Bob
Senior Member
- Messages
- 16,455
- Location
- England (south coast)
The Guardian
Wave a banknote at a pundit and he'll predict anything
Of course it is outrageous to jail scientists for honest errors, but it is legitimate to hold them to some account
Simon Jenkins
25 October 2012
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/oct/25/italy-earthquake-laquila-banknote-predict
"On the evening of 5 April 2009, Luigi Guigno of L'Aquila in Italy was phoned by a sister terrified by tremors under their village. He told her not to worry. Government experts in "the forecasting and prevention of major risks" had just been on the news declaring there to be "no danger" of an earthquake. They need not go out into the street. A few hours later an earthquake struck and Luigi, his pregnant wife, their son and 300 others were crushed to death."
"This week a local judge jailed six of the scientists, not for failing to predict the quake but for giving what he regarded as reckless reassurances. He fined them £6m and disbarred them from public office."
"If the variables are too great, science should shut up, rather than peddle spurious expertise."
Wave a banknote at a pundit and he'll predict anything
Of course it is outrageous to jail scientists for honest errors, but it is legitimate to hold them to some account
Simon Jenkins
25 October 2012
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/oct/25/italy-earthquake-laquila-banknote-predict
"On the evening of 5 April 2009, Luigi Guigno of L'Aquila in Italy was phoned by a sister terrified by tremors under their village. He told her not to worry. Government experts in "the forecasting and prevention of major risks" had just been on the news declaring there to be "no danger" of an earthquake. They need not go out into the street. A few hours later an earthquake struck and Luigi, his pregnant wife, their son and 300 others were crushed to death."
"This week a local judge jailed six of the scientists, not for failing to predict the quake but for giving what he regarded as reckless reassurances. He fined them £6m and disbarred them from public office."
"If the variables are too great, science should shut up, rather than peddle spurious expertise."