drdena's review
4.0
I had to keep reminding myself that this book is ~20 years old. A lot has changed since it was first published.
I also had to remind myself that it was written for the general public; not someone with an in-depth scientific background.
That said, it was an easy read and Sagan's language is, as always, very engaging, even for the very scientifically literate.
I also had to remind myself that it was written for the general public; not someone with an in-depth scientific background.
That said, it was an easy read and Sagan's language is, as always, very engaging, even for the very scientifically literate.
naomi_hyde's review
4.0
This book was very well written by an excellent physicist. It was one of those books that really makes you consider the world around you and the massive scale of the Universe.
The first chapter contemplated the arrogance and self-centred nature of humans, and presented the notion that humans are exceedingly small compared to the vast Universe. For the first time I really comprehended how tiny our species are. It is quite an obvious concept that gets lost in everyday worries, fears and troubles. Now everytime I am stressed or anxious I think of how insignificant it is compared to the world, compared to the Universe, and perhaps how some far-off civilisation would view our world and its problems.
Another thing the book did was allowed the reader to take an objective perspective of the Earth, for example, it made me realise how irrelevant political and social problems such as war and money are; the Universe is so much bigger, so much more significant than the miniscule conflicts that we create here on Earth. But it also made me realise the grandeur of the human race: how much we have accomplished, how much we still don't know, how far we're willing to go to find answers to scientific problems.
The book also touched on the Solar System and the many diverse environments close to our planet, which was well explained. It was amusing to see that little information was available regarding what Titan is like since the probe would reach there in 2004 (the book was written in 1995)! I had to seek reference in another book to find the answers and alleviate my curiosity about this strange moon. However, the positive to this lack of information is that it elucidated the fact that science is always growing; new phenomena are constantly being discovered so that books written almost 20 years ago are immediately out of date. Carl Sagan also discussed the prospect of sending robots to Mars, which again made me laugh given Curiosity's recent successful landing.
As the book went on, I found that it lost momentum. The last 8 or so chapters were quite repetitive and tedious; Sagan was mainly speculating about future possibilities instead of introducing new facts. Nevertheless, I found it quite interesting to read about potential trips to other galaxies, or terra-forming of Mars and asteroids - it would make for an excellent science fiction novel!
The last chapter recapitulated much of the whole book so that I was left feeling that sense of awe and wonder at the majestic of the Universe and of humanity's scientific advancement.
In conclusion, this was a fantastic book that really makes the reader contemplate the vastness of the Universe, feel patriotic towards Earth and want to make exploration of the Universe a possibility.
The first chapter contemplated the arrogance and self-centred nature of humans, and presented the notion that humans are exceedingly small compared to the vast Universe. For the first time I really comprehended how tiny our species are. It is quite an obvious concept that gets lost in everyday worries, fears and troubles. Now everytime I am stressed or anxious I think of how insignificant it is compared to the world, compared to the Universe, and perhaps how some far-off civilisation would view our world and its problems.
Another thing the book did was allowed the reader to take an objective perspective of the Earth, for example, it made me realise how irrelevant political and social problems such as war and money are; the Universe is so much bigger, so much more significant than the miniscule conflicts that we create here on Earth. But it also made me realise the grandeur of the human race: how much we have accomplished, how much we still don't know, how far we're willing to go to find answers to scientific problems.
The book also touched on the Solar System and the many diverse environments close to our planet, which was well explained. It was amusing to see that little information was available regarding what Titan is like since the probe would reach there in 2004 (the book was written in 1995)! I had to seek reference in another book to find the answers and alleviate my curiosity about this strange moon. However, the positive to this lack of information is that it elucidated the fact that science is always growing; new phenomena are constantly being discovered so that books written almost 20 years ago are immediately out of date. Carl Sagan also discussed the prospect of sending robots to Mars, which again made me laugh given Curiosity's recent successful landing.
As the book went on, I found that it lost momentum. The last 8 or so chapters were quite repetitive and tedious; Sagan was mainly speculating about future possibilities instead of introducing new facts. Nevertheless, I found it quite interesting to read about potential trips to other galaxies, or terra-forming of Mars and asteroids - it would make for an excellent science fiction novel!
The last chapter recapitulated much of the whole book so that I was left feeling that sense of awe and wonder at the majestic of the Universe and of humanity's scientific advancement.
In conclusion, this was a fantastic book that really makes the reader contemplate the vastness of the Universe, feel patriotic towards Earth and want to make exploration of the Universe a possibility.
thomcat's review against another edition
4.0
Published posthumously, Pale Blue Dot is a sober look at space exploration and climate stewardship, closely counting the costs of each. It was also regarded as a sequel of sorts to Cosmos, and is similarly a survey of several sciences.
All alliteration aside, this was a book I have been meaning to read for a long time. I really appreciated the comparison between "wanting to fly in space" and the more practical "robots can do a lot" accounting. For a book published 20 years ago, most of the science is spot on, and we've seen the results of some of the missions that were just in the planning stages here. What I really wanted was a few more benefits, a more positive outlook - this book unfortunately pales in comparison to Chris Impey's [b:Beyond: Our Future in Space|22253730|Beyond Our Future in Space|Chris Impey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1415581087s/22253730.jpg|41629757].
