All Entries Tagged With: "video"

On Faith.

When discussing Sagan it is easy to fall into the groove carved by his atheism. Many people point to him as the like-able friendly face of the belief that god does not exist.

Unlike modern atheists — Dawkins, Harris, and Dennet (for a brief example please look to Wired magazine) — Sagan’s skepticism about the existence of god did not leave him with ill feelings for religion. He believed that religion could be graceful and was once useful, but he was frustrated when religion put superstition before rational thought.

In his only fictional work, Contact, the action in the novel hangs on two beliefs. The first is that it is possible to teach science, skepticism, and rational thought through fiction. Second is the idea that, as human organizations both religion and science are flawed. Sagan saw that there is an unexplored space between faith and rational thought. As I read it Contact is an exercise in coming to terms with that gap.

The best example is the novel / movie in its entirety. However, since I don’t have the ability to post the entire film, this excerpt gets to the point — here we see rational thought break down and faith step in.

To hear Dr. Sagan speak briefly on religion, listen to the Peter Gzowski interview with Sagan, found in the Sounds of Sagan on the sidebar.

As a side I would also like to point out that the people who have contributed to Celebrating Sagan hold different takes on god and religion. I believe that it is a testament to Sagan’s vision that people who have oppositional beliefs can come together underneath the umbrage of his world view.

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On Canadian Television

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oh Carson.

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The Drake Equation

N = R_* f_p n_e f_l f_i f_c L
Where,
N = The number of civilizations in The Milky Way Galaxy whose radio emissions are detectable.
R_* = The rate of formation of stars suitable for the development of intelligent life.
f_p = The fraction of those stars with planetary systems.
n_e = The number of planets, per solar system, with an environment suitable for life.
f_l = The fraction of suitable planets on which life actually appears.
f_i = The fraction of life bearing planets on which intelligent life emerges.
f_c = The fraction of civilizations that develop a technology that releases detectable signs of their existence into space.
L = The length of time such civilizations release detectable signals into space.

From SETI’s Carl Sagan Center for the Study of Life in the Universe – try out their Drake Equation Calculator.

There are a lot of moments in Cosmos that widened my perspective when I first watched the series. Episode 12, Encyclopedia Galactica, is filled with such moments. In the clip below, just before he launches into his vision of the Encyclopedia Galactica, Sagan addresses the probability of intelligent life in the galaxy using the Drake Equation.

Even for a person with a rudimentary understanding of mathematics like myself, the Drake Equation is a simple way to explore the potential for life in the vast Milky Way, which is always a good time. In the clip, Sagan walks us through the equation, demonstrating just how hard it is to know whether we are alone and unique in the universe, or just pedestrian intelligent life. It ends with a humbling thought:

So if civilizations do not always destroy themselves shortly after discovering radio astronomy, then the sky may be softly humming with messages from the stars, with signals from civilizations enormously older and wiser than we.

He goes on from there to succinctly summarize the central plot of Contact, and leaves us reflecting on the great value of radioastronomy and it’s potential to aspire us to take to the stars:

If there are millions of technical civilizations in the milky way, each capable of radio astronomy, how far away is the nearest one? If they’re distributed more or less randomly through space, then the nearest one will be some two-hundred light-years away, but within two-hundred light years, there are hundreds of thousands of stars. To find the needle in this haystack requires a dedicated and systematic search.

There are many cosmic radio sources having nothing to do with intelligent life, so how would we know that we were receiving a message? The transmitting civilization could make it very easy for us if they wished. Imagine we’re in the course of a systematic search, or in the midst of some more conventional radio observations, and suppose one day we find a strong signal slowly emerging. Not just some background hiss, but a methodical series of pulses. The numbers: 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13. A signal made of prime numbers; numbers divisible only by one and themselves. There is no natural astrophysical process that generates prime numbers. We would have to conclude that someone fond of elementary mathematics was saying, “Hello.” This would be no more than a beacon to attract our attention. The main message would be subtler, more hidden, far richer. We may have to work hard to find it.

But the beacon’s signal alone would be profoundly significant. It would mean that someone had learned to survive technological adolescence, that self-destruction is not inevitable, that we also may have a future. Such knowledge, it seems to me, might be worth a great price.”

If that doesn’t open up your mind, well, you must have it closed pretty tightly.

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Claim to Fame.

Aside from Dr. Sagan’s early writings that express his belief that life beyond Earth is more likely than possible, it was his observations about the Venus’ atmosphere that launched his career. In this video excerpt from 1961, Sagan expresses his assessment of the second planet’s atmosphere.

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Who Speaks for Earth?

When I watch Carl Sagan discuss the reality of nuclear proliferation in the final episode of Cosmos, it cements my unabashed admiration of him. When I watch him pace among the tress on the hilltop, I’m reminded not only that he was a great teacher, scientist, and writer; he was also a passionate activist. A leader even. In this six minute clip he quite handily shatters the illusion that nuclear weapons are protecting us. He is a fine orator, and while it can’t be proven, this speech surely resonated through parts of American politics.

If we’re willing to live with the growing likely hood of nuclear war, shouldn’t we also be willing to explore vigorously every possible means to prevent nuclear war?

Carl Sagan asked the right questions, and many people heard him. He taught us about the depth of beauty in science, but he also put out a call to action that the world has not answered. More than 25 years after it first aired, this clip is as relevant and powerful as it was during the Cold War. And the great question – “Who speaks for earth?” – still stands.

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Cosmic Celebrity

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