A great quote by biologist/philosopher John Wilkins about the recent global warming leaked emails hoo-ha (the video he links to is well worth watching too):
Quote
One should not see, goes the old saw, laws or sausages being made. This is also true of science, for a reason. Before something is published, scientists argue, insult each other, discuss things in casual ways and use unclear jargon and terminology that looks like, to an outsider who is uninformed, as if the whole thing is just being made up on the spot for political and personal reasons...
The hacked emails are not a conspiracy, as the excellent potholer54 points out in a wonderful piece of science communication. It’s a sausage being made. Of course, those who do not make sausages themselves might be disgusted by this, but if they want sausages, that’s what you have to put up with – rigorous debate, trying out things, and so on. Science is human, who knew? Every single scientist and science student knew, that’s who. If the pundits don’t, that should tell you about the pundits.
