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. 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. 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.Ĭasting 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. From the first page to the last, this book is a manifesto for clear thought.”-Los Angeles Times Presidents are buried in the cemetery: James Monroe and John Tyler, as well as Confederate president Jefferson Davis. Mysterious whispers and groans from Confederate dead, a phantom dog, and even a vampire are said to bedevil the place. 'Overcoming The Myth of Self-Worth: Reason and Fallacy in What You Say to Yourself'. Part 1 (At Night) Hollywood Cemetery in Richmond, Virginia, is haunted by numerous specters. A prescient warning of a future we now inhabit, where fake news stories and Internet conspiracy theories play to a disaffected American populace The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark Ballantine: New York, 1996.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |