Cosmos by Carl Sagan (PDF)

Description

RETURNING TO TELEVISION AS AN ALL-NEW MINISERIES ON FOX Cosmos is one of the bestselling science books of all time. In clear-eyed prose, Sagan reveals a jewel-like blue world inhabited by a life form that is just beginning to discover its own identity and to venture into the vast ocean of space. Cosmos retraces the fourteen billion years of cosmic evolution that have transformed matter into consciousness, exploring such topics as the origin of life, the human brain, Egyptian hieroglyphics, spacecraft missions, the death of the Sun, the evolution of galaxies, and the forces and individuals who helped to shape modern science. Praise for Cosmos “Magnificent . . . With a lyrical literary style, and a range that touches almost all aspects of human knowledge, Cosmos often seems too good to be true.”—The Plain Dealer “Sagan is an astronomer with one eye on the stars, another on history, and a third—his mind’s—on the human condition.”—Newsday “Brilliant in its scope and provocative in its suggestions . . . shimmers with a sense of wonder.”—The Miami Herald “Sagan dazzles the mind with the miracle of our survival, framed by the stately galaxies of space.”—Cosmopolitan “Enticing . . . iridescent . . . imaginatively illustrated.”—The New York Times Book ReviewNOTE: This edition does not include images.

User’s Reviews

Reviews from Amazon users which were colected at the time this book was published on the website:

⭐Fish are surrounded and sustained by water and thus take no notice of it. Similarly, humans often overlook that in which they live and move and have their being. One of the most brilliant of these is Carl Sagan, author of “Cosmos”, one of the best-selling science books of the last century.This volume grew out of the 13 episode series made for PBS (Public Broadcasting Service) which featured doctored/colorized photos and depictions of outer space. I don’t mean that they are faked: but just as a geologist polishes a rock to reveal a pattern, or as a woodworker uses stain to bring out the grain of wood (adding color that was not there before) , so these space photos were prepared for visual brilliance. But the content of the book may be best described as science-fiction, beginning with solid and established science, then speculation based off of that, and then imagination- what could have happened. Here, the conceivable is mistaken for evidence.The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition defines “cosmology” as:1) The study of the physical universe considered as a totality of phenomena in time and space;2) The astrophysical study of the history, structure, and constituent dynamics of the universe; and3) A specific theory or model of this structure and these dynamics.Note the assumption that the physical universe is “a totality,” a questionable or at least an unclear idea in view of the “Light Cone” concept, popularized by Stephen Hawking, the idea that no event can be affected by things beyond its light cone (since nothing can travel beyond the speed of light). Furthermore, the concept of history and even dynamics can at best be inferred and the quality of those inferences may be open to question, based on scientific theories. Again, as Hawking pointed out, all we know about physics is based on two theories, relativity and quantum mechanics, and these are inconsistent (they contradict each other is certain aspects).Our Author imagines that his conception of the universe is greater than that of religion because he has learned to count higher than than others. He is impressed that he has discovered billions of galaxies and is sure that some of them have intelligent life. He assumes that the laws of physics are everywhere the same, a useful assumption but how much does this reveal about physics on/in the sun? And if conditions so close to home are inexplicable (though there are theories), how can we assume with as much confidence (con-with; fidence- faith) as our Author manifests that our understanding of physics apply light years away? Our understanding of physics necessarily presumes metaphysical assumptions, to which our Author is oblivious (at least in this book) as is the fish to water.One example is the eternity of matter, a useful assumption, but this presumes a metaphysic and assumes the cosmos is a closed system where energy/matter cannot be created or destroyed. Can this be tested, the criterion of true science that our Author posits as the true validation of science? It cannot, not without leaving the closed system and then the would-be tester becomes a fish out of water (figuratively speaking) which cannot live outside the system that sustains him.Since test-ability is our Author’s own measure for science, much of what he asserts in the book falls short of this. Much of the speculation both as to the past and the future is not testable and qualify as fiction. It may be compelling fiction, appealing to some of our deepest sensibilities, wonder, awe, beauty, resonating with deep primal instincts, but here we have left the realm of rational science and wandered into myth, the realm of the subjective. It was all too religious for me.This is a prime example of what I have sometimes referred to as “PBS paganism,” the popularization (at public expense) of post-Christian values and beliefs, the dismissal of the latter as outmoded and the glamorization of the former. The unspoken assumption is that of progress. We know more and can do more than we could before. This increase in power does change the conditions in which we live. The shift from muscle power prior to the industrial revolution to machine power afterward enabled an economic parity for women who could operate a machine as easily as a man, and thus a movement for social equality. Whether this is progress or not depends on what is counted as evidence, what we are measuring, what pre-formed concepts we bring.One of the pre-formed concepts exhibited in Cosmos is the notion of science as empiricism, and the argument that the ancient Ionian Greeks pioneered this type of thought. Yet in 1942 Oxford professor F. M. Cornford pointed out the dogmatic features of Ionian science, such as Anaximander’s doctrine that heated things expand and cooled things contract. We may applaud this insight, except that he specifically applied this to water which he could have tested by placing a jar of it outside on a frosty night, and observed that it, in fact, expanded and broke the jar. This is not to deny the Ionian achievement, recognized by Aristotle, of examining physis (the nature of a thing) utilizing math to identify patterns (ratio/rational), the same chain of insights which led to the affirmation of monotheism rather than polytheism’s anthropomorphic/mythological explanations of phenomena. But the Ionian “science” is not what Cosmos claims it is, grounded in observation and tested by experience/experiment. Our Author credits the Ionians with coming up with the concept of the atom, but fails to note that their concept was that atoms were irreducible parts of matter, a concept we have long discarded in favor of sub-atomic particles and atom splitting.Toward the end of the book, our author waxes eloquent about multiple universe-theory and arguments that there are many (infinite!) parallel worlds, a clear case of the boundary between imagination and reality becoming permeable, if not overlooked altogether. We return to the path from which we departed, that of mythology based on imagination and speculation about what is fundamentally untestable. When science becomes religion, it loses its perspective, though it may address some of the human longings for faith and wonder which traditional religion satisfies, but certain intellectual elites deny themselves on principle. Though I learned some science from this volume, it was altogether too religious for me.I listened to the audio book narrated by many readers but largely by LeVar Burton of PBS “Reading Rainbow.” His pace and clarity were excellent but just a mite cloying at times when the text called for enthusiasm, wonder, or fervor.

