Ann Druyan
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Druyan with husband Carl Sagan |
Ann Druyan (the surname is pronounced "Dreen") (b.
June 13,
1949) is an author and media producer known for her involvement in many projects aiming to popularize and explain
science. In her writings, Druyan has stressed the idea that people can have a sense of awe and wonder about the unity of the
cosmos without introducing the concept of a
god.
Druyan wrote the books
Comet and
Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors, as well as sections of
The Demon-Haunted World, with her late husband
Carl Sagan. In addition, she wrote an introduction to
The Cosmic Connection and the epilogue to
Billions and Billions, both by Sagan. Alone, she wrote the novel
A Famous Broken Heart.
In the areas of film and television, she was one of the writers for the television series
Cosmos, and a producer of the film
Contact. Most recently, she is the CEO and a co-founder of
Cosmos Studios. She also serves as President of the
NORML Foundation Board of Directors.
Other projects that she has been involved in include the selection of the music on the record on the
Voyager 1 and
Voyager 2 space probes, and the
Cosmos 1 spacecraft which intended to demonstrate
solar sail propulsion.
* I think the roots of this antagonism to science run very deep. They're ancient. We see them in Genesis, this first story, this founding myth of ours, in which the first humans are doomed and cursed eternally for asking a question, for partaking of the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge. It's puzzling that Eden is synonymous with paradise when, if you think about it at all, it's more like a maximum-security prison with twenty-four hour surveillance. It's a horrible place. Adam and Eve have no childhood. They awaken full-grown. What is a human being without a childhood? Our long childhood is a critical feature of our species. It differentiates us, to a degree, from most other species. We take a longer time to mature. We depend upon these formative years and the social fabric to learn many of the things we need to know. --
Ann Druyan Talks About Science, Religion, Wonder, Awe . . . and Carl Sagan*2004
Richard Dawkins Award* A
Speech given by Ann Druyan at the 1997 annual convention of the
Freedom From Religion Foundation*
Ann Druyan Talks About Science, Religion, Wonder, Awe . . . and Carl Sagan *
Cosmos Studios Charter
