Reminder of humanity's place in the universe

Astronomer Carl Sagan was one of the most influential scientists and teachers of the 20th century. Millions of people around the world gained insights about the universe, and their place in it, from his television series "Cosmos" on PBS. /NASA image

Genius, compassion and humility are the keys to survival for humanity in the Atomic Era.

Carl Sagan possessed these priceless qualities in enormous quantities. In 1990, he urged NASA to spin Voyager I around to capture an image of Earth before the spacecraft left our solar system. That image of the "pale blue dot" where humanity will stand or fall inspired Sagan's genius, compassion and humility to reach astronomical proportions.

Sagan's words in the three-minute video below pack more wisdom than most of us will accumulate in a lifetime.

Video adapted from "Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey"