Once in about the year 2001 previous to the events of 9-11, I was in college and not enjoying the experience. I set foot into a store called On Cue which had an assortment of items such as cds and books and lava lamps. In a section, somewhat to my then irritation, marked metaphysics, was the book The Demon Haunted World I was a psychology major at that juncture, and the emphasis was on science and metaphysics was a naughty word. Surely, Sagan, preeminent among scientists would not have written a metaphysical book?

The book, when I read it then, had a huge impact upon me. It was not so much what it said, but rather that I believed much in an opposite way to what it was saying. The same was true of my psychology major which was part of my misery. What Sagan had to say about science became, to me, the exact sort of arguments as to why science could not work. I appreciated much of what Sagan was saying about the method, we simply disagreed on how and why and when it could be used and what the limitations of such a method were.

What I did not remember having read it again was all the alien abduction time and energy Sagan put into this book, along with fairly frequent allusions to Satan or Satanism or all the above. Nearly half the book is about this content. When someone spends that much time on trying to refute something, the old quote "Thou doth protest too much" comes to mind. Sagan, being a major part of the space community, was in a position to know some things others did not. Whether or not he neglects to mention those things or looked the other way is a matter of opinion on the basis of this book. At the very least, some large mechanisms of denial are present.

The book then, was metaphysical after all mostly because it is not resting on science to prove or disprove any of these claims, but it talks about how science ought to work or does work. A discussion of that sort is epistemological, which is necessarily metaphysical.

Likewise, Sagan finds himself in domains he does not fully understand. When he goes after astrology, it appears that he is going after a simple sun sign. A sun sign is no where near the operational definition of astrology just like the term mathematics does not fully describe quantum mechanics. One must learn quite a lot of very specific mathematics before one begins to be conversant on a quantum matter. Why then does Sagan not invest the time in properly defining astrology? Probably because he is using a straw man version to kick around. He's guilty of this several times over in this work.

What I noticed now, with the wisdom of twenty years added to my tenure on the planet in this work is that Sagan is struggling between his natural childhood inclination to believe in magical things, and the world of adults and what is real and pragmatic. The child Sagan grows up into an adult who though they might wish magical things were real, cannot find a platform on which to stand in order to substantiate their existence and so concludes no such things are real. Instead, the magic is transferred to the laws of nature and what one can do with them. These laws in Sagan's mind are codified within the body of Science.

Alas, the candle of science is not going to keep the demons away. For that, one is more likely to have success with a Bible. The reason science cannot keep the demons away is because it does not believe in them in the first place, which suits the demons just fine. Though Sagan takes careful pains to bash the Bible as being blood-thirsty, it occurs to me that nowhere did God suggest to Moses or Joshuah to build a hydrogen and/or an atomic bomb. No, it would seem those whispers were only heard by the God of Science, whoever or whatever that may be. When this bastard child that possibly destroys the whole globe was born, the scientists were lauded as heroes and geniuses. For every person science saves from death with penicillin, surely the potential to destroy the entire world of all living things negates the advance?

No one ought to go about life believing everything he or she is told. This includes works by scientists. If Sagan's book can withstand a scientific sort of scrutiny applied to it, would it not be the case that the work would pass his own test? And, on the other hand, if it does not, would that not mean it has failed in the endeavor it outlines? Herein lies the key. In the desperation to dismiss authority and find the limits of knowledge, one often finds themselves as an authority imparting knowledge. We become the shadow of the thing we were struggling to come to terms with. Unfortunately, Sagan does this.

