Carl Sagan - Cosmos - Eratosthenes

[@rosesareredhehe8388]

Eratosthenes is damn genius. But lets get a moment of silence and respect to the man he hired to walk 800 km.

[@anamarialatis6552]

There is only one person in the world coming close to Erathosthenes, his name is Dr. Agos Pinca, look him up. True genius.

[@dusanninic9572]

Yes Jan, but you can also imagine that person on horse for that distance. No need to just walk these 800 kilometers. But the point is the same. The data was important.

[@JonasPolsky]

Not being a wiseass, but what if the guy was already going to walk the distance? Now he's getting paid to walk slowly and count his steps.

[@Kurostyle21]

@@anamarialatis6552 Who are you talking about? I can't find anything useful

[@snozzmcberry2366]

Honestly, the precision & consistency in the walker's steps, taking such even steps of a known, fixed, repeating distance over what could be extrapolated to some 800 000 steps, is what impresses me the most.

[@jodyb1095]

I legit get chills when Sagan says "that's the right answer". It's such a simple feat but what a thing to work out so long ago with the most basic of tools.

[@Tweej]

We all carry incredible machines with the ability to do incredible scientific feats in our pockets and a percentage of ppl doubt the science of these great men through chosen ignorance. Crazy time to be alive, we could do with Sagan now.

[@tuxedogeyt10]

Eratosthones calculated the Earth's circumference to be 40 000 km, with modern technology we can calculate the circumference, from pole to pole to be 39 940,7 km. Around the equator the circumference is 40 075 km so on average, the circumference of the earth is 40 008 km, insanely close to the calculation over 2000 years ago.

[@marcforrester7738]

We have hundreds of Sagans, I'm sure. The algorithms just choose not to promote their messages.

[@yellowlightingbolt]

@@marcforrester7738 I doubt so.

[@psibarpsi]

Well, dude, the very reason it's a 'simple feat' is because dudes like Eratosthenes took the pains of doing such experiments and discovering such things. Had he not done this particular experiment and a certain bunch of other people had also been dormant in this area, it would have been a 'great feat'. What I basically mean is that once we know something, it always appears to be trivial.

[@vitorfrota940]

The funny thing is that Eratosthenes did this with his eyes and a couple of sticks, but on present days when we're launching rockets into space and flying around the world, flat earthers still can't figure out

[@markgrudzinski914]

Flat Earthers don't want to figure it out, that's why. They feel they have the inside track on the issue... it makes them feel special. Low information people like to delude themselves that they're somehow smarter then the majority of the population. It's part of the Dunning Kruger effect.

[@cuthbertallgood7781]

Who is more annoying? The couple dozen mentally ill people who unironically believe the Earth is flat, or the millions of people like you who constantly bring it up? Answer: people like you, because I constantly have to read it. Give it a rest, feeling superior to mentally ill people is not an accomplishment and it's just tiresome.

[@Novastar.SaberCombat]

Of course not. Sagan's "TDHW" explains this exceptionally well. Too many humans rely entirely on their opinions and beliefs. They hoist those high upon pedestals, way, way above facts and science. 🐲✨🐲✨🐲✨

[@KaladinVegapunk]

Well they fully embody confirmation bias and dunning Kruger, the billions of evidence to show the earth is fake/wrong/bad, but random nonsense diagrams a flat KZbinr posts becomes doctrine and immediately believed hahah. They're a cult at this point, facts, reality and objective truth no longer applies

[@anyfriendofkevinbaconisafr177]

I love that you have identified yourself as a useful idiot. There are no genuine flat earthers. Just mouth breathing morons who keep their myth alive.

[@TeddGCM]

Single handedly brought Astronomy/Astrophysics to the laymen. His ability to explain things in laymen's terms was amazing.

[@howiwatchvideos]

The term for that is called propaganda.

[@FirewolfClash]

Sagan is the goat😊

[@Xanthas998]

​@@howiwatchvideosIt's probably worth distinguishing between learning truth and learning lies.

[@bad_metaphor]

@@howiwatchvideos Not correct. Propaganda is what you are espousing.

[@thereadersvoice]

​@howiwatchvideos How are those right-wing "news" outlets working out for ya, there, buddy? Still believing in Jewish space lasers, are ya? Paranoia really does strike deep with you people, doesn't it.

[@intractable]

A guy 2200 years ago hears a story about the shadow of a pillar, thinks for a little while on the implications, devises an experiment to confirm those implications, and successfully carries out that experiment. Now, 2200 years later, there are people handed all this information on a silver platter, and at literally 100+ times the precision and evidence, and somehow still fall far short.

[@geraldfrost4710]

How many times did people watch the lid boil off a pot before someone said, "steem power!" and built an engine.

[@RaffleRaffle]

​​@@geraldfrost4710 no one sees steam and immediately goes "hey that looks like a good way to power a 2 ton long metal rod with a hollow inside that moves faster than 10 horses that can get people to far away places quickly"

[@geraldfrost4710]

@Raffle Yer right. It was probably some crazy drunken Scotsman who blew the roof off the distillery. His boss came round and was about to fire him. Suddenly, seeing how far away the lid landed (and seeing free whiskey disappearing into the tall grass), said, "If we make it blow horizontal, and add some lever, wheels, and rails, this will move people safely and rapidly across the continent!"

[@helenamcginty4920]

Not only that but they try to prove that the earth is flat. Sailors like Christpoher Columbus of course also knew that the earth is round. Thats why they thought that they could sail west instead of East and still land in India. Problem was the Americas were in the way. 😅

[@LordVader1094]

​@@helenamcginty4920Most medieval people believed the Earth was round, especially those who opposed Colombus' voyage. Since they didn't know a landmass was in between, their distance calculations that he'd run out of food long before reaching India were otherwise correct.

[@JamesBond-hy4kv]

Nobody presents Cosmos like Carl Sagan. He was amazing.

[@barrygriffith7570]

I could listen to Carl Sagan talk about paint drying.

