Politics, scientific

Political-scientific interactions are part of the modern world. There is no doubt that some such interactions have paid great dividends to society for improvements in the physical, biological, engineering, and technological world. 

The essays in this book, written by scientists who have participated in or witnessed firsthand political-scientific interactions, provide descriptions of political manipulations of science and of political considerations. The essays describe excessive politicization—the misapplication or outright manipulation of the scientific record to advance policy agendas. Ultimately, actions such as those described have unintended consequences, the brunt of which are borne by everyday citizens, not those who politicize at the expense of objectivity. 

Publishes the Journal of Cognitive Liberties. Coordinates a global network of pro-mind activists. Encourages legal, political, scientific and cultural analysis,... 

There is little doubt that the brassinosteroids can have a major effect on world grain markets and on the increased production of horticultural crops utilizing the same land area. This means reduced energy costs and that, coupled to the apparently environmentally safe aspects of these compounds, makes them ideal candidates for industrial development. But a number of critical problems remain and it seems that there will be limited fundamental examination with the brassinosteroids unless they are used practically. Frankly stated, funds generated from the sales of marketable brassinosteroids will drive all the other studies. While this is a critical time in the development of the brassinosteroids, their future promises to be interesting politically, scientifically, and practically. To quote an old aphorism, to the victor will go the laurels. 

Even though the EIA approach appears to be a very logical and necessary procedure, there are many complicated economic, official, social, political, scientific and technological problems behind this technique. 

Executive responsibility for the administration of regulations at national level is divested in dedicated agencies. Although distinct from government departments, the Ministers of Health are the usual political masters of these national Competent Authorities. Eor example, the authority in Ireland is known as the Irish Medicines Board (IMB) and it covers both drugs and devices. Similar to the EMEA, the authorities are scientific and technical in orientation and are guided by various advisory panels. Their main tasks include ... 

The issue of what is the best kind of university preparation for environmental work remains controversial. Some claim that environmental problem-solving requires broadly trained individuals. They argue that universities need to establish environmental specialist degrees at the bachelors, masters and doctoral levels because narrowly trained specialists are unable to deal with the social, economic, and political as well as scientific aspects of environmental problems. Others (7) have argued that environmental problems cannot be attacked effectively using the blunted lances of the well rounded. We need, they say, people who are solidly... 

A distinction should be made between the different levels of political influence operating at different levels of policy. At the macro level, the body politic is regarded as representative of the public or the electorate. Hence, politics is a means by which society decides which regulatory direction is ethically acceptable, socially preferable, economically beneficial and scientifically reliable. From the perspective of representative democracy, therefore, it is desirable for politics to determine the overall legal frameworks within which dmgs are regulated. But at the micro level, where decisions are made which apply those legal frameworks to specific cases, it is not desirable for politics to exert influence on individual cases. 

For example, if ever we want to understand whether global warming to a substantial degree is, or is not, caused by human activities, then we should first of all know and understand the performance of our models and the accuracy of data we put into these models. If ever we want to know whether all efforts to improve the quality of the sea for biota are effective, then we need to know the accuracy and uncertainty of all our data. If we do not want to take Quality Assurance into account, we will never be able to lay the solid scientific foundations for our research, political and legal actions etc. In other words we will remain only believers. 

Define the problem and the question(s) to be answered. These may originate in any field of the life sciences, or in any technical or scientific area, or even in politics or society. 

There have been suspicions about possible adverse health effects from DOP/DEHP and other phthalates for three decades. The issue still persists. Many toy manufacturers have been persuaded to stop using soft PVC in toys. The EU has recently banned DEHP and DBP (as from September 2004) on political rather than scientific grounds. 

Nuclear war and nuclear peace are fundamental concerns of humankind. The Foundation concentrates on the strategic, technological, scientific, and political analyses of this issue in an interdisciplinary atmosphere. 

Nuclear waste disposal. The resolution of the socio-political issue of nuclear waste disposal, necessary for the-development of nuclear power, may appear more difficult than it is from the purely scientific or engineering viewpoint. However, this issue should be resolved not only for future plants, but also for existing plants which are operating now. 

---