Despite all this, however, I still found some gems in this book and again it has informed my thinking in a way it could not have done before and does not intend to do. Perhaps Sagan's book is close enough to some truths even if it is denying them that they sprout despite the wishes of the author. In that, I suppose Sagan would find himself in the company of Peter, and hopefully not in the company of Judas. ( )

The Demon Haunted World is pure Carl Sagan. A full volume of Mr. Sagan proving that he was not only smarter than most of us, he was wittier. This book is nothing more than several hundred pages of (I will say successfully) Sagan showing us that there can always be something other than blind belief and taking things at face value and the importance of contemplating them first. The dangers of not thinking and the importance of critical thinking. This book was published in the mid-90s shortly before his passing. He was correct on about the mental state of the world and the dangers of just being superficial in a superficial world. Mostly references and case studies from the pages of time he establishes more than a multitude of reasoning behind the ideas but does not forget to remind the reader that “Hey…I could be wrong about this…but just think about it before jumping to conclusions. Weigh your options, use a little common sense. Then and only then can you make an accurate assumption about said situation.” He does not call us idiots, he only says we act like them most of the time and cause more suffering and grief than is necessary in not only our life but those around us which at times can amount to a mountain of a snowball that takes everyone in its path to a icy grave.
The book is well written and deeply personal. He touches on the aspects of his youth, his family and the ideas that drew him to the stars. The stuff we are all made of. ( )

This is a tribute to clear thinking – to using the tools of scientific reasoning and plain old skepticism to pick out what's real from the hoaxes, scams, and pseudoscience around us. Since it was written almost thirty years ago the examples used in the first part of the book are dated – faces on Mars, crop circles, alien abductions – but the methods it promotes are as relevant today as they were then. Where it hits its stride is in the latter chapters that describe how intellectual curiosity and scientific research have historically built on each other to create applications that were initially unimaginable. In the acknowledgments section Sagan explains how this was written over the course of nearly a decade. As a result it’s not a book to rush through, in fact it’s one worth rereading. ( )

In a world of ungrounded thought, I feel comforted by Sagan's sagely, skeptical words. "Skepticism doesn't sell newspapers," he explains. He was heavily pro-science and upset about America's scientific illiteracy which fawns over fables and eschews facts. In this book, he takes no prisions from Atlantis and Lemuria, New Age pseudoscience, religious doctrinaire that attempts to validate themselves through prophecy, weeping paintings of the Madonna, Jesus' face on tortillas, fortune tellers (that btw target young women), psychics and channels including Ramtha, amulets, exorcisms, psychic surgery, witches, ghosts, flying saucers, astrology, reliance on prayer and miraculous healing, contradictory platitudes, and spiritual justifications for nearly any action.

"Some portion of the decision-making that influences the future of our civilization is plainly in the hands of charlantans," Sagan writes. "When we are self indulgent and uncritical, when we confuse hopes and facts, we slide into pseudoscience and superstition."

Carl Sagan's question for a possible extraterrestrial was, "Please provide a short proof of Fermat's Last Theorem."

"How is it, I ask myself, that UFO occupants are so bound to fashionable or urgent concerns on this planet? Why not even an incidental warning about CFCs and oxone depletion in the 1950s, or about the AHIV virus in the 1979s, when it might have really done some good?"

Sagan thoroughly elucidates the most common strategies used to defend perilous fallacies of logic and rhetoric.

In this book, he includes some history of the founding father's of the U.S. who were "realistic and practical, wrote their own speeches, and were motivated by high principles." He also uses examples of leaders and events in Europe, Russia, and China, and how they thought in ways that were superior to the dreck we have spiraled down to. He admires Jefferson's response to the Sedition Act and Linus Pauling's stance against nuclear weapons and involvement in the Limited Test Ban Treaty of 1963. Sagan himself took an anti-nuclear stance.

Carl Sagan wisely implores us to question everything our leaders tell us.

"One of the saddest lessons of history is this: If we’ve been bamboozled long enough, we tend to reject any evidence of the bamboozle. We’re no longer interested in finding out the truth. The bamboozle has captured us. It’s simply too painful to acknowledge, even to ourselves, that we’ve been taken. Once you give a charlatan power over you, you almost never get it back."

As far as Sagan's brief mention of drugs used for certain DSM diagnosis, the expert I defer to in that realm is Robert Whitaker and his book "Mad in America: Bad Science, Bad Medicine, and the Enduring Mistreatment of the Mentally Ill."

