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4.12 AVERAGE
4.12 AVERAGE
The only thing that could make this book better would be a companion piece written by Neil DeGrasse Tyson giving the most recent research on the subjects Sagan discussed in the book.
Sagan nos lleva a un recorrido a traves del tiempo en el que apreciamos teorias sobre la evolucion del intelecto.
Como es usual en el, los ejemplos puestos hacen que sean comprensibles incluso las cosas mas complejas. Su modo de plantear las teorias te deja entrever una enorme pasion por lo que hace y por comprender los misterios del universo. Te deja esa pasion impresa en ti.
Como es usual en el, los ejemplos puestos hacen que sean comprensibles incluso las cosas mas complejas. Su modo de plantear las teorias te deja entrever una enorme pasion por lo que hace y por comprender los misterios del universo. Te deja esa pasion impresa en ti.
hopeful
informative
informative
reflective
medium-paced
Em breve, este livro fará 50 anos desde a sua 1a edição e, apesar de desatualizado, as especulações e projeções para o futuro não deixam de ser relevantes e até mesmo actuais. Primeiro, é interessante ler sobre as especulações e saber no que realmente resultaram, como as reflexões sobre a inteligência artificial e a capacidade dos computadores. Mas também o desejo de que as descobertas sobre doenças mentais deixem de fazer com que as pessoas se sintam culpadas quanto ao que sentem - tema cujo taboo só muito recente começou a ser quebrado.
Um livro que reflecte sobre os humanos, mas também sobre os animais e o quanto estamos realmente (ou não) distantes deles. Carl Sagan nunca deixa de apontar a hipocrisia relativamente à forma como tratamos os outros seres vivos com base nesta percepção de que não são como nós, e ao mesmo tempo, como tratamos a nossa própria espécie.
"O conhecimento é o nosso destino."
Um livro que reflecte sobre os humanos, mas também sobre os animais e o quanto estamos realmente (ou não) distantes deles. Carl Sagan nunca deixa de apontar a hipocrisia relativamente à forma como tratamos os outros seres vivos com base nesta percepção de que não são como nós, e ao mesmo tempo, como tratamos a nossa própria espécie.
"O conhecimento é o nosso destino."
Though some passages (on the wonders and possibilities of computers, for example) read a little dated in 2013, this book is still relevant and interesting. I like the hopeful tone the book picks up towards the end, and Sagan's musings on humanity's future and thoughtful and instructive. Also, Sagan is a great writer with an eye for concision and structure, so his ideas never overwhelm either him or the layman reader.
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Brain science has moved on, but nobody writes about science better than the man, Carl Sagan. This one's a quick read and a good intro to the evolutionary history of our brains, coupled with tasty philosophical nuggets and speculations on the future of intelligence and evolution.
emotional
hopeful
slow-paced
The book is fun and easy to read, but it doesn’t satisfy the incredible complexities of the subject. The book is a lot like a summary of what people knew about consciousness at the time of writing, plus reflection and speculations from Sagan. Having read many of Richard Dawkins’s books, I didn’t get much out of this, except an entertaining summary.
Keep in mind that a lot has changed in the field of the subject since the book was written, and, again, it contains a lot of speculations by Sagan.
Keep in mind that a lot has changed in the field of the subject since the book was written, and, again, it contains a lot of speculations by Sagan.
One of the lesser points Sagan introduces is the analytical check our "left" brain must impose on our "right" brain's more intuitive connections. Ironically I would argue that Sagan's hesitance to check himself was this book's biggest failure. Often he excitedly drew out connections, usually preceded by a phrase such as "I wonder," that do not stand his left-brained test of reason.
With that said, I found the book worth the read. Sagan draws up a quick tour of human evolutionary lineage with a focus on our neocortical developments. He also always had a ready comparison to primates in order to more
fully showcase what makes us "human". As always, the line is thinner and more vague than many more orthodox religions would like to believe.
One major takeaway was the human ability, through the development of the neocortex, to have built-in "intelligence", I.e. analytical thinking, as compared to "instinct". Whereas instinctual information is programmed into tightly packed DNA (and is therefore limited in nature) and survives solely off adaptive selection, intelligence (or extragenetic info) resides in a larger brain capacity.. it is the ability to think on the fly and respond successfully to innumerable changing environments and situations.
Sagan introduces many other varying ideas and usually does a good job supporting them scientifically. All in all, if you ignore anything he says about aliens or computers, it's a good read.
With that said, I found the book worth the read. Sagan draws up a quick tour of human evolutionary lineage with a focus on our neocortical developments. He also always had a ready comparison to primates in order to more
fully showcase what makes us "human". As always, the line is thinner and more vague than many more orthodox religions would like to believe.
One major takeaway was the human ability, through the development of the neocortex, to have built-in "intelligence", I.e. analytical thinking, as compared to "instinct". Whereas instinctual information is programmed into tightly packed DNA (and is therefore limited in nature) and survives solely off adaptive selection, intelligence (or extragenetic info) resides in a larger brain capacity.. it is the ability to think on the fly and respond successfully to innumerable changing environments and situations.
Sagan introduces many other varying ideas and usually does a good job supporting them scientifically. All in all, if you ignore anything he says about aliens or computers, it's a good read.