Carl Sagan would have been 75 today.
It’s true that his science wasn’t always all that well-founded, and it’s true that he was a bit of a sensationalist — but he made his work accessible and personally relevant to anyone who took the time to listen, and that in itself was laudable.
When I was in grade school, more than anything I wanted to get into Cornell and attend one of his classes. It sounds ridiculous now, but just believing that I could achieve anything I wanted, if only I worked hard enough, made all the difference. He made it seem possible that even someone as average as I could do great things.
Sagan taught an entire generation to think big thoughts, to believe that humanity could someday be greater than it is now; that we are capable of more, if only we strive. Say what you may about the man himself, it’s hard to fault his message.
