#78 – Ann Druyan: Cosmos, Carl Sagan, Voyager, and the Beauty of Science

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Mar 5, 2020

Ann Druyan, a celebrated writer and producer known for the 'Cosmos' series and her unique connection to Carl Sagan, shares her fascinating journey through science communication. She discusses the profound significance of the Voyager Golden Record, which represents humanity's voice in space. Ann reflects on the blend of skepticism and wonder in scientific inquiry, addresses existential threats faced by civilization, and emphasizes the importance of making science accessible through storytelling. Her insights capture the emotional and philosophical interplay between love, knowledge, and the universe.

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INSIGHT

Science as Love

Science's value lies in its error-correcting mechanism, constantly seeking deeper truths.
This pursuit mirrors love, an unflinching acceptance and desire for deeper knowing.

ANECDOTE

Voyager and the Golden Record

The Voyager mission explored the outer solar system with technology from the 1970s and is still active.
It carries the Golden Record, a message to potential extraterrestrial civilizations containing music, images, and sounds of Earth.

ANECDOTE

Recording Love for Voyager

Ann Druyan's brainwaves and heart sounds were recorded during meditation and included on the Golden Record.
This occurred shortly after she and Carl Sagan confessed their love for each other.

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Ann Druyan is the writer, producer, director, and one of the most important and impactful communicators of science in our time. She co-wrote the 1980 science documentary series Cosmos hosted by Carl Sagan, whom she married in 1981, and her love for whom, with the help of NASA, was recorded as brain waves on a golden record along with other things our civilization has to offer and launched into space on the Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 spacecraft that are now, 42 years later, still active, reaching out farther into deep space than any human-made object ever has. This was a profound and beautiful decision she made as a Creative Director of NASA’s Voyager Interstellar Message Project. In 2014, she went on to create the second season of Cosmos, called Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey, and in 2020, the new third season called Cosmos: Possible Worlds, which is being released this upcoming Monday, March 9. It is hosted, once again, by the fun and brilliant Neil deGrasse Tyson.

EPISODE LINKS:
Cosmos Twitter: https://twitter.com/COSMOSonTV
Cosmos Website: https://fox.tv/CosmosOnTV

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Here’s the outline of the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time.

OUTLINE:
00:00 – Introduction
03:24 – Role of science in society
07:04 – Love and science
09:07 – Skepticism in science
14:15 – Voyager, Carl Sagan, and the Golden Record
36:41 – Cosmos
53:22 – Existential threats
1:00:36 – Origin of life
1:04:22 – Mortality