sagan|sense (Books currently being shipped to me via Amazon....)

This [space] serves as an ongoing dedication to the late Carl Sagan. I will frequently update this page with all things Sagan, science & cosmos-related, in support of scientific literacy & understanding amongst the ever-increasing hominid population on our organic spaceship, Earth.

Keep looking up & remember: we are all star stuff, contemplating the stars, as our origins exist within the cosmos.

May this page bring you closer to your own individual enlightenment, further your knowledge of the universe & allow you to achieve wisdom & connectivity toward all living things for which we all share the same biological, chemical & atomic makeup.

be skeptical. ask questions :) post it forward.

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Notes

Books currently being shipped to me via Amazon. Birthday presents to myself :)

(in order of appearance):

BEE | Rose-Lynn Fisher

Of the ten million or so different species of insects on our planet, none is more fascinating than the honeybee. Magnified hundreds to thousands of times with a high resolution scanning electron microscope, honeybees become architectural masterpieces an elegant fusion of form and function. Now available in paperback, Bee presents sixty astonishing photographs of honeybee anatomy in magnifications ranging from 10x to 5000x. Rendered in stunning detail, these photographs uncover the strange beauty of the honeybee s pattern, form, and structure. Comprising 6,900 hexagonal lenses, their eyes resemble the structure of a honeycomb. The bee’s six-legged exoskeleton is fuzzy with hairs that build up a static charge as it flies in order to electrically attract pollen. Wings clasp together with tiny hooks, and a double-edged stinger resembles a serrated hypodermic needle. These visual discoveries, made otherworldly through photographer Rose-Lynn Fisher’s lens, expand the boundaries of our thinking about the natural world and stimulate our imaginations.

In the Shadow of Man | Jane Goodall

World-renowned primatologist, conservationist, and humanitarian Dr. Jane Goodall’s account of her life among the wild chimpanzees of Gombe is one of the most enthralling stories of animal behavior ever written. Her adventure began when the famous anthropologist Dr. Louis Leakey suggested that a long-term study of chimpanzees in the wild might shed light on the behavior of our closest living relatives. Accompanied by only her mother and her African assistants, she set up camp in the remote Gombe Stream Chimpanzee Reserve in Tanzania. For months the project seemed hopeless; out in the forest from dawn until dark, she had but fleeting glimpses of frightened animals. But gradually she won their trust and was able to record previously unknown behavior, such as the use—and even the making— of tools, until then believed to be an exclusive skill of man. As she came to know the chimps as individuals, she began to understand their complicated social hierarchy and observed many extraordinary behaviors, which have forever changed our understanding of the profound connection between humans and chimpanzees.

In the Shadow of Man is “one of the Western world’s great scientific achievements” (Stephen Jay Gould) and a vivid, essential journey of discovery for each new generation of readers.

Jane Goodall: 50 Years at Gombe | Jane Goodall

A great deal has happened since the publication of Jane Goodall: 40 Years at Gombe in 1999. Most recently, endeavors at the Gombe field site have included landmark research related to AIDS progression; establishing programs to improve sanitation, health care, and education in neighboring Tanzanian communities; and partnering with local people to pursue reforestation initiatives. The accomplishments of the past 10 years alone have given the Jane Goodall Institute a great deal to celebrate. In honor of the field site’s 50th anniversary, STC is proud to release Jane Goodall: 50 Years at Gombe, a compelling pictorial tribute to Dr. Goodall’s life, her studies of chimpanzee behavior, and her unflagging efforts to motivate people to make this world a better place. With a new format, a modern design, more than a dozen new photographs, and updated text throughout, this revised edition retraces five decades of compassion and discovery.

The Origin of Species and The Voyage of the Beagle | Charles Darwin

Easily the most influential book published in the nineteenth century, Darwin’s The Origin of Species is also that most unusual phenomenon, an altogether readable discussion of a scientific subject. On its appearance in 1859 it was immediately recognized by enthusiasts and detractors alike as a work of the greatest importance: its revolutionary theory of evolution by means of natural selection provoked a furious reaction that continues to this day.

The Origin of Species is here published together with Darwin’s earlier Voyage of the ‘Beagle.’ This 1839 account of the journeys to South America and the Pacific islands that first put Darwin on the track of his remarkable theories derives an added charm from his vivid description of his travels in exotic places and his eye for the piquant detail.

The Dragons of Eden: Speculations on the Evolution of Human Intelligence

- Carl Sagan

The Dragons of Eden: Speculations on the Evolution of Human Intelligence is a Pulitzer Prize^[1] winning 1977 book by Carl Sagan. In it, he combines the fields of anthropology, evolutionary biology, psychology, and computer science to give a perspective of how human intelligenceevolved.

One of the main issues featured in the book is the search for a quantitative way of measuring intelligence. Sagan shows that the brain to body mass ratio is an extremely good indicator, with humans having the highest and dolphins second.^[2] It does break down, however, at the extremely small end of the scale. Smaller creatures (ants in particular) place disproportionally high on the list.

Other topics mentioned include the evolution of the brain (with emphasis on the function of the neocortex in humans), the evolutionary purpose of sleep and dreams, demonstration of sign language abilities by chimps and the purpose of mankind’s innate fears and myths. The title “The Dragons of Eden” refers to man’s early struggle for survival in the face of predators, and how fear of reptiles may have led to cultural beliefs and myths about dragons and snakes.

Reading is fun. Right now I’m working through Six Easy Pieces: Essentials of Physics Explained by Its Most Brilliant Teacher, by Richard Feynman. It’s absolutely genius. Following that, I’ll probably move on to the one I’ve been itching to finally read, why does E=mc2? by Brian Cox & Jeff Forshaw.

Nerd-core.

#personal #science #nature #literature #scientific literacy #reading