RUMBLINGS OF DISCONTENT IN THE SCIENTIFIC COMMUNITY
By Norman Silliman
LETTER FROM NORMAN SILLIMAN
There are rumblings of discontent in the scientific community that must be giving the citizens of this country heart bum.
The discontent is exemplified by John Horgan's (staff writer for Scientific American) 1996 book describing "the Twilight of the Scientific Age," "The End of Science."
I have tried to point out what I see as the situation. "So, we have established the general problem. We are not where we want to be. We have action from a consumer-of-science group (NASA) publicly silliman@ccnet.com requesting an alternate path, we have laments from the establishment Science community (Teller and Ehler) reporting in the establishment media undesirable conditions in mainstream science, and we have a major player in the non-mainstreamscience area (Mallove) offering a service to society if there was a benefactor providing financial support (money)."
What we need is an alternate plan. Since we cannot expect any assistance from established science, I suggest we ask the technically educated people of the country for help. If we describe for them the situation, and ask for help, we can go beyond the "twilight" people and move on into the 21st Century on a positive path.
Norman Silliman
315 Betty Lane, 2nd Floor
Pleasant Hill, CA 94523-2808
(510) 687-6557
silliman@ccnet.com
[How about a New-Energy Mutual Fund for the market investors? Ed.]
www.padrak.com/ine/NEN_5_12_5.html
May 31, 1998.