Sean and I have known each other for quite a while now and we talk frequently about the future of space tourism and space exploration in general. Here are his thoughts about The Cosma Hypothesis:
"At the Space Entrepreneurs in Seattle, WA, we are focused on the 'what' of space exploration---the 'what' being helping people advance their careers in space. Frank White has done an amazingly thorough job of exploring the 'why' of space exploration in The Cosma Hypothesis.
"As Simon Sinek would say, it starts with 'why.' We have the option to do things as we have always done them, or we could pursue a higher destiny and be a better version of ourselves through space exploration. It's my firm belief that reading The Cosma Hypothesis will help you more firmly ground your reasons for exploring space in the 'why,' and at a more planet-wide level. We all have our own reasons for being interested in space exploration, but Cosma will help you understand those within our society and the world as a whole. As a world-renowned space philosopher and author of the now cult classic The Overview Effect, Frank takes his thinking to the next level about what this all means.
"With the rise of the commercialization of space, it's important that we think consciously about why we do this, so we can better inform our 'how,' and Frank helps us do just that in The Cosma Hypothesis."
---Sean McClinton
Sean is the founder and organizer of the Space Entrepreneurs network in Seattle, WA, a network designed to help people accelerate their careers in space. He also founded the company SpaceToTravel, a space-related travel services company designed to help people get more out of their travel lives, using space. You can follow him at @sean_mcclinton.
Friday, April 26, 2019
Wednesday, April 3, 2019
More from Kevin Kelley
As I have said in an earlier post, I have known Kevin for many years, dating back to the late 1980s, when he published The Home Planet and I published The Overview Effect.
Kevin is also a founding member of the Overview Institute, which was established in 2008.
More recently, he reviewed early drafts of The Cosma Hypothesis. Here is another comment he has now made on the book:
Kevin is also a founding member of the Overview Institute, which was established in 2008.
More recently, he reviewed early drafts of The Cosma Hypothesis. Here is another comment he has now made on the book:
"Whether you are a humanity-in-space geek or never gave it much thought, this book will leave you thinking and wondering for a very long time.
"Frank White proves and evolves Goethe’s statement that: 'Every object, well contemplated, opens up a new organ of perception within us.' But Frank’s fourth-dimensional evolution begets a Klein bottle where Cosmos, organ of perception, and we, are One."
—Kevin Kelley
KEVIN W. KELLEY is an artist, entrepreneur, and author of New York Times and international best-selling book The Home Planet (1988)—a large-format book of stunning photographs of Earth taken from space, accompanied by quotations from astronauts and cosmonauts reflecting on the profound effect of experiencing the planet from the perspective of outer space.
The Home Planet and Frank White’s The Overview Effect were published contemporaneously. Both attempted to interpret the astronaut experience, one primarily with pictures and the other through words.
Kelley’s musings about our place in the cosmos have resulted in the development of Infinitaas™, a revolutionary way to visualize our journey through time, space and evolution. Infinitaas will be a real-time, interactive, visualization technology for exploring and conveying Big History and Earth Systems Science.
Once again, the two authors’ visions link up: White describing in words and Kelley evoking imagery that conveys understanding and experience.
(The Cosma Hypothesis is available on Kindle, Audible, and in print on Amazon.com)
Copyright, Frank White, 2019, All Rights Reserved
Thursday, March 21, 2019
Kevin Kelley on " The Cosma Hypothesis"
I have known Kevin for many years, dating back to the late 1980s, when he published The Home Planet and I published The Overview Effect.
Kevin also is a founding member of the Overview Institute, which was established in 2008.
More recently, he commented on early drafts of The Cosma Hypothesis. Here is one of his comments on the book:
Kevin also is a founding member of the Overview Institute, which was established in 2008.
More recently, he commented on early drafts of The Cosma Hypothesis. Here is one of his comments on the book:
"The Cosma Hypothesis is the Bible and Master Plan for the real Star Trek!
"If you have ever imagined going into space or wished to see humanity trek to distant stars, planets, and galaxies—well, this is the book for you!
"In his passion for seeing humanity spread into space, Frank White offers the concepts, rationales, purposes, and even a comprehensive visionary master plan for starting the Human Space Program immediately, tomorrow!"
—Kevin Kelley
KEVIN W. KELLEY is an artist, entrepreneur, and author of New York Times and international best-selling book The Home Planet (1988)—a large-format book of stunning photographs of Earth taken from space, accompanied by quotations from astronauts and cosmonauts reflecting on the profound effect of experiencing the planet from the perspective of outer space.
