As a young man in Montana, I used to drive with my then-girlfriend out of the small city in which we lived to a small pond. Away from the light-pollution of civilization, we would sit with a blanket on the warm hood of my car and simply gaze up at the night sky<\/strong>. She, a devout Catholic, and I, a stern atheist, could come together in speechless awe as the light from countless billions of stars fell upon us.<\/p>\n It was a wonderful time: this combination of youth, love, wonder, and possibility.<\/strong> And it spurred in me a renewed interest in figuring things out in life. At the time I was a essentially \u201ccollege dropout\u201d \u2013 having left business school to work a 9 to 5 job until some better idea came along. And that idea, when it did finally arrive, was to return to school<\/em>. To find something I could pursue with a passion. To understand <\/em>the world beyond my youth, my city, my mountains and Montana\u2019s big skies.<\/p>\n \u201cFor me, it is far better to grasp the Universe as it really is than to persist in delusion, however satisfying and reassuring.\u201d Astrophysicist Dr. Neil DeGrasse Tyson was asked in an interview with TIME magazine, \u201cWhat is the most astounding fact you can share with us about the Universe?\u201d This is his answer.<\/p>\n
\n\u2015\u00a0Carl Sagan<\/p><\/blockquote>\n