22 years ago, 13 hours of television changed my life. I was just 11 years old when I saw
Cosmos for the first time.
Carl Sagan's explanation of the "Billions and Billions" of stars in our universe was often heckled, but I always related to the wonder of the magnitude that he was trying to relate.
Vangelis was responsible for the soundtrack (the same folks behind the music from
Chariots of Fire and
Blade Runner), and listening to it today, I feel the stirrings of emotion that brought me running to Science at an early age.
If you're looking for a gift for a child in your life this holiday season, I suggest the
DVD Compilation. Make sure to buy it from the carlsagan.com site, as 10% of the proceeds go to the Carl Sagan Foundation.
posted by thanotopsis
on Sep 9, 2002 -
44 comments
The Universe in One Year Every year on December 31 since I was in 7th grade I think of something I saw in an episode of Carl Sagan's
Cosmos.
I found this: Imagine that the history of the universe is compressed into one year—with the Big Bang occurring in the first seconds of New Year’s Day, and all our known history occurring in the final seconds before midnight on December 31. Using this scale of time, each month would equal a little over a billion years. Dinosaurs ruled the Earth for almost two hundred million years - from December 25 to December 30 on this time line. Most of our entire written history fits into the last 10 seconds of the year. It's something to think about while watching the ball drop tonight.
posted by stevis
on Dec 31, 2001 -
28 comments
