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"Every small decision, every conversation, launches another ripple," writes Rice. "None of us is helpless."
(Photo by Greg Rakozy on Unsplash)
What Astrophysics Has Taught Me About Changing the World
Meaningful impact need not be bold and flashy. Our small, everyday choices seed change.
May 30, 2026
Today, like yesterday, I wake up and decide to make the world a better place.
I know, I know. There are over 8 billion people living on Earth. There are more places than any one of us will ever see, and more cultures than we will ever understand. How could a single person make an impact? How could a single person change the world for the better?
Many people would say it’s impossible. And at barely 5’2”, I’m glaringly aware of my literal smallness. As an astrophysicist, I know that I take up only about 10-83 times the volume of the observable Universe: a number so small I can’t wrap my head around it. The closest comparison I can muster is that I’m about the size of an atom in the scale of the solar system. And even then, I’d still be a bit smaller.
But none of that matters. My goal is still entirely within reach. That’s something that astrophysics has also taught me: small forces can make big changes.
The proof is under our feet. Today, Earth returns to the point in the solar system where it landed 365.24 days—almost, but not quite. Almost imperceptibly, it overshoots.
This cascade of small influences may, at first glance, go unnoticed. Nevertheless, slowly but surely, the trajectory of the entire planet budges.
At first glance, the Earth’s motion may appear to be shaped entirely by a single source: its most powerful influence, the Sun. But the Earth-Sun system is not static. Instead, our planet is pulled in many directions by innumerable small forces.
Its motion is shaped by the other seven planets in our solar system, each hundreds of millions of miles away. Those massive planetary neighbors had their motion fundamentally shaped by the tugs of innumerable ancient asteroids in the early solar system. Those, in turn, were shaped by the influence of distant passing stars—whose own trajectories were altered by the collective impact of stars, gas, and dark matter across the Milky Way.
This cascade of small influences may, at first glance, go unnoticed. Nevertheless, slowly but surely, the trajectory of the entire planet budges. The direction of our world is determined by countless infinitesimal forces compounding to move not only mountains, but entire planets.
Just as the Earth’s motion is shaped by the sum of small forces, the direction of humanity is shaped by the sum of small choices that people make every day. We often think that making an impact looks like a single person conveying their idea to the public at large, proclaiming from a platform. Sometimes, yes, change does require a spark, the one person who says something. But the true power in these proclamations comes not from their splash, but from the ripples that they create. And a series of small ripples can create waves.
Every small decision, every conversation, launches another ripple. Rosa Parks helped ignite the Civil Rights movement by refusing to move from her seat on a bus. The #MeToo movement arose from a single conversation in which a woman was deeply affected by a young girl’s experience with abuse. The invention of MRI began as a scribble on the back of a napkin.
Every small decision, every conversation, launches another ripple.
It may sometimes seem as if the very strongest forces — or the very loudest voices — are the only ones that “matter.” Some forces, some voices, do have a disproportionate reach. In the enormity of the world, and of our Universe, we may feel small.
Yet the sum of small forces has, on Earth, made all the difference: subtly shifting the planet’s tilt and its path to produce Earth’s long-term climate cycles, dictate the timing of ice ages, and shape how life emerged and adapted on our planet. The modest tugs of the planets and of the moon, together with the cascading influence of the Milky Way environment, produce the conditions necessary for life as we know it on Earth.
Meaningful impact need not be bold and flashy. Our small, everyday choices seed change. Intentionally or not, in ways obvious or not, these decisions compound to budge the trajectory of our world.
So today I will treat the cashier at my grocery store with kindness. I will take the time to ask my neighbor about their day, and to listen with care. I will check in on friends and family members. I will tell the people I look up to how much I admire them, and why. In the flurry of headlines, apps, and work duties vying for my attention, I will choose compassion and intention.
None of us is helpless. Our actions—as well as the actions we don't take—make a real, tangible impact. So, ask yourself: in which direction will you push the world today?
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Malena Rice, PhD, is a planetary astrophysicist and professor of Astronomy at Yale University. She is a Public Voices Fellow of The OpEd Project in partnership with Yale University.
Today, like yesterday, I wake up and decide to make the world a better place.
I know, I know. There are over 8 billion people living on Earth. There are more places than any one of us will ever see, and more cultures than we will ever understand. How could a single person make an impact? How could a single person change the world for the better?
Many people would say it’s impossible. And at barely 5’2”, I’m glaringly aware of my literal smallness. As an astrophysicist, I know that I take up only about 10-83 times the volume of the observable Universe: a number so small I can’t wrap my head around it. The closest comparison I can muster is that I’m about the size of an atom in the scale of the solar system. And even then, I’d still be a bit smaller.
But none of that matters. My goal is still entirely within reach. That’s something that astrophysics has also taught me: small forces can make big changes.
The proof is under our feet. Today, Earth returns to the point in the solar system where it landed 365.24 days—almost, but not quite. Almost imperceptibly, it overshoots.
This cascade of small influences may, at first glance, go unnoticed. Nevertheless, slowly but surely, the trajectory of the entire planet budges.
At first glance, the Earth’s motion may appear to be shaped entirely by a single source: its most powerful influence, the Sun. But the Earth-Sun system is not static. Instead, our planet is pulled in many directions by innumerable small forces.
Its motion is shaped by the other seven planets in our solar system, each hundreds of millions of miles away. Those massive planetary neighbors had their motion fundamentally shaped by the tugs of innumerable ancient asteroids in the early solar system. Those, in turn, were shaped by the influence of distant passing stars—whose own trajectories were altered by the collective impact of stars, gas, and dark matter across the Milky Way.
This cascade of small influences may, at first glance, go unnoticed. Nevertheless, slowly but surely, the trajectory of the entire planet budges. The direction of our world is determined by countless infinitesimal forces compounding to move not only mountains, but entire planets.
Just as the Earth’s motion is shaped by the sum of small forces, the direction of humanity is shaped by the sum of small choices that people make every day. We often think that making an impact looks like a single person conveying their idea to the public at large, proclaiming from a platform. Sometimes, yes, change does require a spark, the one person who says something. But the true power in these proclamations comes not from their splash, but from the ripples that they create. And a series of small ripples can create waves.
Every small decision, every conversation, launches another ripple. Rosa Parks helped ignite the Civil Rights movement by refusing to move from her seat on a bus. The #MeToo movement arose from a single conversation in which a woman was deeply affected by a young girl’s experience with abuse. The invention of MRI began as a scribble on the back of a napkin.
Every small decision, every conversation, launches another ripple.
It may sometimes seem as if the very strongest forces — or the very loudest voices — are the only ones that “matter.” Some forces, some voices, do have a disproportionate reach. In the enormity of the world, and of our Universe, we may feel small.
Yet the sum of small forces has, on Earth, made all the difference: subtly shifting the planet’s tilt and its path to produce Earth’s long-term climate cycles, dictate the timing of ice ages, and shape how life emerged and adapted on our planet. The modest tugs of the planets and of the moon, together with the cascading influence of the Milky Way environment, produce the conditions necessary for life as we know it on Earth.
Meaningful impact need not be bold and flashy. Our small, everyday choices seed change. Intentionally or not, in ways obvious or not, these decisions compound to budge the trajectory of our world.
So today I will treat the cashier at my grocery store with kindness. I will take the time to ask my neighbor about their day, and to listen with care. I will check in on friends and family members. I will tell the people I look up to how much I admire them, and why. In the flurry of headlines, apps, and work duties vying for my attention, I will choose compassion and intention.
None of us is helpless. Our actions—as well as the actions we don't take—make a real, tangible impact. So, ask yourself: in which direction will you push the world today?
Malena Rice, PhD, is a planetary astrophysicist and professor of Astronomy at Yale University. She is a Public Voices Fellow of The OpEd Project in partnership with Yale University.
Today, like yesterday, I wake up and decide to make the world a better place.
I know, I know. There are over 8 billion people living on Earth. There are more places than any one of us will ever see, and more cultures than we will ever understand. How could a single person make an impact? How could a single person change the world for the better?
Many people would say it’s impossible. And at barely 5’2”, I’m glaringly aware of my literal smallness. As an astrophysicist, I know that I take up only about 10-83 times the volume of the observable Universe: a number so small I can’t wrap my head around it. The closest comparison I can muster is that I’m about the size of an atom in the scale of the solar system. And even then, I’d still be a bit smaller.
But none of that matters. My goal is still entirely within reach. That’s something that astrophysics has also taught me: small forces can make big changes.
The proof is under our feet. Today, Earth returns to the point in the solar system where it landed 365.24 days—almost, but not quite. Almost imperceptibly, it overshoots.
This cascade of small influences may, at first glance, go unnoticed. Nevertheless, slowly but surely, the trajectory of the entire planet budges.
At first glance, the Earth’s motion may appear to be shaped entirely by a single source: its most powerful influence, the Sun. But the Earth-Sun system is not static. Instead, our planet is pulled in many directions by innumerable small forces.
Its motion is shaped by the other seven planets in our solar system, each hundreds of millions of miles away. Those massive planetary neighbors had their motion fundamentally shaped by the tugs of innumerable ancient asteroids in the early solar system. Those, in turn, were shaped by the influence of distant passing stars—whose own trajectories were altered by the collective impact of stars, gas, and dark matter across the Milky Way.
This cascade of small influences may, at first glance, go unnoticed. Nevertheless, slowly but surely, the trajectory of the entire planet budges. The direction of our world is determined by countless infinitesimal forces compounding to move not only mountains, but entire planets.
Just as the Earth’s motion is shaped by the sum of small forces, the direction of humanity is shaped by the sum of small choices that people make every day. We often think that making an impact looks like a single person conveying their idea to the public at large, proclaiming from a platform. Sometimes, yes, change does require a spark, the one person who says something. But the true power in these proclamations comes not from their splash, but from the ripples that they create. And a series of small ripples can create waves.
Every small decision, every conversation, launches another ripple. Rosa Parks helped ignite the Civil Rights movement by refusing to move from her seat on a bus. The #MeToo movement arose from a single conversation in which a woman was deeply affected by a young girl’s experience with abuse. The invention of MRI began as a scribble on the back of a napkin.
Every small decision, every conversation, launches another ripple.
It may sometimes seem as if the very strongest forces — or the very loudest voices — are the only ones that “matter.” Some forces, some voices, do have a disproportionate reach. In the enormity of the world, and of our Universe, we may feel small.
Yet the sum of small forces has, on Earth, made all the difference: subtly shifting the planet’s tilt and its path to produce Earth’s long-term climate cycles, dictate the timing of ice ages, and shape how life emerged and adapted on our planet. The modest tugs of the planets and of the moon, together with the cascading influence of the Milky Way environment, produce the conditions necessary for life as we know it on Earth.
Meaningful impact need not be bold and flashy. Our small, everyday choices seed change. Intentionally or not, in ways obvious or not, these decisions compound to budge the trajectory of our world.
So today I will treat the cashier at my grocery store with kindness. I will take the time to ask my neighbor about their day, and to listen with care. I will check in on friends and family members. I will tell the people I look up to how much I admire them, and why. In the flurry of headlines, apps, and work duties vying for my attention, I will choose compassion and intention.
None of us is helpless. Our actions—as well as the actions we don't take—make a real, tangible impact. So, ask yourself: in which direction will you push the world today?
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