I read portions of Sagan's book over again, and skimmed a few parts that seemed a bit repetitive. Overall, a very worthy read that I give a strong five stars. ( )

A well-written reflection on the role of science in lighting our way through the darkness of religiosity, politics, and human folly. ( )

I'm a skeptic by nature, and one who objects to anyone's claiming that I must have a 'spiritual side'. A Myers-Briggs test identifies me as INTJ, meaning that I prefer people (and everything else) to make plain sense. Thus, in my perfect world everyone would simply nod their heads in agreement all the way through this book. That, of course, is a completely unrealistic wish. Sagan's introduction does not do a strong job of setting up his conclusion and consequently creates some vagueness around who his target audience is. A few chapters in, you may think it was only aimed at people who need reassurance that the aliens aren't going to get them. Or more generally, at people like the cab driver from his introduction who have the will to think critically but lack the tools. What are those tools, and how should they be applied?

I will only summarize briefly what I think are his most telling points in the main body: that science demonstrably works, evolves in response to new information, is self-policing for being testable and verifiable, and presents no authority figures. He contrasts this with the warning sings of pseudoscience that evades testing, demands belief, claims authority and suppresses dissent. I thought his most wonderful and least offensive comparison was with used car shopping. You would be a fool to take everything the salesperson tells you at face value. You have to apply some basic logic and skepticism to the situation or you're going to buy a lemon. Nobody likes being scammed. The same principle applies when assessing others' claims about how the world and the universe works. Sagan then concludes with a strong argument that the better these principles are preserved by the general population, the stronger a democracy. He should have also led with that.

It's too easy to like a book when I already share virtually all of its opinions at the start. None of this content challenged me, so I tried to be wary of flaws or drawbacks for other readers. Most of these I found in Sagan's adamant atheist stance, with which he acknowledges he's sometimes prone to taking things too far. Suggesting that prayer subjects religion to scientific analysis, where we could run a study on how often it is successful and rate its efficacy, is an example. I'm no believer, but even I know gods wouldn't oblige themselves to meet our service standards. He cannot summon a better word for established religions that have been with us for centuries than 'respectable', but I feel he demonstrates little respect for them even while arguing that science and belief in a god are compatible. I agree fully when he says it would be cruelty to assault the beliefs of people who depend upon those beliefs to see them through the day. I would not agree that he takes measures here to avoid doing so. His straight-ahead approach is not well designed to win new converts to his side.

That, unfortunately, is what I was half hoping for. Some kind of guide to help me to help others. That's silly, wishful thinking that I shouldn't have expected to find by looking in this direction, so I'm satisfied to say I was disappointed in that regard. Of course I'm still going to say it's a fantastically well-argued book by a fantastic author, aged statistics notwithstanding. Opening chapters on the essence of science's importance and the closing chapters on the ties between science and democracy are especially noteworthy and quotable, they just ought to have been paired up a little better. ( )

Carl Sagan takes on pseudoscience. This book extolls the value of skepticism, critical thinking, and the scientific method. It should be required reading in my opinion. Unfortunately, those that could benefit most from applying more rigor in deciding what to believe will likely never read it. Originally published in 1995, he has proven to be prescient, as pseudoscience is even more prevalent than ever in recent years. Witness the rise in the number of shows about ancient aliens and paranormal activity, not to mention fake news. Outrageous claims are made and spread from person to person, and people believe these claims without questioning or proof. Why does this happen and what can we do to prevent it? Sagan attempts to answer these important questions.

This book is very readable. It does not require a deep understanding of science. Sagan writes in a way that is easily understood, while not becoming overly simplistic. He does not use jargon and, not surprisingly, presents evidence in a logical manner. He provides helpful analogies and treats his audience as bright and capable of understanding. He shows how scientific advances are fueled not only by hypothesizing, rigorous testing, and analysis of results, but also by curiosity and imagination.

