Carl Sagan summary

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Carl Sagan, (born Nov. 9, 1934, Brooklyn, N.Y., N.Y., U.S.—died Dec. 20, 1996, Seattle, Wash.), U.S. astronomer and science writer. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago. At the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory (1962–68), he focused on planetary astronomy and on SETI efforts to find extraterrestrial life. He gained prominence as a popular science writer and commentator noted for his clear writing and enthusiasm; his Dragons of Eden (1977) won a Pulitzer Prize. He coproduced and narrated the television series Cosmos (1980); its companion book became the best-selling English-language science book of all time. In the 1980s he studied the environmental effects of nuclear war and helped popularize the term nuclear winter.

amino acid Summary

Amino acid, any of a group of organic molecules that consist of a basic amino group (―NH2), an acidic carboxyl group (―COOH), and an organic R group (or side chain) that is unique to each amino acid. The term amino acid is short for α-amino [alpha-amino] carboxylic acid. Each molecule contains a

science fiction Summary

Science fiction, a form of fiction that deals principally with the impact of actual or imagined science upon society or individuals. The term science fiction was popularized, if not invented, in the 1920s by one of the genre’s principal advocates, the American publisher Hugo Gernsback. The Hugo

novel Summary

Novel, an invented prose narrative of considerable length and a certain complexity that deals imaginatively with human experience, usually through a connected sequence of events involving a group of persons in a specific setting. Within its broad framework, the genre of the novel has encompassed an

astronomy Summary

Astronomy, science that encompasses the study of all extraterrestrial objects and phenomena. Until the invention of the telescope and the discovery of the laws of motion and gravity in the 17th century, astronomy was primarily concerned with noting and predicting the positions of the Sun, Moon, and