Starry Messenger: Cosmic Perspectives on Civilization
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- Create Date：2022-09-21 03:20:02
- Update Date：2025-09-07
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- Author：Neil deGrasse Tyson
- ISBN：B09NTKBHQZ
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Reviews
Laura
，
I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway！ Which is very exciting for me。 Although it wasn't particularly challenging， I enjoyed this book because I enjoy Neil deGrasse Tyson。 This book is largely a conglomeration of facts， statistics， and anecdotes presented to help the reader elevate their perspective beyond the limits of their emotions and inherent biases。 Recognizing that humans are both emotional and rational creatures， Tyson makes the case for more rationalizing before emotionalizing。 "Al I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway！ Which is very exciting for me。 Although it wasn't particularly challenging， I enjoyed this book because I enjoy Neil deGrasse Tyson。 This book is largely a conglomeration of facts， statistics， and anecdotes presented to help the reader elevate their perspective beyond the limits of their emotions and inherent biases。 Recognizing that humans are both emotional and rational creatures， Tyson makes the case for more rationalizing before emotionalizing。 "All I ask is to see accurate and authentic data， analyzed from all directions--free of bias and tunnel vision--before I layer my emotions upon it。" A worthy goal。 However， outside of the realms of pure science， all data collected by humans will always be susceptible to bias and a degree of tunnel vision。 Especially data collected by humans about humans。 That is why， in schools and academics， we spend so much time learning how to analyze sources， studies， trials， lit reviews， etc。 The reasons for the study， which studies get funded， the data collected， the methods， the results， and the conclusions drawn are all dependent on a whole mess of variables that inevitably leak some amount of bias。 Objective truth may exist， but we likely have no way of knowing it。 The best we can do （as aided by this book） is to continually strive to raise our perspective as much as possible， allow for and embrace as much plurality of thought as possible， and grant one another as much courtesy as possible。 。。。more
Neil Tyson
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Read Starry Messenger several months after I finished writing it。 Always an edifying thing to do。This allowed me to reflect in its content as reader rather than as a writer -- two different assignments， of course。I'd delighted to report that Starry Messenger accomplishes exactly what I set out to do: offer persistent and diverse ways for the reader to see the world differently -- to see the world as a scientist does， especially one who carries a cosmic perspective。There are doses of humor and po Read Starry Messenger several months after I finished writing it。 Always an edifying thing to do。This allowed me to reflect in its content as reader rather than as a writer -- two different assignments， of course。I'd delighted to report that Starry Messenger accomplishes exactly what I set out to do: offer persistent and diverse ways for the reader to see the world differently -- to see the world as a scientist does， especially one who carries a cosmic perspective。There are doses of humor and pop culture， added only where they could also advance the ideas of a chapter。 And I'm proud to say that the book is relatively short， making a fast read。The page-count in the publisher's listings is 260+。 But when you subtract the index and the end notes （which are extensive）， it's a 204 page book in a smaller binding format， similar to that of Astrophysics for People In A Hurry。So I'm proud of this addition to the portfolio。 And I thank those of you in the Goodreads Universe who expressed early interesting in this work。-Neil deGrasse Tyson 。。。more
Martin
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Rational reading for our irrational times。 An accessible primer on science， rational thought， and society， with light constructive commentary from the author。 An excellent companion to Carl Sagan's The Demon Haunted World。 Rational reading for our irrational times。 An accessible primer on science， rational thought， and society， with light constructive commentary from the author。 An excellent companion to Carl Sagan's The Demon Haunted World。 。。。more
Janice Fitzgerald
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Nice
Patrycja
