“The cosmos is all that is, or ever was, or ever will be. Our contemplations of the cosmos stir us. There is a tingling in the spine; a catch in the voice; a faint sensation, as if a distant memory, of falling from a great height. We know we are approaching the grandest of mysteries.” – Carl Sagan
With those eloquent words, Carl Sagan launched his epic series Cosmos. I was 8 years old when this carefully spoken man, with a measured cadence, launched my mind on its own voyage into the curiosity and questioning that underpins science. Recently, I re-watched the original series, and while the special effects are dated, the message, and the man, are timeless.
For three months, Carl Sagan took the entire country on a journey through the universe, as both a place and more critically as an idea. I would sit rapt, unable to do anything else, and the words inspired me. I wonder where today’s youth will find their inspiration? It is difficult to contemplate a world without Carl Sagan. Science and technology have advanced so far in the last 20 years, and today we have so few people who can clearly articular the science while not forgetting the awe that the average person experiences when contemplating their place in the universe.