Identify Of Books The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark
| Title | : | The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark |
| Author | : | Carl Sagan |
| Book Format | : | Paperback |
| Book Edition | : | First Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 459 pages |
| Published | : | February 25th 1997 by Ballantine Books (first published February 1st 1996) |
| Categories | : | Science. Nonfiction. Philosophy. Religion. Skepticism. History. Atheism |
Carl Sagan
Paperback | Pages: 459 pages Rating: 4.27 | 55085 Users | 2540 Reviews
Description In Favor Of Books The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark
How can we make intelligent decisions about our increasingly technology-driven lives if we don’t understand the difference between the myths of pseudoscience and the testable hypotheses of science? Pulitzer Prize-winning author and distinguished astronomer Carl Sagan argues that scientific thinking is critical not only to the pursuit of truth but to the very well-being of our democratic institutions.Casting a wide net through history and culture, Sagan examines and authoritatively debunks such celebrated fallacies of the past as witchcraft, faith healing, demons, and UFOs. And yet, disturbingly, in today's so-called information age, pseudoscience is burgeoning with stories of alien abduction, channeling past lives, and communal hallucinations commanding growing attention and respect. As Sagan demonstrates with lucid eloquence, the siren song of unreason is not just a cultural wrong turn but a dangerous plunge into darkness that threatens our most basic freedoms.
Details Books Concering The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark
| Original Title: | The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark |
| ISBN: | 0345409469 (ISBN13: 9780345409461) |
| Edition Language: | English |
| Literary Awards: | Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Science and Technology (1996) |
Rating Of Books The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark
Ratings: 4.27 From 55085 Users | 2540 ReviewsJudgment Of Books The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark
Sagan shows why learning to think in a contingent universe is ... well ... absolutely necessary. My reaction first reading the book was, "I've known for a long time that something's wrong. Now I know what." The discussions the author engages in in the book are eye-openers.I cannot recommend this book to those who are highly sensitive about their credos, but on other hand, I don't think more open-minded religious people will at all see this as the scathing attack many opinion-makers haveFull disclosure here, I did not finish this book; I made the decision to stop reading it after around 100 pages. I kept expecting the science to start at any page, but I got tired of reading accusations that the Weekly World News and Beavis and Butt-Head are sources of ignorance and misunderstanding. I won't argue that either of these are intellectual, but at best these are forms of entertainment and that is largely a product of taste, not intellect. I couldn't risk wasting my time reading
If Carl Sagan was alive today I think he would probably cry if he saw the state of the world. He wrote this book as a kind of wake up call to the people and the government, he pointed out how bad the education system is, he tries to get people to understand how important science is, he warns us not to watch so much crap on TV, go out and get some real-life experiences and he warns us about the government abusing the bill of rights.Well it looks like everybody has ignored him, if fact to me
My first Sagan book was Cosmos, which led me to this one. While Cosmos was good, this was great. It really opened my eyes to how important science is, and the underlying principles of science, and simultaneously how organized religion is virtually 100% philosophically opposed to science.Religion: Don't think, don't reason, don't use logic. We'll (religious leaders) tell you what to think, what our god(s) wants you to think/do. Our holy book written centuries ago by primitive tribes with no
I miss Carl Sagan.Ever since I was a kid, Carl Sagan has been the face of science for me. I would watch Cosmos and feel a sense of amazement that the universe was as wonderful as it was. He'd be there in his turtleneck and his blazer, smiling as though he'd just heard the coolest secret and he wanted to share it with you. And he did, except that it wasn't his secret. Hell, it wasn't a secret at all - it was the combined results of thousands of years of thoughts, deductions, mistakes, missteps,
. . . every question is a cry to understand the world. In a nutshell, Sagan valiantly attempts to understand why people believe weird stuff, then explains why they shouldn't. I particularly enjoyed the several excellent chapters on the importance of literacy and education. There's also a probing (Sorry!) look into alien abductions.I think this quote, included in the book, sums everything up nicely:[I]gnorance more frequently begets confidence than does knowledge: it is those who know little,
I was very disappointed in this book. I seriously don't understand why people consistantly rated this book so highly. I'm really out of synch on this one...and here's why:Carl obviously had an ongoing religious relationship with science and boy, is he ever tiresome about it. What a reckless evangelist! He condemns everything that does not stand up to science's demonstrable standards (whether such application is appropriate or not) and then....he violates the same standards time and again in his
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