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Cosmos (عالم المعرفة #178)

4.35 of 5 stars 4.35 · rating details · 25,691 ratings · 640 reviews

Cosmos has 13 heavily illustrated chapters, corresponding to the 13 episodes of the Cosmos television series. In the book, Sagan explores 15 billion years of cosmic evolution and the development of science and civilization. Cosmos traces the origins of knowledge and the scientific method, mixing science and philosophy, and speculates to the future of science. The book also...more

Paperback, 384 pages

Published May 7th 2002 by Random House (first published 1980)

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Oct 04, 2010 Saud Omar rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

من مدونتي: ثمانون كتابا بحثا عن مخرج

www.80k.met

***

لو كنت سوف أقرأ كتاب علمياً واحداً في حياتي, بل لو كنت سوف أقراء كتاباً بشرياً واحداً, سوف أختار كتاب الكون لكارل ساغان.

عادة يكون هدف الكتب العلمية التي تكتب لغير المختصين هو تبسيط المعلومة, لكن كتاب الكون يسلك مسلكا أخر, كتاب الكون كتاب يتأمل في الكون.

يحوي كتاب الكون ثلاثة عشر فصلاً, هذه الفصول كتبت بأسلوب غير تراكمي؛ بمعنى أنك تستطيع قراءة أي فصل دون أن تقرأ الفصول التي قبله, وتتباين هذه الفصول في مواضيعها وفي مجالات هذه المواضيع, فالكتاب يتحدث...more

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Apr 28, 2013 Huda Yahya rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: favourites, carl-sagan, science, philosophy

أعترف
أنا واقعة في غرام كارل ساجان

قلّما نجد عالِـماً يتمتّع بهذا القدر من الإنسانية وهذا الكمَ المهول من الثقافة
لم أجد عالِما بهذه الروح الشفافة ولا بهذا الصدق والوضوح

هذا الكتاب لا غنى عنه لأي كائن حي
علمي فلسفي أدبي بطريقة سرد شديدة المتعة

كارل لا يكتب للمتخصصين لذا لا تقلق بشأن صعوبة المحتوى
فهذا الرجل سيمتعك بدرجة لن تجدها في أي كتب علمية أخرى
بل ولا في كثير من كتب الفلسفة والأدب

في الحقيقة هذا الرجل يذهلني بقدرته على ربط الخيوط ببعضها وجعل العلم والفلسفة والأساطير والأدب مترابطين في مقالاته الساح...more

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Dec 17, 2008 Daniella rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Angela; anyone who loves science

Recommended to Daniella by: my Aunt Gail

Shelves: non-fiction, science, history, favorites, to-buy, rereadable, 2008, sagan

I'm not sure what I could possibly say about Cosmos that hasn't already been said by countless others in the 28 years since its publication, and likely in a far more intelligent and eloquent way than I ever could. But upon recently reading this book for the first time (which may seem a bit belated, but I am, after all, only 23) it instantly became one of my favorites, a status not easily attained by any book, and so I feel compelled to say something, to expound upon its many virtues and why it h...more I'm not sure what I could possibly say about Cosmos that hasn't already been said by countless others in the 28 years since its publication, and likely in a far more intelligent and eloquent way than I ever could. But upon recently reading this book for the first time (which may seem a bit belated, but I am, after all, only 23) it instantly became one of my favorites, a status not easily attained by any book, and so I feel compelled to say something, to expound upon its many virtues and why it has endeared itself to me so completely.

"One glance at [a book:] and you hear the voice of another person--perhaps someone dead for thousands of years. Across the millennia, the author is speaking, clearly and silently, inside your head, directly to you. Writing is perhaps the greatest of human inventions, binding together people, citizens of distant epochs, who never knew one another. Books break the shackles of time."

Perhaps prophetically, this is exactly the effect the late great Dr. Sagan acheived with this book. Through the power and fluid elegance of his prose, while reading Cosmos I could almost hear that familiar and somehow majestic voice (which in large part, I believe, made the PBS miniseries of the same name so wholly entrancing), as if the two of us were old friends having a leisurely, albeit profoundly intellectual, chat over coffee. Not exactly what one might expect from a book largely concerned with science, but this is just one of many qualities that makes it not only endearing to the reader, but also--and perhaps more importantly--accessible, making even the smattering of complex equations seem casual and undaunting.

Aside from the beauty of its prose, which is at times poetic in its depth and its eloquence, Cosmos is also wholly engaging and fascinating in the depth and scope of its subects. Sagan succinctly and expertly covers everything from the birth of stars to the birth of science, the origins of life on Earth to the possibility of life on other planets, and our far distant and recent (in the grand cosmic scheme of things) past to the possibilities for our distant future. And yes, because science is constantly evolving and, as Dr. Sagan states, self-correcting, some of the information and theories covered may now be outdated, but I still believe that Cosmos is well worth reading. Not only can it serve as a friendly, accessible, and engrossing jumping-off point for we common folk who are interested in delving deeper into science but may feel a bit intimidated, it is also, if nothing else, worth reading for the beautifully poignant and evocative insights and the oft-philosophical tidbits contained therein.

"We are the local embodiment of the Cosmos grown to self-awareness. We have begun to contemplate our origins: starstuff pondering the stars...."

My only complaints about Cosmos are these: the last two or three chapters lag just a bit, incorporating several topics that seem extraneous and unnecessary, and somewhat lose the smooth, easy flow present throughout the rest of the book; and though I feel that, in the current world political climate, the section discussing nuclear arms is still as relevant today as then, I can't help but think that anybody above the age of 12 and possessing a fully-functioning cerebral cortex is already aware of the potential consequences of nuclear war (gamma burst, radiation poisoning, junk in the atmosphere, nuclear winter, death, doom, destruction, we get it already). However, I can concede on this last point that, at the time of publication, the aftermath of a full-scale nuclear war was perhaps still a pretty hot topic. And in the grand scheme, these negative points make up only a negligible fraction of this otherwise fantastic book, and do not in anyway detract from its intrinsic value or from its overall enjoyability.

All in all, Cosmos is a thoroughly enthralling read that takes you on a breath-taking journey from the inception of the Universe to futures that may never be, and allows us to ponder--when considering our own epic journey from starstuff to "assemblages of a billion billion billion atoms contemplating the evolution of atoms"--what it truly means to be human and what our place, our purpose, is in the vast expanse of "this Cosmos in which we float like a mote of dust in the morning sky".(less)

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Sep 08, 2007 Esther rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Everyone trying to understand themselves and the world around them

Can I give this one ten stars? If I had a religion, I would be a Carl Saganian. Love him so much.

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Aug 01, 2008 Rob rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: puny carbon-based life-forms crawling on this mostly-wet little planet

Shelves: science, all-time-favorites, history, evolution, 2008

A gorgeous book in every possible way. From the lush illustration and clever diagrams clear through to Sagan's lyrical and at times whimsical narrative, this is the science book for non-scientists. (And if you are a scientist, may this be a lesson in how to tell your story.) Sagan makes the astronomy and the math and the mind-boggling complexity of the universe not only comprehensible but palatable. He wraps up our history as a species into the history of the universe (such that we can even know...more

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Mar 08, 2013 Sean DeLauder rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: all-time-bests, sagan, my-dad-s-books

My earliest recollections of this book are a mix of the blurred stars of the book jacket, the original airing of the PBS series, and its connection to my father. Considering I was only 3 years old at the time, this strikes me as an indication of its import. What I remember distinctly are sitting beside the couch and watching with my father as a long DNA strand stretched out across the television screen and images of the hardbound book in my father's personal library.

A few years after the first r...more

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Apr 27, 2007 Deb rated it 1 of 5 stars Recommends it for: No One

Shelves: science, theology

This book was my bible when I was an enemy of God. As a stubbornly devout atheist, this was the book I turned to for justification of my proud and arrogant rejection of my Creator. Instead of reading this pile of conjecture, I recommend reading the Holy Bible (then get on your knees and repent before the holy God who gave you life and sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to pay the penalty for your lawlessness and sin). :-)

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Nov 14, 2011 Pandasurya rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: non-fiksi, koleksi-langka-sepertinya, punya, favorit

Sebelum kematiannya Newton menulis:
Saya tidak tau, apa pandangan dunia tentang saya. Tetapi menurut saya, saya adalah seorang anak kecil yang sedang bermain-main di tepi pantai. Saya mengalihkan perhatian saya dari waktu ke waktu, dan kemudian menemukan sebutir batu yang lebih halus atau sebuah kerang yang lebih indah, sementara lautan kebenaran yang besar berada di depan saya, menunggu untuk ditemukan (Newton, Kosmos, h. 91)

Kosmos adalah semua yang atau selalu pernah atau selalu akan ada. (2)

Ap...more Sebelum kematiannya Newton menulis:
Saya tidak tau, apa pandangan dunia tentang saya. Tetapi menurut saya, saya adalah seorang anak kecil yang sedang bermain-main di tepi pantai. Saya mengalihkan perhatian saya dari waktu ke waktu, dan kemudian menemukan sebutir batu yang lebih halus atau sebuah kerang yang lebih indah, sementara lautan kebenaran yang besar berada di depan saya, menunggu untuk ditemukan (Newton, Kosmos, h. 91)

Kosmos adalah semua yang atau selalu pernah atau selalu akan ada. (2)

Apa yang diketahui itu terbatas, yang tidak diketahui tidak terbatas, secara intelektual kita berpijak pada pulau-pulau kecil di tengah lautan tak terbatas yang tidak terpahami. (TX Huxley, 1887, h. 2)

Manusia telah berevolusi untuk ingin tahu, bahwa penderitaan ialah kesukaan, bahwa pengetahuan ialah syarat awal untuk bertahan hidup. Saya percaya masa depan kita tergantung pada sebaik apa kita mengenal Kosmos di mana kita mengapung seperti sebintik debu dalam langit pagi. (h. 2)

Eksplorasi memerlukan skeptisisme dan imajinasi. Imajinasi akan sering membawa kita pada dunia-dunia yang tak pernah ada. Tetapi tanpa itu kita tidak pergi ke mana-mana. Skeptisisme memungkinkan kita membedakan khayalan dari kenyataan, menguji spekulasi kita. (h.2)

Manusia pada akhirnya dilahirkan dari bintang-bintang dan sekarang untuk sementara mengisi satu dunia yang dinamakan Bumi, telah memulai perjalanan pulangnya yang panjang (h. 8)

***
Buku Astronomi yang ditulis dengan gaya populer dan enak dibaca awam. Setiap bab dimulai dengan kutipan2 menarik dan mendalam. Pastinya buku ini menambah wawasan asronomi dan menggiring kita untuk merenungkan alam semesta dengan lebih mendalam..

