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/sci/ - Science & Math

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1392512 No.1392512 [Reply] [Original]

Why the hell does /sci/ have such a boner for Sagan? He is not that great...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MlikCebQSlY

Obviously, he is dumbing this down for the sake of the audience. However, his choice of numbers alone prove how unimpressive he is.

>> No.1392530

0/10

>> No.1392559

He is seriously arguing that there have been 1 billion planets where civilization has developed at least once. And then he says that chances of a civilization surviving without destroying itself are one in 100 million, which means that we should expect 10 advance civilizations (including ourselves). Really? Maybe he was high at the time (as everyone on /sci/ just loves to point out...)?

>> No.1392567

>>1392559
Blame the drake equation, not him. He was just plugging in numbers.

>> No.1392577
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1392577

>>1392559
> 10 from 1 billion
Well shit we're fucked.

>> No.1392579

Carl Sagan made Cosmos during the Cold War, when it was entirely feasible that humanity would wipe itself out.

>> No.1392597

I like his voice and he presents interesting ideas in a very simple way accessible to everyone.

Anyone that makes science universally appealing deserves praise in my opinion.

>> No.1392598

>>1392567
The problem was the numbers that he chose. They were absolutely ridiculous. So far, there has only been 1 planet in the system that we know to support life, but we believe that it may be possible that Mars can. So the conservative number to choose is ONE not two. It isn't a big deal, but he specifically said he was choosing a conservative number and then he DOESN'T.

>> No.1392628

>>1392597
Alright, that is an answer that I can accept. However, where is all the love on /sci/ for Brian Greene?

>> No.1392629

>And then he says that chances of a civilization surviving without destroying itself are one in 100 million

Pulling numbers out of his ass much?

>> No.1392630
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1392630

>>1392598
SOMEONE DON'T KNOW HOW MANY STARS AND GALAXIES THERE ARE

>> No.1392635

"Obviously, he is dumbing this down for the sake of the audience."

What do you think the purpose of that is? Think about it for a minute.

>> No.1392643

>>1392598
Ah, I misunderstood you. Didn't he say there might also be life on Titan? Anyway, Cosmos was made a long time ago. The point is that Carl Sagan is a badass who makes science fascinating even for normalfags.

>> No.1392655

Carl Sagan is the patron saint of /sci/. You can get lynched for that sort of talk, OP.

>> No.1392664

>10 planets in our solar system

>> No.1392666

you're taking it out of the context of the era it's from and trying to put it into the context of our current knowledge of the universe. Take it for what it is, popular science entertainment.