Death by Black Hole

Death by Black Hole and Other Cosmic Quandries
© 2007 Neil deGrasse Tyson
384 pages

Although I've encountered Dr. Tyson before -- chiefly through interviews in podcasts like The Skeptic's Guide to the Universe and the Humanist Network News -- I've never read anything by him. His Death by Black Hole is a collection of columns and articles he has written for scientific magazines, edited for continuity. The 42 essays are divided into seven sections: "The Nature of Knowledge", "The Knowledge of Nature", "Ways and Means of Nature", "The Meaning of Life", "When the Universe Turns Bad", "Science and Culture" and lastly, "Science and God".

Tyson has been billed to me as the next Carl Sagan, and in some ways I think the description fits. He's definitely passionate about popularizing science, and criticizes scientists like Richard Dawkins who he thinks have lost touch with the common people. Tyson as an astrophysicists writes essays mostly dealing with those themes, but he addresses a few other fields and science in general before the book is finished. The majority of these were fascinating, even if I don't particularly understand the subfield being worked in, and humor abounds. It's worthy of a read.

This Week at the Library (10/9)

Books this Update:

• A History of God, Karen Armstrong
• The Demon-Haunted World, Carl Sagan
• Heir to the Empire, Timothy Zahn
• The Sons of Caesar, Philip Matyszak

I started the week off with Karen Armstrong's History of God, a religious history focusing on the three Abrahamic religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. While her focus remains here, Armstrong often connects themes in these religions as they develop to developing traditions in other religions The book reminded me of her The Great Transformation. While she covers a lot of information -- focusing not only on the general history of the religions but trends within them, like mysticism and rationalism -- she does it fairly well, and the end result reads nicely.

I decided to revisit Carl Sagan's Demon-Haunted World this week. I read it in 2006, and it helped reignite my passion for science and the natural world, as it concentrates on the benefits of science education and scientific thinking in understanding and enjoying the world -- as well as protecting us from very easily made errors.

I reread another book following this, although I'd forgotten most everything about it except for a few particulars. Timothy Zahn's Heir to the Empire is the first in the Thrawn trilogy of Star Wars books set after Return of the Jedi, in which Imperial forces are rallying behind the extremely competent and devious Grand Admiral Thrawn to take on the New Republic, which is having serious problems creating a government from the ruins of war and from the framework of the Rebel Alliance. The trio from the original trilogy are the book's main characters, but other characters (like Thrawn and Mara Jade) are introduced. The last sentence in my extended comments sums it up nicely: "Zahn delivers a prime Star Wars novel with elements of everything that made the movies enjoyable while making believable modifications to the now-late ROTJ universe."

Lastly, I read The Sons of Caesar, a narrative history of the Julio-Claudian dynasty covering Julius Caesar to Nero. According to the author, the Julio-Claudian dynasty oversaw the complete transition of Rome from Republic to Empire, each succeeding emperor making changes to the system. After spending a little time to analyze the late Republic, Matyszak devotes one chapter to each of the emperors. The narrative is nicely done, giving me a feel for how Rome was changing over the generations. It never lost my attention.

Pick of the Week: I'm exempting Sagan because I've read Demon-Haunted World before. The Sons of Caesar gets it this week, I think.

Quotation of the Week: "Science is more than a body of knowledge. It is a way of thinking. It is a way of of skeptically interrogating the universe with an eye for human fallibility. If we are not able to ask skeptical questions, to interrogate those who tell us that something is true, to be skeptical of those of authority, then we're up for grabs for the next charlatan -- political or religious -- who comes ambling along." (Carl Sagan, in an interview available at the Sounds of Sagan. He reflects a similar sentiment in the book.)

Potentials for Next Week, in order of likelihood:

• Death by Black Hole, Neil deGrasse Tyson. I'm mostly finished with this one.
• Taming the Mind, Thubten Chodron. This one is shaping up to be more dogmatic (and thus, less enjoyable) than I had anticipated. I may finish it, but I may stop and move on to something more enjoyable, like..
  
• Murder on the Appian Way, Steven Saylor
• Waiter Rant, Steven Dublanica.
• The Philosophy of Humanism, Corliss Lamont. Considering I've thought of myself as a Humanist for over three years now, it may seem strange that I've never read anything about it. Humanism is a philosophy easily self-arrived at, though, its values being human values, and so no books are necessary.
• Dark Force Rising, Timothy Zahn. The second in the Thrawn series.

The Sons of Caesar

The Sons of Caesar: Imperial Rome's First Dynasty
© 2006 Philip Matyszak
296 pages, 16 pages of plates.



Most of my Roman reading has been set in the late Republic, although as a western student of history I have a working knowledge of the Roman empire. Even so, the amount of emperors I can name is somewhat limited, as is my sense of where they fit in on the timescale -- with some exceptions. For instance, I didn't know Nero was closely related to emperor Augustus, nor did I know how quickly he rose to the office. For me, The Sons of Caesar was an edifying read, nicely written and very informing. It corrected my ignorance of the early imperial period while telling an interesting story in and of itself.