Belinya th 2001 di Pasar Buku Bandung di Dago yg jadi cikal bakal Tobucil klo ga salah, masih jaman FO (factory outlet) belum bersimaharajela di jalan Dago:-)

Di siang yg terik itu sang diri tadinya hanya berniat utk mampir ke TB yg nyempil di antara sebuah restoran di pinggir jalan Dago. Ternyata di dalamnya terlihat buku unik ini. Setelah menimang2 sebentar, hati dan pikiran pun serentak bersalaman sepakat untuk membeli buku ini..:-)(less)

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Aug 10, 2008 Z rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Absolutely everybody

Shelves: 2008, favourites

Let's put it simply. Cosmos is required reading for everyone who lives on this planet. It will give you a sense of perspective that nothing else can -- no lofty ideology, no omniscient religion, no inspiring quotations can explain things quite as clearly as Carl Sagan's treatise on science, reality, and the nature of things in this universe. Mind-bending and dazzling, and best of all, uncluttered by confusing scientific terminology. A book worthy of all the positive superlatives I can think of b...more

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Jul 23, 2007 Roddy rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: EVERYONE

Shelves: sciencebooksiveread

Stunning, beautiful prose, excellent description and metaphor, incredibly accessible. Its also one of those books where you get to see the author's own genius slip into the pages accidentally, every so often. This book is the book A Brief History of Time wants to be. Problem is, ABHOT is much more boring and high concept. Sagan is and ever will be the great teacher of the masses in my opinion. This book starts out simpler than ABHOT - here on earth. It begins with what you know and slowly expand...more Stunning, beautiful prose, excellent description and metaphor, incredibly accessible. Its also one of those books where you get to see the author's own genius slip into the pages accidentally, every so often. This book is the book A Brief History of Time wants to be. Problem is, ABHOT is much more boring and high concept. Sagan is and ever will be the great teacher of the masses in my opinion. This book starts out simpler than ABHOT - here on earth. It begins with what you know and slowly expands your circle of knowledge with insightful description and simile ("the dancing of electrons with their nuclear partners across the surface of ice is like...") Once you've got your basics, he starts taking you through the process of thinking about how it all might fit together, what scientists are currently working on (were, then working on) and thinking about. I don't hesitate to loan this to my most unscientific minded friends because its actually a great way to get them to stop thinking that stars are made from the souls of people who have died and that people just appeared on the face of the earth fully formed and wearing neckties, some 4000 years ago. Cosmos is also a very holistic book, it discusses evolution, life, the beginnings of the universe the end of the universe, the possiblity of life on other planets - and, very convincingly suggests what that might look like. It at least drives home that we have to step away from the life we are familiar with when we start theorizing what life might be like elsewhere. I can't say enough about how great this book is, how well it imbues its reader with scientific mojo, and how a book that covers textbook type material manages to be so readable. There are also (especially in the hardcover) some very pretty pictures.

Note: The book cosmos was a companion/derivative of the PBS special "Cosmos" which Sagan worked to explain the mysteries of the universe in something like 14 episodes. You can probably buy this online if you're one of those total lamos that prefers "the movie". However, this movie is actually pretty awesome, albeit with very old school animations.

Also Note: This book was written in the 1970s. From an outsider's perspective, physics and astrophysics (which is technically more what Cosmos is about) don't change much in 30 years, but in fact they do. Many of the theories Sagan puts forth have since proven to be quite accurate, and some, have understandably proven to be not quite accurate. Not knowing which these are won't hurt the reader; just learning how he begins his process of hypothesizing, and the idea of thinking big picture and how it all fits together is the real lesson of Cosmos. You'll need a recent astronomy or astrophysics (basic) textbook to find the plot holes though, so the recreational reader should fear not. (less)

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Sep 12, 2007 Tony rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: anyone with an interest in science

Shelves: science

The best book ever written.

A masterful work encompassing the whole of human existence and the universe, with a focus on science.

Sagan discusses
- evolution,
- Kepler, astrology and acceptance of truth in spite of what outcome is desired,
- Venus and Mars, including the made-up belief of life on Mars a century ago,
- the Voyager spacecrafts' Grand Tour of the Outer Planets (a rare alignment),
- ancient Greek scientists,
- Relativity,
- atoms, elements, and how star make them,
- Creation Myths, incl Hin...more

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Dec 09, 2007 GeekChick rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: everyone!

