The Demon-Haunted World discussion

Carl Sagan represented the candle of light in a world covered by pseudo-science, superstition, intolerance, racism and religion, which in essence is the same. He adopted the universe like his hometown, He was fascinated by the variety of cultures, civilizations, languages, and lifestyles. He was in love about history, Anthropology, Biology, and Physics. Science was not longer a tool of few privileged intellectual people. He popularized Science, making it easy, dynamic, and more democratic. Science is the spiritualization of the Universe, it’s the soul in itself.
We are made by the cosmos, we are created by universe’s stuff. Sagan encouraged until the last day his love for the scientific method, and to think in a critical way. He might be giving a lecture about the Greek civilization or explaining the wonders of the roman civilization, and the same time he might be fascinated about biology and physics. He showed a deep fascination about the classical civilization and it’s achievement. The glory of the classical civilization, in Sagan’s words was the library of Alexandria, and his heart was it’s collection of books. We can see his sadness about the destruction of the library of Alexandria, produced with the rise of superstition and intolerance. We can notice his deep fascination about genius like: Aristarchus of Samos, Eratosthenes, or Hypathia, the last woman whose intelligence was the glory and the light of wisdom and knowledge of the classical civilization, her martyrdom along with the destruction of the Library of Alexandria represented a terrible tragedy for the humankind with terrible consequences. The destruction of the library of Alexandria was end of a culture of reason, tolerance and science, and the rising of the superstition which it will last near 1000 years. People stopped to think with critical thinking for adopting any kind of fallacies as way of thought. People stopped to think in a critical and skeptical way, with hypothesis and analysis, as a valuable tools for creating science, and objective knowledge. Sagan used to say if we would have avoided the destruction of the classical civilization, today, we might have been visiting another galaxies… it sounds prophetic, but there’s a sadness in his words.

“The Demon-Haunted World” is one of the most moving and passionate books ever written in the last century. Dictatorships, and authoritarian regimes dislike any kind of critical thinking, recognized as dangerous. Science is a precious instrument of knowledge. Mistrust the argument of any authority, verify your information, bring hypothesis, any “truth” must be verified, analyzed with the light of the science. However science don’t have the eternal truth, science constantly interrogate and ask questions to nature, and to our reality. There’s a long process of verification of information, before of adopting any kind of “truth”, that’s the reason because pseudo-science is so dangerous. We’ve seen through human history that human are fallible, and make serious mistakes, bringing tragedy, and death.
Finally, I recommend the reading of this book, it’s an intelligent work, with elegant writing and honesty.

read after seeing, "Cabin in the Woods"

I read "Demon Haunted World" years ago. I think I'll put it on my "read again" list

Can anybody recall the page number where Sagan talks about a remote tribe during a war that worshiped airplanes because they didn't know what they were, so they built landing strips hoping the "gods" would land and give them supplies?

Will wrote: "Can anybody recall the page number where Sagan talks about a remote tribe during a war that worshiped airplanes because they didn't know what they were, so they built landing strips hoping the "god..."

I cannot locate that in "Demon Haunted..." but think you may be referring to the John Frum cult noted in Dawkins' "The God Delusion" (0-618-68000-4) Chapter 5, "Cargo Cults" section, pg 234.

Cheers,

Joe

The cargo cults were in the National Geographic TV series adaptation of Diamond's Guns, Germs, and Steel also.

Started with Contact, moved to Demon Haunted World, currently enjoying Cosmos (book and series). Sagan is one of my favorites.

recommend Pale Blue Dot

Joe wrote: "I cannot locate that in "Demon Haunted..." but think you may be referring to the John Frum cult noted in Dawkins' "The God Delusion" (0-618-68000-4) Chapter 5, "Cargo Cults" section, pg 234.

Cheers,

Joe "


It was definitely about a Cargo Cult, but I remember it from this book. I've actually never read The God Delusion, so I don't remember it from there.

I remember reading in this book a remarkable argument about the importance of being gentle and not confrontational when trying to change other people's minds, but I couldn't locate it anymore. Does anyone recall that? Or maybe is it my memory playing tricks with me?

Nestor wrote: "I remember reading in this book a remarkable argument about the importance of being gentle and not confrontational when trying to change other people's minds, but I couldn't locate it anymore. Does..."

I think you may be referring to the chapter "The Marriage of Skepticism and Wonder." Here's an excerpt:

In the way that skepticism is sometimes applied to issues of public concern, there is a tendency to belittle, to condescend, to ignore the fact that, deluded or not, supporters of superstition and pseudoscience are human beings with real feelings, who, like the skeptics, are trying to figure out how the world works and what our role in it might be. Their motives are in many cases constant with science. If their culture has not given them all the tools they need to pursue this great quest, let us temper our criticism with kindness. None of us comes fully equipped." (pg 298)

He goes on to speak about which battles are worth fighting, etc..

"Cargo cult science" is also a piece by R.P. Feynman, you can find it in "Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!" or here: http://neurotheory.columbia.edu/~ken/...

Maybe that´s what you´re looking for?