The Dark Side of the Force

Somewhere, someone wrote that there are a limited number of tropes that can involve science. The two that we are most familiar are Science as an amazing benefit to human kind, or conversely, as something gone awry that causes unforeseen disaster and shows the hubris of mankind in its attempts to subjugate, tamper with or co-opt nature.

Perhaps it is time to expand this duality of Science. I propose that Science be thought of much like The Force. I believe many of my fellow scientists, or at least my co-workers at my software company, will at least understand this metaphor. Scientists must begin their training at a young age. One does not simply decide in midlife, or even in their twenties, to become a scientist. Though the requisite degrees are usually completed between the ages of 20 and 30, becoming a scientist involves learning mathematics and scientific concepts at a younger age. Thus, there is a sort of Jedi training and in the end you must be apprenticed to a Jedi Master, in our scenario, a PhD.

And thus we are brought to the Light and Dark sides of the force. Once given the tools to use Science, people have a choice. Jedi scientists aim to further our understanding of our world and universe; on the Dark side we have scientists who aim to obfuscate the way people perceive the world. Granted, many philosophers of science have argued that the entire idea of a "Good" and "Bad" side of science is entirely pointless. However, this recent opinion column from the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies illustrates my point - throughout the 20th century there has been a cabal of scientists, sometimes highly placed and well respected in their fields, who use their powers of the Force to create doubt in the public's mind. Perhaps these scientists truly believe what they say, however, I have my doubts.