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I have mixed feelings about this book。 It’s a first and only book I read by this author。 I only saw a few of his appearances online or tv。 I never met Neil deGrasse Tyson in person， but from this book he strikes me as an arrogant， know-it-all person， who is the smartest in the room。 Always brining up his achievements， and wiping them into reader's face。I just felt he is lucking sensitivity。 He is brutally honest， without a regard to reader’s feelings。 So I would say you need to be skin deep in o I have mixed feelings about this book。 It’s a first and only book I read by this author。 I only saw a few of his appearances online or tv。 I never met Neil deGrasse Tyson in person， but from this book he strikes me as an arrogant， know-it-all person， who is the smartest in the room。 Always brining up his achievements， and wiping them into reader's face。I just felt he is lucking sensitivity。 He is brutally honest， without a regard to reader’s feelings。 So I would say you need to be skin deep in order to read it。 I was expecting a different book。 More scientific one。 Not a negative essays on human behavior。 That said， it was an interesting read。 Sometimes a fun one。 I did laugh out loud many times。 There are some statistics that I am not sure of， or agree with。 For example author claims that only 3% US population is vegan， when other sources say” there are now as many as 6% of American consumers that report that they now follow a totally vegan diet。” I would suggest that author reads more about vegan diet， because as a smart person he is ， he is either ignorant or lucking the knowledge about veganism， and meat consumption and effect on our health。There were other chapters that were quite provoking。 The book is divided into chapters， that are essays on different topics， with a very strong opinions。 Again， you probably will not agree with every point of view， but that’s why we have brain and should ask questions and think。 After all， “A man who does not think for himself does not think at all。”— Oscar Wilde 。。。more
KarnagesMistress
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I received this book for free through Goodreads Giveaways。 It is an advance reader's edition。 I received this book for free through Goodreads Giveaways。 It is an advance reader's edition。 。。。more
Carl
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Disclosure: I won this on Goodreads giveaway， so thanks to them， the publisher， and author。 Anyone familiar with the author’s writing or video presentations would assume this is brief， readable， entertaining and informative。 For the most part， their assumptions would be accurate。 But now after a few weeks， there isn’t much I remember。 He is good at pointing out how human brains and biases don’t jibe with reality， esp。 when it comes to science， math， and statistics， risks vs benefits， etc。 But it Disclosure: I won this on Goodreads giveaway， so thanks to them， the publisher， and author。 Anyone familiar with the author’s writing or video presentations would assume this is brief， readable， entertaining and informative。 For the most part， their assumptions would be accurate。 But now after a few weeks， there isn’t much I remember。 He is good at pointing out how human brains and biases don’t jibe with reality， esp。 when it comes to science， math， and statistics， risks vs benefits， etc。 But it seemed like he didn’t really want to provoke the “woke” when it comes to questions of sex and sexuality （gender may be fluid， but sex is rarely non-binary…one produces small， mobile gametes， the other large ones）。 Mostly he argues that we're one human race， and we need to pay attention to what we do to each other， and the earth we depend on。 。。。more
Muhammedai147896
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https://www。cercop。fun/ https://www。cercop。fun/ 。。。more
Becky Fields
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I am not a huge fan of science but I have to say this book is thought provoking and makes you really think。 I loved how it got me out of my comfortable reading spectrum and had me diving into different thoughts and ideas than mine own。 It brings up great points and isn’t where you can’t easily understand this book。 Overall it’s a great read for anyone。
Mike Berlin
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What a wonderful book about how the Cosmos and events from our every day life， go hand-in-hand。 Written so everyone can comprehend， no need for a dictionary nearby， Tyson portrays our place in the universe so everyone can understand his perspective。
Keneil B。
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Neil DeGrasse Tyson wrote and voices this amazingly compelling book on our human perspective and brings eye opening truths to our human-centric mindsets。 I absolutely loved this book， and learned so much。 The scale of the universe is huge， but our tiny human experience is not even a spec of it。 It as humbling。 Thanks to Libro。fm for the ARC of the audiobook！
Joe
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I received this on a GR giveaway and I cannot recommend it more highly。 If you're a fan of Neil Degrasse Tyson like I am then you will absolutely love it。 Part history， part science， part anecdotal philosophy。 Truly a wonderful journey and really offers a fresh perspective on humanity。 If you ever watched cosmos and found a new way to look at the world around you then this will just continue to refine your outlook and heighten your cosmic awareness。 Great for philosophy fans as well as science o I received this on a GR giveaway and I cannot recommend it more highly。 If you're a fan of Neil Degrasse Tyson like I am then you will absolutely love it。 Part history， part science， part anecdotal philosophy。 Truly a wonderful journey and really offers a fresh perspective on humanity。 If you ever watched cosmos and found a new way to look at the world around you then this will just continue to refine your outlook and heighten your cosmic awareness。 Great for philosophy fans as well as science or history aficionados。 10/10 。。。more
