He would be 73 today. As Sagan was dying, he stressed the fact that his quasi-atheism did not make him fear death at all, but rather he was always overjoyed for having the opportunity to even briefly exist and experience at all. The world is a much happier place for his having existed.

Sagan’s many works, including his inspiring Cosmos series and his book Demon-Haunted World resulted in my personal ionian enchantement, where I fell in love with the natural world, shook off my own childish ideas about reality, and made science my number one cause.

Carl Sagan was also an avid pot smoker, which does nothing to detract from the brilliance of his writting, and everything to argue for decriminalizing marijuana use.

“Work with animals is a source of suffering to all of us. We treat them like babies who cannot speak. The more time passes, the more I’m sorry about it. We shouldn’t have done it. We did not learn enough from the mission to justify the death of the dog.” ”
– Oleg Gazenko, leading scientists behind the Soviet animals in space programmes

Laika

50 years ago today, Kudryavka, aka. Laika (Russian for “Barker”), became the first living passenger from Earth to reach space. She died from stress and overheating just a few hours into what was to be a seven-day flight, but the plan was always to euthanize her remotely at the mission’s end as the Soviets lacked the time and resources to plot her safe return to Earth.

This was because then Soviet leader Khrushchev wanted a second spacecraft launched in celebration of the 40th anniversary of the Bolshevik Revolution, November 7, one that would top the recent success of Sputnik. The American press nicknamed her “Muttnik,” and it was long after the political ramifications of the flight were exhausted that her inhumane treatment became the focus of the debate.

Kudryavka lived as a stray on the streets of Moscow before her life in the Soviet Space program, where she was renamed “Laika” because it was catchier. Much of the inhumane treatment she and other animals suffered, such as long periods of confinement and intense training, were invaluable to planning human space flight; however, nothing was gained scientifically by sacrificing Kudryavka in a mission meant solely for political gain. Sputnik 1 was a fantastic accomplishment; Sputnik 2 was a complete failure.

Laika Graphic Novel by Nick Abadzis

None of this makes Kudryavka any less a hero in the canon of space explorers. First in space is first in space. “She is perhaps the only character in the Monument to the Conquerors of Space (1964), other than Lenin himself, who can be individually identified by name,” and numerous stories, music, and even a soil target on Mars carry on the name and legend of Laika.

More photos of Kudryavka on this discussion thread.

Wikipedia entry for Laika.

Cross-Posted at Geeking Out

October 1st is Child Health Day, but the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), once made quiet an effort to make the whole month of October mindful of Children’s Health issues. October is a great month for educational initiatives as children have settled into the school-routine and are still fresh in the academic year.

In honor of this event (and the fact that I recently was hanging out with two children with colds), please remember to cough and sneeze into your sleeve:

Cough and Sneeze Into Your Sleeve

People in polite society do not cough into their sleeves. Such behavior is frowned upon. The purpose of this video is to make coughing into one’s sleeve fashionable and even patriotic. It’s the right thing, the polite thing to do.

Not your hand, as you’re just putting germs onto the appendage you touch everything with, and that just doesn’t make sense.

So remember: Cough and Sneeze into your Sleeve!

Today is Powers of 10 Day, 10/10/2007, which is a famous film made by Charles and Ray Eames in 1977 that takes the viewer from a picnic scene, off of Earth, out of the Solar System, galaxy, and into deep space. It’s a film concept that has been often repeated in films like Men in Black and Contact, the “God-Perspective Crane Shot.”

It’s a great film, one that stresses our place in a Universe, which is much vaster in size than our ancestors figured, yet smaller than what many of us Space Age kids thought it would be.

Google Video has the film here.

The Simpsons also did a tribute to this film.

See also the IMAX Cosmic Voyage for a modern, computer-enhanced version of this film narrated by Morgan Freeman, and he played god in a couple of movies, you know, and narrated March of the Penguins, so right there you know this short film is going to make you pee your pants with awe.