The Overview Effect: Space Exploration and Human Evolution (Library of Flight)

The Overview Effect is an important book in helping people see that your attitude does change when you see the Earth from the space perspective - an experience that seems to be an almost universal phenomenon. - Edgar Mitchell, Apollo 14 astronaut, founder of the Institute of Noetic Sciences, founding member of the Overview Institute Space travel needs a new birth, and if we can tap into the desire to go into space, incredible things can come from it. - Sir Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin Group, which includes Virgin Galactic More than 30 years ago, Frank White coined the term Overview Effect; to describe the cognitive shift in awareness that results from the experience of viewing Earth from orbit or the moon. He found that, with great consistency, this experience profoundly affects space travelers' worldviews - their perceptions of themselves and our planet, and our understanding of the future. White found that astronauts know from direct experience what the rest of us know only intellectually: we live on a planet that is like a natural spaceship moving through the universe at a high rate of speed. We are, in fact, the crew of Spaceship Earth; as Buckminster Fuller described our world. In The Overview Effect, Third Edition Frank White expands on his original concept, which has now gained worldwide recognition and exposure. Using interviews with and writings by numerous astronauts and cosmonauts, he describes space exploration and settlement as necessary next steps in the evolution of human civilization and consciousness. The third edition features new interviews with the following astronauts, space advocates, and New Space entrepreneurs: Helen P. Sharman * Michael Lopez-Alegria * Sandra H. Magnus * John B. Herrington * Ron Garan * Akihiko Hoshide * Nicole Stott * Sir Richard Branson * George Whitesides * Loretta Hidalgo Whitesides