An unposted draft from 7 months ago

Lots of stuff going on in the last few weeks/month. In short...I finished the mortuary science program at WSU, took (and passed) both parts of the National Board Exam, and started working full time (9-6 M-F isn't THAT bad..so far at least) So obviously, I haven't had a great amount of time to fulfill my objectives on my 'to-read' list. In between the time I spent studying, I checked out a few books from the library. Canticle for Lebowitz, Time Enough For Love, Left Hand of Darkness, and The Demon Haunted World. Unfortunately, all I managed to accomplish was about half of The Demon Haunted World and nothing else. I did manage to accumulate 15 bucks in late fees as well. Late fees suck. This book, on the other hand, does not suck.

I can't stress enough how much I love Carl Sagan. I remember first watching Contact in my mom's then-boyfriend's (essentially my stepdad) apartment with the two of them and my brother. I remember at the time I thought it was a mix of interesting and boring. I was more interested in the fact that a person said "shit" in a PG rated movie. I was also more interested in watching Good Burger after that movie. I wish my 9-year-old self would've paid more attention to this movie. I watched the movie several years later and realized how great it was. I constantly hear/read negative reviews about the movie and, although I completely disagree, I guess I might see where a lot of these people are coming from. Several people call it boring, some call it anti-climatic, some call it a waste of time. I couldn't disagree more. The story is a realistic approach of the discovery of life on another planet. It doesn't have guns everywhere or constant explosions. And I truly believe that's why a lot of people don't like it. It's not an action movie or horror movie. It is a million times more subtle than Ridley Scott's Alien but just as epic in it's own right. Maybe the average Hollywood movie consumer wasn't ready for thinking just yet.

This book isn't Contact though. This non-fiction book is like porn for science enthusiasts and logical thinkers. I only read half of it, but will eventually give it another go once I get more situated to this working lifestyle. The first half that I read was good though. At times, it did seem like he was being very critical. For example, the section on UFO's I really liked but also felt a little like he...(*this was the end of the draft*). I don't remember what train of thought I was on. I now own this book so I can re-read it anytime I want and I will have to do so if I want to give this book a proper review. Instead, I"ll point out that Carl Sagan has become increased in "popularity" over the past year due to social media. Actually, I think the same can be said with Bill Nye and Neil Degrasse Tyson. I guess it's no coincidence that these are also some of the most known science popularizers, but there seems to have been an inkling of a resurgence. Good thing, right?

I will eventually re-read the book even though some of the parts felt like they were being hammered over too much. And that's the overall theme of the book- he takes subjects that have no legitimate scientific basis (astrology, Sasquatch, UFO's to name a few) and tears them apart through his own personal blend of reasoning and skepticism. He wants the reader to understand that several million Americans and others around the globe are scientifically illiterate. He desperately wishes to raise awareness of this fact and accomplishes his goal by also instilling a desire to increase your knowledge in several aspects. This wasn't the best review, but that's okay. I know I will eventually read the book in full so I can appreciate it in it's entirety.