Adam Bricker
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*I won this as part of the First-reads giveaway program* A really wonderful， kind of cheeky， exploration of who we are and why we do what we do。。。and what we could do better。 Supported by facts and evidence and just good ol' common sense， the topics in this book look at the world as it was， is and possibly could be。 I never read anything from deGrasse Tyson before， and was still a little bitter about the Pluto thing when I started， but I very much enjoyed this book and found it hard to put down。 *I won this as part of the First-reads giveaway program* A really wonderful， kind of cheeky， exploration of who we are and why we do what we do。。。and what we could do better。 Supported by facts and evidence and just good ol' common sense， the topics in this book look at the world as it was， is and possibly could be。 I never read anything from deGrasse Tyson before， and was still a little bitter about the Pluto thing when I started， but I very much enjoyed this book and found it hard to put down。 。。。more
Kelly
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If you are a rational， open-minded person， you will love Tyson's Starry Messenger。 Tyson looks at the many ways we allow thoughts， feelings， opinions and biases to influence how we interpret the world around us。 If you are rational and open-minded you likely see many of these things as they happen， but when put together in a single book， the result can be stunning。 It can also likely be a bitter pill to swallow （or spit out entirely） if it invalidates your beliefs。 The book reinforces both the i If you are a rational， open-minded person， you will love Tyson's Starry Messenger。 Tyson looks at the many ways we allow thoughts， feelings， opinions and biases to influence how we interpret the world around us。 If you are rational and open-minded you likely see many of these things as they happen， but when put together in a single book， the result can be stunning。 It can also likely be a bitter pill to swallow （or spit out entirely） if it invalidates your beliefs。 The book reinforces both the importance of well-collected and representative data and the ability to operate in an ambiguous zone where there is no clearly defined correct or incorrect conclusion。 I particularly love when as a thought experiment， Tyson looks at racism from the perspective of Blacks being superior and whites being inferior。 For some readers， they may be greatly offended。 To me， it was amusing in an almost not-funny way because it is such a beautifully simplistic thought experiment that shows the implicit bias in perspective， and how those with power can ingrain opinions to the point where whole groups of humans accept them as fact。 And while using data as a basis for making decisions is great， it isn't totally infallible either， unless all humans have access to the data in a form they can interpret it。 More than once I've watched data be presented as solid proof that something is being done right， when the data being used is selective to the message the presenter wants to craft， but is accepted without question or debate because it involves "hard numbers"。 Tyson's thought-provoking book reminds me that two things are universal for me as an individual - treat others as you would want to be treated， and that the wise individual always has more questions than answers。 Read this book if you want to be challenged on the way you think， or to be reminded that it's worth the effort to look at things from perspectives other than your own。 Way to go， Neil！ A complimentary copy of this book was provided by the publisher。 All thoughts and opinions are my own。 。。。more
KELLY SILVEIRA
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Not surprisingly， I agree with pretty much everything Mr。 Tyson has to say in his book。 It reminds me a bit of Carl Sagan's The Demon-Haunted World， in that he's holding out science， or more specifically， a cosmic perspective as a way to save ourselves from ourselves。 I wish a more diverse group of folks would read this book than probably will。Would have been 5 stars， but Mr。 Tyson is a physicist， not a writer， and sometimes it shows （no offense intended！）Thank you to Henry Holt & Co。 for this A Not surprisingly， I agree with pretty much everything Mr。 Tyson has to say in his book。 It reminds me a bit of Carl Sagan's The Demon-Haunted World， in that he's holding out science， or more specifically， a cosmic perspective as a way to save ourselves from ourselves。 I wish a more diverse group of folks would read this book than probably will。Would have been 5 stars， but Mr。 Tyson is a physicist， not a writer， and sometimes it shows （no offense intended！）Thank you to Henry Holt & Co。 for this ARC， won in a goodreads giveaways。 。。。more
Denise
