Starry Messenger: Cosmic Perspectives on Civilization

Explain the concept of a cosmic perspective. How does one achieve a cosmic perspective? How would a widely accepted cosmic perspective benefit humanity? Support your views by citing the text and/or other sources.

Tyson is clearly a proponent of science literacy. Why is science literacy important? What might the future look like if society becomes more science literate? Cite the text and/or other sources to support your views.

Many people criticize science and rationality as being cold, amoral, and apathetic, but Tyson demonstrates that it can be inspirational, bordering on spiritual. Choose one side of the argument and support your reasoning using evidence from the text.

Who is the intended audience for Starry Messenger? How do you know? How does this audience differ from the intended audience of Galileo’s book that inspired Tyson’s title? How are the two intended audiences similar?

Tyson criticizes many aspects of modern society, including the justice system, war, and social inequality and intolerance. What solutions does he propose to the issues he identifies? How might a future society look if such solutions were implemented?

Analyze Tyson’s discussions on social division. How and why does social division occur? Does it serve a purpose? Does rational thinking have the power to eliminate social divisions? Support your reasoning using evidence from the text and/or other sources.

Examine the current relationship between society and science. Using real-world examples, explain whether people, in general, trust science. Why or why not? If not, what might help remedy this situation?

What is the purpose of Starry Messenger? How does Tyson hope to influence readers? Is his text effective in its intended purpose? Explain your reasoning.