[@tonywebster8582]

Having Rick steeves narrator, is even better.

[@antontonable]

Carl could actually make paint drying sound interesting, in a scientific and personal way!

[@arieldanielle23]

Between having a naturally soothing voice and pleasing cadence, a lot of us have the nostalgia from watching him as kids. Cosmos was one of my favorite shows.

[@helmet098]

It was at that moment that Carl had decided, all too late, eggshell was a poor choice. He then hired a man to repaint he's entire kitchen.

[@damarh]

i was about to comment the same thing -__-

[@davidjradich]

This guy blew my mind when I was a kid and became one of my heroes! Too bad he is no longer with us.

[@ThePeej]

I prefer to contextualize his passing in this way: how lucky are we to have been alive at the same time, as the GREAT, Carl Sagan. And that his thirst for knowledge and reverence for historical thinking could have been implanted in our spirits to live on!!

[@reynardus1359]

Eratosphenes?

[@logandarklighter]

@@ThePeej Not just that. You and I are old enough that our timelines of our lives overlap that of Carl Sagan. But I have never met the man. To the best of my knowledge I have never been within 50 miles of him. But his WORKS... His TV Series. His recorded lectures. His books. Those is how I know him. And those are for the ages - and for all ages! Our children’s children’s children with any luck will know Carl Sagan and his teachings as well as you or I!!

[@Heyim18bro]

@@reynardus1359 that's who i thought and i busted out laughing

[@WestcoastWatchman]

Too bad he was a liar and infected all of us with fiction.

[@lauraadrianasalvatierragarcia]

Although as a teenager I didn't like documentaries, as I found them boring, I was fascinated by Carl Sagan. This man made me understand that all the things that my teachers were teaching me in different subjects were connected , that everything had to do with everything. And that was when learning became meaningful.

[@bakersbread104]

I liked it too, but I stopped liking it the 5th time my dad made me watch the whole thing, and now I'm revisiting it because its neat and easy to digest in small video format on youtube.

[@Jay-ft3xh]

Buddhism has taught many people like Carl. Keep learning

[@slow-mo_moonbuggy]

Carl was a scam artist. This story is obviously nonsense.

[@mkrbrtsn1]

And I hated science at school, all the talk of protons, electrons and molecules, then I saw this series and science made sense!

[@AYVYN]

First you explain “Why”, and then you explain “How”. Too many schools and jobs concentrate on the “What”

[@MsMsmaryam]

How about some love for the poor bastard who walked that straight line? What was his name, how much did he get paid?

[@lomparti]

MsMsmaryam I doubt he paid someone to measure the length as the water well was a well known area and there would have been many records and people who already knew the distance between Alexandria and the well.

[@b-i-c7969]

friendlywhiteguy, according to all sources, he did indeed hire a man.

[@KafshakTashtak]

Whatever he got paid, he had a big role in the advancement of science. He is kind of the first recorded research assistant.

[@gaarasama1719]

@@b-i-c7969 yeah just ignore the bad troll

[@gusti1021]

If he had that shitty job then he wasn't important enough to remember his name.

[@azulo6]

I wish todays documentaries had subtle sound design and smart writing like these old ones.

[@DutchGuyMike]

I guess back then, documentaries, movies & video games were made by more passionate people (as it was more of a niche back then). Everyone just wants to cash in nowadays...

[@c.j.1089]

Or.. was it ALIENS?!?!

[@Chris-lz6ci]

DutchGuyMike dude there’s plenty of that stuff today you just have to develop some taste if all you watch and play is shit

[@danieleidsness7478]

Look up the eyewitness series

[@AsphaltAntelope]

You should watch some BBC documentaries! Especially Brian Cox.

[@boledle]

After all these years with no fancy graphics or animation, Carl still explains it the best using simple props

[@erikdeeNOSPELLSNO]

His only tools were sticks, feet hearts and brains!

[@davelister6632]

@@erikdeeNOSPELLSNO And he inspired me to learn. Learn, ask questions, think, explore and perform experiments. I love that man almost as much as I loved my own father.

[@erikdeeNOSPELLSNO]

@@davelister6632 Now, sadly, all those things are being forced out of the School Systems, by insane leftist progressive shills. Damn, children in schools nowadays are not taught math, science, spelling, reading- but instead victimhood, hatred, perverse sexual ideologies- you know what i am saying if you've been paying attention. Stay sane!

[@saajeeb]

Because he knew how to do it, genius personality indeed!

[@carlosantoniopaezcuba4494]

Well, true, but there are plenty of fancy graphics and animations in Cosmos.

[@airdriver]

I remember my Earth Science teacher telling my classmates and I about Erastothenes back when I was in the ninth grade. This was in 1978. More than anything else, this lesson stayed with me through the years. Mr. Prewitt, thank you sir.

[@colinjava8447]

I always thought it was Erastothenes, that name has stuck now, but I know its actually Eratosthenes, but Erastothenes is easier to say.

[@ThisHandleFeatureIsStupid]

@@colinjava8447 I first read the name in Sagan's book, Cosmos, but I was very young. For the longest time, I read it as "ee-rat-oh-ss-theeens". lmao It took me a solid year or so to break that habit once I finally heard it spoken as a teenager.

[@Xanthas998]

His genius gets me too. It reminds me of the old Sherlock stories, where the solutions were so simple and elegant that I felt like a doofus for knowing how unlikely it is that I could have done it.

[@christopherdean1326]

If every school in the world had a science teacher like Carl Sagan, the human race would have explored the whole solar system by now, and we would be reaching for the galaxies. We will never make up for his loss.

[@ChrisCarnage-jp4fc]

Damn well said.

[@Novastar.SaberCombat]

I placed some secret homages to both Carl Sagan and also, to Eratosthenes in my series of books. It will be interesting if anyone ever detects these enigmatic gems, because they're hidden bloody daemn well. Meant solely for the truly intelligent to recognize. 🐲✨🐲✨🐲✨

[@RukshanJ]

Many schools had. Very rare now !