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I won this ARC in a Goodreads Giveaway。 I actually have read the book， and this is a real review。Tyson surprised me with his insight into society and the human condition。 Some of his views I don't necessarily agree with， and of course he shines brightest when the topic is science， especially astrophysics， but I found the book rather thought provoking。 I paused more than once to contemplate what I just read。 It's a short read， each chapter basically an essay on a specific topic。 I won this ARC in a Goodreads Giveaway。 I actually have read the book， and this is a real review。Tyson surprised me with his insight into society and the human condition。 Some of his views I don't necessarily agree with， and of course he shines brightest when the topic is science， especially astrophysics， but I found the book rather thought provoking。 I paused more than once to contemplate what I just read。 It's a short read， each chapter basically an essay on a specific topic。 。。。more
Brian West
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A very interesting read。 Through the scientific view， we are shown how insignificant we and our opinions are。 Many different statistics， and very insightful on how to analyze your own opinion。 Thank you to the publisher for this arc。
Sean
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A pithy reminder to humanity to celebrate our shared uniqueness instead of fomenting and creating divisions。
Colin
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July 2022: ARC or Advanced Reader Copy， won in Goodreads giveaway -- thank you。A quick， easy read-- Starry Messenger is a natural extension of the cosmic perspective ideas that Tyson touched on in Astrophysics for People in a Hurry。 It's easy to get behind the spirit of the book-- taking a step back and looking at the big picture can give us the reset we need to view human civilization from a more unbiased perspective。 Tyson excels when he focuses on exploring what our discoveries of the univers July 2022: ARC or Advanced Reader Copy， won in Goodreads giveaway -- thank you。A quick， easy read-- Starry Messenger is a natural extension of the cosmic perspective ideas that Tyson touched on in Astrophysics for People in a Hurry。 It's easy to get behind the spirit of the book-- taking a step back and looking at the big picture can give us the reset we need to view human civilization from a more unbiased perspective。 Tyson excels when he focuses on exploring what our discoveries of the universe have revealed to us about life on earth， but at times it feels like the word "scientific" could be substituted for "cosmic" in the subtitle of the book。 As always， Tyson's humor is a welcome constant and helps to make up for any lack of continuity in the "cosmic" theme。 Once you get past the fact that Starry Messenger is loosely focused on the concept of what cosmic truths can teach us， you can really settle in and enjoy Tyson's quirky musings on the absurd and insightful aspects of humanity， and its hopeful striving for enlightenment and happiness。 。。。more
David Kent
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Sidereus Nuncius， as Galileo put it， looks at a range of historical and ongoing issues from a cosmic perspective。 Some may quibble with whether the insights provided at always "cosmic，" but if you consider that to mean looking at accepted "truths" from a big picture perspective it falls into place。 Tyson looks at topics as divergent as truth & beauty， war & peace， vegetarianism & "meatarianism，" gender， race， and law and order。 Through each he offers some actual truths， that is， facts， that shou Sidereus Nuncius， as Galileo put it， looks at a range of historical and ongoing issues from a cosmic perspective。 Some may quibble with whether the insights provided at always "cosmic，" but if you consider that to mean looking at accepted "truths" from a big picture perspective it falls into place。 Tyson looks at topics as divergent as truth & beauty， war & peace， vegetarianism & "meatarianism，" gender， race， and law and order。 Through each he offers some actual truths， that is， facts， that should make each of us reconsider the "truths" we so often take as real。 Tyson asks a lot of questions， often not to be answered but to make us think differently。 He brings his trademark bluntness and his equally trademarked wry humor to draw us away from our inherent， religious， and politically motivated biases into a place where we can reassess our beliefs。 Granted， the book rambles a bit， in part because of the breadth of the coverage， but readers can't help but feel they need a new way of thinking。 Alas， self-selection bias will keep many of the people who could gain from Tyson's insights from picking up the book in the first place， but that in itself helps drive the point that we need to think just a little bit better than we historical have done。Note that I received an advanced readers copy via a Goodreads Giveaway。 。。。more
Stephen
