Broca's Brain

by Carl Sagan

Hardcover, 1979

Status

Available

Call number

128.2

Genres

Science & Nature

General Nonfiction

Collection

Your library

Publication

Random House (1979), Edition: 1st, 347 pages

Description

Explorers various aspects of several fields of science and examines the role of the intellect in scientific achievement.

User reviews

LibraryThing member psiloiordinary

I have now read most of Sagan's work and find them without exception to be informative, readable and usually awe inspiring. In fact his books probably have the highest review scores that I have given out so far.

This book is eclectic mix. Both in terms of the type of material and the subject matter

of each. We have a "scientific" paper debunking Velikovsky's famous claims of interstellar billiards alongside a potted history of American astronomy.

Clearly any kind of flow or overarching narrative is therefore bound to be lacking. Changes of pace are unavoidable and a thirst for a larger or more integrated work does grow on you.

Having said all this the individual pieces still show off Sagan's talent for careful logic and elegant argument coupled with an innate appreciation of the beauty of the universe and an eloquence in allowing the reader to appreciate this for themselves which very few science writers can match.

Not his best thanks to the nature of the book. If you are new to Sagan then either Cosmos or Demon Haunted World are the place to start.

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LibraryThing member melydia

This is a collection of essays, all somehow related to science. I read it over the course of several months - not because it wasn't interesting, but because sometimes I just wasn't in the mood for it. The articles on skepticism and the history of science were fascinating, but the later descriptions

of the "current" situation in astronomy and planetary science was more than a touch dated. (It was written in the 1970s.) All the same, it was still Sagan, and I do so enjoy reading Sagan. I look forward to his other works.

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LibraryThing member Qshio

A love letter to the wonders of scientific exploration (else it would not be Carl Sagan!), and at the same time a serious and sympathetic look at pseudoscience and credulity, foreshadowing The Demon-Haunted World. A beautiful read, save for a long point-by-point refutation of another author's

absurd work. It's there to make an important point, but it's a bit much.I sure do wish Sagan was still around. I'm sure he had many more books in him.

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LibraryThing member jen.e.moore

Carl Sagan is a classic of science writing, and I've enjoyed his fiction, but unfortunately he doesn't hold up too well. Sometimes it's easy to tell when the science is dated, particularly when he's talking about upcoming missions in the 1980s, but sometimes you have to know enough contemporary

science to stay ahead of him. And although I've always heard he's great at making science seem romantic and exciting...well, a lot of these essays were lists of facts. Sometimes facts are cool! But if you're not a fact person, it's not all that compelling on the whole. Science writing has advanced a lot since Sagan; I can only imagine he'd be pleased by that, but I can't really recommend him to modern readers.

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LibraryThing member danrk

This year marks 20 years since I first watched Cosmos. In the intervening time, there is no voice that left a greater impression on the course of my intellectual life than Carl Sagan. Carl invites everyone to share in the joy of science. To mark this anniversary, I picked up this book because it

preceded his work on Cosmos and because I never managed to read it. Like a book of short stories, it is easy to pick up and read in no particular order.

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LibraryThing member Paul_S

Cheerful and exuberant but nothing substantial. One chapter is literally spent rebuffing claims by a crazy guy. I understand the principle at stake explained by the author but it's a waste of my time (which is why people don't bother doing that!).

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