by Tony Ryan, professor of physical chemistry at The University of Sheffield, came up with a joke regarding the intellect of scientists, within which a weed scientist enters a shop. He asks: “Hey, you got any of that inhibitor of 3-phosphoshikimate-carboxyvinyl transferase?” The shopkeeper then replies “You mean Roundup?” The scientist then says “Yeah, that’s it. I can never remember that dang name.” This joke highlights the bridge between the culture of science and the world around it, scientists often struggle to work with different cultures. C.P. Snow, physical chemist from Leicester, wrote his novel Two Cultures in an attempt to highlight the growing divide between the arts and science. According to snow, there are two different cultures being the way of life of scientists and the world around them. The divide between these two cultures is growing, and “at the heart of thought and creation, we are letting our best chances go by default” (Snow 1959). This problem has proved to be relevant today, with prospects of revolutionary science being put to the wayside because of their danger and failure to contemplate their morals and ethics. Although the cultures of social sciences, humanities and sciences differ in many ways, a bridge between the cultures needs to made to keep dangerous science in check, allowing for further exploration in controversial topics such as stem cell research, genetic engineering and climate change.
Stem cells are a type of cell that develop into different types of cells, allowing for the potential to be utilized in the regeneration of a dead or faulty bodily system. Stem cells are undeniably a very powerful medical tool, however they are mostly theoretical as opposed to research based at the time. This is because of the Dickey-Wicker Amendment, a regulation put in place in 1996 which prohibited the use of federal funds for the creation of a human embryo for research purposes, or research in general which discarded a human embryo. Embryonic Stem cells are only found in embryos which are just a few days old, while adult stem cells come from different types of tissue. Because of this, many people disagree with the use of embryonic cells for medical research, due to the need to destroy the embryo when harvesting. However, by 2006 scientists had discovered the use of pluripotent stem cells, which are not derived from embryos. In 2016, President Obama signed the 21st Century Cures Act, which allowed for the use of regenerative therapies utilizing stem cells with regulatory review. Be that as it may, stem cell research still hasn’t advanced far past a theoretical practice, and much more has to be done to get society on board. Collaboration between scientists and the culture of humanities needs to be sought out, in order to assure the world of its potential and work around its controversies.
A powerful and highly controversial practice that is all the buzz in the world of science right now is the use of CRISPR technology. The use of CRISPR in gene editing is very simple, however the potential is quite limitless. It’s use in curing genetic defects, preventing diseases and improving the yield of crops is just breaking the ice with the ideas scientists have been working towards. However, with great power comes the need for great reasonability, something that scientists around the world seem to lack. In 2019, scientist He Jiankui edited the genome in the birth of twin girls, risking their safety and failing to follow standard procedures when seeking out participants. While the prospect of “designer babies” sounds interesting, the morals and ethics of CRISPR research needs to be thoroughly evaluated each step of the way. Because of this, scientists need to work together with the world of humanities, to be able to advance their research in CRISPR for better, not for worse.
The topic of Climate Change to this day is extremely controversial, with President Trump himself casting doubt over his government’s scientists. According to him, “right now we’re at the cleanest we’ve ever been and that’s very important to me.” Clearly, the importance of preventing Climate Change hasn’t fully been recognized in the culture of politics. According to Nasa, the planet’s average surface temperature has risen about 2.05 degrees, the ice sheets of Greenland and Antarctica have decreased, and the global sea level has rose about 8 inches in the last century. An urgency needs to be set in place to save the varied nature at threat around the world, requiring the collaboration between the scientific world and the field of politics.
The world of science is growing at an alarming rate, with billionaire Elon Musk piloting the first private company to launch astronauts for NASA, and many other historic accomplishments everyday. You truly don’t know what is around the corner, which can be both a good and a bad thing. Powerful cutting-edge technology needs proper moderation and a clear contemplation of its ethics and morals. Because of this, it is vital the world sees a bridging of the gap between the culture of science and other cultures.