⭐When I first heard Sagan speak, in my prejudice, I heard only a pompous man. But during a debate for/against nuclear armament, I heard a man who loved and treasured humanity. This book cements that realization and makes me ache for the human endeavors he saw we could accomplish if only we could put aside our pettiness and greed.

⭐My nephew enjoys this book!

⭐This book has not been revised since its first publications in 1980, but in the meantime our understanding of physics and biology has advanced significantly. Although the book is dated, the physical principle on which the universe is founded remains unchanged. The author is a brilliant physicist & philosopher, a cosmologist, a sociologist and a humanist who is at ease when he is describing the physics of spacetime and matter from which this cosmos evolved or formation of life on this planet or the scientific, political and sociological issues surrounding the space exploration. The author quotes extensively from the history of physics and biology, religious literature, world history, media and numerous other sources with which he is familiar, and discusses our responsibilities and commitment for the preservation of the planet and the universe. He not only touches on diverse topics with deep understanding but also communicates with his readers equally well.The author describes his experiences with the American space program and NASA. He briefed the Apollo astronauts before their flights to the moon, and his wok with missions that explored the solar system. He is responsible for the universal message from earth (on a plaque) on spacecrafts Pioneer 10, Pioneer 11, and the Golden Record (voice message) on Voyager mission. Many space missions he was associated with have left solar system; Voyager 1, Voyager 2, Pioneer 10, and Pioneer 11. These spacecrafts will probably survive in interstellar space lot longer than human race. He gives reasonable amount of information about voyager missions and the possible problems it could have faced while entering the Jupiter’s outer shell of high-energy charged particles or the need for small nuclear power plant for energy for its long flight farther away from sun. The geological wonders of Jovian moons Io, and his optimism of Voyager spacecraft entering the heliopause, the outer boundary of solar system in the middle of 21st century.While discussing the personal and professional conflicts faced by German mathematician Johannes Kepler with the local Roman Catholic Church, and challenges he faced with the imperial mathematician, Tyco Brahe, to get access to his experimental data, the author makes it all come alive. Kepler and Newton represent critical transition in human history and their discovery that fairly simple mathematical laws pervade all of nature. Their accurate predictions of planetary motions based on experimental data are the first step in understanding of our interaction with the rest of the cosmos. The city of Alexandria, Egypt was a home for learning and culture and how it tragically ended life of a brilliant woman scientist known by the name of Hypatia. She stood at the epicenter of social forces that were manipulating free thinking and intellectual pursuit. The slavery sapped classical civilization of its vitality. The growing Christian church was consolidating power and attempting to eradicate scientific thought that it claimed to be paganism. She continued to teach and publish until 415 A.D., when local Cyril parishioners murdered her and her remains burned. Her name was long forgotten while Cyril became a saint.Does our cosmos expand indefinitely or at some stage it starts contracting? The author draws an interesting analogy with Hindu scriptures of Upanishads and Puranas, which predicts that the universe undergoes the cycles of birth and death every one hundred Brahma years, where one day and a night of Brahma are about 8.64 billion years, approximately half the age of our universe. It is supposed that a universe is a dream of God who after one hundred Brahma years dissolves himself into a dreamless sleep, and the universe dissolves with him. After another Brahma century, he recomposes himself to another great cosmic dream.The author concludes this book by stating that since consciousness arose on this planet and our immediate concern is our own survival, but our own survival is balanced by numerous cosmic forces. We owe our obligations to this planet and the universe and not just ourselves.1.

