The Human Cosmos
A Secret History of the Stars
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Narrated by:
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Jo Marchant
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By:
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Jo Marchant
About this listen
For most of human history, we have led not just an earthly existence but a cosmic one. Celestial cycles drove every aspect of our daily lives. Our innate relationship with the stars shaped who we are - our religious beliefs, power structures, scientific advances and even our biology. But over the last few centuries we have separated ourselves from the universe that surrounds us. And that disconnect comes at a cost.
In The Human Cosmos, Jo Marchant takes us on a tour through the history of humanity's relationship with the heavens. We travel to the Hall of the Bulls in Lascaux and witness the summer solstice at a 5,000-year-old tomb at Newgrange. We visit Medieval monks grappling with the nature of time and Tahitian sailors navigating by the stars. We discover how light reveals the chemical composition of the sun, and we are with Einstein as he works out that space and time are one and the same. A four-billion-year-old meteor inspires a search for extra-terrestrial life. And we discover why star-gazing can be really, really good for us.
It is time for us to rediscover the full potential of the universe we inhabit, its wonder, its effect on our health and its potential for inspiration and revelation.
©2020 Jo Marchant (P)2020 Canongate Books LtdRelated to this topic
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What listeners say about The Human Cosmos
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- Amazon Customer
- 06-04-22
What’s your favorite book of all time?
I am a lifetime reader and I’ve sometimes been asked this question. It confuses me so I say, “Every book is special at some point or another.”
Now I have an answer. It is the Human Cosmos where Jo Marchant describes a yearning I have had all my life: to be one with the stars. To fly far from earth and dissolve in the Cosmos. This book tells me that , far from being strange, I am following my nature . People hundreds and thousands of years ago felt a close connection with the stars. And here I am, a city-dweller, living in the glory of the electric and electronic age, unable to marvel at the Silver river .
When even a dung beetle can align itself with the path of the Milky Way while I can only see a handful of feeble lights, it is no wonder I have a wish that I know can never be fulfilled in my lifetime. Perhaps in death?
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