Clear Thinking

I first read Carl Sagan's Demon Haunted World several years ago, while taking a course in Logic. I found it to be a great book, that covered many of the basic concepts of logic in a manner that is easy to approach. I loved this book, and I find myself returning to it every now and then just to refresh myself on the rules for rational thought.

Sagan was an important scientist, but was better known to the general public for his writing. His novel Contact was a best seller, and was made into a film starring Jodie Foster. His serious writing, however, is not as widely read as it should be. This is an unfortunate fact. Sagan’s books should be taught in schools.

The Demon Haunted World is an introduction to the science of reason. It is an attempt to teach the public to think rationally, with logic instead of emotion. It is a valiant attempt to strip the public of its credulous nature, and to instill the value of logic.

Sagan offers a "tool Chest" for thinking. He introduces the reader to concepts like Parsimony (Occam's Razor), which simply put tells us that simpler answers are better. Other important concepts like Belief Conservation, coherence, and logical justification are spelled out explicitly. Sagan explains how to look for validity and soundness in an argument.

He also explains the down sides of faith, or belief without justification.

Sagan spends some time looking at situations in which people did not avail themselves of their ability for rational thought, and at the consequences of these failures. One of the instances he uses is the Witch Trials that plagued Europe. This portion of the book is crushing. It is terrible to see the destructive force of irrationality at work. Just as in the crusades, and the Inquisition, superstition caused death and destruction beyond our ability to comprehend. Faith is often to blame for such horrors.

Sagan's rules for critical thinking are a must. If everyone would apply his tool chest, we could quickly dispense with irrational beliefs (UFO's, ESP, Angels, etc.), as well as such terrible events as have been perpetrated by zealots the world over. Sagan's ideas could make the world a better, more reasonable place.

Of course, Sagan isn't the only author to attempt this. How to Think about Weird Things, by Theodore Schick, and Lewis Vaughan is another book that admirably tackles this Herculean task. However, Sagan's writing style is superior to that other book. Sagan is clear, concise, easy to read and often entertaining. Schick and Vaughan, on the other hand, often get bogged down in extraneous detail, and exposition. This is a cardinal sin for a book that wishes to instruct.

I cannot recommend this book highly enough. It should be used as a text book in high school. For the average person this book can serve as a personal course in critical thinking. Such a course is badly needed into today’s highly credulous world.

As a footnote: When the world lost Carl Sagan, we lost one of the greatest minds of this century. He was a long suffering opponent of all things silly, stupid, and damaging to society. Sagan is greatly missed, the world over. Luckily for us his influence can continue through the books that he left us.