Science, Social Issues Linked

Calling for cooperation and efficient use of resources, Radcliffe President Linda S. Wilson yesterday advised scientists, researchers and educators to consider the changing world while promoting the advancement of science.

Wilson, in her keynote lecture at the 159th National Meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), emphasized the interdependence between scientific study and current political and social issues.

Citing statistics that traced economic and political changes, Wilson said the nation is at a "major cross-roads" and must be willing to adopt new methods and priorities for the advancement of science.

She stressed the need to "foster scientific freedom and responsibility to increase public understanding of the promise of science for human progress."

Her address before an audience of several hundred opened the AAAS event, a six-day conference at Boston's Hynes Convention Center that runs until Tuesday.

Wilson, who has a PhD in chemistry, served on the Board of Directors at AAAS and as the Vice President for Research at the University of Michigan.

She likened the study of science to the structure of a chemical compound, a "multidimensional system of many parts connected by flexible bonds." This model emphasizes both "complexity and interconnections," she said.

She urged scientists to preserve the "freedom of inquiry" and to continue to conduct research creatively without compromising the need to obtain results as quickly as possible.

"I contend that we add a new dimension called internally-directed curiosity," she said.

In addition to outlining a new approach to scientific inquiry, Wilson spoke about the need to avoid stereotypes and to encourage women and minorities to enter science-related professions. "We need to be able to tap the entire pool," she said.

The association attempts to address the question of science's future at a time when "science and its role in both national and global affairs are being questioned and debated with fervor," according to AAAS President F. Sherwood Rowland

She urged scientists to preserve the "freedom of inquiry" and to continue to conduct research creatively without compromising the need to obtain results as quickly as possible.

"I contend that we add a new dimension called internally-directed curiosity," she said.

In addition to outlining a new approach to scientific inquiry, Wilson spoke about the need to avoid stereotypes and to encourage women and minorities to enter science-related professions. "We need to be able to tap the entire pool," she said.

The association attempts to address the question of science's future at a time when "science and its role in both national and global affairs are being questioned and debated with fervor," according to AAAS President F. Sherwood Rowland