EVANSTON – Those who were fortunate enough to go to Bill Nye’s speech last Friday night were in for a surprise as they were treated to an unexpected, but nonetheless nostalgic, opener before the famous scientist and climate change activist took the stage.

About five minutes before the presentation, as students were still milling in to take their seats, they they saw a petite older woman standing to the side of the stage. Ms. Whittaker-Goldstein—as she had written in all caps on a chalkboard wheeled in especially for the presentation—introduced herself as the day’s substitute teacher.

“Good evening,” Whittaker-Goldstein announced, “I’m going to be filling in today while your teacher is out with gingivitis. Since I know nothing about science, I suppose you all can just doodle for a while until I get this set up.”

At this point, she exited stage left and reemerged to cheers as she pulled onstage a TV cart and played a Bill Nye show for the duration of her allotted time.

The rest of the performance went without incident except for a five-minute break where all anybody could see was video static.