While the PBS series is dated now in its special effects, the ability of Sagan to inspire the wonderment of science and our connection with the universe is unparalleled to this day. I recommend the hardback edition, which has excellent photographs and other images.

I read somewhere that Cosmos has sold more books in foreign languages than any book other than the Bible. I hope this is true. It is a book that everyone should read, and if you can watch the series, do so! (just accept the goofy effe...more

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May 17, 2007 Amy rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: anyone

Shelves: non-fiction

I think I could categorize this book as "life-changing" for me. I think the reason I am interested in subjects such as classics and anthropology can be traced to this book! It's a very broad look at the history of the universe and the history of science, so even though it is a good 20+ years old, most of it still stands. Sagan writes in an engaging and accessible manner. This is definitely a great book for people who are interested in science, but a little afraid to approach a book about it. Sag...more

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Nov 15, 2007 Alyson rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: EVERYONE

Shelves: favorites

This is an amazing and inspired book. One of three books I have purchased numerous times only to give away to someone whom I thought could appreciate both the concepts presented, but the sheer poetry of Sagan's words. As close to a bible as I have ever owned, the brilliance and mystery of our existence, the smallness and yet complete miraculousness of being is captured in these pages. Even if the advanced concepts of science may be beyond some readers, I urge you not to be frustrated and to pers...more

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Aug 06, 2011 David Boyce added it · review of another edition

What is the point of human existence? A question posed and explored in great depth in this interesting book by Carl Sagan. Sagan takes us on a journey to shows us what it means to be human. To cut a long story short, he shows us that humanity is the drive for exploration and the pursuit of knowledge. He takes us back to the earliest written works of all the great civilisations from antiquity and charts the progression that humans have made in understanding where we are in the grand scheme of thi...more What is the point of human existence? A question posed and explored in great depth in this interesting book by Carl Sagan. Sagan takes us on a journey to shows us what it means to be human. To cut a long story short, he shows us that humanity is the drive for exploration and the pursuit of knowledge. He takes us back to the earliest written works of all the great civilisations from antiquity and charts the progression that humans have made in understanding where we are in the grand scheme of things. This is a science book that not only acknowledges that there is a question “why?” but also endeavours to take a step in the general direction of the answer.

As a piece of work the book is impressive both in its depth and because it covers such a wide slice of everything we know. Very few people alive today have such a good understanding of so many numerous different disciplines. Sagan seems a master of astrophysics, Biology, chemistry, is well read in the classics and has a tremendous knowledge of all the religious scripture from all the World’s major faiths. Is there anybody alive today who has exercised their own intellect so broadly who at the same time has honed their specialised cognitive ability to such a degree that enabled Sagan to be the world authority on space exploration?

We can be forgiving of the odd dodgy factoid that now seems unlikely due to things we have found out since this book was written but there are some other slightly odd ideas in this book. For example Sagan believed that Jupiter was a place where life exists, but then does not extend this to Saturn or the other gas giants. Surely if life is possible on one, then it is possible on them all. Another idea that rocked my boat was that war and aggression comes through the suppression of our mammalian instincts, that somehow not being cuddled as a child results in us becoming little Hitlers. Ok so far, but then he extends what mammal behaviour is to sexual promiscuity in our youth. Correct me if I am wrong but I am only aware of one other species of mammal (the binobo) that indulges in this. I rather think that this kind of sexual desire comes from our cerebral thought processes and thus due to the fact that we are human beings rather than just mammals. Therefore making what is a human decision is not a suppression of our mammalian instincts and really wouldn’t lead to us becoming murderers. Sagan also goes into too much depth in and around the subject that is his specialty (life on mars) to the detriment of the flow of the book as a whole.

All in all, this book is fascinating and makes you think. You don’t have to agree with everything being said to be drawn into and feed from its optimism. Go Sagan!

(less)

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Jan 18, 2009 Luke rated it 4 of 5 stars

This book had been on my list for a while and in my possession even longer. I decided it would get bumped up to "on-deck" when I saw a stranger holding it and overheard her commenting to a friend: "I read Cosmos at least 1 time a year."

Having read Cosmos, I won't read it once a year, but I will make an effort to re-read the book while I'm still a young adult and hopefully read it again at a later date beyond that. The material in this book is awe inspiring and Carl Sagan has a real gift for eloq...more

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May 06, 2013 Mirek Kukla rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: science-and-philosophy

Review
Carl Sagan's "Cosmos" is enthusiastic, if unfocused, examination of the universe we live in. While the main focus here is on space, Sagan casts a wide net: topics include the origin of the universe, evolution, the history of the science, and the possibility of extraterrestrial life, to name a few. Sagan's enthusiasm and almost child-like wonder are apparent throughout, and he proves a capable guide for the ambitious journey that is "Cosmos."

At times, however, he lets his enthusiasm get the...more

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Apr 09, 2013 Clif rated it 4 of 5 stars

Carl Sagan's boyish enthusiasm fills this book ranging widely on scientific topics while emphasizing his life-long passion for communication with other intelligence in the universe.

