Who was Carl Sagan, and what is Cosmos?

Carl Sagan was an inspirational human made of billions and billions of molecules.

Carl Sagan was born on November 9, 1934, but the atoms he was composed of are the age of the universe.

He wrote a multitude of books, such as "The Dragons of Eden: Speculations on the Evolution of Human Intelligence" and "The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark".

He also wrote Cosmos. Cosmos was a hit, and ended up inspiring thousands of people. It educated them in a manner that they craved. We wanted to know about the universe that we lived in, and Cosmos helped to explain it.

But why did he write? The sorts of material he wrote indicated that he was filled with kindness and love, but also passion and fury. He hid the fury well, but reading his work, I could feel it. He had thought long and hard about many concepts and topics. He didn't relent either. Although he spoke politely, he was not a person to accept falsehoods or bad information. He wanted the truth.

This was why he was so adamantly anti-superstition. He had discovered that if you keep asking questions and trying to get not just any answer, but the correct answer, you could learn something. Sometimes those things were frightening, and made me feel small. But some facts of this universe are glorious, and make me proud that the human race has discovered them.

So what was Cosmos? He called it "A Personal Voyage". I think he called it that because in this world, we really are alone. Our brain sits in a shell, and can never directly cross paths with another being. Although we can talk to others and share things with others, we cannot ever experience the world as anyone but ourselves.

The voyage is personal, but what we voyage through is the same for everyone. We are all part of reality, and we are all part of the cosmos. Truth about our external reality is the same truth for all. Gravity works the same for all of us, as does electricity, atomic forces, chemistry, and the other facets of reality.

“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.” - Carl Sagan

Science is useful, because to find something out using the scientific method, we must prove that it is true.
The most powerful point is that you cannot use logic or emotion alone to prove something.
You must use an experiment.

Not even the most emotional or logical argument for something can stand up against experiencing it.

Yet, science as a concept recognizes that we are only humans, and what we experience might not always be perfectly accurate. And that's why science also incorporates peer review. Not only should you be able to experience something, it must be something others can experience as well.

Because of the concept of the scientific method, humans have figured out a lot about the universe, and that feeling of expanding knowledge is what inspired Carl Sagan. Knowing that we have half the pieces of the puzzle means we can begin to see what the puzzle might be. Humans are stepping into an era where we are more than tribal animals.

Cosmos explored these concepts, and more, and for that, I've learned to appreciate science.
Science is a method, a technique. Not a body of knowledge, and Cosmos explained that well.
Cosmos is a bookmark in the story of humanity, but it is not the final chapter. Although it was filled with facts and ideas, it is still from 1980.

There is more to learn, more to explore, and more to discover.
Keep an open mind. Understand the scientific method.
Be smart, and be aware.

It's up to you to form the philosophies that guide your life.

Written by @heretickitten. Upvote and follow.