Words of wisdom
Over on evolgen, RPM notes that biologist Jenny Graves gives a compelling interview in PLoS Genetics. And she does: she makes a couple insightful points about science and popular culture, and describes her work with enthusiasm and charm. RPM pulled a quote about the importance of good science education for little kids; Graves doesn’t equivocate over her distress that some children are brought up to “believe in utter nonsense.” But my favorite comment from her interview has to do with the fundamental and inextricable importance of evolution in biology:
“[S]ometimes, when you ask a functional question, you get an evolutionary answer.”
To me, this is such an elegant way to impart the importance of being broad-minded, and broadly trained. It conveys the uncertainty of science, of how you never know just where the research will take you.
Graves explains that she was trained as a molecular geneticist, and admits she didn’t see the relevance of evolutionary biology to her work at first. (She says she thought evolutionary biologists belonged on another planet.) Her interview reveals how good science can be enlightening. When her work on gene mapping in marsupials led her to make inferences about the evolution of mammalian chromosomes, her perspective changed. She’s interested now in science education, to reverse the trend she sees in the current “credulous generation.” I look forward to the launch of her “dumb design” website, which will explain functional anomalies in evolutionary terms and, I’m sure, antagonize the intelligent design people. She also reveals why the anti-science culture is waging an ultimately futile campaign. It’s not a battle of beliefs, but a battle against common sense and, well… self-actualization:
“It’s so dangerous to encourage people to believe what they are told rather than what they observe.”