Who is God? What is His nature? Is there a scientific approach to understanding God? Can we apply modern scientific thinking to God in the same way that theologians apply classical reasoning to God? Are there spiritual phenomena? Can we rationally analyze them? How do we interpret the apparently spiritual nature of Near Death Experiences? Can we explain how a blind person undergoing a Near Death Experience "sees" the operating table with his/her mind and can describe the people there afterwards? All of these questions are addressed in a clear straightforward way in this well-written book. A profound book that will appeal to thoughtful readers.

“Ann Druyan has unearthed a treasure. It is a treasure of reason, compassion, and scientific awe. It should be the next book you read.” —Sam Harris, author of The End of Faith “A stunningly valuable legacy left to all of us by a great human being. I miss him so.” —Kurt Vonnegut Carl Sagan's prophetic vision of the tragic resurgence of fundamentalism and the hope-filled potential of the next great development in human spirituality The late great astronomer and astrophysicist describes his personal search to understand the nature of the sacred in the vastness of the cosmos. Exhibiting a breadth of intellect nothing short of astounding, Sagan presents his views on a wide range of topics, including the likelihood of intelligent life on other planets, creationism and so-called intelligent design, and a new concept of science as "informed worship." Originally presented at the centennial celebration of the famous Gifford Lectures in Scotland in 1985 but never published, this book offers a unique encounter with one of the most remarkable minds of the twentieth century.

An “enthralling” study of the far-reaching positive effects of Near-Death Experiences—a “well-written and thought-provoking book” (Anita Moorjani, author of Dying to Be Me) Near-death experiences (NDEs) are often transformative—not only on an individual level, but on a collective level too. This book contains a selection of inspiring stories from ordinary people whose extraordinary experiences have changed the course and direction of their lives, opening each and every one of them to the power of divine love. Recent years have seen a dramatic change of attitude towards NDEs. Unfortunately, the ongoing debates about NDEs have detracted greatly from their transformational effects and how empowering they can be for the whole of mankind. For those who experience them, NDEs often instill the knowledge that we are all interconnected and part of one great whole. This book aims to inspire people from all walks of life, creeds, cultures, and faiths to the transformational power of the message of NDEs—and to show how the love experienced during the NDE has the capacity to heal minds, bodies and souls.

"A devastating attack upon the dominance of atheism in science today." Giovanni Fazio, Senior Physicist, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics The debate over the ultimate source of truth in our world often pits science against faith. In fact, some high-profile scientists today would have us abandon God entirely as a source of truth about the universe. In this book, two professional astronomers push back against this notion, arguing that the science of today is not in a position to pronounce on the existence of God—rather, our notion of truth must include both the physical and spiritual domains. Incorporating excerpts from a letter written in 1615 by famed astronomer Galileo Galilei, the authors explore the relationship between science and faith, critiquing atheistic and secular understandings of science while reminding believers that science is an important source of truth about the physical world that God created.

What happens to consciousness during the act of dying? The most compelling answers come from people who almost die and later recall events that occurred while lifesaving resuscitation, emergency care, or surgery was performed. These events are now called near-death experiences (NDEs). As medical and surgical skills improve, innovative procedures can bring back patients who have traveled farther on the path to death than at any other time in history. Physicians and healthcare professionals must learn how to appropriately treat patients who report an NDE. It is estimated that more than 10 million people in the United States have experienced an NDE. Hagan and the contributors to this volume engage in evidence-based research on near-death experiences and include physicians who themselves have undergone a near-death experience. This book establishes a new paradigm for NDEs.

This groundbreaking book develops a new form of quantum theory. First there was quantum mechanics. Then there was quantum field theory. Now we have quantum theory of the third kind: a new form of quantum field theory with quantum coordinates in the imaginary part of a complex space-time. This book is the second edition of ?A Finite Unified Quantum Field Theory of the Elementary Particle Standard Model and Quantum Gravity? with major additions on unitarity, relativistic invariance and the nature of space-time. Some major new results in this books are: A Unified Theory of QED, Weak Interactions, Strong Interactions and Quantum Gravity; A General Formulation of Divergence-free Quantum Field Theories (Detailed discussions of unitarity and special relativity showing these theories are physically acceptable.). A divergence-free quantum field theory for massive vector bosons: No need for the Higgs mechanism. The "Low Energy" Limit of elementary particle sector of unified theory approximates the Standard Model (& QED) to extreme accuracy. It suggests possible doubly charged dilepton, and other exotic, resonances. The "Large Distance", classical limit of Quantum Gravity sector is General Relativity. It suggests no ultra-light Black Holes exist. Gravity is repulsive (anti-gravity) at ultra-short distances. Two-tier gravity ?saves? the concept of a space-time point by evading Wigner?s classic argument against it. Based on experimental data a preferred local reference frame defined by Cosmic Background Radiation is shown to exist in each locale. (Preferred local inertial frames are used in two-tier quantum gravity whose dynamical equations are invariant under general relativistic transformations but whose ?ground state? breaks the invariance down to invariance under special relativity.) A New form of hidden dimensions is defined ? Quantum Dimensions ? dimensions implemented via a quantum gauge field. A New method in the Calculus of Variations ? composition of extrema ? is described.

