Beneath the white coat: the radical science movement | Alice Bell

Science in the 1970s and 1980s was strident, funny and up for a fight, sometimes with itself. Have we lost its vision?A raised fist of solidarity against oppression held up behind a chemist's flask: a striking, slightly humorous image that playful juxtaposes images of political revolution and scientific work which are generally kept apart. It was the cover of last year's Geek Manifesto. But it was also the logo for two magazines of the 1970s socialist science movement, Science for the People (based in the US) and Science for People (from the UK). Looking back at these earlier radicals, the Geek Manifesto seems to pale to a Che Guevara T-shirt in comparison. That's not a dig at the Geek Manifesto. Its less overtly ideological stance might well be a better fit with 21st century science, and 21st century politics. But there was a history of radicalism in science, and it's worth at least knowing about that. Let me introduce you to some of the UK side of things."We have to face the fact that there is a crisis in science today." So said Maurice Wilkins on 19 April 1969 as he opened the one-day inaugural meeting of the British Society for Social Responsibility in Science (BSSRS). That's Professor Maurice Wilkins, of King's College London. Nobel Prize winner Maurice Wilkins. And he was standing at the Royal Society. Other early supporters of the Society included JD Bernal, Francis Crick, Julian Huxley and Bertrand Russell. In some respects, it was all quite establishment. The hall wa...
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - Category: Science Authors: Tags: Blogposts People in science Science policy guardian.co.uk Source Type: news