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⭐To buy the new edition, search for ‘cosmos neil degrasse tyson’. Amazon mistakenly thinks that the author of the new edition is Neil deGrasse Tyson (he only wrote a foreword for the new edition). It has a set of color pictures and the paper quality is good. Publisher: Ballantine Books. I bought it.

⭐The paperback has horrid, unreadable text, which is clearly supposed to be supported by colour illustrations. Buy a secondhand original hardback edition: it’s a larger size, an easier read and supported by over 250 full colour images. The same issue exists with Kenneth Clark’s book based on his Civilisation TV show.

⭐No images, poor formatting like an original’s been scanned and reprinted. Not the original edition. Requested a refund from Amazon.

⭐This is an epic tale – exploring, understanding and describing the Universe in its entirety. This book is a delight to read, and it succeeds in making science lively and engaging. The book was first published in 1983, as a tie-in to the TV documentary series

⭐Carl Sagan’s Cosmos [DVD] [1980

⭐]. Both book and series follow the same general structure – and both are concerned with illuminating the nature of the cosmos.Sagan writes majestically, explaining otherwise complex issues and problems in a manner that makes them far more easily comprehensible. Everything from the origins of the universe to the formation of galaxies, from the processes that build planets to the evolution of life, is discussed eloquently. Sagan describes the cosmos in an imaginative way, drawing-in the reader and retaining attention throughout. This is as far away as possible from a ‘dry’ scientific text … instead it entices the reader’s fascination and clearly shows the cosmos for what it truly is: awesome.This is the perfect book for anyone who’s interested in finding out more about physics, cosmology, astronomy and astrobiology. It’s a fantastic introductory book, and is suitable for both adults and older teenagers. I’ve read through it a few times, and it’s my favourite ‘science’ book. I highly recommend it.

⭐Cosmos (Carl Sagan)Turn on any TV these days and there will be channels with one of more science , history or arts programmes.Some 26 years ago (1980) these programmes were relatively rare and a classic 13 one hour episode science programme entitled the Cosmos was presented as a personal view by one Carl Sagan ( sometime participant of various NASA space programmes and cosmological investigations then Director of Planetary studies at Cornell University) . An accompanying book to the series was also written and published. It covered right up until the Voyager mission views of Jupiter and Saturn in 1977-1979. (Voyager 2 – still active in 2016 – has just passed Pluto and left the conventional Solar system – not bad for 1975 technology. Its onboard power source – a mini nuclear reactor – should last another 10 years)The hardback book contains both script and illustrations and can be obtained as good quality second hand ,for very reasonable prices.A book allows stopping , pausing , thinking , reversing and rereading the text but for those who want the full visual experience ( film/TV presentation being intrinsically different to books with the sight , sounds , narration and a flowing story line to hold the attention) . The TV series had updates added some 10 years later and in 2000 , a DVD transfer was released. The TV series also featured a music soundtrack taken from “Heaven and hell” ( (Vangelis 1975) . Obviously there have been many advances / updates in the last 30 or so years but I can still recommend both as an example of the thoughts and presentation of the times . Carl Sagan , a great communicator , sadly died in 1996Rate 5 star as classic examples of their time covering the Cosmos ( as it seemed then) . The series ended very topically with a view of our the earth , and the threats faced by the latter – comparing the possible outcomes of irresponsible misuse of the planets resources to the planetary hell of Venus and the cold desolation of Mars.(Note there has been a recent re casting of the original series by Neil de Grasse Tyson ( written in conjunction with Carl Sagan’s widow) – also available on DVD and Blu Ray. The content is more up to date but many still prefer the older Sagan version with less reliance on CGI.)

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