[@MichaelLevine-n6y]

Be sure to read Dr. Sagan's book, "The Demon Haunted World."

[@christopherdean1326]

@@MichaelLevine-n6y I have, it sits on my shelf along with four or five of his other works. Preaching to the choir my man, preaching to the choir! 🙂

[@rfletch62]

Cosmos and Connections were wonderful shows. Science as entertainment. Even the networks had such shows on primetime,

[@arlen_95]

My dad watched this as a teenager in 1980 and I watched it a teenager in the 2010's. I was completely captivated. Sagan’s storytelling, the ideas is explored, and the beautiful music from Vangelis come together perfectly to make a true masterpiece. Carl Sagan has been my hero ever since and I enjoy coming back to rewatch the series from time to time. It just goes to show that you don't need a big budget and fancy graphics to create a truly captivating series.

[@helisoma]

i hope you will show the series to your future son or daughter as well someday

[@Jay-ft3xh]

It's wonderful when you identify Carl's nuanced approach with english to the topics to which we are still ignorant.

[@sandal_thong8631]

I didn't realize the theme from _Chariots of Fire_ was by Vangelis, too, until decades later.

[@robgoose]

"His only tools were sticks, eyes, feet, and brains."

[@OceanandStars1178]

And a *zest* for experimentation. Sagan had a way of making words sound delicious.

[@robgoose]

@@OceanandStars1178 he really brought it home with that line

[@AlexZander688]

Flat Earthers only tools; "Empty skulls, empty skulls, empty skulls."

[@mikeglymph1910]

The earth is flat and this proves it. Why would u go off of something someone said in ancient times rather than do it in modern times...he said the distance from the two points was 800km ..thats on 497 miles . We know have pics at high attitudes. The earth doesn't curve at only 500 miles even if it does curve. This is ridiculous and stop repeating some weirdo from ancient civilization...also same thing can happen with a local sun. Hes assuming the sun is far away...thats an assumption, And a wrong one at that. Its flat

[@robgoose]

@@mikeglymph1910 LOL, this is a really good impression of a flat-earther. Strong work!

[@kpzcbttp]

Carl has the most mesmerizing voice I have ever heard.

[@jimbobeire]

"Mi ster An derson. Welcome to the Matrix"

[@YZJY]

He could read an ingredients list and recipe on how to make cupcakes and it will still be mesmerizing and sound world-changing.

[@kpzcbttp]

@YZJY So true.

[@jonhohensee3258]

Christine - No, I do.

[@kpzcbttp]

@@jonhohensee3258 How so?

[@PoetlaureateNFDL]

Cosmos, one of the best series ever on television. I’m afraid it would never happen again.

[@fromnorway643]

The follow-up with Neil deGrasse Tyson is also good, but not quite the same as the original with Carl Sagan. I was 14 when that aired on Norwegian TV in 1981.

[@flyingsodwai1382]

@@fromnorway643 Sadly I think Poet is right. There is a vast difference in the available media now vs then. Back then it was good enough that a large swath of the population saw it. It would have to be 10 times as good to compete in a world that has 20 times as many choices (numbers made up for examples sake). I agree though that the Myers/Tyson joint was very good.

[@Xanthas998]

The internet can bring you to other quality sources. In fact if it does, it makes Sagan all the more valuable.

[@henri372]

Cosmos was great and Connections by Burke as well

[@yupowerdat]

Brian Cox does some pretty good shows.

[@trashpanda314]

Keeping an accurate pace count over a vast distance in a more or less featureless desert, is quite an achievement in its own right. I have a lot of experience in land navigation from my time in the Army, and even with a compass, protractor, and pace beads, keeping an accurate pace count whilst navigating is not an easy task. Kudos to that unsung man!

[@familledelisle2086]

They were called "bematists" from wiki: "human paces, although deviating from each other, sometimes larger and sometimes smaller, obey statistics and quickly converge on the average pace of the bematist and thereby provide a much more accurate read of distance. For this reason a human pace counter, a bematist, is superior to a mechanical device especially over longer distances."

[@Widderic]

I've done thousands of kilometers traveling. It's hard to deduce the actual number even with a compass and a topographical map. I wonder what his assistant used to pace out that distance. It certainly couldn't have been easy. One thing is for sure... he was either a loyal assistant, or shared a curiosity with Erotosthenes. Or both.

[@Bushface13]

Like the guys from Google earth driving around in their cars ? They might have had it a little easier.

[@Boykot1]

Had a sort of a wheelbarrow with small stones which were put down at the same distance along the route. Just count the stones.

[@ozboomer_au]

I wouldn't be surprised if some rhythmic device was also employed, even if nothing more than to calibrate the pacing.. We have such a strong sense of rhythm that we can detect a difference of a couple of beats per minute.. so, as someone else mentioned, if you had a wheel with a 'clicker' you would very easily establish a good, consistent rhythm (and hence, a regular walking pace distance) fairly quickly. O'course, all these theories go out the window once you're walking a meandering path.. and you're walking up 'n down hills, walking on sand, scrambling over rocks, etc... 😁

[@glenngibson9201]

Sagan: Eratosthenes only tools were sticks, eyes, feet, and brains. Flat Earthers: Damn, three out of four.

[@haerverk]

I would bet they don't know how to operate sticks either

[@russellcampbell9198]

Good call.

[@Costa_Conn]

I heard social distancing during CV19 pushed them over the edge.

[@svignesh9662]

As another KZbinr pointed out, if the Earth were flat, flat Earthers would be spherical Earthists

[@ManuelBTC21]

I've watched this many times over the past years. 6:00 "That's the right answer" always gets me. This is what I turn to, whenever feel I need to regain my hope for humanity. It's very bitter sweet to know, that even though all the world is crazy, there is still hope for vindication far beyond my lifetime.

[@Martdogg3000]

Dude, me too.

[@competitiveplay6643]

We can only see progress in the World if we see our ancestors as barbarians. Hopefully by the year 3,000 humanity has progressed enough to see flat earthers as barbarians and they are non-existent by then.

