In their letter "Ecological science and the human predicament" F. Bazzaz et al. (Science's Compass, 30 Oct., p. 879) make an important point about the need for scientists to go beyond their research and publication activities to inform the general public about the "relevance and importance" of their work. Of course, whereas the objectivity of scientific findings is subject to test, statements concerning relevance and importance reflect the personal views of the scientist concerned and are thus inherently subjective.
I am not so sure that all field research is done in systems altered by man--this statement reflects the terrestrial viewpoint of most of the numerous signers of the letter and might be difficult to demonstrate everywhere in the open ocean. But where I get nervous is when I read that ecologists must be ready and willing to devote part of their professional lives to "stemming the tide of environmental degradation and the associated losses of biodiversity and its ecological services, and to teaching the public about the importance of those losses." My problem is not with preserving biological diversity, but with the difficulty in distinguishing between objective reporting and preaching. When an ecologist makes an apocalyptic statement about the death of one or another ecosystem, he trades his credibility as a scientist for his passion as an advocate. Credibility is a basic coin of science, and while scientists have every right to be avid supporters of whatever cause, they should not expect to be taken as seriously in their advocacy as they hope to be in their science.
Warren S. Wooster
School of Marine Affairs,
University of Washington,
Seattle WA 98105-6715, USA.
E-mail: wooster@u.washington.edu
Comments on this posting?
Click here to post a public comment on the Trash Talk Bulletin Board.
Click here to send a private comment to the Junkman.
Copyright © 1998 Steven J. Milloy. All rights reserved on original material. Material copyrighted by others is used either with permission or under a claim of "fair use." Site developed and hosted by WestLake Solutions, Inc.
Material presented on this home page constitutes opinion of Steven J. Milloy.