This does not directly pertain to "Demon Haunted World", but it is pertinent to what I think we as a class are trying to reach in our understanding of what nonfiction is.  In my research for the paper that is upcoming, dealing with children's literature and imagination and their relationship, I came across a quote from Brunno Bettelheim's "The Uses of Enchantment"-"He can achieve... understanding, and with it the ability to cope, not through rational comprehension of the nature and content of his unconscious, but by becoming familiar with it through spinning out daydreams-ruminating, rearranging, and fantasizing about suitable story elements in response to unconscious pressures.

 Hi everyone, 

Going along with my semester-long quest to understand copyright law, I've decided to examine our own conceptions of "fair use" in copyright law. I want to open these questions to all of you on Serendip. Responses would be much appreciated!

Brain, Education, and Inquiry

Bryn Mawr College, Fall 2010

Session 11A

Facilitated by D2B, LCubed

Teaching Matters

Normal 0 fals

Ethical Use of Human Subjects

1. Globalization of Clinical Trials

2. Case Study

3. Placebos

Globalization of Clinical Trials

In the chapter titled Obsessed with Reality, it was interesting that horoscopes were brought up. I have never believed in horoscopes or fortune cookies but I have always been looking forward to reading what my horoscope says for instance. On page 243, it says towards the end “We are all human,” suggesting that horoscopes tell something about what humans have in common. The truth in the end is that we are all humans. We have our differences which also makes us humans. There is nothing concrete or strong evidence that horoscopes are true.

 Why Categorize?

“The general public must infer mental illness from four signals: psychiatric symptoms, social skills deficits, physical appearance, and labels”

-Corrigan, 2000

I'm really enjoying reading The Demon Haunted World and I'm not sure if it is just because I agree with his ideas....but what I know for sure is that if I had come up with these ideas myself, I never would have found a way to convey them so well without offending the religious or the uneducated as Sagan does. I am impressed with how Sagan is able to discuss peoples' beliefs about the supernatural, for example, without insulting those who believe in things a scientist might deem outrageous. For example, on p. 30 Sagan writes "If you want to know when the next eclipse of the sun will be, you might try magicians or mystics, but you'll do much better with scientists.