Matyszak begins the book with statement that republics do not become empires overnight, and the empire that westerners think of is no exception. Although the system that would eventually emerge from the Republic's death would be vastly different, Matyszak maintains that the early imperials simply co-opted elements of the old Republic, with each successive generation seeing more liberties taken. By the end of the first dynasty, the "last remnants of the old Republic [had] been swept away." According to Matyszak, the transition between Republic and Empire happening nicely within the bounds of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, and those six emperors (Caesar, Augustus, Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius, and Nero) are the topic of the work. He starts the book by analyzing the character of the old Republic, showing how what we might think of corruption was really just the normal affairs of the late republic. He shows too how it could be manipulated.

The first chapter on Caesar is nearly an introduction by itself, as Caesar -- despite his claims to "Dictator for Life" -- is more republican than any of his successors, and his rule does not last for very long. Soon he is assassinated, and Matyszak devotes attention to the war between Mark Antony and Octavius for the throne. The chapters do not blend right into one another: each emperor gets his own, but when it ends at his death, Matyszak chooses to begin the next chapter by telling the story of the successor's career up to that point before he actually becomes emperor. Matyszak keeps himself grounded in primary sources, being careful to avoid taking some of the early Roman historians seriously, as some of them liked to gossip. This is a well-done narrative, definitely one of the better popular histories I've read.

Heir to the Empire

Heir to the Empire

© 1991 Timothy Zahn

404 pages

A few weeks ago I decided to read the Thrawn trilogy in full. Set in the Star Wars expanded universe five years after Return of the Jedi, it seemed an apt introduction to the post-trilogies universe. Although I am not a stranger to Star Wars fiction, the majority of my reading -- except for this book, I think -- has been set before the original trilogy. I haven't sampled any of the vast post-ROTJ offerings for the same reason I was wary about starting Isaac Asimov's Foundation novels and for the same reason I am finding it difficult to get back into post-Nemesis Trek literature: people have been writing these novels long enough for the stories to be completely unrecognizable to the new reader, and I would rather not immerse myself in a pool of stories if I can't swim.

But, the Thrawn trilogy has a background not too unlike the movies. Five years have passed and the Rebellion has formed a provisional "New Republic" which still fights the Imperial remnant recently strengthened as it rallies around Grand Admiral Thrawn, a mysterious and devious imperial commander -- but it's still the Star Wars I know. The title is ambiguous as to who the empire's heir is: is it the fledging New Republic, still mostly ruled by the military leadership of the Rebellion, or is it the new face of the Empire -- Grand Admiral Thrawn? This opening story sees Princess Leia, now expecting "Jedi twins", attempt to rally support for the Republic while Han Solo tries to convince smugglers that the Republic welcomes their shipping. Naturally, neither of their missions go perfectly and the plot soon involves space battle, multiple attempts on the heroes' lives or general well-being, Lando Calrissian, and several new characters who will play important parts in the story to come.

Zahn delivers a prime Star Wars novel with elements of everything that made the movies enjoyable while making believable modifications to the now-late ROTJ universe.

The Demon-Haunted World

The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark

© 1995 Carl Sagan

457 pages

Carl Sagan's Demon-Haunted World is a classic of the modern skeptical movement. I initially began to phrase that "will be considered", but quickly changed it: if a skeptical website or blog has a list of reccommended books, chances are good that Demon-Haunted World will be on the list along with Michael Shermer's Why People Believe Weird Things. Sagan is perhaps best known for his work with Cosmos: while a scientist himself with experience in the Voyager and Mariner projects, Sagan made a career out of popularizing science. In The Demon-Haunted World, Sagan writes on the importance of science education and more importantly -- the mindset behind science. "Science is not just a body of knowledge," he writes here and commented in an interview, "It is a way of thinking. It is a way of of skeptically interrogating the universe with an eye for human fallibility. If we are not able to ask skeptical questions, to interrogate those who tell us that something is true, to be skeptical of those of authority, then we're up for grabs for the next charlatan -- political or religious -- who comes ambling along."

The importance of science education and a scientific/skeptical worldview are two themes here, but another that underlies them is the wonder of science. While he applies skepticism to UFO sightings, crop circles, and faith-healers in the book, Sagan writes that perhaps these things stem from an appetite for wonder that people do not realize can be found in the world of science. Part of one chapter seems to come from his lecture "Wonder and Skepticism", which you can listen to here following an interview with his co-author, colleague, and wife Ann Druyan. Sagan does not only advocate a scientific worldview on the basis that it increases our well-being or is simply useful: as he cautions in an introductory chapter, "We've arranged a global civilization in which most crucial elements profoundly depend on science and technology. We have also arranged things so that almost no one understands science and technology. This is a prescription for disaster. We might get away with it for a while, but sooner or later this combustible mixture of ignorance and power is going to blow up in our faces." Like Erich Fromm in The Sane Society, he cautions that change is not only useful here, but necessary.

It was lovely to revist Carl Sagan: his joy at the natural world and being able to think about it intelligently are compelling and contagious, as I found when I first read him in 2006.

