Crichton's Wisdom
He understood that even scientists fall to temptations of fame, profit and power.
WSJ.COM
In his 66 years, author and polymath Michael Crichton wrote about the things that happen when scientists tinker with genes, businesses enforce well-meaning rules on sexual harassment, and politicians drum up a "consensus" on global warming. The consequences were usually unintended, and millions of readers took terrified notice.
Crichton, who died this week of cancer, will not be remembered as a brilliant prose stylist. But he knew how to hold reader attention, and he had an inventive mind that led him to write novels -- 26 in all, along with screenplays and works of nonfiction -- that concerned the problematic intersection of science, technology, public policy and ordinary life. A medical doctor by training, Crichton knew better than to treat scientists and technologists as a priestly class, immune from temptations of fame, profit or power.
As a result, Crichton was sometimes accused of being a Luddite. In fact, he was a champion of good science, and never more so than in a 2003 lecture at Caltech, hilariously titled "Aliens Cause Global Warming."
"As the 20th century drew to a close," he warned, "the connection between hard scientific fact and public policy became increasingly elastic. In part this was possible because of the complacency of the scientific profession; in part because of the lack of good science education among the public; in part because of the rise of specialized advocacy groups which have been enormously effective in getting publicity and shaping policy; and in great part because of the decline of the media as an independent assessor of fact."
The speech drew considerable criticism, as did "State of Fear," the 2004 novel that drew on the same themes. Al Gore, among others, was dismissive. Then again, Crichton had serious scientific credentials.
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