Science

Who Conforms and Why

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[Note: This is one of my long comments at another site that I thought I would post here.]

I think our economic lives profoundly influence how we think about broader issues. The degree to which any individual can disagree with one’s superiors and peers without suffering harm to one’s career varies significantly from field to field. In turn, the degree to which mere human opinion plays a role in an individual’s success within a field determines how conformist to common opinion within a field an individual must be to succeed.

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The Left Tail of the Distribution

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Ginny’s post got me to thinking about a topic I muse over every once in a while. I have two firm beliefs about scientists. One is that they do not need to be as much of a bunch of egotistical buggers as they tend to be. (I have devoted multiple posts on my blog to that effect.) The other is that the natural political state of the scientist (and of most engineers) should be libertarian / conservative, because the core non-technical skill required for scientific work above the B.Sc. level is the ready acceptance of personal responsibility.

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Is It Bull or Does It Just Seem Like It?

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Okay, I’m a science illiterate and generally have less curiosity than becomes a sentient being about much related to that large branch of learning. Still Belmont Club’s discussion of “post-normal science”, here and here, seems to describe a theory idiots like me can grasp. Amazingly enough, it appears to be a kind of science in which I (who might well be affected as would my children and who, God knows, have opinions) can participate (along with every high-school dropout rocker and the lightest of Hollywood ingenues). I have my doubts that’s a good thing. I wonder what the scientists on board think.

It’s a Small, Small Internet

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My daughter sent me the following email:

i thought you’d like to know one of my co-workers was reading your blog and taking to me about it, without knowing who you or I were. Then yesterday your blog posting was sent to me on myspace. You’re all over the web and in the middle of the lancet study debate still. Just thought you would find it funny.

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