Like Issac Asimov, Sagan is captivated by the wonder of our physical world and eager to explain it to the general public, though Sagan ventures more into speculation while Asimov is more detail oriented - not only wanting you to know about the atom, but about the parts and the forces involved, never departing from the...more Carl Sagan's boyish enthusiasm fills this book ranging widely on scientific topics while emphasizing his life-long passion for communication with other intelligence in the universe.

Like Issac Asimov, Sagan is captivated by the wonder of our physical world and eager to explain it to the general public, though Sagan ventures more into speculation while Asimov is more detail oriented - not only wanting you to know about the atom, but about the parts and the forces involved, never departing from the facts.

It's impossible to read this book without finding out new things, even though it was written almost 30 years ago. For example, I did not know that our sun was formed in the company of other stars that have since dispersed across the galaxy, nor did I know that the spiral arms of our Milky Way are areas of star formation that move independently of the stars they move through. Ten million years ago the earth was within one of these spiral arms, now it is on the edge.

In Cosmos, Sagan moves out from the Sun as he also takes us forward from the dawn of science. Since I've read quite a bit about the history of scientific discovery, I found the first part of this book, dealing with that subject, far less interesting than the last third where Sagan takes us off into the vastness of space, ponders the chances of life on other worlds, informs us of the weirdness of black holes, describes the life of stars and explains the possibility of another dimension that we cannot experience. He addresses the reader with respect. You feel like you are in the company of a good friend who responds to something you say with, "yeah, I've wondered about that too and here's what I think."

Sagan has a marvelous capacity to take a subject just so far without getting bogged down in detail. There were several times I became engaged in his topic and he would carry it forward far enough for my curiosity to be satisfied. I never had that disappointing feeling of the child who says to the storytelling parent, "but THEN what happened!?" only to be told the story is over.

The style of writing is free-flowing and natural. I don't know that I've ever sped through a book like I did this one, quickly grasping what the author has to say. There is a special kind of genius in being able to take the most abstruse subjects and present them in an understandable way. Carl Sagan writes like he was born with a pen in his hand. At the same time, his imagination is so fertile that you never can tell where he will go with a subject. His speculations about contact with another intelligence in the universe are broad and deep, this obviously being where is heart is.

After closing the book, I'm impressed by how microscopic humanity is in the vastness of space and how recent we are in the immensity of time. We've only had radio for 100 years, so our electromagnetic voice has reached only 100 light years from earth, enough to get to the nearest few dozen stars, yet we are aware of, able to see through optical or radio astronomy, objects that are billions of light years from us, dating to not long after the origin of the universe.

The question that hangs over this book is - are we alone? Over the billions of stars that are out there, why is there no evidence at all of intelligence elsewhere?

See? Don't you wish you could ask your mom, "but THEN what happened?!"(less)

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Jan 02, 2013 Muhammad Khaled rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: my-sixth-star, pdf-s

That kind of books you can never review..

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Dec 03, 2012 Jenny williams rated it 5 of 5 stars

One of my favorite books of all time. Carl Sagan is a master of his craft and his books reinforce that he is. Cosmos is one of the best written books ever created about the Cosmos, space, our atmosphere and all of the physics that explain what it all means and why. Not only did Sagan correctly and factually write this gem of a book but he also analyzed how all the different scientific discoveries since the beginning of mankind correlate to the technology we are developing at this present day. Th...more

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Sep 24, 2012 Triet Lieu rated it 4 of 5 stars

Carl Sagan is one of the most influential science popularizers in American history. He lived from 1934 to 1996 and graduated from the University of Chicago with a degreee in astrophysics and astronony. Sagan is well-known as one of the earliest scientists to advocate for the search for extraterrestrial intelligence, funding for science, and science injury as a mean with which to study the world. Reading his biography, one can not be intrigued by his apparent similarity to Bill Nye, another influ...more Carl Sagan is one of the most influential science popularizers in American history. He lived from 1934 to 1996 and graduated from the University of Chicago with a degreee in astrophysics and astronony. Sagan is well-known as one of the earliest scientists to advocate for the search for extraterrestrial intelligence, funding for science, and science injury as a mean with which to study the world. Reading his biography, one can not be intrigued by his apparent similarity to Bill Nye, another influential science popularizer; both of them censure religious thought, instead of flavoring the theory of evolution and universal laws over a belief in God. Such a collinearity can be traced to Carl Sagan being one of Bill Nye's teachers, which is ironic. Both are better-remembered as "prophets" of science can contributions to science. This book, Cosmos, is one of Carl Sagan's crowning achievements and as evidence for its prestige, a television series predated its publication.

Carl Sagan's Cosmos is indentical to Howard Zinn's The Twentieth Century in almost every way, as the primary value is reading either of them is to experience a different perspective on a particular subject which differs from the mainstream mindset which is taught to students. The former inspects astrological history while the other investigates human history. One would expect to find more scientific material in a textbook of the same length as Cosmos, because the information in Carl Sagan's "novel" is more theoretical and imaginative than reaslistic. It focuses on the planets and moons in the solar system which are suspected of harboring life, the possibility of time travel through black holes, life cycle of stars, the future of space exploration,the roles which humans would execute should they intercept other tehcnologically advanced species, constellations, religious interpretations of the universe, and evolution. Cosmos also recites the names of prevalent and influential Greek, Latin, and European scientists.

