Carl Sagan's Universe

by Yervant Terzian (Editor), Elizabeth Bilson (Editor)

Carl Sagan's many contributions to science and society have been profound and far-reaching, influencing millions of people around the world. He carried out significant research in planetary science, was closely associated with the US space program, created the highly acclaimed television series Cosmos, and was the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of many best-selling popular science books. Carl Sagan's Universe is a fascinating and beautifully illustrated collection of articles by a distinguished team of authors, and covers the many fields of science, education, policy making, and related areas in which Sagan worked. The book is divided into four sections, the first two of which provide an absorbing overview of the US space program (as well as a complementary account of the Russian program), and of the history and current status of the search for extraterrestrial life. The final two sections deal with the importance of science education in the successful development of a technological society, and of the shaping of science policy in tackling the problems facing us today. Also included is a separate chapter by Sagan himself, discussing the place and role of our planet and mankind in the universe. Written in honour of Carl Sagan's many achievements, this book will fascinate and reward anyone interested in planetary science and exploration, the search for extraterrestrial life, or the role of science in the modern world.

Genres: Science

312 pages, Paperback

First published August 13, 1997

Reviews

[A7med · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have read it in Arabic .. I think it's very useful for Arab people

[Stefanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was sort of on the border of giving this book 4 vs 3 stars. Sometimes I wish there was an x/10 option. With 0.5 increments.

I ultimately gave it a three because, for all it talks about how great Carl Sagan was at making science accessible to the non-scientist (and great he was!), some of the articles were a little hard to read, particularly the ones by the scientists. That probably shouldn't surprise me- a lot of them read like research review papers. So I supposed at least I was qualified to read them.

However, despite some of the abstractness, most of the articles were a stunning testament to Dr. Sagan's greatness. I had a physics teacher in high school (well, okay, I never took physics because I was lazy, but he was in charge of Astronomy Club, which I was vice-president and co-founding member of, and he always sort of yelled at me for that) who was a huge fan of Carl Sagan, and I'm beginning to understand why. I'm always sad when smart people I know don't want to study science (for fuck's sake, guys, science is motherfucking magic) (like friendship) but his work and his collaborations show the value of science in other realms. Of course, it also emphasises that people in all those other fields also need a keen understanding of basic scientific concepts.

Basically, the world would be a better place if more people learned science.

But the beauty of Dr. Sagan's legacy was that he emphasised the responsibility of scientists to start this change. Yes, it is hard to be a responsible human being with a profound understanding of the intricacies of cause and effect without understanding science, but science is also hard. It is the duty of those who truly understand it to help those who do not still make responsible decisions and think in the critical cause-and-effect, hypothesis-and-conclusion manner that pervades the scientific community. Something about Carl Sagan clearly drove all these people to understand the profound impact scientific discovery has on the world. His ability to inspire people's curiosity is no doubt the greatest legacy anyone can leave.

In conclusion, the general theme of this book is great, but since it's a little hard to read at times I might not necessarily recommend it to anyone who isn't as passionate on the topic. Maybe find some other stuff by Carl Sagan himself to warm up with. Alternatively, since it's broken into articles, perhaps look into the ones that interest you most- the one on visual communication was one of my favourite. The religion one was interesting, though I don't really hold much value in religion. The education one was a little disappointing, but I think a part of that is the fact that the book is dated a little bit (it's almost 15 years old now). There's a lot of post-soviet-era issues that don't seem as relevant anymore. I'd be interested in seeing what some of those people would have to say in the political climate of today. The world has changed a lot in 15 years. It's really too bad that Carl Sagan isn't still here to remind us that science is beautiful and inspiring.

[John Michael Strubhart · Rating 4 out of 5]

This collection of 23 esays pays tribute to the ideas, efforts, studies and engagements that Carl Sagan cared deeply about - planetary exploration, science education and science literacy, nuclear disarmament, human caused climate change, astronomy and astrophysics, nuturing and mentoring young scientists, the threat of nuclear winter and asteroid or comet impacts with Earth and the improvement of the human condition. Many of the contributors are Sagan's colleagues at Cornell, but some are notable friends such as James Randi and his wife, Anne Druyan. All of the essays address interesting issues, but many of them could have used some diligent editing. If you're a fan of Sagan, you'll enjoy this book. I promise.

[Trey]

A book about one of the greatest ambassadors to science ever. Too bad he had to leave us so young.