to “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer” (copyright 1949), Rudolph had “only tiny bits” for the antlers. He probably abandoned them in late fall and they grew back early due to genetic mutations. pic.twitter.com/lhDkHcNTMq

– Matt (@SchaafMFG) December 25, 2020

There was also considerable confusion as to why Tyson was not focusing his analysis on less credible aspects of Rudolph.

“As an astrophysicist, I thought you would tackle the whole flight first,” wrote popular YouTube personality, Marques Brownlee.

I love the way you took the gender error but not, like, theft. Unbelievable.

– Chloé S. Valdary ???? (@cvaldary) December 25, 2020

Although many seemed to assume the astrophysicist was pedantic for fun, his trolling has been characterized by some as undermining the holiday spirit.

not today neil degrinch tyson

– jack ryan ???? (@dctrjack) December 25, 2020

Longtime fan, stop ruining things that are meant to be fun. Signed, ALL

– Greg (@ skyw4lker808) December 25, 2020

The tweet also earned Tyson a nomination for one of the worst takes of 2020, as part of the annual “list” compiled by commentator Siraj Hashmi.

Named✍????for✍????the✍????list✍???? pic.twitter.com/s5RiC3yBJa

– Siraj Hashmi (@SirajAHashmi) December 25, 2020

Tyson isn’t the only one accused of disrespecting Santa Claus folklore. British Labor MP Luke Pollard has been toasted by his constituents for writing a letter to children claiming Santa Claus had been vaccinated against Covid-19, allowing him to deliver gifts safely this year.

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