I did enjoy reading the Cosmos, for I must say, without any attempt at pretension, that I appreciate the sciences and theoretical than my peers. I do recognize that what we humans visualize may very well be fantasies, along with the undeniable fact that all of our memories and emotions are just neural impulses which we Homo sapiens have been fortunate enough to benefit from to best other animals. However, I am disappointed by the lack of any solid science which I could study to further my understand of the biologyical and physical laws which govern society. Cosmos is by all means an inperfect, book, but I enjoyed it for the left-winged perspective of science which it presented me.(less)

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Jul 17, 2012 University of Chicago Magazine added it

Shelves: physical-sciences-division, college

Carl Sagan, AB'54, SB'55, SM'56, PhD'60
Author

This visually stunning book with over 250 full-color illustrations, many of them never before published, is based on Carl Sagan’s thirteen-part television series. Told with Sagan’s remarkable ability to make scientific ideas both comprehensible and exciting, Cosmos is about science in its broadest human context, how science and civilization grew up together.

The book also explores spacecraft missions of discovery of the nearby planets, the research in...more

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Mar 20, 2012 Tony Viardo rated it 5 of 5 stars

Full disclosure here, Carl Sagan is a personal inspiration for me. A person who has affected my philosophy and thinking ever since I first heard of him, watch his television documentaries, and then took the time to read his writing. The day he died, I felt a huge sense of loss, not for myself, but the world. This man was not only brilliant, a genius of the order that you see only once a generation, but he had the soul and sensitivity that defines the best of humanity. Overstating? I don't think...more Full disclosure here, Carl Sagan is a personal inspiration for me. A person who has affected my philosophy and thinking ever since I first heard of him, watch his television documentaries, and then took the time to read his writing. The day he died, I felt a huge sense of loss, not for myself, but the world. This man was not only brilliant, a genius of the order that you see only once a generation, but he had the soul and sensitivity that defines the best of humanity. Overstating? I don't think so; he not only had the mental capacity to see the world differently, but he always--in his writing, science, achievements and activities--seemed to think FIRST, how any phenomena would impact the entire human race. And his conclusions, scientific or otherwise, always led him to the same course of action: A call for understanding, mutual respect and simple caring for one another. This is why he impacted me, and in many ways I carry on his mission.

About this book: it captures the infectious wonderment of Sagan's mind and curiosity. His discussions about astronomy not only makes the science easy to grasp, it RIGHTFULLY puts the reader in absolute awe at the vastness and genius of how the universe is put together. This book, which is an encapsulation of the TV series of the same name--which incidentally helped spread science to more people around the world than any piece of scientific literature in history--teaches and informs, but inspires as well. Carl Sagan believed that knowledge, pure knowledge of how things work, is a magical bridge that will erase the differences that divide people, and build mutual understanding through awareness of our common humanity. This he believed will eventually over time, bring the world together, and keep us from destroying ourselves. Cosmos was a contribution to this dream by one of the greatest thinkers of our time; in history really. Sagan always saw the big picture, and by helping us see the same, he figured we could rise above the petty things that destroy us (like ignorance, fear and hatred). I'm sure if he were alive to write this review he would say: it won't solve all your problems or answer all your questions, but hopefully it can give you even one iota of knowledge and understanding, that will lift up your life and help you enrich the lives of those around you as well.(less)

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Mar 13, 2012 Jason rated it 5 of 5 stars

My mother gave this book to me when I was in the 1st grade and it was one of the biggest eye openers of my childhood. Even though at the time I didn't understand most of the scientific jargon, my fascination with outer space and the planets drew me in and I was hooked. By the 3rd grade I was giving oral reports on black holes and the fabric of space-time and boring the hell out of my friends with my nonstop space rants. I've re-read it at least 6 different times since then as well as numerous ot...more

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Sep 22, 2011 Shaun rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is a excellent book that bridges the information that Astronomers, Physicists, Biologists, Geologists, Anthropologists, Archeologists, Historians, and Philosophers have gained over the years of human existance to the common man.

It is a great read for the person who craves to understand what our Intellectual Elite have uncovered throughout the thousands of years of our existence.

Not only does Carl Sagan discuss the modern findings of the time but goes even deeper into our past to discuss his...more

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Jul 25, 2011 Matthew Kresal rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

2010 marked the thirtieth anniversary of the original publication of Carl Sagan's bestselling book Cosmos. The book itself is a companion piece to his thirteen part documentary series, which won both an Emmy and a Peabody Award at the time of its original broadcast and has subsequently become the most watched PBS program in the world. It also, of course spawned this book would go on to become a major bestseller with over five million copies being printed to this very day. Why is that?

In part it...more 2010 marked the thirtieth anniversary of the original publication of Carl Sagan's bestselling book Cosmos. The book itself is a companion piece to his thirteen part documentary series, which won both an Emmy and a Peabody Award at the time of its original broadcast and has subsequently become the most watched PBS program in the world. It also, of course spawned this book would go on to become a major bestseller with over five million copies being printed to this very day. Why is that?

