PORTALS
"So much science education is so boring," says Ann Druyan, longtime science author and the widow of Carl Sagan. "And so exclusive." She hopes to change that with the January launch of OneCosmos Network, an "integrated experience network" that serves as a clearinghouse for science.
For OneCosmos (www.onecosmos.net), Druyan - who produced the legendary Cosmos television series with Sagan - teams with Silicon Valley's resident space enthusiast, Joe Firmage. Cofounder of USWeb/CKS and, more recently, the venture firm Intend Change, Firmage is infamous for his relentless pursuit of life Out There. In January 1999, he resigned as CEO of USWeb/CKS after professing his belief in UFOs and extraterrestrial visitation.
The down-to-earth Druyan and the ethereal Firmage may seem like unlikely partners, but they've raised real-world cash to get started: $23 million in funding from Softbank and Crosspoint. The first rollout of the San Francisco-based outfit, an online portal for hard-science news, books, and images, launches on New Year's Day. Hoping to avoid the fatal burn rate of several recent entertainment portals, the site will initially earn its largest chunk of revenue by licensing original science content produced for OneCosmos by scientists in disciplines from astrophysics to paleontology.
The site's secret weapon: an environment navigated through 3-D dioramas - photorealistic images of rain forests or the human body - rather than text hyperlinks. Druyan and Firmage have inked content-sharing deals with groups like SETI@home and the Sagan-cofounded Planetary Society. Druyan also heads the company's production-studio division, with several science specials for TV already on the way.
Druyan's goal, however, is grander than positive cash flow; she hopes to recharge people's sense of wonder in science. "I want OneCosmos to affect people in the way I see my 9-year-old absorbed by a joystick and his favorite game."
MUST READ
Armageddon, the Sequel
The Cosmic Connection
Fight the Future!
Power Munch
Cat Hack Fever
The Online Gene Pool
Interface2face
People
Jargon Watch
Big Mac Attack
The First PC
Memory Hog
Insecurities Exchange
Quantum's Leap
Raw Data
