Cosmos is undoubtedly such a popular and widely-read book that I need not say anything about it.
But such a chattering person I'm that I could not resist to put in a few words of my own about the truly fascinating book I've ever read.
When I picked up Cosmos and skimmed through its pages in a manner of scrutiny, I thought that it was a kind of scientific tome with ill-disguised jargons and horrendous terms. But since, I had nothing else to read I decided it to give it a shot.
And I'm still surprised at the ease with which Carl Sagan transferred me into an entirely new world with his deftly written lines and description. The book whirled me into a journey of the Cosmos, starting with the ancient history of science where great people like Erasthothenes paved the way for future generations to understand the complexity of the Universe. Erasthothenes was in fact the first person to measure the diameter of the Earth using sticks and their shadow on the ground. A great description of the ancient library of Alexandria filled me with awe and respect for those ancient men.
Scientists have been made the main focus of Sagan's work and detailed life histories of people like Kepler has been given in a flowing script that never lets you get away from the theme. It's like reading a suspense novel where you find yourself ticking with anticipation as to what more revelations Sagan is going to make. My favoruite part of the book started when Sagan starts to delve into possibilities of life on other planets and the theory of relativistic time travel. It all fits in like a jigsaw and I was forced to complete the book in two days because of its unrelenting pace.
Carl Sagan is a great writer--winner of Pulitzer Prize and author of several great books that I'm planning to accumulate. My next target is the Pale Blue Dot, which may be considered a sequel to Cosmos where Sagan talks about mankind's prospects on other planets. Even in Cosmos glimpses have been made about such prospects and they had been enough to fill my heart with emotion, ecstacy, wonder and above all, love for my own planet that has up till now been a unique place in the darkness of Cosmos.
I suggest that every one should read this authentic work at least once in his lifetime and experience the timidity of humans in the vast space of the Cosmos. A lot of egos can be settled and the vanity of our futile affairs (wars, economy and double-digit growth rate) on this planet would be laid bare by this legendary work.
But such a chattering person I'm that I could not resist to put in a few words of my own about the truly fascinating book I've ever read.
When I picked up Cosmos and skimmed through its pages in a manner of scrutiny, I thought that it was a kind of scientific tome with ill-disguised jargons and horrendous terms. But since, I had nothing else to read I decided it to give it a shot.
And I'm still surprised at the ease with which Carl Sagan transferred me into an entirely new world with his deftly written lines and description. The book whirled me into a journey of the Cosmos, starting with the ancient history of science where great people like Erasthothenes paved the way for future generations to understand the complexity of the Universe. Erasthothenes was in fact the first person to measure the diameter of the Earth using sticks and their shadow on the ground. A great description of the ancient library of Alexandria filled me with awe and respect for those ancient men.
Scientists have been made the main focus of Sagan's work and detailed life histories of people like Kepler has been given in a flowing script that never lets you get away from the theme. It's like reading a suspense novel where you find yourself ticking with anticipation as to what more revelations Sagan is going to make. My favoruite part of the book started when Sagan starts to delve into possibilities of life on other planets and the theory of relativistic time travel. It all fits in like a jigsaw and I was forced to complete the book in two days because of its unrelenting pace.
Carl Sagan is a great writer--winner of Pulitzer Prize and author of several great books that I'm planning to accumulate. My next target is the Pale Blue Dot, which may be considered a sequel to Cosmos where Sagan talks about mankind's prospects on other planets. Even in Cosmos glimpses have been made about such prospects and they had been enough to fill my heart with emotion, ecstacy, wonder and above all, love for my own planet that has up till now been a unique place in the darkness of Cosmos.
I suggest that every one should read this authentic work at least once in his lifetime and experience the timidity of humans in the vast space of the Cosmos. A lot of egos can be settled and the vanity of our futile affairs (wars, economy and double-digit growth rate) on this planet would be laid bare by this legendary work.
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