Carl Sagan: a lovely and powerful new short film and automaton installation about the urgency of environmental action

In the 1980s, visionary astronomer and science educator Carl Sagan raised the alarm about climate change, destruction of our natural world, and the urgency of environmental action to protect our future. The new short film above—from UN Global Compact, AlmapBBDO, and Boiler Filmes—features clips of Sagan's speeches accompanied by a lovely tape-loop soundtrack by Amulets. 

The animal automatons were created by Argentine artist Pablo Lavezzari and are powered by the reel-to-reel tape machine.

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NASA official takes oath of office with hand on Carl Sagan book

Last week, Makenzie Lystrup was sworn in as the new director of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. She's the first woman director there. In a wonderful gesture, Lystrup chose not to swear on a bible or the US Constitution, both common choices during governmental swearing-in ceremonies. Instead, Lystrup placed her hand on a copy of Carl Sagan's 1994 stone cold classic book Pale Blue Dot. 

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