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Carl Edward Sagan (November 9, 1934 – December 20, 1996)

American astronomer and science popularizer. He pioneered exobiology and promoted the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI). He is world-famous for his popular science books and the television series Cosmos, which he co-wrote and presented.

Sagan was considered by some to have an inflated ego. In 1994, Apple Computer began developing the Power Macintosh 7100. They chose the internal code name “Sagan,” in honor of the astronomer. Though the project name was strictly internal and never used in public marketing, when Sagan learned of this internal usage, he sued Apple Computer to use a different project name. Though Sagan lost the suit, Apple engineers complied with his demands anyway, renaming the project “Butthead Astronomer.” Sagan sued Apple for libel over the new name, claiming that it subjected him to contempt and ridicule. Sagan lost this lawsuit as well; still, the 7100 saw another name change: it was now called “LAW” (Lawyers Are Wimps).

Some Carl Sagan quotes

The universe is not required to be in perfect harmony with human ambition.

Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known.

Who are we? We find that we live on an insignificant planet of a humdrum star lost in a galaxy tucked away in some forgotten corner of a universe in which there are far more galaxies than people.

For me, it is far better to grasp the Universe as it really is than to persist in delusion, however satisfying and reassuring.

Our species needs, and deserves, a citizenry with minds wide awake and a basic understanding of how the world works.

We have also arranged things so that almost no one understands science and technology. This is a prescription for disaster. We might get away with it for a while, but sooner or later this combustible mixture of ignorance and power is going to blow up in our faces.

The universe seems neither benign nor hostile, merely indifferent.