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Carl Sagan Fans

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For fans of Carl Sagan's writings and productions like Cosmos and The Demon Haunted World. No one else in recent memory did more to bring science to the masses than Sagan. Join a group of others who enjoy his work!

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The Eternally Curious Carl Sagan

Carl Sagan had a curious mind for his entire life. In his book The Demon Haunted World he lamented the death of curiosity in high school students that he attributed in part to parents' obsession with either having an answer or making a question sound stupid when asked by their children.

Despite his critics, many in the scientific community itself, Sagan brought the human story of science to people, recognizing the responsibility to educate people in a way that spoke first to their humanity and second to their logic. We will do well to emulate this approach in the 21st century as we contend with all manners of illogic and unreason that he warned of in The Demon Haunted World.

His PBS series Cosmos still stands alone as a pinnacle of achievement in science communication. I wrote an essay for the ten-year-anniversary of his death entitled "The Eternally Curious Carl Sagan". You can read it here:

http://joshuagough.blogspot.com/2007/06/eternally-curious-carl-sagan.html

Sagan reading a passage from his book Pale Blue Dot

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Comment by Roger Coudé on October 20, 2009 at 1:51pm: When I was a teenager, I was very impressed by those missionaries who dedicated their lives to the wealth of poor countries.
But, by the book, they are interested: their motivation is to earn their passage to the heaven... What about DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS / MÉDECINS SANS FRONTIÈRE. Many of those doctors are atheists. They are acting by pure compassion, without earning a redemption at the end.
So why do people would be afraid of atheists? Would anybody refuse being cured by a doctor because he is an atheist?

Comment by Johnny on October 20, 2009 at 2:16am: Here is a study from University of British Columbia on Atheism and Trust:

Do You Believe In Atheists? Trust And Anti-Atheist Prejudice
https://circle.ubc.ca/dspace/bitstream/2429/1549/1/ubc_2008_fall_ge...

Looks like it is the classic "fear of the unknown". One of the conclusions is that the lack of trust can be mended by educating people that atheism is not some obscure intractible thing.

BTW, I think someone else posted this somewhere here on A/N.

Comment by Leo Horovitz on September 26, 2009 at 7:39pm: This was hilarious!

Comment by Roger Coudé on September 15, 2009 at 11:17am: Character Dr. Eleanor "Ellie" Arroway in Carl Sagan Contact best describe my interests in life: find real activities in response to the existential questions instead of useless debates, such as studying and teaching science, amateur radio, amateur astronomy, etc.
I am too old to have been influenced by Carl Sagan, but I recognize myself in everything he did. When he died, I felt like I lost a good friend.

Comment by Mike on August 31, 2009 at 11:42am: Ray Comfort is the biggest douche around. Too bad he doesn't heed the words of Carl Sagan. There is more empirical proof for Sagan's words than for Comfort's words.

What could be more true than this:

"Who are we? We find that we live on an insignificant planet of a humdrum star lost in a galaxy tucked away in some forgotten corner of a universe in which there are far more galaxies than people." Carl Sagan

Comment by Mike on August 29, 2009 at 2:37pm: Sounds good. I'm looking forward to it. Thanks!

Comment by Aiden on August 29, 2009 at 12:34pm: Mike, I have a copy of Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors which I've read quite a few times and I found it absolutely delightful. If you like Demon-Haunted World, you'll definitely enjoy Shadows... Carl is very consistent in his ability to break down complex topics into layman's terms.

Comment by Mike on August 28, 2009 at 7:06pm: Has anyone read Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors? I was wondering how it is. I ordered it and am waiting for it. I'm currently reading The Demon-Haunted World.

Comment by Pete Soderman on July 13, 2009 at 6:22pm: He was one of the very few people I have ever met who was capable of talking in complete paragraphs, the mark of a truly focused individual who functions in the present. I was fortunate to meet him at Cornell in the mid 80s while I was attempting to interest his lab in purchasing a real time data acquisition device my company manufactured. He "dropped by" my presentation, and stayed to join us for lunch. One of my treasured moments. The world misses him, and doesn't even know it......yet.

Comment by George Ricker on June 22, 2009 at 10:42am: Carl Sagan had a first-rate mind. His enthusiasm was infectious. His sense of wonder endearing. On the tenth anniversary of his death I offered this remembrance "Carl Sagan Remembered" on my web site.