Numbers are in: 12 million Cosmos viewers in the US alone, 17.5 million with DVR! Thanks to you all!
— Seth MacFarlane (@SethMacFarlane) March 11, 2014
Many were quick to point out that the numbers were underwhelming for this debut, but considering it was up against the hit shows "Resurrection," "The Walking Dead," and the finale of the HBO series "True Detective," I think it did surprisingly well.And through the advances of science viewers were able to DVR the show to watch at their convenience.
That is for those of us not terrified by progress that is.
And this last Sunday Neil deGrasse Tyson addressed the current "war on science."
Courtesy of Raw Story:
In an interview on CNN’s Reliable Sourcs, host Brian Stelter asked Tyson how to go about brokering a peace in the “war on science.”
“Our civilization is built on the innovation of scientists and technologists and engineers who have shaped everything that we so take for granted today,” Tyson pointed out. “So some of the science deniers or science haters, these are people who are telling that to you while they are on their mobile phone.”
“They are saying, ‘I don’t like science. Oh, GPS just told us to go left,’” he laughed. “So it’s time for people to sit back and reassess what role science as actually played in our lives. And learn how to embrace that going forward, because with out it, we will just regress back into the caves.”
Stelter observed that the news media often tried to balance the climate change debate, even when the two sides were not equal.
“What responsibility do you think the members of the media have to portray science correctly,” the CNN host wondered.
“The media has to sort of come out of this ethos that I think was in principle a good one, but it doesn’t really apply in science,” Tyson explained. “The principle was, whatever story you give, you have to give the opposing view. And then you can be viewed as balanced.”
“You don’t talk about the spherical Earth with NASA, and then say let’s give equal time to the flat Earthers,” he added. “Plus, science is not there for you to cherry pick.”
Tyson recalled that he once said that “the good thing about science is that it’s true whether or not you believe in it.”
“You can decide whether or not to believe in it, but that doesn’t change the reality of an emergent scientific truth,” he noted.
“The good thing about science is that it’s true whether or not you believe in it.” Very well said, and THAT is why he is the perfect host for the relaunch of Carl Sagan's "Cosmos" series.
And speaking of "Cosmos" I finally have a link to the show that will work.
If you have not seen it trust me when I tell you it will be the best 44 minutes you will waste all day.
Revered engineer Vannevar Bush born, March 11, 1890
ReplyDeleteSuzanne Deffree -March 11, 2014
http://www.edn.com/electronics-blogs/edn-moments/4409689/Revered-engineer-Vannevar-Bush-born--March-11—1890
We had dvr'd "Cosmos" from the Sunday broadcast so that we could zap out the ads. That probably meant that we were not considered "viewers" but we sure were, just an evening later. The first episode was spectacular. But neither of us can understand why it is on FOX? It should be on PBS - a lot better than the second season of Mr. Selfridge. The series is also on the National Geographic Network on Monday at 9:00 pm, I think. I set next week's episode to dvr there.
ReplyDeleteBeaglemom
I agree Beaglemom since the original Cosmos was on PBS. However, maybe the thinking was they would get more views on FOX/NatGeo (a FOX network also). After all, the non-science-believers would definitely not be watching that elitist PBS channel! Just a thought.
DeleteHi Gryphen! Is there another link available? I tried your link; unfortunately, Faux has blacked it out here in Canada - maybe they are still pissed that our telecommunications regulator (CRTC) denied them a licence a few years ago to broadcast their propaganda via a Canadian Faux News channel.They seen right through them. Fuck Faux!
ReplyDeleteHe framed it perfectly. I do want to point out one minor caveat. When your GPS says "turn left" or "turn right", take it as a suggestion. I've found five places where the directions were wrong, three of them guaranteed deadly. Yes, it's updated twice a year, yes, I got in touch with Nuvi and they're aware of the issues and they do have a caveat one would need strong bifocals AND a magnifying glass to read the legalese. Electromagnetic fields and sunspots can affect the accuracy.
ReplyDeleteI'm so thrilled this show is on and I did TIVO it, but it'll be on my must buy list when it hits dvd.