[@TheLegend-yb4ok]

if you think a little bit harder than sagan did here, you will realize this experiment coudnt prove curvature of the earth in the time of ancient greece

[@paulkerrigan9857]

It doesn't matter what happens. Humans will always strive to understand their environment because that is human nature. Even if all scientific knowledge were forgotten, it would eventually be rediscovered.

[@mythrobbingpeenmcguilicunt6776]

@@TheLegend-yb4ok why

[@A-Milkdromeda-Laniakea-Hominid]

I think the guy who paced out 800km straight as possible deserves the credit for the accuracy.

[@profesordeworms]

People who did that were trained professionals called bematists, and were used in Greece and Egypt to measure all sorts of distances.

[@A-Milkdromeda-Laniakea-Hominid]

@@profesordeworms cool thx

[@fly7188]

he probably made him do it more than once and took the average

[@aniket385]

They used some device which drops stones after certain distance.

[@A-Milkdromeda-Laniakea-Hominid]

@@aniket385 That there makes all kinds of sense. We do that today, but instead of dropping a stone we have geared readouts counting the revolutions of the wheel. (Or lasers).

[@josephburns9819]

One of the best programs ever. Imo…RIP, Carl Sagan…

[@vikinginfidel4293]

A guy 2200 years ago figured this out with almost nothing and yet in the age of information and technology we still have people that think it's flat 🙄. No, I've never seen it with my own eyes, beyond just equations and satellite photos, but I trust the scientific community with this one.

[@blackhawksfan2525]

Sadly the world will always be full of stupid people. No amount of technology and discovery will fix that.

[@17Scumdog]

I went to borrow my neighbors weed eater last night. He handed it over and asked me immediately if I believe we can travel to space. Very randomly and out of the blue. I said of course! I thought we were about to have a conversation about colonizing space someday, a favorite subject of mine. He continued "no man, we can't go to space, it says in all the ancient religions that the sky is a firmament" 😳 "Go on." Said I, stunned. "The earth is flat. What you see on a map of the world as Antarctica is actually a mountain range that goes all around the world" he said, dead serious. He seemed excited that I was willing to listen "and the North Pole is the center of the world, but it's not a pole. It's actually a hole that leads to the center of the earth!" I said "Thanks for the weed eater, I'll bring it back in a few." I had so many questions but since I already knew that ultimately the answers all boiled down to "he's nuts" I chose to just go cut my grass and have a good laugh with the wife about it. I had heard of these people but this is the first time anyone has ever told me that this is what they believe in person. I used to ask myself, where the hell do they find these people? Two doors down apparently! 🤣😂

[@misterwilde1251]

@@17Scumdogthanks for the laugh. Those people man. They aren’t stupid.. just too gullible

[@misterwilde1251]

Maybe a little dumb too… lol

[@17Scumdog]

@@misterwilde1251 oh man! I had honestly forgotten about it! Had me cracking a smile myself until I read your follow up, at which point I was cracking up. I tell ya, I just don't get how anyone buys into that stuff lol 😆 Thank you for the laugh! 😁

[@bradleypollard4922]

I remember watching this as a kid. I can can think of no other show in my childhood that had such a profound impact on me. I recorded it (on Betamax) and watched it over and over again.

[@hmgrffn19]

Watching this in 2020 , man I miss Carl Sagan. This is the kind of thing that made me persue my education.

[@Bacopa68]

And this is what Carl want. And keep in mind he did not care what education that was. If you're a plumber, Carl would think it was cool he inspired you to be a plumber.

[@liamhoward2208]

I have shared Carl Sagans and many other scientists child-like wonderment of the world since I was a child.

[@cnault3244]

"This is the kind of thing that made me persue my education." Pursue.

[@MXB2001]

@@cnault3244 Hehe, yeah he may need to "persue" it a while longer. But as long as you correct your errors it's fine.

[@beansea798]

me too, dude

[@MattInRC]

This is clearly one of the most brilliant moments ever shared with the public. Sagan's natural television presence made the heady topic of science easier to understand. In re-visiting this from my childhood, I am reminded of why I entered teaching. Watching Sagan share history like a story (such as his tale about Eratosthenes employing someone to pace out steps) makes it more appealing to youth, and inspires me to teach history in the same manner.

[@leftcoaster67]

That's why a lot of history needs to be explained better. Not as just dates. But reasons and motivations. And how one thing leads to another.

[@collinelliott2569]

Carl Sagan once predicted on a talk show that in the future our attention would be taken by 8 to 10 second soundbites.. he was way ahead of his time.

[@Vesalempinen]

If he predicted, he was not ahead of its time. He was smack in the right time.

[@mjproebstle]

This is a very appropriate segment in terms of speaking to the main reason that Carl Sagan created this series. In spite of vast technological advance, he always, always was a proponent of the capacity and capability of the human intellect. He spoke several times during the series referencing Alexandria, the intellectual powerhouse that it was, and the focal point of that ancient city being the wealth of knowledge contained in its great library. Carl recognized the fundamental and absolute importance and necessity of human intellect, and the collection and collaboration of its constituents. He also recognized the implications of its demise. Here, he is so happy to relate and relish in one of mankind’s finer moments. Carl Sagan’s incite into the human condition and intellect are unmatched. He was a treasure to us all.

[@sandal_thong8631]

The destruction of the library of Alexandria was an attack on human culture and learning. It made the "Dark Age" in the west take longer after the fall of Rome. There were other dark ages before that as western civilization collapsed around 1100 BC to 750 BC during the Bronze Age. One of Carl's messages is that the scientific method and the findings of science need to be distributed to the people if they are to keep supporting science, and if we wish to avoid another collapse or Dark Age.

[@tastethejace]

He *gasp* PAID a man to pace and measure the distance between the two cities?! Nowadays you just get some poor grad student to do work like that lol

[@stevenlindhorst7579]

I'd call it google earth

[@haslum15]

@Pat McCann inmates*

[@dobbear]

Back then there wasnt much else to do than get paid to walk.

[@justanotherguyful]

@@dobbear bruh thats so funny and so true

[@dingus_doofus]

@@dobbear There was plenty to do, mostly agricultural labour.

[@AnnLiOz]

The name of this man was so important to me since I was a little girl...I still get ''goosebumps'' about this.

[@johnnycash4034]

Why?

[@pfoster1666]

@@johnnycash4034 If you don't understand Why, then it's pointless to ask.

[@pfoster1666]

@communists are gross Agreed. But I thought Johnny Cash was asking why Ann Li Oz get goosebumps, which is subjective, or being sarcastic.

[@realgrilledsushi]

And how many men since then?

[@jackbuckley7816]

Always enjoyed this tidbit of history. That is to say, tidbit, yes, but a one of monumental proportions! Loved Sagan in this era, never missed his shows or guest-appearances. He was right for his times, striking a chord with the public more than any other astrophysicist before or since. I mourned this "Star of the Stars" upon his passing & have never forgotten him.

[@deveshgupta4333]

Eratosthenes estimated the distance from Alexandria to Syene as 5,000 stadia, or about 500 miles (800 kilometers). He made this estimation from the time it took walkers, who were trained to measure distances by taking regular strides, to trek between the cities. -Khan Academy

[@sail2byzantium]

Just love this! I remember watching Cosmos back in 1980--in my mid-teens then. Absolutely glued to it--the content, Sagan's presentational style, including the fiction of him being a cosmic traveler, the soundtrack (esp. Vangelis). A masterpiece of a series.

[@jitsmapper4438]

I remember weeping at the beauty of his opening monologue about imagination. "Perfect as a snowflake, organic as a dandelion seed, it will carry us to worlds of dreams and worlds of facts. Come with me."

[@sail2byzantium]

@@jitsmapper4438 Wonderful that you remember this--I confess, those exact words escaped me. Appreciate the trip down memory lane. Thanks!

[@cnault3244]

Having seen this episode when it was originally broadcast I asked myself "why didn't any of my teachers through elementary and high school ever tell this story?". That would have made science and/or history more real.

[@fromnorway643]

None of my teachers told this story either, but luckily Carl Sagan did when I first watched this episode in 1981.

[@razrazberrybi8933]

I very recently graduated college and I was taught this story (though not via this video) early in high school when we first learned trigonometry!

[@hye181]

if they did you would have slept through it

[@Jay-ft3xh]

Because not ever educator can be the greatest educator of all time. Carl was a wholly unique human.

[@sandal_thong8631]

A story that should have been told earlier was about the lead industry and putting lead in gasoline and lobbying for all pipes to be lead. Then, a man tried to create a clean room, but was finding lead everywhere. By the time I was a boy, the government was phasing lead out of everything: gas, pipes, paint. That story was in one of the _Cosmos_ episodes by Neil deGrasse Tyson.

[@stevealikonis9467]

Eratosthenes was a genius by far but let's pay some respect to that dude that wrote that scroll in the first place!!

[@ianlloyd6812]

Carl Sagan was/is so easy to listen to and hence interesting. He was a great educator.

[@fromnorway643]

Only matched by David Attenborough!

[@thetruth9803]

the opening is so good. it always lightens my mood rewatching it.

[@bristratostar7908]

Carl Sagan is the Santa Claus of Science, turning knowledge into an enjoyably precious gift for all.

[@MrNiceGuy1422001]

Word.

[@garyfilmer382]

I remember Carl Sagan very well from when I was a youngster, he certainly helped to fire up my interest in astronomy, and his television series, Cosmos, was not only fascinating, beautiful, and educational, but groundbreaking. He was one of our greatest science communicators, speaking very wisely too, and he is sorely missed in these very uncertain times.

[@ValJosey]

Had to watch Carl Sagan again! Watched it when I was younger, fascinating!

[@stevebrickshitta870]

Astounding story and retelling, but what I'm most impressed by is Sagan's voice and accent. Does anyone speak like this anymore? The drawn out language, the phrasing ... it's from some place and time lost to us now except in recordings like this from the past.

[@woopert7]

Janet Yellen has a similar accent.

[@sadwingsraging3044]

**Captain Kirk smiles**

[@sadwingsraging3044]

@@woopert7 I bet she didn't see the inflation coming that this sack of potato brains in the White House has caused. Affectation doesn't mean intelligence, wisdom, or character.

[@stevebrickshitta870]

@@sadwingsraging3044 yeah, maybe Sagan was copying Kirk. 🖖😜🖖

[@stevebrickshitta870]

@@woopert7 thanks for mentioning that. Very similar, but Sagan is really something else. You listen intently, sensing his genius, regardless of what he is actually saying.

[@matthewreitano5527]

I feel like this is the inspiration for Hugo Weaving's delivery as Agent Smith. The delivery is dead on.

[@kyle857]

Matthew Reitano it was

[@MythicalMD]

Damn, spot on!

[@SenaBryer]

I was thinking the EXACT same thing listening to this!!

[@lavixl]

Mr. ANDERSON!

[@flippert0]

"I’d like to share a revelation that I’ve had, during my time here."

[@luisvillar8320]

I enjoyed watching Carl Sagan in the Johnny Carson show, such a brilliant man. Also loved how Beethoven's 7th opens up this story.

[@randy109]

God Bless Carl Sagan (and Bill Nye, the Science Guy!). Because of great men like Carl I have a son who is a Mechanical Engineer and a daughter who is an Elementary School Teacher. I enjoyed watching all these shows back in the 1980's when my kids were small. Literally Millions of kids eyes were opened to Science by Carl Sagan. From the smallest child to the old folks in the house we sat absorbed with interest and curiosity when Sagan spoke to us through the TV...

[@georgeorwell100]

randy109 me included

[@brietebank9582]

Those credentials won't mean shit when there dead ....all just here to occupy us , hobbies , jobs , sports...... and keep us from focusing on our true meaning....we are special....and this earth is for us ,and us for it....we are not just here by accident...as this pseudo science bum (like Bill Nye The actor lie guy) wants so bad for you to believe .... every generation gets their own pseudo science actor lie bum guy to indoctrinate them at a young age(the key) on the sewage spewing television/radio.....sad ..but #theawakeningisunstoppable #goldenratio the paradigm is shifting.....fast

[@BCPRODUCTIONS19]

Fuck bill nye lol

[@B-DINO]

@@BCPRODUCTIONS19 you're so right. That dude can lay down and die and the world would be a more knowledgeable place. I was just about to comment the same thing lol

[@davidcoons89]

jose sanchez oh ya..been a puppet since day one!

[@kkevin369]

Me too. He was incredibly articulate and eloquent. I love every sentence!

[@jlvandat69]

I have read Cosmos 4 times over 30 years and just devour it every time. Dr. Sagan, just as Eratosthenes gave the world gifts of such incredible value. Humans will one day live for centuries, but how I wish that ability would have been available for people like these two.

[@samrabinovici1140]

I have to say Carl Sagan.............such great communicator and one of the greatest educators........

[@msillyfly]

I never knew about Eratosthenes. Why didn't they mention him in school? Darn public school.

[@BattleBunny1979]

I mention him as an intro story to all new physics classes I teach.

[@Callhouse]

probably because you didn't pay attention

[@Kenny-lp4qz]

They did, you just weren't paying attention. ;D

[@max5250]

Dylon, Yeah, sure, every single person from history and all scientist are liars, and only flattards speak truth. This is truly the only way to 'convince' someone that Earth might be flat...

[@max5250]

Dylon, How am I 'contradicting myself'?! Who are the 'people that came before us'?! Even old Greeks knew that Earth is not flat, although they were not aware of Earth's rotation and mutual position of celestial objects. If you want to 'screw my science', then please turn off your computer and go away from internet because you have all this thanks to this science. You 'read' anger in my sentences?! You are more delusional than I thought...

[@Joe-y1d2y]

The entire series, with Carl Sagan, should be mandatory for high school graduation.

[@DisposableSupervillainHenchman]

Nah, let’s teach that Jesus rode on a velociraptor and put the Ten Commandments in every classroom! So sayeth Louisiana law!

[@brandillysmom]

I love this series….Before Carl Sagan, the only real exposure to the cosmos came from occasional family trips to the Griffith Park Observatory when I was a child. Those trips created a fascination and thirst for more knowledge. I read encyclopedias, but the television series Cosmos really opened things up for me. Carl Sagan brought the Cosmos to myself and so many others, just ordinary people. I’m forever grateful.

[@thejesuschrist]

Praise be Saint Carl!

[@ZyrenV]

holy shit its jesus christ i didnt expect to find you here

[@braydenmk1587]

@@ZyrenV ikr

[@jackhandma1011]

Didn't know Carl Sagan was canonized by Jesus Christ himself.

[@iisphinx03]

Ay its 300 bc ur not born yet

[@nathgraza9408]

@@ZyrenV jesus is reak

[@MikeKobb]

I saw this show when I was a little kid, and I still remember this segment vividly. This one and the one on Champollion and his decipherment of the hieroglyphics.

[@trespire]

This must be one of televisions greatest moments.

[@erikswanson224]

Eratosthenes - Chief Librarian of the greatest libraries in ancient times that contained knowledge now since lost to us. Yet -- I had never heard of him. What a shame. He should be just as well know as Socrates, Plato and other such giants of the ancient world.

[@michaelmccoy1794]

You are absolutely right. And your statement is an indictment of the staggering inadequacies of our "education system".

[@williamgeorge1886]

Sure wish I had a card from that library.

[@jkranites]

@@michaelmccoy1794if the library had survived. Can you imagine how much further we'd be ahead ?

[@hlcepeda]

There's also a connection between Eratosthenes and that little tower mentioned by Sagan. Communications tower, or a lighthouse. More likely a lighthouse, if I had to choose. The square base, an octagonal shape above that, and the cylindrical top makes the tower almost certainly one of many ancient lighthouses that mimicked the design of one of the 7 wonders of the ancient world, in this case the 110 meter tall lighthouse, _Pharos of Alexandria,_ 280 BCE. Both that Great Library of Alexandria _and_ the Pharos of Alexandria existed at the same time. Surprised to see this mini-Pharos turn up in this particular video. A nice surprise!😄

[@aurelian2668]

@@jkranites The ability to use steampower would be available and used earlier.

[@The_Radical-Squadron]

September 28, 1980 44 years ago the greatest documentary series that was released. "The Shore of the Cosmic Ocean," aired. With it the very first words spoken was, "The cosmos is all that is, or ever was, or ever will be." Thank You Dr. Sagan for this outstanding series. Yes I still have the book.

[@msNB1]

This is the coolest thing ever

[@jayfoster5756]

This is classic Carl Sagan. I remember showing this to my Science students decades ago.

[@SunShine-kd6td]

"Curved" but not downward like a sphere. Curved like a CIRCLE. CIRCUMFERENCE!

[@LucaColaMusic]

​@@SunShine-kd6td a sphere is curved also..... And the flat earth theories are simply ridiculous and outdated.... severely outdated

[@rozzgrey801]

@@LucaColaMusic Flat earth isn't even a theory, it's a brain fart with delusions of grandeur.

[@bored_person]

If Carl was born later, he would have been a great KZbinr.

[@kalibos]

Can you imagine *PACING* 800 km to a high degree of accuracy? That shit must have taken years!

[@RMJ1984]

From what ive heard he used a camel or something as they ride at a steady pace. They can apparently also travel about 80-120 miles per day, so we could have done it within a week. I seriously doubt he walked :P

[@TheMaxbrooks]

I can imagine it quite easily, tie rope from one leg to the other at the length of your gait. Then walk and count. Couple of months walking tops.

[@thepierce2000]

We did something like this in the early days of the United States to measure the Land and Map it. We used simple chains and rocks, with teams of men. Starting at the East Coast and working our way West.

[@steverodgers8425]

It could be done with post.

[@StrictlyAwesome]

pacing sticks were a thing back then too

[@logicon3060]

Who is watching this in October 2024?

[@stuartmccrea5188]

Me hello ?

[@edoardomigliavacca9343]

November 9 here

[@SD-fc7jn]

I was never into science, but I never missed an episode of Cosmos. Carl Sagan was amazing in this series.

[@coachmen8508]

Totally love with this man he filled my mind with such Wonder. My mom got me a record of the soundtrack that I used to play as I drifted off to sleep such a wonderous world

[@connectkarim]

Mind blowing moment of realisation! Erasthothenes' sheer brilliance.

[@sonsprinter]

I watch this video a lot from time to time. It is, in my mind, the greatest story ever told.

[@TommyD937]

At 1:05, this honorable champion is demonstrating, ~2300 years later, why you shouldn't burden yourself with the petty judgments of others. Sound logic stands the test of time.

[@russellthorburn9297]

Eratosthenes provided a highly accurate diameter of the Earth in 300 BC and then 1700 or so years later Christopher Columbus got it wrong by a gigantic amount thereby mistaking the islands of the Caribbean for India. Eratosthenes was an genius. Columbus was a buffoon.

[@kody2288]

Underrated comment

[@bomlife1572]

I just learned a new word today, its "buffoon". Thanks

[@doyouknoworjustbelieve6694]

Columbus went out sailing towards India, but when he found the new world he knew he did not hit India. Also he died not knowing he had discovered two new continents.

[@SpottedSharks]

Columbus was a genius. Had he revealed how far he really believed India was from Spain, he could not have recruited any sailors for a voyage that long. There would have been no way to outfit his ships with sufficient provisions for a journey that long, and no known source of resupply along the way. He gambled and it paid off.

[@laythadrian5705]

He knew he wasn't in India. And it didn't really have anything to do with how big the entire globe was, but more so with the precise locations of the continents which nobody knew at that time.

[@Bubbles00]

How sad would Sagan and Eratosthenes be to learn that nowadays flat earthers exist

[@andresfcastanoescritor]

Great explanation of profesor Sagan.... and musical background magnificent Beethoven 7th symphony

[@oscarz5579]

Wow... 9 years ago. Is someone still here :)

[@Bacopa68]

The seventh is the best one. Everyone knows that. It was the first one he wrote after going completely deaf and he said IDGAF. Every little trick he learned was compressed into that last movement.

[@russellcampbell9198]

It's time to watch Carl's "Cosmos" again.

[@hydroknight01]

I so dearly wish we could get a modern remastering of this series, and maybe a home media release. I'd buy the hell out of it.

[@sandal_thong8631]

They did a Cosmos update series around 1990 I believe. Then Neil deGrasse Tyson did a couple seasons of a new _Cosmos_ series with Carl Sagan's widow in the 2000s or 2010s.

[@jamez2022]

Flat Earthers: *"I'm going to pretend I didnt see that"*

[@faizalhakim3173]

😂

[@greatorder]

Apparently some of them claim that the sun's rays aren't actually parallel and the sun is closer, hence why the shadows are different lengths. Obviously horseshit, but what do you expect from people so willing to ignore reality?

[@superguy911]

@@greatorder They'll insist on proving shit with flashlights. Ignoring the fact, that the sun isn't a dam flashlight. Note how Carl sagan actually put the cardboard in the sun and didn't have to use flashlights to make his point

[@Magneticitist]

@@greatorder Exactly. To them the sun is extremely small and close so Sagan's example here proves nothing to them. Shifting location of a directional light source varies the shadows the same way.

[@snikerman98]

@@greatorder that's the frustrating part. Any generally accepted facts you use to prove that the earth is indeed round, they can just say those facts are false and negate your whole argument. There has to be a common ground of science for scientific proofs.

[@Mocha69A]

Carl kept me impired as a child in 70s. I listened to all of his episodes

[@Shan_Dalamani]

Cosmos wasn't broadcast until 1980.

[@no-lifenoah7861]

@Shan_Dalamani they probably mistyped or misremembered

[@rosemarymcbride3419]

Our schools really desperately need to be teaching the history of science and technology. I'm so thankful I got brought up on programming like this that instilled in me the truth that our understanding of the world changes with each new day we spend on it!

[@theAurumaster]

Carl Sagan ... RIP !

[@SaltySparrow]

Shout out to the person who was paid to measure a large distance and actually did their job.

[@ShizukuSeiji]

@Andrei Salvaleon Maybe.... they just drank beer in the nearest bar and made a number up... o_O

[@jaymac7203]

This man helped create the next generation of scientists. One of my other favourites Brian Cox always cited him as a great inspiration 😊

[@IndogaKirai]

And Christians hated him. People complain of Islam terrorists, Christian terrorists are aish present. They bombed many planned parenthood buildings, seventh death threats to people like Carl Sagan, int guy even shot a doctor in tht church of all places because the Ductor was Pro Choice.

[@IntheeyesofMorbo]

My favorite bit from Cosmos. This one part alone made me discover Science when I watched this in my teens

[@fartx211]

For all of you wondering how he got 7 degrees, I think this is how he did it (correct me if im wrong). - Assume all the rays of light hitting the earth are parallel. Draw a curve representing the surface of the earth Draw one line, perpendicular to the ground. This represents the Syene obelisk. The sun is overhead, so there is no shadow. Somewhere else on the arc, draw another line representing the obelisk at Alexandria. Draw another line from the base of the obelisk and tangential to the arc, representing the shadow. The obelisk and shadow now make a right angle. Connect them with a hypotenuse. Now, because the tip of the shadow is caused by the tip of the obelisk blocking the sun, it must mean that the sun's rays are parallel to the hypotenuse. This also means that the hypotenuse at Alexandria is parallel to the obelisk at Syene, from our assumption. Therefore the angle between the two obelisks equals the angle between the obelisk at Alexandria and it's hypotenuse with it's shadow due to the rule of alternating angles on parallel lines. In Eratosthenes case, it was 7 degrees, but will be different for you depending on how long of a shadow you drew.

