Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey

Understood and I have the same thoughts.  As I was watching it I thought, hmmmmm..... is this more edutainment?  But then I really started thinking about how ground breaking Cosmos was in the way it communicated scientific content.  And I'm hoping this is going to do the same thing.  And not just for you and I but more importantly for the youth of today.  Get them jazzed about science.  And hopefully inspire the next Sagan/NdGT/Nye/Dawkins/Gould.  

Originally posted by cnsegura

Originally posted by crowny2 And not just for you and I but more importantly for the youth of today.  Get them jazzed about science.  And hopefully inspire the next Sagan/NdGT/Nye/Dawkins/Gould.  

Exactly this. We'll watch Cosmos for sure, and if for some sad reason alien conspiracies are front and center, I'll use that time to teach my 7yr old what the word skepticism means

Check out Neil deGrasse Tyson, if you haven't already.  I'm pretty confident in saying there will not be alien conspiracy garbage.  Not to say he won't talk about extra terrestrials, but only in the context that Sagan did.  NdGT is friggen awesome and is one of the best voices of scientific reason we have these days.

FTFY.

Don't like Dawkins? 

I had the pleasure of meeting and talking to Hawking on Superbowl Sunday in '98 for about 45 minutes.  To this day it is the highlight of my life as it relates to science.  

So did anyone watch it?

I personally enjoyed it.  I also really liked the nod to Sagan.  Classy.

I also really enjoyed it and thought it was well done. I admit that I'd never heard poor Bruno's story, so that was interesting. I didn't know what to think at first about them using cartoons, but it worked.

I thought the cosmic timeline was fascinating. To think that the entirety of human existence is represented by a few seconds of the last day when the timeline is condensed to a year is mind-boggling.

Wife said the same thing but it is likely cheaper than hiring live talent.

I loved the cosmic timeline.  What a great way to set the stage for the coming episodes. 

One thing I didn't like is the excessive commercials.  By the second half of the show it seemed to be commercials every 5 minutes.  Really interrupted the flow of the show.

We watched it and loved it too!

I only wish it were a 2 hour show... I get really into these things and once I grasp on, I want to keep going! Maybe it was the commercials, but I felt like the show was over too quickly.

I also loved the calendar/timeline. That was fascinating, and a practical way of explaining really how much time he's talking about.

Fascinating. Can't wait til the next one!

Same here.  I fondly remember Sagan and the original, and have been a fan of Tyson for a few years now.  I download his StarTalk podcasts and listen to them on long runs- he's a hoot.

I sat down this week and got my 10 year old daughter to watch the show.  It was pretty much at her level.  (yeah, the level of a 10 year old), but that's OK.  the whole idea of the show is to bring some science and the universe to the layman.  The special effects were good, my daughter loved his spaceship- so, it kept her attention.  She can't wait for the next one.  oh, yeah, I too loved his personal Sagan story.  Heck- I went to cornell when Sagan was there- and never met the guy.  Saw him walking on campus once- that's about it.  But, then again, I wasn't destined to grow up to be Neil DeGrasse Tyson.

So- I'm watching and enjoying it through the eyes of a 10-year old.  Which really- is better than if it were targeted to me.

Anyone catch Episode 2 last night?  

Again, chock full of stuff.  

Liked the "Tree of Life' analogy. We all know that it is more complex than that, and NDT even stated that the real tree would be 10,000x more large and complex. Kind of wish they would have attempted to show that in some fashion, but I understand why they didn't.

Like again how they nodded to Sagan.  But the ending, this time, seemed quite abrupt.  

Really enjoyed it with my 10 year old daughter.  We paused it a few times while she asked questions.  So thrilled that she's getting it all.  

NDT using canines, and then a polar bear (that adorable mega fauna that all kids love) were clear choices that would hit a familiar and emotional chord with kids and those with child-like minds.  The purpose of this show is clearly to bring science to the uninitiated.  

Of course- the half of Americans that are strict creationists, wouldn't have been able to watch the show.  At least not without experiencing severe cognitive dissonance.

Most emotional part for me was at the end, when Carl Sagan's voice came on.  

Can't wait for next Sunday night.

I haven't watched any of these yet, but is it basically a science type show done in an "entertaining" way?  The trailer was a little confusing because it seemed like they had characters flying on spaceships and such.  It almost looked like a new Star Trek show with some cartoons mixed in.  

Did you never see the original Cosmos with Carl Sagan.?  It is a reboot of that. 

The space ship is actually their "imagination ship" which is what Sagan used in the first.  This is just an update on that. 

And there is animation thrown in but not tons of it.  Very likely to cut down on costs so they could use more of it on CGI for explaining the harder things.

Just finally watched the first one. Still have some catching up to do, but I'm in. Great show. I can't say I watched much of the original... but I did really like Segan. Read his last book and wow... what a mind/man. Been interested in him every since. Th show is done great. Can't wait to see the rest.