AAAS Plenary Lecture

16 February 2008:

Good evening. I have heard some spectacular plenary lectures at AAAS meetings over the years. The ones that have stayed most vividly in my mind addressed the deteriorating state of our planet�.. and the huge inequalities between our way of life and those of the poor in the world�s poorest nations. Some of you may remember Ismail Serageldin�s lecture of a few years ago.

These are lectures that stir the imagination�and the indignation�and a desire to �do something.� But for most of us, the impulse passes. It passes because it isn�t really clear what any one of us can do, even with our marvelous scientific training and skills. The problems seem overwhelming�.. Our lives are busy enough�.. In the end, we go back to business as usual.

My objective here is to persuade you that it is enormously important that you � as scientists, as members of this country�s extraordinary scientific community � stop going back to business as usual. I will try to tell you why � and I will show you what kinds of things other scientists are doing � and what you can do.