NOVA | Carl Sagan Ponders Time Travel - 2 views
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anonymous on 25 Apr 14Summary: Carl Sagan is an astronomer, Pulitzer Prize winner, and advocate for popularizing science. PBS presents this interview from NOVA's "Time Travel" program. Sagan shares his understanding of what time is and on the possibility of time travel into the future or past. Sagan elides the space between clarification and complexity; rather than answering any questions, he expands our understanding of how time is part of our construct of the world, the natural laws that dictate this world, and our experience and perception of time. For instance, Sagan notes we are all constantly time traveling minute to minute, but when we talk of time travel we really mean to travel more quickly than we normally do. He also contemplates the "grandfather paradox" and other possibilities --both horrible and wonderful -- if we were able to achieve this other type of time travel. Sagan argues against Hawking's proposal that time travel is impossible and explains the connection between the speed of light and time travel. Evaluation: As a recognized scientist and author, Sagan is a credible and authoritative source. In this interview, Sagan brings the theories and scientific explanations of the other sources into a more personal, subjective discussion of both the potential, the possible consequences, and the wonder of time travel. As a scientist, a man who can remember being "a youngster who was fascinated by the possibility of time travel," and an author of his own time travel novel, Sagan connects the theories of time travel to our daily experience and to our imagination. Thus, this article could launch a discussion on how far can we really go as time travelers or be the first voice in a debate of the validity of various imaginings of time travel, from H.G. Wells to Rebecca Stead, or a debate about the benefits and dangers of time travel.