[@backyard282]

You're overcomplicating. Here's a very simple explanation: There was no shadow in syene, meaning the light was parallel with respect to the stick. At Alexandria, the Earth's curvature tilted the stick, causing an angle between the stick and the light ray that is not 0 anymore but 7 degrees which can easily be calculated by measuring stick's length and it's shadow and then using the arctangent function, where the shadow is the opposite and the stick is the adjacent leg.

[@antoniodelrio1292]

Thank you very much for posting this. It's exactly what I was wondering.

[@christinavuyk2026]

My mum let me stay up really late to watch Cosmos, absolutely loved it 😍

[@tagonistknightspublishing8972]

It is fun to add little Easter Eggs into my writing and making a subtle reference to him by someone who highly respects scientific research, is a joy for me.

[@freddydrennan4438]

This guy is great. Gotta love Sagan.

[@krazykris9396]

One of the cool parts about living in a tropical region is seeing a Lahaina noon (time of no shadows). which by definition only happens in tropical regions. Therefore, we live on a round earth.

[@othaner38]

Can you imagine that Columbus ignored this when he convinced queen Isabella os Spain to found his expedition to India. He argued then that the circunfence of the earth was far less that value Erathostenes calculated.

[@georgekalemis7359]

Eratosthenis wasn't Egyptian, he was Greek. At his time Egypt was ruled by the Greek dynasty of Ptolemeus. Last of the Ptolemeus dynasty was Cleopatra.

[@strategicthinker8899]

Thank you for educating the commenters. You are 100% correct.

[@JohnPap21]

George Kalemis He never said that Eratosthenes was Egyptian.

[@JohnPap21]

But at the end if you look our History, who was Greek? Greeks went everywhere and conquer the people not the lands.

[@thecarpy]

Born in Cyrene, current Libya. Please do note that scientists do not care where one comes from for borders and nations are just silly human concepts ... from space, there is no big difference between parts of Texas, France, or Manchuria. Now, go and watch Pale Blue Dot again!

[@FirstLast-fr4hb]

That doesnt change where he lived and grew up. Maybe even not the local customs.

[@borntoclub247]

THE only video you need to watch. This man was and is a legend! #cosmos

[@xelgodis80085]

We can replicate temperature gradients per element based on emissions (light, alpha/gamma/ beta rays, UV, Xrays, etc) here on earth to a near perfect degree and calculate the temperature of the sun by integrating those results with basic physics. We can calculate the size of the sun by triangulation of the distance of the moon via laser refraction at different locations on earth, and the speed and velocities at which all present bodies are in rotation based on multiple decades of observations of the heavenly bodies in relation to eachother, then notate the size and distance of our shadow casted upon the moon and vice-versa. So even denying ALL confirmed outer space proof and all scientific evidence, even the most stubborn flat-earther can do the experiments themselves and see that the distance, temperature, and size of the sun can only be what is already known by the scientific community.

[@WeAreAllNamedAngus]

I need that Carl Sagan drip. My boy fresh as hell

[@rel3elskum336]

Just started watching Carl Sagan. I heard of him a long time ago , if I knew he w as so interesting to listen to I would have been watching sooner. Good stuff.

[@edb2720]

wow, that was an amazing scientist

[@arithmeticum]

+Ed Bulnes he had that going for him, which was nice.

[@davidcoons89]

Eratosthenes or Sagan?

[@ChantHareKrishnaAndBeHappy]

@@davidcoons89 The former and the latter.

[@geisaune793]

These educational miniseries from 40, 50, 60+ years ago seem so much more effective to me than current ones. Cosmos with Carl Sagan, Civilisation with Kenneth Clark, Connections with James Burke. I have a college degree and each one of them has still taught me so many fascinating things in an easy to understand manner.

[@hammalammadingdong6244]

Sagan and Burke are outstanding.

[@geisaune793]

@@hammalammadingdong6244 That scene where James Burke explains rocket fuel for like a full minute and times it perfectly so that his monologue ends precisely when a rocket ignites like a mile in the background is masterful. No special effects or slick editing there.

[@dreamlandnightmare]

Because it was all about the facts and information, not a bunch of flashy CG graphics and ADD editing.

[@davids7912]

Carl Sagan explained things so people could understand him. He was a kind genius.

[@MiniatureMasterClass]

I FINALLY understand what is meant by degrees describing the curvature of the Earth! 7 degrees! Thanks Carl.

[@SunShine-kd6td]

"Curved" but not downward like a sphere. Curved like a CIRCLE. CIRCUMFERENCE!

[@weemeemoo]

the curvature (degrees) depends on what two points are compared. if two further cities were compared, it'd have been a bigger angle with more degrees

[@motaparatu]

The Greeks already knew the earth was probably round. Pythagoras had noticed that ships disappear over the horizon bottom first. I believe the Chinese did the same experiment but assumed the earth was flat but the sun was much closer. I believe they worked out that the sun was 3000 miles away and had a diameter of 28 miles or something like that. Flat Earthers use these measurements today. It was still amazing though that he came up with a pretty good estimate of the size of the planet way back then,

[@rowanmillar6798]

Everyone knew it, Egyptians depicted it as a globe

[@suhailmall98]

Yes but this is the first (iirc) accurate measurement of its curvature

[@lorenzbroll101]

LOL. Love the 'thumbnail' on this. You have given his body the configuration of an Alien Grey!

[@ChinoFavre]

Respect, Sagan!.. (and Vangelis!) :D

[@b-i-c7969]

...and not Eratosthenes?

[@mjnp61801]

Flat earthers do not like this...

[@GH-oi2jf]

I think Eratosthenes already knew that Earth was (approximately) spherical. He devised the method of measuring it.

[@thelostone6981]

“Here’s a bottle of water, a Cliff bar and some sunscreen. Get walking pace-boy” - Eratosthenes