I was surprised by how many areas outside the specifics of scientific inquiry are covered in this book, including literature, history, politics, religion, communications, education, economics, ethics, social norms, culture, and more. Science touches on almost every aspect of our lives but is largely ignored by many. Sagan’s subject matter includes debunking of such issues as crop circles, alien abductions, ancient astronauts, ESP, UFO’s, astrology, New Age mysticism, and the like. He reminds us of the importance of not confusing cause and effect, questioning claims that cannot be tested, requiring evidence to support assertions, and remaining skeptical about authoritative statements, especially if monetary gain is involved.

We are bombarded daily with outrageous claims (click bait, anyone?) urging us to simply believe without scrutiny, so healthy skepticism is becoming increasingly more important in our inter-connected world. Carl Sagan died in 1996, when the world wide web was in its infancy. One can only wish he were around today to help refute today’s absurdities, which are so obviously spurious in origin. I know I am “preaching to the choir,” since avid readers regularly engage in evaluative thinking. Even though some of the references are dated, this book contains an important and still relevant message on the value of critical thinking skills. I found it fascinating. Highly recommended. ( )

A wonderfully quotable book whose main failing is that it fails a significant number of words on issues that aren't really actively relevant in the mainstream right now (alien abductions, largely). In some ways, this makes the analysis more interesting -- it's easier to see the clarity of the skeptical argument when your mind is not clouded by the current controversy -- but there was an large amount of time spent on these specific controversies.

That said, where this book rises above the specific into the general, it's just as fresh and inspiring as Sagan always is. ( )

A re-read, I remember being struck by it when first published. I am afraid it did not hold up - this feels like the last book published prior to the age of the internet. So many of the controversies explored here are just defunct. I was hoping for a more definitive 'how to be a reasoning human' that I could pass on to my coming of age sons, but I don't think that would be their take away.

It is a shame, because in our age of youtube pundits and Q cults a handbook for critical thinking is more necessary than ever. ( )

Beautifully and eloquently dismantling the pseudoscience was one part of its gift. Enlightening and educating the mind was the other part. ( )

This was written in 1995 and America has gone downhill even faster ever since. The dumbing down of the populace is moving faster and faster and more out in the open. They are losing ground at an incredible rate. ( )

جلب العلم لنا الطب الحديث والفهم العميق للكون، ناهيك عن الكثير من الأدوات التكنولوجية التي نعتمد عليها كل يوم. كل الفضل للعلم والعلماء في رفع مستوى صحتنا وسعادتنا وازدهارنا. ومع ذلك، لايزال العلم في أيامنا هذه يتعرض لهجوم شديد من مؤيدي الخرافات من المنجمين والمتدينين.
يهدف كارل ساغان في كتابه هذا «عالم مسكون بالشياطين» إلى مساعدة القارئ في التمييز بين العلوم الزائفة الخطيرة على المجتمع والعلوم الحقيقية المتينة المبينة على التجارب والأدلة والتفكير النقدي.
يناقش المؤلف مكانة العلم في الثقافة الشعبية، ويقدم نصائحه حول كيفية دمج التفكير النقدي والتحليل العلمي في مجتمعنا وكل نواحي حياتنا.
أنصح به بشدة. ( )

It took me a long time to get around to reading this book, but now I wish I had done it sooner. Discusses critical thinking and skepticism in an understandable style.Some of the examples seem forced, but all are instructive. In 2021 it is still a very relevant read. ( )

One of the premier books on skepticism. As relevant to day as it was when Carl Sagan wrote it. ( )

Leer una y otra vez. ( )

Critical thinking is so important in today's world, and this book is all about critical thinking. From how ignoring it lead to mass murder of so many in witch trials, to today where it seems that more people believe the validity horoscopes then not. Being able to distinguish fact from "alternative fact" or drivel. ( )

Too much talk about religion, not enough talk about science. ( )