The Home Planet and Frank White’s The Overview Effect were published contemporaneously. Both attempted to interpret the astronaut experience, one primarily with pictures and the other through words.
Kelley’s musings about our place in the cosmos have resulted in the development of Infinitaas™, a revolutionary way to visualize our journey through time, space and evolution. Infinitaas will be a real-time, interactive, visualization technology for exploring and conveying Big History and Earth Systems Science.
Once again, the two authors’ visions link up: White describing in words and Kelley evoking imagery that conveys understanding and experience.
(The Cosma Hypothesis is available on Kindle, Audible, and in print on Amazon.com)
Copyright, Frank White, 2019, All Rights Reserved
Wednesday, February 27, 2019
Rick Tumlinson on The Cosma Hypothesis: Implications of the Overview Effect
Rick and I go way back, to the early days of the space movement and meetings at Gerard K. O'Neill's Space Studies Institute. We are both committed to developing a new philosophy of space exploration and have been working with Dylan Taylor on developing the 2211.world website, which is dedicated to that task (Dylan is also publishing Cosma). Most recently, Rick has founded SpaceFund, an initiative to "tokenize space."
I asked Rick to review Cosma and write something about the book. He did, and I had planned to tweet out a portion of it, but decided that it would not do justice to his comments.
So here is what he said, as well as some details about Rick's current work:
I asked Rick to review Cosma and write something about the book. He did, and I had planned to tweet out a portion of it, but decided that it would not do justice to his comments.
So here is what he said, as well as some details about Rick's current work:
In today’s world, everything is seen through narrow lenses. Left, right, class, gender, race, nation—forcing us to focus not on who we are but who we are not. In Cosma, Frank White blows past all of this. In fact, he shatters all lenses, tears down the walls, blows the roof off, and throws us out into the universe. And then, from the same vantage point of the astronauts from whom he derived the Overview Effect, floating in the infinite stillness of space, he contemplates the ultimate question of our role in that universe. His answer is both awesome and inspiring, and were it to become the driving force in our culture would change everything, by bringing us all together—for as Frank makes clear—we Are the Universe.
Rick Tumlinson is a writer, speaker, and one of the creators of the space revolution that has the goal of settling the Solar System. He recently started SpaceFund, the world’s first tokenized venture capital fund for space. You can follow him @RocketRick.
Thanks, Rick!
(The Cosma Hypothesis is available on Kindle and Audible now and the print version is available for pre-order, with a March 12 publication date, on Amazon.com)
(The Cosma Hypothesis is available on Kindle and Audible now and the print version is available for pre-order, with a March 12 publication date, on Amazon.com)
Copyright, Frank White, 2019, All Rights Reserved
Monday, December 24, 2018
Apollo 8 and the Overview Effect: Part Two
Many contemporary commentators on the Overview Effect imply that it began with the Earthrise photo. They say things like, "When humans first saw the Earth from space..." as if it was at that moment on the Apollo 8 mission that the Overview Effect became a reality.
In fact, it was on the Apollo 8 mission that we first saw the whole Earth from space in an image sent to us by astronauts (there had been some less remarkable photos sent by probes that were not piloted).
However, strictly speaking, the first true experience of the Overview Effect took place when Yuri Gagarin went into orbit in 1961.
However, this perception is a testimony to how powerful this image really is. The iconic picture snapped by Bill Anders, with a little help from his fellow crew members, has taken its place among media that have reshaped our views of ourselves and our place in the universe. Alongside that photo is "the Blue Marble" picture shot by the Apollo 17 crew in 1972 and the "pale blue dot" image transmitted to us by the Voyager I spacecraft in 1990.
In terms of impact, "Earthrise" has been highly significant. At a recent conference in the Netherlands, Big History expert Fred Spier gave a talk on how the photo was received in the United States and abroad. He also told us that it changed his life and set him on the path of attempting to grasp "the big picture" ever since.
A few days ago, four astronauts and their colleagues held a celebration of Earthrise at the Kennedy Space Center and launched the Constellation Foundation and its new project, "Earth2068." The Overview Effect has been referenced as an inspiration for the event and Nicole Stott and Ron Garan, two astronauts who were interviewed for my book, are founders. (Ron wrote the foreword to the third edition of The Overview Effect: Space Exploration and Human Evolution and Nicole has written the foreword to the fourth edition.)
