“Some portion of the decision making that influences the fate of our civilization is plainly in the hands of charlatans.” –Carl Sagan

Our world is rife with superstition, pseudo-science, theological fraud, sound bites and a decay of substantive content in the media, a celebration of ignorance and anti-intellectualism, and a disdain of true science (the latter three are especially true in the United States). In The Demon-Haunted World, Doctor Carl Sagan addresses these topics and much more, showing us the value of skepticism and scrutiny over mindless gullibility and immediate acceptance of statements from authority.

In each chapter, Sagan cites numerous incidents throughout history of when large swaths of society and entire nations were deceived by unquestioned superstition and false beliefs, dangerous political and social propaganda, the suppression of ideas and opposing views, and yes, even unethical scientists who apply their knowledge toward the detriment of humanity rather than its benefit.

Sagan also delves into cases of alien abductions, faith healing, telepathy, channeling spirits of the dead, and other “spurious” claims, even going so far as to include in the book correspondence from people throughout the country insisting on the existence of aliens, their visitations to Earth, their experimentations on, and in some cases impregnation of, unwitting victims, and their overall plans for humanity.

He does all of this without hubris or vanity, merely stating that science—when applied properly—allows us to maintain a skeptical mind toward outlandish assertions, to question the validity of dogmatic teachings, to interrogate the natural world for answers, and to perform experiments in search of facts rather believing whatever the authority du jour dictates as “fact.”

Sagan firmly believed that science and spirituality are not mutually exclusive and in fact, describes how and why each requires the other.]

Ultimately, as Sagan declared in his Cosmos television series and elsewhere, “Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.” The Demon-Haunted World drives this point home eloquently and with great detail.