Very quotable and, in the final chapters, extremely apropos the current political situation in America. ( )

A good and relatively comprehensive look at the late 20th century‘s approach to science and the development of interest in science. This was wide-ranging, looking at issues such as witchcraft, aliens, and science education in the America of the 1990s. Inevitably such a book has aged somewhat with no references to social media, much reference to the Internet, and the further structural and societal change that has happened over the last 20 to 25 years. However, a lot of the references to earlier and in particular mid century American politics, collective delusion, and alien misinformation is still relevant and still pertinent. It is engaging and worthy of a listen. ( )

Second reading done on 12.11.19 - Because of the current political climate, especially in America, this book is more important now than ever. The relevancy of some passages about the dangers of not thinking critically during political theatrics was striking. The fact that this was written in 1997 and some issues that Sagan brings to light are still current means that the darkness of ignorance is ever enveloping around us, and so we must do our best to keep the candles lit.

It has been almost a year since I've read this wonderful book and whenever I hear false or misleading information being spread on television or online, I refer back to this gem. This was my first jump into the superb works of Carl Sagan and it was one I will never forget. This book opened my eyes to the amazing world of science and has helped me stop and think about how things work and why things are before believing something to be truthful. It has helped me analyze situations differently and has made me a more critical person.

The main theme is the importance of critical thinking. Sagan explains that asking questions leads down the wonderful path of knowledge. Simply accepting a statement at face value can be dangerous and can lead down slippery slope. Science is about experimentation and making observations, recording the results of those tests, coming to a theory or hypothesis and then releasing the information of the research so that other scientists can analyze your work and come to their own conclusions.

Nothing is ever definite in science and the results of one test can be overturned completely by another. The learning process is constant. That is what I find wonderful about the sciences; it is an expansive field that is constantly changing and flipping theories upside down or straight out the window!

Sagan warns about the dangers of religion and pseudo-science and their inability to accept any type of scrutinizing or examination. That leads to blind acceptance. Society should be constantly on its collective toes and be wary of the information being spread. We should all be asking more questions. Question your government. Question your religious institutions.

The chapter titled The Dragon in My Garage was one of my favorites. Definitely eye-opening.

I highly recommend this great book to EVERYONE. ( )

While I understand the value of this book in general I just felt that a lot of it was slightly outdated. ( )

Great read and reminder of logical, critical, scientific thinking.

Sagan takes you on a journey of logic. This is a great reminder to those in the scientific community why our work is so important and a great introduction to those outside the world of science, its process and use. ( )

Sheds light on so much of human psychology. Strongly recommended. ( )

Ever read one of those books you SWEAR you've read before. Nonfiction? Where every single point seems to have been made elsewhere?

Well, that's where this book went with me. From witch trials to alien abductions to conspiracy theories and a lot more, Sagan extols us to bring rational thought back to our lives. The scientific method is ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL.

I totally agree, and that's why I kept reading despite every single point being a re-hash... but that's me. Sometimes we like to be reminded why we keep going, why we believe certain things, and realize that we can apply the scientific method to everything in our lives. It doesn't stifle creativity or spiritualism. It broadens everything.

And it also happens to help us throw out the trash. :) WOAH! RATIONALITY! :) ( )

I love Carl Sagan, in my daydreams we operate as kind of a Mulder/Scully duo: me, the roguish conspiracy theorist, he, the gamine scientist, together, thinking about aliens. I liked this book, though I am inclined to see astrology, UFO conspiracies, Weekly World News etc. as "all in good fun" or "a jolly old time", I still love him for being such a starry-eyed skeptic, if there is such a thing, especially in comparison to hardline atheists like Richard Dawkins. And regarding our more dangerous superstitious, eg witch hunts in South Africa or Christian science in the U.S., his call to reason seems urgent rather than ideological. I still think myth has its place in the 21st century but I'm no astrophysicist. I wish he and Joseph Campbell had made a crossfire style PBS documentary together so I could Netflix it. ( )