OUR civilisation is dependent on science and science based technology. Almost all that we know about how the world works, apart from surface details, we have learned from science. And yet science is under attack. Some of this onslaught comes from "intellectual" analysis which argues that science inimical to spiritual values and is fundamentally anti human. Apologists for various New Age philosophies argue that science is just another way of looking at the world, no more and no less valid than any other method. Fundamentalist religion, whose star is in the ascendant, is at odds with science since it cannot abide a spirit of free enquiry. Entry rates into university science courses are seriously down in several countries.
In the face of this considerable opposition, science has made a poor show of defending itself. It is refreshing therefore to come on a book such as this, which takes on the principal arguments against science and delivers an unashamedly enthusiastic rebuttal.
Apart from the merits of his arguments, Sagan writes very dwell. He shows this right away in the preface to the book, which is an appreciation of his parents and his teachers. I found these few understated and evocative pages to be some of the most memorable in the book.
Sagan argues that although we live in a world of electronic technology, most people, intellectually and emotionally, are not that different from people in medieval times. He describes the ancient and medieval preoccupation with demons - supernatural creatures of evil intent - and suggests that the modern preoccupation with UFOs and aliens is simply a current manifestation of the demon phenomenon, dressed up in culturally appropriate pseudo scientific jargon.
A disproportionate amount of his book is taken up with UFOs and the alien abduction phenomenon. This is presumably because such stories are so common in America. One survey shows that two per cent of Americans claim to have been abducted. But, as far as I know, this phenomenon is confined to America. I never heard of an alien abduction claim in Ireland.
Sagan convincingly demolishes the argument that aliens are already here. He points out, inter alia, that despite the innumerable UFO "sightings" and abduction stories, there is scarcely a single piece of solid evidence worth considering - that is, not a single clear photograph, not a single unique artefact, not a single message that is neither banal nor bizarre. He also points out that stories of meetings with Martians were common until it was unambiguously demonstrated that there "is no life on Mars.
The scientific way of thinking is sceptical and believes in things only in proportion to the objective evidence that supports them. Sagan holds that such a way of thinking is essential if the world is not to degenerate into a cauldron of superstition. The forces of superstition are on the march. In addition to UFOs and aliens, he lists astrology, communication with spirits, satanism, transcendental meditation, telepathy, psychic powers, spoon bending and clock stopping, as bogus phenomena for which there is no convincing evidence.
Sagan discusses science and true religion (where open discussion is encouraged and many ideas are revisable) and rejects the notion that the two are naturally antagonistic to each other. On the other hand, science and fundamentalism are at odds because the latter insists on promoting dogmas that are testable and falsifiable by science, for example, the age of the Earth.
What about the fact that science has discovered and developed things that are bad, such as the hydrogen bomb? Sagan fully accepts this. He also is clear on the "matter of responsibility, that is, that scientists must accept responsibility for the uses to which their work is put.
One fault I find with this book is that it is too long. The points, might be better made in 250 pages. However, one advantage of the expansive style is the opportunity it affords for anecdotes and the Victorian statistician Francis Galton who "proved" that prayer is ineffectual. Galton reasoned, that if, prayer worked, British monarchs should be very long lived since millions of people all over the world daily prayed "God save the Queen (or King)". Yet Galton showed that the monarchs didn't live as long as other members of the aristocracy.
Science is here to stay. There is no doubt about this, since the modern world will not work without it. However, although we have contrived to make the world completely dependent on science, 95 per cent are illiterate in the subject. Sagan argues that this situation will have disastrous consequences unless it is rectified.