This story is free to read because readers choose to support LAist. If you find value in independent local reporting, make a donation to power our newsroom today . I try to keep my cool and maintain professionalism as a radio host, but as I prepared questions for William Shatner and Neil deGrasse Tyson while sipping coffee from my Star Trek mug — and gazing at my copy of Astrophysics for People in a Hurry — I realized that would be a challenge.