If we long to believe that the stars rise and set for us, that we are the reason there is a Universe, does science do us a disservice in deflating ou… - Carl Sagan

If we long to believe that the stars rise and set for us, that we are the reason there is a Universe, does science do us a disservice in deflating our conceits?

Nietzsche mourns the loss of “man’s belief in his dignity, his uniqueness, his irreplace-ability in the scheme of existence.” For me, it is far better to grasp the Universe as it really is than to persist in delusion, however satisfying and reassuring.

For me, it is far better to grasp the Universe as it really is than to persist in delusion, however satisfying and reassuring

For me, it is far better to grasp the Universe as it really is than to persist in delusion, however satisfying and reassuring.

It is properly said that the Devil can “quote Scripture to his purpose.” The Bible is full of so many stories of contradictory moral purpose that every generation can find scriptural justification for nearly any action it proposes — from incest, slavery, and mass murder to the most refined love, courage, and self-sacrifice. And this moral multiple personality disorder is hardly restricted to Judaism and Christianity. You can find it deep within Islam, the Hindu tradition, indeed nearly all the world’s religions. Perhaps then it is not so much scientists as people who are morally ambiguous.

A cover-up to keep knowledge of extraterrestrial life or alien abductions almost wholly secret for 45 years, with hundreds if not thousands of government employees privy to it, is a remarkable notion.

This will rise to ten million annual deaths by 2020 — in part because of a massive advertising campaign to portray smoking as advanced and fashionable to young women in the developing world.