General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsCosmos - A real scientist explaining real science in terms real people can understand...
Right now we need this even more then we did when the original Cosmos aired. Stupidity is far too widely embraced.
Cooley Hurd
(26,877 posts)Neil just told the story about how, as a 17 year old, he visited Carl in Ithaca (just south of me in Auburn) and Carl told him he had his back. WOW! Just WOW!
CherokeeDem
(3,709 posts)I was tearing up at the tribute to Sagan and then Tyson told that story... tears just flowed then. What remarkable men...
Ohio Joe
(21,761 posts)I'm at the halfway point now and if this first episode is what we can expect... This is truly 'MUST SEE TV'.
Amazing stuff.
AAO
(3,300 posts)Great show, great host.
Cooley Hurd
(26,877 posts)...and to see Neil as his successor.
Ilsa
(61,698 posts)I didn't know that Neil was a protege of Sagan's. Wonderful story.
Dawson Leery
(19,348 posts)alittlelark
(18,890 posts)...but their kids will likely Listen....
seabeckind
(1,957 posts)During it I mentioned to my wife that there'll be heads exploding and many people yelling "NO!" at their tv screen.
She pointed out that those people will be watching the other fox channel.
I can't wait to hear how those people defend this program's free speech rights. Wanna bet there'll be cries for censorship?
justhanginon
(3,290 posts)a great job. I especially enjoyed the parts about Carl Sagan. I fondly remember watching it with my kids many years ago on a much smaller TV. I think one could watch this and still watch the original and enjoy them both. Mr. Sagan brought a certain magic or wonderment to it that I still enjoy to this day. Nice to see some worthwhile TV for a change.
His kindness to the 17 year old Neil certainly paid dividends for all of us. Very touching story. Carl Sagan left quite a legacy.
valerief
(53,235 posts)Also found it interesting the way he highlighted Bruno over Galileo.
I wish Tyson's presentation could make me feel small. Still feel fat, though.
Ilsa
(61,698 posts)spin
(17,493 posts)Auntie Bush
(17,528 posts)It might just convince some of them to realize the earth isn't 5M years old.
valerief
(53,235 posts)spin
(17,493 posts)the Bible is the literal truth and the earth was created in 6 days, 6000 years ago. Some of those Christians even live in the south.
I've known several conservatives who were atheists and a good number who were agnostics. I've also known a good number of liberals who were very religious. That's not surprising as Jesus as portrayed in the New Testament could be easy described as a liberal.
TheMightyFavog
(13,770 posts)I always tell myself the following when I have such thoughts: "Remember, the biggest atheist you knew in college was also the biggest Republican you knew." (Guy was a huge Randroid. last I heard, he was active in Ron Paul's 2012 campaign.)
spanone
(135,874 posts)Auntie Bush
(17,528 posts)mucifer
(23,565 posts)handmade34
(22,757 posts)jimlup
(7,968 posts)with my Ph.D. work. For this one I had time to watch and enjoy.
Wow! That was excellent. And the President's introduction was awesome. Makes you think intelligence might just win out...
ChazInAz
(2,572 posts)In the Nineties, I had the privilege of playing Galileo in Tucson elementary and middle schools. One of the points I made in my presentation was the story of Giordano Bruno. As a young man, Galileo had been a witness to his execution. Only a few of the teachers had ever heard of Bruno. Seeing it on this program was a delight for me, especially with the elegant animation employed.
Very well done!
spin
(17,493 posts)Giordano Bruno
Giordano Bruno (Latin: Iordanus Brunus Nolanus; Italian: [dʒorˈdano ˈbruno]; 1548 February 17, 1600), born Filippo Bruno, was an Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, mathematician, poet and astrologer.[2] He is best known for his cosmological theories, which went even further than the then-novel Copernican model: while supporting heliocentrism, Bruno also correctly proposed that the Sun was just another star moving in space, and claimed as well that the universe contained an infinite number of inhabited worlds populated by other intelligent beings.[3]
Beginning in 1593, Bruno was tried for heresy by the Roman Inquisition on charges including denial of the Trinity, denial of the divinity of Christ, denial of virginity of Mary, and denial of Transubstantiation. The Inquisition found him guilty, and in 1600 he was burned at the stake.[4] After his death he gained considerable fame, particularly among 19th- and early 20th-century commentators who, focusing on his astronomical beliefs, regarded him as a martyr for free thought[5] and modern scientific ideas. However, some scholars argue that Bruno's ideas about the universe played a small role in his trial compared to his pantheist beliefs, which differed from the interpretations and scope of God held by the Catholic Church.[6][7] Since the records of his trial are lost, other scholars question the evidence for such arguments[8]
In addition to his cosmological writings, Bruno also wrote extensively on the art of memory, a loosely organized group of mnemonic techniques and principles. The historian Frances Yates argues that Bruno was deeply influenced by Arab astrology, Neoplatonism and Renaissance Hermeticism.[9] Other studies of Bruno have focused on his qualitative approach to mathematics and his application of the spatial paradigms of geometry to language.[10]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giordano_Bruno
MindMover
(5,016 posts)Lex
(34,108 posts)of science and the foundation of scientific principles--and I think Neil DeGrasse Tyson is awesome.
Manifestor_of_Light
(21,046 posts)The fundies will have their panties in a wad over that.
gristy
(10,667 posts)ReRe
(10,597 posts)I was watching True Detective. What channel was this on? Will there be repeats in the night? Thanks!
AverageJoe90
(10,745 posts)Climate denial(and doomerism too.), hardcore Dawkinsian(Ontological) materialism, creationism.....so much stupidity out there that it does boggle the mind. Although unfortunately, it's not just the right that has problems(certainly they are the most ignorant overall by a long shot). Stupidity of varying flavors is a problem that affects people from all across the political spectrum, though largely depends on where they are(Climate deniers are mostly right-wingers, climate doomers are at least slightly majority leftist, and Dawkins-type hardcore materialists seem to be largely composed of libertarians).