The Big Beginning January 22, 2011

The Big Beginning

By Guest Contributor
January 22, 2011

Stephen Hawking + Richard Dawkins + Carl Sagan + Tara Shears + Neil deGrasse Tyson + Auto-Tune = the latest Symphony of Science!

I’m sure these videos reach an audience that wouldn’t normally listen to scientists, but I would watch this even without the auto-tune. These are some of the finest science communicators in recent history and their words stand on their own, no soundtrack needed.

I’m not complaining though. These videos are fantastic. Keep them coming!

(via melodysheep)

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What Are Your Thoughts?leave a comment

  • I love these videos. Absolutely love them, they stick in my head for DAYS.

  • Jon Peterson

    No. God just went “click”.

  • oxymoron

    I like science just like any other guy, but these videos are almost embarrasingly nerdy.

  • liz

    No. I hate autotune *grumble*

  • I too love these songs. I wish they’d put more of them up on the iTunes store, I’d buy them just like I did with A Glorious Dawn.

  • Liz,

    Normally I’d agree with you. While I don’t mind the odd effect added to a song I am increasingly finding autotune to be a cheat that covers up “artists” who simply have no ability to carry a tune unaided.

    But in this case I don’t mind it.

    They’ve taken a bunch of otherwise dull science lectures, to the mainstream at any rate, added a beat and a tune then released them as songs people will actually listen to. Anything that gets people interested in science is often a good thing, especially these days when knowledge and the pursuit of truth are so often derided by those who cling to fairy tales and myths to explain the world around them.

  • NotYou

    I myself hate auto tune but that was really cool and well done.

  • Ray

    I’m on the hate auto-tune team. I can’t get past more than the first few seconds.

  • KF

    Autotune is a bit of a gimmick, but this was well done. I think we need more videos like this to inspire people to get involved in the sciences, and show how non theists like Sagan and Dawkins are decent human people not just some “evil atheists” that stand for nothing and are conspiring to take over the world. These vids can show the average person that there’s plenty of inspiration to be found in the awesome possibilities of science, you needn’t turn to faith.

  • Peter Mahoney

    These. Are. Awesome.
    Catchy tunes. Visually beautiful. Pro-science.

    These videos help capture a pro-science flavor that goes beyond the ‘mere’ intellectual appreciation for the logic/reason/etc. of science. These videos actually capture some of the passion/love/warmth/inspiration about what science can help show us.

    I say two thumbs up to these videos.

    To those that hate auto-tune, that’s fine… find some other ways to capture/promote these warmer/musical/beauty/etc. approaches to science appreciation, and add those contributions to the mix. The more ways the better.

  • Dan W

    I love Symphony of Science! These videos are awesome. Auto-tune is good when done well. Far too often, hip-hop artists do it poorly.

  • Spud

    Every time one of these videos is posted, I read a lot of “Ew, autoune is so terrible, screw these videos.”

    I think that’s rather amusing. We read atheist blogs all day, bitch that there are too many stupid people out there, and they need to get interested.

    Someone does exactly what’s needed to reach the minds of said people (whether you like it or not), and THAT’s what we have to say!?!?

    It seems there are some of us that have just jumped on the atheist bandwagon just to have something to bitch about and actually do nothing. Maybe once we’re more accepted in society, those people will break free, and join another cause to have something to bitch about? I dont know, that’s just how it seems to me.

    If you’re not out there doing something to try and get people interested, why say anything at all? These videos work….THAT should be enough to make you at least respect them instead of just posting a negative comment on EVERY one of these posts.

    I’ve never posted, but this has been bothering me for a while….had to say something.

  • Jennifer

    I’m with the ‘Love them’ team! These videos use technology to set science to music. I think they should be listed as the definition of awesome on Wikipedia!

  • Lauren

    I love Symphony of Science! I can play A Glorious Dawn on my ukulele. It’s probably my favorite, but I also love The Poetry of Reality and Our Place in the Cosmos.

  • I can’t stand improper use of autotune, but this is brilliant!

  • Camus Dude

    I hated autotune before anyone else hated it.

  • inmyhead

    I really love these videos and yes they are extremely nerdy, but nerds need techno too. I am married to an astrophysicist and I wish that this song was around when we got married. I would of played it at out wedding. It would have confused the minds of his Church of god loving family. hehehe. evil smile. :}

  • «bønez-brigade»

    Melikes auto-tuned Hawking.