information
when cosmos was first broadcast in 1980, our world--and the context of carl sagan's eloquent
"personal journey"--was a different place. the late dr. sagan would be pleased to witness the
cooling of the cold war, the continued exploration of space, and ongoing efforts to curb our
destructive dependence on fossil fuels. for sagan's series is far more than a guided tour through
"billions and billions" of stars and galaxies. it remains a profound plea for the unity of
humankind, for the recognition that "we are a way for the universe to know itself," with an
obligation to know our origin, our place in the universe, and our future potential. in the course of
13 fascinating hours, cosmos spans its own galaxy of topics to serve sagan's theme, each segment
deepening our understanding of how we got from there (simple microbes in the primordial mud) to here
(space-faring civilization in the 21st century).
in his "ship of the imagination," sagan guides us to the farthest reaches of space and takes us back
into the history of scientific inquiry, from the ancient library of alexandria to the nasa probes of
our neighboring planets. upon this vast canvas sagan presents the "cosmic calendar," placing the
15-billion-year history of the universe into an accessible one-year framework, then filling it with
a stunning chronology of events, both interstellar and earthbound. from the lives of the stars, to
creation theories, functions of the human brain, and the ongoing search for extraterrestrial
intelligence, cosmos asks big questions. when appropriate, sagan offers big answers, or asks still
bigger--and yes, even spiritual--questions at the boundaries of science and religion. what's most
remarkable about cosmos is that it remains almost entirely fresh, with few updates needed to the
science that sagan so passionately celebrates. it is no exaggeration to say that cosmos--for all the
debate it may continue to provoke--is a vital document for humanity at a pivotal crossroads of our
history.
1) the shores of the cosmic ocean
at the beginning of this cosmic journey across space and time, dr. carl sagan takes us to the edge
of the universe aboard a spaceship of the imagination. through beautiful special effects, we witness
quasars, exploding galaxies, star clusters, supernovas and pulsars.
returning to our solar system, we enter a re-creation of the alexandrian library, the seat of
learning on earth 2,000 years ago.
2) one voice in the cosmic fugue
dr. sagan's cosmic calendar makes the history of the universe understandable and frames the origin
of the earth and the evolution of life. we see the evolutionary process unfold, from microbes to humans.
our understanding of how life developed on earth enables us to venture to other worlds for
imaginative speculations on what forms life might take elsewhere.
3) the harmony of the worlds
this episode is a historical re-creation of the life of johannes kepler, the last scientific
astrologer, the first modern astronomer and the author of the first science fiction novel.
kepler provided the insight into how the moon and the planets move in their orbits and ultimately
how to journey to them. it's also a story about the scientific process of discovery, and how the
search for truth is never easy but always worthwhile.
4) heaven and hell
a descent through the hellish atmosphere of venus to explore its broiling surface serves as a
warning to our world about the possible consequences of the increasing greenhouse effect.
then dr. sagan leads us on a tour of our solar system to see how other heavenly bodies have suffered
from various cosmic catastrophes.
5) blues for a red planet
is there life on mars? dr. sagan takes viewers on a tour of the red planet first through the eyes of
science fiction authors, and then through the unblinking eyes of two viking spacecrafts that have
sent thousands of pictures of the stunning martian landscape back to earth since 1976. though based
on older mars missions, sagan's analysis still holds true.
6) travelers' tales
dr. sagan compares the exhilaration of 17th-century dutch explorers who ventured in sailing ships
halfway around our planet in their quest for wealth and knowledge to an inside view of the
excitement around voyager's expeditions to jupiter and saturn.
the newly acquired treasures of our present golden age of exploration are the focus of this episode.
7) the backbone of night
humans once thought the stars were campfires in the sky and the milky way "the backbone of night."
in this fascinating segment dr. sagan takes us back to ancient greece, when the basic question "what
are the stars?" was first asked. he visits the brooklyn elementary school of his childhood, where
this same question is still on students' minds.
8) travels in space and time
a voyage to see how star patterns change over millions of years is followed by a journey to the
planets of other stars, and a look at the possibility of time travel.
this takes us to italy, where a young albert einstein first wondered what it would be like to ride
on a beam of light.
9) the lives of the stars
using computer animation and amazing astronomical art, dr. sagan shows how stars are born, live, die
and sometimes collapse to form neutron stars or black holes.
we then journey into the future to witness "the last perfect day on earth," 5 billion years from
now, after which the sun will engulf our planet in the fires of its death throes.
10) the edge of forever
dr. sagan leads us on some awesome trips to a time when galaxies were beginning to form, to india to
explore the infinite cycles of hindu cosmology, and to show how humans of this century discovered
the expanding universe and its origin in the big bang.
he disappears down a black hole and reappears in new mexico to show us an array of 17 telescopes
probing the farthest reaches of space.
11) the persistence of memory
the brain is the focus of this fascinating portion of our journey as dr. sagan examines another of
the intelligent creatures with whom we share the planet earth, whales.
then we wind through the maze of the human brain to witness the architecture of thought. we see how
genes, brains and books store the information necessary for human survival.
12) encyclopedia galactica
are there alien intelligences? how could we communicate with them? what about ufos? the answers to
these questions take us to egypt to decode ancient hieroglyphics, to the largest radio telescope on
earth and, in the spaceship of the imagination, to visit other civilizations in space.
dr. sagan answers questions such as: "what is the life span of a planetary civilization?" and "will
we one day hook up with a network of civilizations in the milky way galaxy?"
13) who speaks for earth?
through the use of special effects we retrace the 15-billion-year journey from the big bang to the
present. we also hear the tragic story of the martyrdom of hypatia, the woman scientist of ancient
alexandria. this is the famous episode on nuclear war in which
dr. sagan argues that our responsibility for survival is owed not just to ourselves, but also to the
cosmos, ancient and vast, from which we spring.
technical specs
------------------------------
* video codec: divx 5.02
* video bitrate: 1440 kbps
* video resolution: 496x384
* video aspect ratio: 4:3
* audio codec: mp3
* audio bitrate: 128 kbps
* audio streams: 1
* audio languages: english
* runtime per part: 60 minutes
* number of parts: 13
* part size: 700 mb
* subtitles: english
english subs available here --> http://forums.mvgroup.org/index.php?showtopic=31269
when cosmos was first broadcast in 1980, our world--and the context of carl sagan's eloquent
"personal journey"--was a different place. the late dr. sagan would be pleased to witness the
cooling of the cold war, the continued exploration of space, and ongoing efforts to curb our
destructive dependence on fossil fuels. for sagan's series is far more than a guided tour through
"billions and billions" of stars and galaxies. it remains a profound plea for the unity of
humankind, for the recognition that "we are a way for the universe to know itself," with an
obligation to know our origin, our place in the universe, and our future potential. in the course of
13 fascinating hours, cosmos spans its own galaxy of topics to serve sagan's theme, each segment
deepening our understanding of how we got from there (simple microbes in the primordial mud) to here
(space-faring civilization in the 21st century).
in his "ship of the imagination," sagan guides us to the farthest reaches of space and takes us back
into the history of scientific inquiry, from the ancient library of alexandria to the nasa probes of
our neighboring planets. upon this vast canvas sagan presents the "cosmic calendar," placing the
15-billion-year history of the universe into an accessible one-year framework, then filling it with
a stunning chronology of events, both interstellar and earthbound. from the lives of the stars, to
creation theories, functions of the human brain, and the ongoing search for extraterrestrial
intelligence, cosmos asks big questions. when appropriate, sagan offers big answers, or asks still
bigger--and yes, even spiritual--questions at the boundaries of science and religion. what's most
remarkable about cosmos is that it remains almost entirely fresh, with few updates needed to the
science that sagan so passionately celebrates. it is no exaggeration to say that cosmos--for all the
debate it may continue to provoke--is a vital document for humanity at a pivotal crossroads of our
history.
1) the shores of the cosmic ocean
at the beginning of this cosmic journey across space and time, dr. carl sagan takes us to the edge
of the universe aboard a spaceship of the imagination. through beautiful special effects, we witness
quasars, exploding galaxies, star clusters, supernovas and pulsars.
returning to our solar system, we enter a re-creation of the alexandrian library, the seat of
learning on earth 2,000 years ago.
2) one voice in the cosmic fugue
dr. sagan's cosmic calendar makes the history of the universe understandable and frames the origin
of the earth and the evolution of life. we see the evolutionary process unfold, from microbes to humans.
our understanding of how life developed on earth enables us to venture to other worlds for
imaginative speculations on what forms life might take elsewhere.
3) the harmony of the worlds
this episode is a historical re-creation of the life of johannes kepler, the last scientific
astrologer, the first modern astronomer and the author of the first science fiction novel.
kepler provided the insight into how the moon and the planets move in their orbits and ultimately
how to journey to them. it's also a story about the scientific process of discovery, and how the
search for truth is never easy but always worthwhile.
4) heaven and hell
a descent through the hellish atmosphere of venus to explore its broiling surface serves as a
warning to our world about the possible consequences of the increasing greenhouse effect.
then dr. sagan leads us on a tour of our solar system to see how other heavenly bodies have suffered
from various cosmic catastrophes.
5) blues for a red planet
is there life on mars? dr. sagan takes viewers on a tour of the red planet first through the eyes of
science fiction authors, and then through the unblinking eyes of two viking spacecrafts that have
sent thousands of pictures of the stunning martian landscape back to earth since 1976. though based
on older mars missions, sagan's analysis still holds true.
6) travelers' tales
dr. sagan compares the exhilaration of 17th-century dutch explorers who ventured in sailing ships
halfway around our planet in their quest for wealth and knowledge to an inside view of the
excitement around voyager's expeditions to jupiter and saturn.
the newly acquired treasures of our present golden age of exploration are the focus of this episode.
7) the backbone of night
humans once thought the stars were campfires in the sky and the milky way "the backbone of night."
in this fascinating segment dr. sagan takes us back to ancient greece, when the basic question "what
are the stars?" was first asked. he visits the brooklyn elementary school of his childhood, where
this same question is still on students' minds.
8) travels in space and time
a voyage to see how star patterns change over millions of years is followed by a journey to the
planets of other stars, and a look at the possibility of time travel.
this takes us to italy, where a young albert einstein first wondered what it would be like to ride
on a beam of light.
9) the lives of the stars
using computer animation and amazing astronomical art, dr. sagan shows how stars are born, live, die
and sometimes collapse to form neutron stars or black holes.
we then journey into the future to witness "the last perfect day on earth," 5 billion years from
now, after which the sun will engulf our planet in the fires of its death throes.
10) the edge of forever
dr. sagan leads us on some awesome trips to a time when galaxies were beginning to form, to india to
explore the infinite cycles of hindu cosmology, and to show how humans of this century discovered
the expanding universe and its origin in the big bang.
he disappears down a black hole and reappears in new mexico to show us an array of 17 telescopes
probing the farthest reaches of space.
11) the persistence of memory
the brain is the focus of this fascinating portion of our journey as dr. sagan examines another of
the intelligent creatures with whom we share the planet earth, whales.
then we wind through the maze of the human brain to witness the architecture of thought. we see how
genes, brains and books store the information necessary for human survival.
12) encyclopedia galactica
are there alien intelligences? how could we communicate with them? what about ufos? the answers to
these questions take us to egypt to decode ancient hieroglyphics, to the largest radio telescope on
earth and, in the spaceship of the imagination, to visit other civilizations in space.
dr. sagan answers questions such as: "what is the life span of a planetary civilization?" and "will
we one day hook up with a network of civilizations in the milky way galaxy?"
13) who speaks for earth?
through the use of special effects we retrace the 15-billion-year journey from the big bang to the
present. we also hear the tragic story of the martyrdom of hypatia, the woman scientist of ancient
alexandria. this is the famous episode on nuclear war in which
dr. sagan argues that our responsibility for survival is owed not just to ourselves, but also to the
cosmos, ancient and vast, from which we spring.
technical specs
------------------------------
* video codec: divx 5.02
* video bitrate: 1440 kbps
* video resolution: 496x384
* video aspect ratio: 4:3
* audio codec: mp3
* audio bitrate: 128 kbps
* audio streams: 1
* audio languages: english
* runtime per part: 60 minutes
* number of parts: 13
* part size: 700 mb
* subtitles: english
english subs available here --> http://forums.mvgroup.org/index.php?showtopic=31269
