Downloaded from on March 28, 2016

ishing public support for science, especially because of such issues as research misconduct and constriction of resources and controversies about indirect costs and the use of animals. Has the public indeed withdrawn its support? Public confidence in several American * _ | social institutions, including science, was _ _ measured in opinion polls in 1966 and then S S4d _Si S l nearly every year after 1971 (1). Interviewers told respondents, "I am going to name some institutions in this country. As far as the people running these institutions are concerned, would you say you have a great deal of confidence, only some confidence, a ~~~~ ~~and eeah~~~~~~~~~~ or hardly any confidence at all in them?" Confidence in American institutions n t atn Bd was extraordinarily high in 1966 compared in to 2000 0.02 micromet~s from particles plete line of spherical with any year afterward (2). However, ality diameter. They are used as standards for instrument calibration s At since 1971, when annual polls were initiatgyappl control, filter checking, and in numerous botec v lihdi 0V0* Duke Scetific overall ~epdr-ed, there has been little if anyincreased drand e yourn sources to me degradation. In 1991, confidence particles. Call us today for information. s in the military and the press, no sharply doubt a result of the war with Iraq. Of about 13 institutions rated for confi_ ' t D o DukeScientific @1 in these polls, medicine and science dence Co Kpo w7aon ______ nearly always ranked first and second, re_spectively. Looking beyond year-to-year 1135D San Antonio Road, Palo Alto, CA 94303, Toll Free fluctuations, confidence in science has had (800) 334-3883, in CA (415) 962-1100, Fax (415) 962-0718 a slight upward trend since 1971, while medicine has experienced a clear decline. If these trends continue, and the military's Circle No. 2 on Readers' Service Card surge of popularity is short-lived, then science will soon lead all other institutions in public confidence.

Program,A PublicThe Affairs Maxwell School,

|| WE'LL SH I P YOU R OLIGO I N 48 HOURS, OR WE'LL EAT THE NEXT ONE.

REFERENCES

You get your primer or probe on time, or you get your next one for free. No questions, no quibbles. For $5.00 a

1.

2 base base (and $20 setup charge), you'll receive a researchready, cartridge-purified product, complete with PAGE gel (r F I ( / ( pedigree. And you'll get it ( Ilxi I II k? XI It U on time, or we'll be eating I, JJ t I ) more than our words. (n

st

Title

I

Institution/Company

)

| City .

Zip

State

I Telephone

Printing Office, Washington, DC, 1989),

pp. 172-173.

EYicenter

|

With reference to Steve Stemberg's Research News article of 15 May (p. 966) about the source of the AIDS virus, would

| I

mature conclusion that may have been drawn. There is no scientific support for the suggestion that Gabon was the source of

to express my concern

about

any pre-

rates among African nations, and 77381-4241infection the idea that it might be the "epicenter" of

Woodlands, Texas 77381-4241 I Drive, The Woodlands, Inc. 8701 A New Trails Drive, Genosys Biotechnologies, Inc. Phone: 17131 363-3693 18001 2345-DNA Fax: 17131 363-2212 I 1 ---5 1L_ 8701 A

New

The

Trals

Texas

P

-

ernment

AIDS. Gabon has one of the lowest AIDS _

Genosys

-

Center, Chicago, IL, 1991), pp. 197-200. and W. Schneider, The Confidence Gap (Free

AIDS A

_____________________________________________________________like

Address

ev

Press, New York, 1983); National Science Board, Science & Engineering Indicators-1989 (Gov-

Call 1-800-2345-DNA, or fax a copy of this coupon, and we'll drop the setup charges on your first order. That's a savings of $20 per oligo! (If you don't need any oligos at the moment, we'll send you a coupon for future use.) Name

,r

Curr. Opin. 1, 3 (1972); J. Davis, T. Smith, B. Arnold, General Social Surveys, 1972-1991: Cuamulative Codebook (National Opinion Research

2. A. Mazur, Soc. Stud. Sci. 7,123 (1977); S. Lipset

SPECIAL OFFER!

I

syracuse Unversit4

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

Circle No. 6 on Readers' Service Card

-

-

-

-

-

the virus contradicts the Darwinian rules of

evolution and what has been well established in the scientific literature (1). Also, contrary to reports in the scientific press that the Pygmies were the first in Central Africa to carry the AIDS virus, our research (soon to be published), does not detect the AIDS virus among the Pygmies. While all studies of the human immunodeficiency virus should be highly encouraged, scientific ethics dictate that the research should be conducted for scientific purposes and that it would be best to avoid any prejudice that might jeopardize the spirit of collaboration that is needed to eradicate this devastating disease. Donatien Mavoungou Chief Researcher, Omar Bongo University, and Vice-President of the Pan-African Union of Science and Technologies, Libreville, Gabon REFERENCES 1. R. M. Hendry etal., Lancet ii, 455 (1986); T. Huet et al., Nature 345, 356 (1990); C. Rouzioux et al., 2nd Int. Conf. on AIDS, Paris, France, Abstr. (L'Association pour la Recherche sur les Deficits

Immunitaires Viro-Induits, Paris, 1986).

a

Healthy Museum In Elizabeth Culotta's article "Museums cut research in hard times" (News & Comment, 29 May, p. 1268), a reference to the American Museum of Natural History needs correction and clarification. We are not anticipating any reduction in operating budgets for research. Some reductions came in fiscal year 1990-1991 in the wake of New York City's financial crisis. These reductions were limited to nonsalary expenses, such as travel, phone use, and supplies. There was no reduction in scientific staffing, either through attrition or lay-offs. In fact, several science positions have been added and additional positions have been approved for fiscal year 1993. Thus, the scope and magnitude of our research activities have actually increased. Our healthy picture does not, however, mitigate the current difficulties for research in the natural history museum community. In a world so caught up in the biodiversity crisis and other environmental issues, it is tragic that the research institutions so committed to these problems for decades are so poorly understood and supported. I strongly endorse the flourishing of more creative and topical offerings in museum exhibition and

education. But these programs cannot be decoupled from research. The dinosaurs that greet millions of visitors to the American Museum of Natural History every year were, after all, collected by scientists on research expeditions. Those scientists are our Rembrandts and Leonardos; their creative work must be fed and supported. Michael J. Novacek Vice President and Dean of Science, American Museum of Natural History, Central Park West at 79th Street, New York, NY 10024-5192

NEW CATALOGSO

a

Clear Vision In his review of Lawrence B. Slobodkin's book Simplicity and Complexity in Games of the Intellect (15 May, p. 1034), David L. Goodstein is appropriately suspicious of Slobodkin's assertion that after cataract extraction one can "see in the infrared." The retina is simply not triggered by wavelengths longer than 750 nanometers, and no amount of filtering the incoming light will induce the retina to "see in the infrared." The crystalline lens ordinarily yellows with age, and if it gets opacified (cataractous) it may also darken to a yellowish brown. This color change blocks the shorter bluish wavelengths more than it blocks the longer red and infrared wavelengths. When this obstruction to clear vision (the cataractous lens) is removed, many patients remark that the world seems distressingly bright and blue for the first few days. A shift in the spectral composition of the light reaching the retina has indeed taken place, but even if this were a shift toward the red (which it is not), the retina would not suddenly start "seeing in the infrared." Goodstein's review leads me to suspect that Slobodkin knows these things very well and that he was just doing some freeform slaloming-and missed one of his flags. H. Stanley Thompson Department of Ophthalmology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242 Corrections and Clarifications The photograph accompanying the News item "MIT techies help keep the America's Cup" (Random Samples, 29 May, p. 1277) shows the boat Stars and Stripes, not America3, as was stated in the caption.

Vibration Isolation Systems New fourth-generation Micro-gO Gimbal Piston® Vibration Isolation Lab lation

performance, modular

construc-

tion, contemporary industrial design.

Catalog

also contains Table

Top

Plat-

forms, Floor Platforms, and technical

comparisons of isolators

and top

plates.

Optical Tables Latest catalog covers six standard lines of TMC steel honeycomb optical tables including patented, spill-proof CleanTop®. Discusses design, construction and features, with cost/performance comparisons and selection guides.

SEND FOR YOUR COPIES Technical Manufacturing Corporation

15 Centennial Drive * Peabody MA 01960 1-800-542-9725 * 508-532-6330

SCIENCE

*

VOL. 257

*

31 JULY 1992

TMC-42 FAX 508-531-8682 Circle No. 8 on Readers' Service Card

AIDS epicenter.

Downloaded from on March 28, 2016 ishing public support for science, especially because of such issues as research misconduct and constriction of res...
1MB Sizes 0 Downloads 0 Views