In part it is because Cosmos the book, like its TV incarnation, is an epic journey with few boundaries and many lessons. Sagan, working from the original narration scripts (originally written by Sagan, Ann Druyan and Steven Soter) Cosmos covers a wide range of topics. These range from the origins of life, its evolution from single cell to modern humans, the ongoing battles between science and superstition, our own evolving outlook on the universe, our fascination with the planet Mars (the subject of chapter five "Blues for a Red Planet"), the complexity of the human brain (chapter 11 "The Persistence of Memory"), the possible existence of extraterritorial life and our species own survival in the future to name a few of the topics covered. As a result, Cosmos touches on a huge variety of topics that covers much of the human condition and the universe around us at the same time. While some of the science is inevitably out of date after three decades, most of the science holds up and the dating is therefore few are far between. That is forgetting that Cosmos actually predicted a number of things as well (such as the early version of the rovers now exploring Mars mentioned in the fifth chapter). Despite some of the science being out of date, Cosmos is still remarkable for the sheer number of topics in covers on its journey.

The continued success of the book also lies in what is perhaps its greatest strength: its writer Carl Sagan. Sagan's sense of wonder and excitement is evident throughout and it is those attributes that makes the potentially dull or overly complex parts of this book (dull as in topic you might not personally be interested in) worth reading. That is in large part because of Sagan's ability to bring abstract concepts (such as the mathematical parts of chapter 10 "The Edge of Forever" or the Drake equation in chapter 12 "Encyclopaedia Galactica") down to a level that almost anyone should be able to understand and find exciting. A great example of that lies in the statement by Sagan at the beginning of chapter nine: "If you wish to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first invent the universe." which allows Sagan to take us on a journey from the impossibly small (atoms) to the impossibly large (stars, black holes etc). The book at times also illustrates Sagan's fears about our species seemingly ingenious ability to both suppress science and, perhaps even more alarming, find new and more deadly ways of destroying ourselves These fears are best expressed in the final chapter of the book "Who Speaks for Earth?" which looks not only at the specter of nuclear weapons from the viewpoint of the then present day but also compares that threat to the burning of the Library of Alexandria and all the knowledge lost as a result. Sagan though makes sure that this journey is one that shows us that if we can survive our species destructive tendencies, our greatest accomplishments are still ahead of us.

As a result, Cosmos is both an epic journey and a personal one as well thanks to Sagan. It is an epic journey not just across time and space but from the incredibly small to the incredibly large and from our species darkest moments to our greatest accomplishments. It is a personal journey thanks to Sagan, his sense of wonder and excitement about us and our universe. While it may be out of date in places, Cosmos has a sense of timelessness to it that means it will live on for many more decades to come. (less)

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Aug 18, 2010 Bob Nichols rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

"Cosmos" is mostly about the Earth and humans. Sagan spends some time in outer space, primarily in our local galaxy. The Big Bang and the life and death of stars are discussed primarily in relationship to ourselves. We are, he says in language he uses so well, remote descendants of the Big Bang. We are, he also says, "solar powered." Much of the rest of this book is on the intellectual history about how we have come to know the world beyond the earth, and how we are now attempting to communicate...more "Cosmos" is mostly about the Earth and humans. Sagan spends some time in outer space, primarily in our local galaxy. The Big Bang and the life and death of stars are discussed primarily in relationship to ourselves. We are, he says in language he uses so well, remote descendants of the Big Bang. We are, he also says, "solar powered." Much of the rest of this book is on the intellectual history about how we have come to know the world beyond the earth, and how we are now attempting to communicate with other life that Sagan believes exists elsewhere, somewhere, in space. Sagan concludes with some ominous warnings about the dangers of the earth's destruction from nuclear weapons.

Sagan is well-known for his ability to translate complex thoughts into terms that can be understood by the non-specialist. The normal human lifetime is longer than Voyager will take to go beyond Pluto's orbit. The number of stars in the universe is greater than all the grains of sand on the Earth's beaches. The book is filled with many great pictures. One picture of part of the sun's surface is covered with "solar provinces" that are "turbulent cells" where hot gas rises and sinks. Each cell is about "a 1,000 kilometers across," the distance from "Paris to Kiev." Sagan tells us that our big dipper is called many different names around the world. He says atoms are mainly "empty space" and matter "is comprised chiefly of nothing." "Essentially everything" consists of three particles (protons, neutrons, electrons) put together in various patterns.