This book is an expanded version of The Rhythms of History, the book that made macro-History into a semi-quantitative Science. New features include: 1. an appendix showing how the history of Mayan civilization conforms to the book''s Theory of Civilizations including the latest information from the newly discovered hieroglyphic texts at Dos Pilas, Guatemala; 2. an appendix on the sub-Saharan African civilization, Great Zimbabwe, showing it fits the theory; 3. a comparison of the theory with Toynbee''s observations showing the many new features resulting from a quantitative theory; 4. numerous historic pictures and illustrations of the civilizations of Mankind including a number of newly found pictures from the nineteenth century; 5. a chapter describing the potentially disturbing implications of patterns in civilizations - Are we free? ? and the implications for the Philosophy of History; and 6. expanded comments in many sections such as the sections on the future of Humanity, the role of China, and the Islamic - West conflict. The book begins with a hard hitting, "tell it like it is" chapter on the current international situation with statements such as: "The United States and Western civilization is now engaged in a small Vietnam-style war on a global scale at the time of this writing. This war is still in the early stages of development. ... The attack on the World Trade Center by Muslim terrorists may have the same significance for Western civilization that the Gothic invasion of Rome itself in the prime of the Empire (the First Century AD) had for the future of Rome. They may be a premonition of things to come - not necessarily soon but perhaps in a few centuries. The Goths returned three centuries later and remained as permanent conquerors. ... Over the long term the West must free itself from a dependence on Muslim oil. Muslim oil revenues are the fuel for the development of weapons of mass destruction by Iran and Iraq. In the future they will supply the revenues of an expansionist Islam. ... As the silk trade looted the Roman Empire of its gold and reduced its economy, the trade in oil is looting the West of its prosperity and freedom of action. The rise and fall of oil prices has a significantly greater effect on the American and world economy than the raising and lowering of interest rates by central banks. " The book then describes a theory of civilizations that led to these observations. Currently unfolding events seem to be fulfilling the predictions which were made last year (including the new North Korean threat that seems to be consistent with a predicted breakdown in Japan ? North Korea will create major problems with Japan. As this is being written Japan is moving Aegis destroyers nearer to North Korea and preparing for defense.) THE EVENTS DESCRIBED IN THIS BOOK, AND ITS PREDECESSOR, APPEAR TO BE HAPPENING AS PREDICTED LAST YEAR. According to Theory of Civilizations the basis of civilizations was laid with a genetic mutation (found by Ding et al) 40,000 years ago that created bold enterprising individuals who became the leadership group of civilizations: a group that Toynbee called the "creative minority." When the world''s climate became warmer and more stable 10,000 years ago the seeds of civilizations began to germinate. Thus the origin of civilizations is tied to human genetics. The book then shows that a long-term social behavior pattern of mankind (based on four generation trends) causes civilizations to develop and "oscillate" in patterns of routs and rallies. Civilizations rise and fall due to their internal human dynamics. The theory of civilization is developed using equations and 68 diagrams that show a close detailed match between the theory and the actual history of all known Asian, European and African civilizations over the last 5,500 years. The theory projects the future of today''s civilizations (including the future of Western and Islamic civilizations). It also successfully describes the interaction of barbarians and civilizations, the interaction of two civilizations, the impact of modern technology on civilizations (it accounts for the Luddite reaction to the Industrial Revolution), the impact of major environmental events on civilizations (e.g. the collapse of Minoan civilization due to a volcanic eruption), and the disintegration of civilizations. It also accounts for the tremendous growth phases seen in many civilizations such as the building of the great pyramids in Egyptian civilizations. Based on the theory fifteen new civilizations are identified including new prehistoric Chinese and Egyptian civilizations. Having shown the success of the theory for earth civilizations it considers the form of extraterrestrial civilizations and calculates their impact on Western civilization should contact be established. The book also shows the need for the colonization of space and nearby planets if mankind is to progress in the future. The book analyzes the impact of the lengthening life spans of mankind on the future of civilizations. Predictions are made for the "state of the world" for 2050 and 2100. A detailed understanding the past enables the theory of civilizations to make predictions for the future. Defining Progress to be the sum of the world''s civilizations the book shows that Progress seems to be approximately linearly increasing over the last 5,500 years. A plot of Progress appears on the book''s cover (shown on this web page) together with the contributions of each civilization to Progress. (The vertical order of the civilizations in the plot is arbitrary. Older civilizations tend to be lower in the plot.) The book is a tour de force that makes History a Science rather than a collection of random events. It is the first detailed mathematical treatment of history. Although the book contains mathematics it is intended for the general reader as well as the mathematically inclined. There are copious verbal descriptions of the theory as well as many figures plotting the theory versus historical events. A qualitative, descriptive theory of civilizations is also presented that is like a "Dow Theory of Civilizations."