These are just a couple of the ways that Earthrise has influenced subsequent events since that difficult year, 1968. We have just gone through another difficult year for many people on Spaceship Earth. However, speaking as one who experienced both 1968 and 2018, can I say our world is better because of that photo?
Yes!
Copyright, Frank White, 2018, All Rights Reserved
The Overview Effect: Space Exploration and Human Evolution is available at aiaa.org and amazon.com
The New Camelot: the Quest for the Overview Effect is available at Apogee Prime
In fact, it was on the Apollo 8 mission that we first saw the whole Earth from space in an image sent to us by astronauts (there had been some less remarkable photos sent by probes that were not piloted).
However, strictly speaking, the first true experience of the Overview Effect took place when Yuri Gagarin went into orbit in 1961.
However, this perception is a testimony to how powerful this image really is. The iconic picture snapped by Bill Anders, with a little help from his fellow crew members, has taken its place among media that have reshaped our views of ourselves and our place in the universe. Alongside that photo is "the Blue Marble" picture shot by the Apollo 17 crew in 1972 and the "pale blue dot" image transmitted to us by the Voyager I spacecraft in 1990.
In terms of impact, "Earthrise" has been highly significant. At a recent conference in the Netherlands, Big History expert Fred Spier gave a talk on how the photo was received in the United States and abroad. He also told us that it changed his life and set him on the path of attempting to grasp "the big picture" ever since.
A few days ago, four astronauts and their colleagues held a celebration of Earthrise at the Kennedy Space Center and launched the Constellation Foundation and its new project, "Earth2068." The Overview Effect has been referenced as an inspiration for the event and Nicole Stott and Ron Garan, two astronauts who were interviewed for my book, are founders. (Ron wrote the foreword to the third edition of The Overview Effect: Space Exploration and Human Evolution and Nicole has written the foreword to the fourth edition.)
These are just a couple of the ways that Earthrise has influenced subsequent events since that difficult year, 1968. We have just gone through another difficult year for many people on Spaceship Earth. However, speaking as one who experienced both 1968 and 2018, can I say our world is better because of that photo?
Yes!
Copyright, Frank White, 2018, All Rights Reserved
The Overview Effect: Space Exploration and Human Evolution is available at aiaa.org and amazon.com
The New Camelot: the Quest for the Overview Effect is available at Apogee Prime
http://www.cgpublishing.com/prime/bookpages/9781926837383.html
Friday, December 21, 2018
Apollo 8 and the Overview Effect: Part One
As many of you are aware, this week marks the 50th anniversary of the historic Apollo 8 mission to the moon. Much of the attention is focused on the amazing "Earthrise" photo taken by astronaut Bill Anders, in which the Earth appears to rise above the lunar surface. It is a startling reversal of our usual perception, where the moon rises above the terrestrial surface.
However, there was another important moment on that mission, at least in terms of the Overview Effect. That was on the way to the moon, when the astronauts turned their video camera around to show us a somewhat blurry picture of the whole Earth. It was the first time in history that human beings had seen the Earth from that vantage point and then shared it with their fellows back on the planet. It was not the first time the Overview Effect had been experienced, but it marked a new phase in the evolution of our consciousness as a result of space exploration.
I was in London at the time, after a terrible year for the United States. In 1968, Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy were assassinated, our cities were in flames, and the war in Vietnam went from bad to worse. At that moment when the astronauts showed us our planet as a unified whole, not as a chaotic and divisive place, I felt hope for the first time in quite a while. I didn't fully understand why, but as 1968 drew to a close, I began to look forward to 1969.
Today, after 50 years of thinking about that moment, I believe I am just beginning to understand how profound it really was.
More later!
Copyright, Frank White, 2018, All Rights Reserved
The Overview Effect: Space Exploration and Human Evolution is available at aiaa.org and amazon.com
The New Camelot: the Quest for the Overview Effect is available at Apogee Prime
However, there was another important moment on that mission, at least in terms of the Overview Effect. That was on the way to the moon, when the astronauts turned their video camera around to show us a somewhat blurry picture of the whole Earth. It was the first time in history that human beings had seen the Earth from that vantage point and then shared it with their fellows back on the planet. It was not the first time the Overview Effect had been experienced, but it marked a new phase in the evolution of our consciousness as a result of space exploration.
