An award-winning astronomer and physicists spellbinding and urgent call for a new Enlightenment and the recognition of the preciousness of life using reason and curiositythe foundations of scienceto study, nurture, and ultimately preserve humanity as we face the existential crisis of climate change. Since Copernicus, humanity has increasingly seen itself as adrift, an insignificant speck within a large, cold universe. Brazilian physicist, astronomer, and winner of the 2019 Templeton Prize Marcelo Gleiser argues that it is because we have lost the spark of the Enlightenment that has guided human development over the past several centuries. While some scientific efforts have been made to overcome this increasingly bleak perspectivethe ongoing search for life on other planets, the recent idea of the multiversethey have not been enough to overcome the core problem: weve lost our moral mission and compassionate focus in our scientific endeavors.Gleiser argues that were using the wrong paradigm to relate to the universe and our position in it. In this deeply researched and beautifully rendered book, he calls for us to embrace a new life-centric perspective, one which recognizes just how rare and precious life is and why it should be our mission to preserve and nurture it. The Dawn of a Mindful Universe addresses the current environmental and scientific impasses and how the scientific community can find solutions to them.Gleisers paradigm rethinks the ideals of the Enlightenment, and proposes a new direction for humanity, one driven by human reason and curiosity whose purpose is to save civilization itself. Within this model, we can once again see ourselves as the center of the universethe place where life becomes consciousand regain a clear moral compass which can be used to guide both science and the politics around it.