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Starry Messenger is a collection insightful and at times witty essays about issues in society from the perspective of a scientific thinker。 deGrasse Tyson addresses many issues of our time such as war， peace， politics， gender， race， guns， abortion law， and policy。 A recurring theme is that we’d all be better off by thinking more rationally and focusing on solving problems rather than convincing people that your solution is the best one 。 Looking at data rather deGrasse Tyson explains how， in cor Starry Messenger is a collection insightful and at times witty essays about issues in society from the perspective of a scientific thinker。 deGrasse Tyson addresses many issues of our time such as war， peace， politics， gender， race， guns， abortion law， and policy。 A recurring theme is that we’d all be better off by thinking more rationally and focusing on solving problems rather than convincing people that your solution is the best one 。 Looking at data rather deGrasse Tyson explains how， in core ways we are more similar than different， and with that in mind， perhaps we can set bias and preconceptions aside and start to focus on rational problem solving informed by social context。The author acknowledges that this isn’t as easy as simply deciding to do it。 Our evolution and history has led us to think and act in ways that favor more tribal， and short term solution seeking。 Being rational is hard。For example， in the chapters on race and gender， the author points to our desire to categorize -- into very coarse and imprecise categories -- as being at the heart of many of the challenges around bias we face today。 This， combined with our tendency to think short term and locally means that we open do consider long range and broader impacts in our calls to action and our policy decisions。While deGrasse Tyson make it clear that he has a liberal belief system， this isn’t a collection of anti-conservative screeds。 We learn that Liberals and Conservatives can all be science deniers in their own ways， and that members of each group can set critical thinking aside when calling for policy change when an issue touches on one their core values。While the book touches on some serious issues， there were a number of humorous segments。 This approach shows deGrasse Tyson’s skill as educator since humor is memorable， and memorable means learning。 For example， in the chapter on Law and Order， we hear three stories of how the author didn’t get to serve on a jury because of his logical and data based approach to evidence。 （While I understand they central idea of not wanting jurors to bring outside information into their judgements， it is a bit absurd to consider that skills in evaluating evidence could also be disqualifying， or at least considered undesirable。）This book is a great example of how to bring facts and analysis to the task of solving problems while also debunking myths about stereotypes about people’s politics。 And while science makes mistakes， the scientific process is geared towards challenging ideas so that those mistakes surface。 The central message I got from the book: forget preconceptions， listen to each other， and trade facts rather than opinions。 This is very much a book I needed to read at this time， and I think others might also use it as a way to reset their approach to thinking and talking about issues。（This review is based on an Advance Readers Edition） 。。。more
StarMan
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[July 2022: ARC or Advanced Reader Copy， won in Goodreads giveaway -- thank you。] The final version of this book （due September 2022） may differ slightly or substantially from the ARC I review below。NOTE FOR THE EDITOR（S）: I wasn't looking hard， but there were 1 or more obvious grammar or typographical errors on the following page #s: 16， 50， 85， 128， 204。~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~REVIEW OF THE ARC:IN SHORT: An interesting look at humanity， Neil deGrasse Tyson-style。 The back cover bl [July 2022: ARC or Advanced Reader Copy， won in Goodreads giveaway -- thank you。] The final version of this book （due September 2022） may differ slightly or substantially from the ARC I review below。NOTE FOR THE EDITOR（S）: I wasn't looking hard， but there were 1 or more obvious grammar or typographical errors on the following page #s: 16， 50， 85， 128， 204。~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~REVIEW OF THE ARC:IN SHORT: An interesting look at humanity， Neil deGrasse Tyson-style。 The back cover blurb was somewhat misleading， but the casual reader won't mind terribly。VERDICT （ARC version）: about 2。9 stars for me。 Less "crystalline prose" and "scientific palette" than promised， but still pretty good。 Some of Tyson's meandering musings are certainly though-provoking and/or mildly humorous。 Another early review from a reader who DNF'd （Did Not Finish） the ARC noted: "。。。I was hoping for something more--like a point。"I wouldn't be that critical （and I did finish the book）， but I definitely had some similar thoughts along the way。 There was some mismatch between what was promised on the back cover， versus what I received inside。 It even gets a bit "woke" a couple of times--for better or worse。 I'm not judging， but such tangents did not match the "cosmic" scale promised on the back cover。 ~~~~~ALSO CONSIDER: A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking 。。。more
Craig
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