I was in London at the time, after a terrible year for the United States. In 1968, Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy were assassinated, our cities were in flames, and the war in Vietnam went from bad to worse. At that moment when the astronauts showed us our planet as a unified whole, not as a chaotic and divisive place, I felt hope for the first time in quite a while. I didn't fully understand why, but as 1968 drew to a close, I began to look forward to 1969.
Today, after 50 years of thinking about that moment, I believe I am just beginning to understand how profound it really was.
More later!
Copyright, Frank White, 2018, All Rights Reserved
The Overview Effect: Space Exploration and Human Evolution is available at aiaa.org and amazon.com
The New Camelot: the Quest for the Overview Effect is available at Apogee Prime
http://www.cgpublishing.com/prime/bookpages/9781926837383.html
Thursday, December 13, 2018
A Historic Day
Make no mistake about it: Virgin Galactic's flight today is a BIG DEAL. It means that we are closer than ever to the moment when any one of us might be able to experience the Overview Effect directly and completely. I believe we will look back at this day with some of the same sense that history was being made as we have over the past 60 years of other amazing achievements in spaceflight.
https://www.cnbc.com/2018/12/13/virgin-galactic-flight-could-send-first-astronauts-to-edge-of-space.html
Virgin's two pilots on the Unity spacecraft became astronauts by reaching an altitude officially designated as "space." They are the first human beings to do so on a private, or non-governmental, spacecraft. More important, however, is what comes next, when Sir Richard Branson and his team begin flying the hundreds of people who have signed up to take a suborbital hop, experience weightlessness, and see the Earth from a distance. So far, some 550 government employees and/or a few private citizens have had this fantastic experience of the Overview Effect, a cognitive shift in worldview that takes place when one sees the Earth from space or in space.
I believe, and many others have come to believe, that when this takes place on a large scale, life on our planet will begin to change in fundamental ways. Our world will change because our worldview will change.
I had the privilege of interviewing Sir Richard Branson, who founded Virgin Galactic, for the third edition of The Overview Effect: Space Exploration and Human Evolution. He made it clear in our conversation that he wants to "democratize space" and give everyone the opportunity to have this extraordinary experience. As he said, "Space travel needs a new birth, because governments can only go so far with things, and if we can tap into the desire to go into space, incredible things can come from it."
https://www.amazon.com/Overview-Effect-Exploration-Evolution-Library/dp/162410262X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1544743508&sr=8-1&keywords=The+Overview+Effect
Incredible things indeed!
Copyright, Frank White, 2018, All Rights Reserved
The Overview Effect: Space Exploration and Human Evolution is available at aiaa.org and amazon.com
The New Camelot: the Quest for the Overview Effect is available at Apogee Prime
https://www.cnbc.com/2018/12/13/virgin-galactic-flight-could-send-first-astronauts-to-edge-of-space.html
Virgin's two pilots on the Unity spacecraft became astronauts by reaching an altitude officially designated as "space." They are the first human beings to do so on a private, or non-governmental, spacecraft. More important, however, is what comes next, when Sir Richard Branson and his team begin flying the hundreds of people who have signed up to take a suborbital hop, experience weightlessness, and see the Earth from a distance. So far, some 550 government employees and/or a few private citizens have had this fantastic experience of the Overview Effect, a cognitive shift in worldview that takes place when one sees the Earth from space or in space.
I believe, and many others have come to believe, that when this takes place on a large scale, life on our planet will begin to change in fundamental ways. Our world will change because our worldview will change.
I had the privilege of interviewing Sir Richard Branson, who founded Virgin Galactic, for the third edition of The Overview Effect: Space Exploration and Human Evolution. He made it clear in our conversation that he wants to "democratize space" and give everyone the opportunity to have this extraordinary experience. As he said, "Space travel needs a new birth, because governments can only go so far with things, and if we can tap into the desire to go into space, incredible things can come from it."
https://www.amazon.com/Overview-Effect-Exploration-Evolution-Library/dp/162410262X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1544743508&sr=8-1&keywords=The+Overview+Effect
Incredible things indeed!
Copyright, Frank White, 2018, All Rights Reserved
The Overview Effect: Space Exploration and Human Evolution is available at aiaa.org and amazon.com
The New Camelot: the Quest for the Overview Effect is available at Apogee Prime
http://www.cgpublishing.com/prime/bookpages/9781926837383.html
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