Related:

• The Sounds of Sagan: various recorded interviews and music files that relate to Sagan in some way. Some of the songs are from Cosmos. One particular favorite is #7, "When Carl Sagan Died".
  
• Point of Inquiry featured Carl Sagan's last address to CSICOP after an interview with his wife, Ann Druyan.
• Celebrating Sagan, a Sagan-themed blog.
• The Official Carl Sagan Website
• Carl Sagan on Wikiquote
• Carl Sagan on Wikipedia
• Reading from Pale Blue Dot (a favorite)
• "Who Speaks for Planet Earth?"
• On the Day Carl Sagan Died (news clips announcing his death)
• Ted Turner interviews Sagan (Parts 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5)

A History of God

A History of God: the 4000-Year Quest of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam

© 1993 Karen Armstrong

460 pages

I checked this out in early 2006 but quickly lost interest after encountering the Sumerian mythology that Armstrong introduces the book with. After breaking through this, I found A History of God to be a quite readable and informative history of the three Abrahamic religions, covering their initial origins and then tracking their development through the centuries, devoting separate chapters to the religions' response to mystics and the philosophic God of the Greeks. Armstrong is interested in what the idea of God has meant for people whose culture has been partially formed by the Abrahamic faiths, although she connects the book's narrative to a greater human story by comparison and contrast to Hinduism and Buddhism. Armstrong's voice seems fair: I can imagine no objections raised against her treatment of the faiths except from ardent inerranists or anti-religionists. The book is a thorough and readable take on the intellectual, philosophical, and theological histories of two of the world's largest religions and their progenitor.

This Week at the Library (2/9)

Books this Update:

• Are We Rome?, Collen Murphy
• Alternative American Religions, Stephen J. Stein
• Becoming the Answer to Our Prayers, Shane Claiborne
• Roma, Steven Saylor

I began this week with Are We Rome? a political work comparing the United States and the Roman Empire. Author Collen Murphy begins by acknowledging the problems inherent in comparing states that existed in vastly different periods of history, but maintains that there are some generalities that can be noted. The book comments on military matters, privatization and corruption, imperial hubris, and a few other such topics. Nothing seemed too far-fetched: Murphy is quite cautious, but not the point of annoying the reader by soft-pedaling his criticisms of the two governments.

I followed this with Alternative American Religions, a short book of religious history covering the rise and fall of groups known as “sects”, “cults”, or “new religious movements”. The first half of the book is stronger than the first, as chapters are more detailed about their subjects. I imagine the author was confined to a certain page count, as coverage of 20th century movements tended to be a bit rushed and devoid of a lot of description.

I was able to follow up on a recommendation this week in Shane Claiborne’s Becoming the Answer to Our Prayers, a brief work on pro-active prayer – where the “prayer” consists not of requests of God, but admissions of needs and desires that the praying person wants to address in his or her own life. Claiborne is accompanied by Jonathan Wilson-Hargrove, and the two labor to show how Christians can begin to answer their own prayers and effect God’s will. This was a little awkward to read (me not being a Christian), but I sympathize.

Lastly, I read Steven Saylor’s Roma, a historical epic spanning a thousand years of history, detailing the growth of Rome. Its history is seen through the eyes of one family, patricians whose fortunes rise and fall through many generations. We visit eleven specific generations, as there are eleven stories here. Saylor incorporates legends of pre-Republic Rome along with historical accounts to deliver a riveting story of human history, where the lives of one generation generate the legends and religion of further generations, as well as to comment on the universality of certain political and religious themes. It was a wonder to read, and definitely one to remember.

My reading this week was cut short by my preparations for returning to university and for the start of classes. I will be saving Niebuhr’s The Irony of American History for a time when I will be able to do it justice – Thanksgiving, perhaps. Like Erich Fromm, it's "serious" reading, and needs my full attention: I can't just read it off and on like a novel or popular history/science. Speaking of which, since I now have access to my university library, I can finally comment on The Sane Society.

Pick of the Week: Roma, no question. It's probably pick of the month.



Next Week’s Potentials:

• A History of God, Karen Armstrong. I’ll probably be finishing this one – it reads much better after Sumerian mythology is dealt with.
• The Demon-Haunted World, Carl Sagan. I’ve read this before (2006), but it’s been a while since I read anything by Carl Sagan and I want to return to him. This and Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors were crucial in reigniting my interest in science, and making the “mundane world” a joy to consider.
• Death by Black Hole, Neil deGrasse Tyson. Tyson is supposed to be the next Carl Sagan – we’ll see.
• Murder on the Appian Way, Steven Saylor. This is next up in Roma Sub Rosa.
• Taming of the Mind, Thubten Chodron. This came up in a search for Buddhism.
• The Sons of Caesar, Philip Matyszak. This is a history of Rome's first dynasty. I don't know much about it.
  

Given that this is the first week of classes and that there is a very strong possibility that I will be getting a new computer this weekend to replace my recently deceased Medion, I would not bet on my ability to read six average-length books. I also may check out Rome’s first season on DVD this week. If that occurs, I’ll be lucky to read three of these – but we shall see. (I'm in a very Roman mood.)