Sagan states that in "our tenure on this planet" we have "accumulated dangerous evolutionary baggage, hereditary propensities for aggression and ritual, submission to leaders and hostility to outsiders...." that threaten our survival. But, as evidenced by our modern understanding of the cosmos, he places great weight on our intellectual capacity: "no longer at the mercy of the reptile brain, we can change ourselves." Sagan believes that we are able to see how dependent we are on this small earth and that we should not destroy it and ourselves by behavior that reflects our past. It's an uplifting but tenuous hope. How does an intellectual appreciation of distant threats provide sufficient motivation to overcome the individual survival energy that has been in our genes for millions of years? (less)

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Jan 05, 2010 Stafford Davis rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

In my view, this book and the accompanying PBS series combined into one entity is Carl Sagan’s masterpiece. He fuses astronomy, history, philosophy, religion, biography, speculation, and art into this project in such an unique and astonishing way that one can’t help but be completely enthralled with the information given. We start off as a passenger on a ‘spaceship of the imagination’ that takes us back and forth through time from the moment of the Big Bang to the end of the Earth – either by th...more In my view, this book and the accompanying PBS series combined into one entity is Carl Sagan’s masterpiece. He fuses astronomy, history, philosophy, religion, biography, speculation, and art into this project in such an unique and astonishing way that one can’t help but be completely enthralled with the information given. We start off as a passenger on a ‘spaceship of the imagination’ that takes us back and forth through time from the moment of the Big Bang to the end of the Earth – either by the Sun’s expansion into a red giant star about 6 billion years from now, or the end of humanity through self-destruction. In between and along the way we see the evolution of life with the progression of natural and artificial selection, to the rise and fall of the Ionians in Greece, we hear the questions posed about alien life and what it would mean to humanity, we find explorers of the future in their nuclear powered spaceships, and to the present where Sagan gives a moving plea in the final chapter, ‘Who Speaks for Earth?’ as he asks the people of the Earth to cooperate and help each other in ways that promote a global community that appreciates cultural diversity, as well as a common stewardship of the planet that we all share.
Being that this is one of the best selling science books of all time and the most watched PBS series ever; Sagan’s message of education and wonder made it out to a lot of people – including a 4 year-old and a 31 year-old version of me! As a professional astronomer and science populizer, he understood the importance of communicating to the public the contemporary discoveries of science and the lessons of history.

On exploration then and now:
These voyages of exploration and discovery are the latest in a long series that have characterized and distinguished human history. In the 15th and 16th centuries you could travel from Spain to the Azores in a few days, the same time it takes us now to cross the channel from Earth to the Moon. It took then a few months to traverse the Atlantic Ocean and reach what was called the New World, the Americas. Today it takes a few months to cross the ocean of the inner solar system and make planet-fall on Mars or Venus, which are truly and literally new worlds awaiting us. In the 17th and 18th centuries you could travel from Holland to China in a year or two, the time it has taken Voyager to travel from Earth to Jupiter.
On theology:
Every human culture rejoices in the fact that there are cycles in nature. But how, it was thought, could such cycles come about unless the gods willed them? And if there are cycles in the years of humans, might there not be cycles in the aeons of the gods?... It is said that men may not be the dreams of the gods, but rather that the gods are the dreams of men.
On humanity and stewardship:
There are not yet any obvious signs of extraterrestrial intelligence and this makes us wonder whether civilizations like ours always rush implacably, headlong, toward self-destruction. National boundaries are not evident when we view the Earth from space. Fanatical ethnic or religious or national chauvinisms are a little difficult to maintain when we see our planet as a fragile blue crescent fading to become an inconspicuous point of light against the bastion and citadel of stars… What account would we give of our stewardship of the planet Earth? We have heard the rationales offered by the nuclear superpowers. We know who speaks for the nations. But who speaks for the human species? Who speaks for Earth?(less)

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Sep 28, 2011 Linda rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: non-fiction, science

In the life of a human being 30 years might seem as a lot of time, but compared to 30 years for modern science, it seems less than minuscule. A lot has happened since Cosmos was written and some of the theories expressed there are dated, some seemingly unanswerable questions have been answered and there are plenty of new pages of history to discover.

That being said, I never approached reading Cosmos as a science book and I believe that nobody should. While it still contains some deal of dry scie...more

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Nov 23, 2011 Trevor Denton rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites

This is not just a sit-down-and-read-straight-through kind of book. It's more of a coffee table book, but that label tends to belittle its contents. This is a hugely eye-opening, all-encompassing coverage of the collective universe as experienced by the human race so far.

The book's general theme, as with the TV series upon which it is based, is the uniqueness of human life in the midst of so much astrophysical indifference and chaos. The bulk of the text provides scientific facts about space, sp...more

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Science and Inquiry: * June 2013 - Cosmos	12	49	May 21, 2013 03:37pm
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Is this most important statement ever made in history of science & philosophy - "The cosmos is also within us, We're made of star stuff. We are a way for the cosmos to know itself."	7	61	Apr 09, 2013 09:02pm
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About Carl Sagan

An American Astronomer, author, and renowned promoter of sciences, Carl Edward Sagan was the co-writer and presenter of the award-winning 1980 television series Cosmos: A Personal Voyage, seen by more than 500 million people in over 60 countries.

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“Every one of us is, in the cosmic perspective, precious. If a human disagrees with you, let him live. In a hundred billion galaxies, you will not find another.” — 1,635 people liked it

“The nitrogen in our DNA, the calcium in our teeth, the iron in our blood, the carbon in our apple pies were made in the interiors of collapsing stars. We are made of starstuff.” — 719 people liked it

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