There is today-in a time when old beliefs are withering-a kind of philosophical hunger, a need to know who we are and how we got here. It is an on-going search, often unconscious, for a cosmic perspective for humanity

The gears of poverty, ignorance, hopelessness and low self-esteem interact to create a kind of perpetual failure machine that grinds down dreams from generation to generation. We all bear the cost of keeping it running. Illiteracy is its linchpin.

In the vastness of space and the immensity of time, it is my joy to share a planet and an epoch with Annie.

The method of science, as stodgy and grumpy as it may seem, is far more important than the findings of science.

It is clear that the nations of the world now can only rise and fall together. It is not a question of one nation winning at the expense of another. We must all help one another or all perish together.

The visions we offer our children shape the future.

On the day that we do discover that we are not alone, our society may begin to evolve and transform in some incredible and wondrous new ways.