All alliteration aside, this was a book I have been meaning to read for a long time. I really appreciated the comparison between "wanting to fly in space" and the more practical "robots can do a lot" accounting. For a book published 20 years ago, most of the science is spot on, and we've seen the results of some of the missions that were just in the planning stages here. What I really wanted was a few more benefits, a more positive outlook - this book unfortunately pales in comparison to Chris Impey's [b:Beyond: Our Future in Space|22253730|Beyond Our Future in Space|Chris Impey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1415581087s/22253730.jpg|41629757].
professor_x's review
5.0
I present to you another piece of impressive and thought provoking literature by the inspirational Carl Sagan.
Carl takes us on a wonderful trip around our solar system, explaining the characteristics of each planet and showing us how uninhabitable our neighborly planets are. He paints a picture of how fragile Earth really is and it really sends the message home that we don't have an "earth part II" available to us that we can move to if something happened. We have to take care of the only home we have.
Aside from the dangers that come from the cosmos (asteroids, a devastating solar flare from our Sun, etc) we have also become a danger to ourselves. Sagan goes into detail about the invention of the atomic bomb and how close we are to annihilating ourselves. Science can be an amazing tool for discovering things and for trying to decipher the universe's mysteries, but it can also be used to invent dangerous creations that can put an end to humanity.
We also have used science to explore our cosmic neighborhood which gives us a better understanding of how other planets work which in turn helps us understand our own home better. Thanks to the invention of satellites, we're able to take breath taking photos of the red & rust covered Mars or the enormous and violent storms of Jupiter and in turn transforming those celestial bodies from little points of light to the beautiful colorful works of art we've come to love today.
The book ends on the note that we have to take better care of ourselves as a species and to take better care of our fragile blue little marble and one day in the not-so-distant-future we can explore and discover and walk on other worlds, possibly spreading human civilization to the cosmos and beyond. I recommend this book to science lovers and to those who want some great educational reading.
Carl takes us on a wonderful trip around our solar system, explaining the characteristics of each planet and showing us how uninhabitable our neighborly planets are. He paints a picture of how fragile Earth really is and it really sends the message home that we don't have an "earth part II" available to us that we can move to if something happened. We have to take care of the only home we have.
Aside from the dangers that come from the cosmos (asteroids, a devastating solar flare from our Sun, etc) we have also become a danger to ourselves. Sagan goes into detail about the invention of the atomic bomb and how close we are to annihilating ourselves. Science can be an amazing tool for discovering things and for trying to decipher the universe's mysteries, but it can also be used to invent dangerous creations that can put an end to humanity.
We also have used science to explore our cosmic neighborhood which gives us a better understanding of how other planets work which in turn helps us understand our own home better. Thanks to the invention of satellites, we're able to take breath taking photos of the red & rust covered Mars or the enormous and violent storms of Jupiter and in turn transforming those celestial bodies from little points of light to the beautiful colorful works of art we've come to love today.
The book ends on the note that we have to take better care of ourselves as a species and to take better care of our fragile blue little marble and one day in the not-so-distant-future we can explore and discover and walk on other worlds, possibly spreading human civilization to the cosmos and beyond. I recommend this book to science lovers and to those who want some great educational reading.
davybaby's review
4.0
Carl Sagan has a wonderful ability to share his passion for science and the natural world. He's an excellent writer, and does a very good job of making astronomy accessible without dumbing it down.
Reading this took me back to my childhood and the wonder I felt when I thought about the natural world (universe) and how incredible it is. It also reminded me that science can be fun, regardless of how dull most schooling makes it. A wonderful book, and I would highly recommend it to EVERYONE.
My only issue with the book, and the only thing keeping me from giving it 5 stars, is that Sagan gives the human race too much credit. For most of the book, he talks about the universe, what we know, and what is actually there. For the last 50 or so pages, he speculates on where human space travel will go over the next few thousand years. Now Carl, you're obviously a brilliant man, and I have endless respect for your scientific mind and accomplishments, but doesn't that strike you as a bit naive? I mean, humans can't wait to kill each other. Most countries put more into defense (or offense, depending on how you look at it) than education, which means that if we don't manage to destroy each other with our big guns, we'll be too stupid to avoid destroying ourselves some other way. I mean, in the thousands of years we've had, we've been unable to get our shit together within individual homes, much less the planet as a whole. Even if we gained the capability to move onto other planets/asteroids, I don't think that'd solve anything. Then there would just be new, larger targets for our guns.
Grr.
Okay, human-hating rant aside, it's a great book. Read it. If you're less cynical than I am, you'll like it all the more.
Reading this took me back to my childhood and the wonder I felt when I thought about the natural world (universe) and how incredible it is. It also reminded me that science can be fun, regardless of how dull most schooling makes it. A wonderful book, and I would highly recommend it to EVERYONE.
My only issue with the book, and the only thing keeping me from giving it 5 stars, is that Sagan gives the human race too much credit. For most of the book, he talks about the universe, what we know, and what is actually there. For the last 50 or so pages, he speculates on where human space travel will go over the next few thousand years. Now Carl, you're obviously a brilliant man, and I have endless respect for your scientific mind and accomplishments, but doesn't that strike you as a bit naive? I mean, humans can't wait to kill each other. Most countries put more into defense (or offense, depending on how you look at it) than education, which means that if we don't manage to destroy each other with our big guns, we'll be too stupid to avoid destroying ourselves some other way. I mean, in the thousands of years we've had, we've been unable to get our shit together within individual homes, much less the planet as a whole. Even if we gained the capability to move onto other planets/asteroids, I don't think that'd solve anything. Then there would just be new, larger targets for our guns.
Grr.
Okay, human-hating rant aside, it's a great book. Read it. If you're less cynical than I am, you'll like it all the more.