From "Consciousness Explained," by Daniel Dennett, page 25.
      (After discusing the claim that consciousness is somehow
'outside' of science, and the fears that, if consciousness is ever
understood by science, this will cause a philsophical catastrophe that
'reduces' mind to matter.)
      "Looking on the bright side, ler us remind ourselves of what has
happened in the wake of earlier demystifications. We find no
dimunition of wonder; on the contrary, we find deeper beauties and
more dazzling visions of the complexity of the universe than the
protectors of mystery ever conceived. The "magic" of earlier visions
was, for the most part, a cover-up for frank failures of imagination,
a boring dodge enshrined in the concept of a _deus ex machina_. Fiery
gods driving golden chariots across the skies are simpleminded
comic-book fare compared to the ravishing strangeness of contemporary
cosmology, and the recursive intricacies of the reproductive machinery
of DNA make _elan vital_ aout as interesting as Superman's dread
kryptonite. When we understand consciousness-- when there is no more
mystery-- consciousness will be different, but there will still be
beauty, and more room than ever for awe."