That's one of the problems in having an academic interest in a subject outside of academia.
If he was in a brick&mortar college, it'd be a little bit different story. Classmates, clubs, teachers, etc.. all would be walking around, available for conversation. Most students who actually "get into" learning would be willing to talk about all kinds of subjects, even if they didn't know much about them. When I was in college, there was a spot outside of one of the classroom buildings that teachers and students would gather to choke down a cigarette before class. It was sort of a watering hole for ideas. We'd get into all sorts of conversations that were "off the record." We'd debate points and wrangle with ideas that were sometimes too complex to discuss in class. Frequently, we'd close by having challenges issued to support an idea or defend an argument. Those were some great bull sessions and I learned a great deal.
One thing I can say is that I am very glad I have smart friends. They're not people that let their brains rot due to an overload of mundanity. But, they also know me.. and know that given the right inclination I'll yap incessantly about all sorts of things if there's a willing participant around. So, when normal conversation simply has to get done and takes high priority, sometimes there's an uneasy truce - They agree not to bring up a certain subject for conversation and I agree not to force the point in order to have free license to yap about it so we can both get the necessary vanilla discussion topic done with.
But, the guy who wrote the article really needs to open his eyes and discover teh intrawebz. There are a great many resources online for just about any interest. Also, while he may not like lugging 200 lbs of gear around and being fed upon by mosquitoes, joining an astronomy club would give him access to people with similar interests. Those contacts could lead him to others who are willing to create conversational singularities for intellectual sport.
Note: I see that "Facts and Essays" relies on outside submissions. They're even brave enough to request them! Wow.. I wonder if they understood the risk that it might be possible a_lost_packet_ would be interested it throwing some internet ink their way.. Thanks for the link. I'm not Canadian, but from my experience, most Canadians don't care too much about that kind of thing. It might be fun to submit something... Though, trimming any subject down to just 1000 words is difficult... (The OP found a little bit of an outlet simply by being able to create that essay and share it with others. Ain't the internetz great?)
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram