Science and public

Not too long ago, Big Brother decided to continue funding the enormously successful Hubble project. NASA can be justifiably proud of its baby that continues to outperform design expectations. In the next few years, NASA will send a space shuttle to Hubble to give her a new lease of life. Nice read about in the NYT: http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/07/science/space/07hubb.html

I am simultaneously encouraged and disheartened by the recent turn of events. That Hubble will continue to soar is a source of great joy. The uphill battle that led to that result is discouraging. If convincing the administration about the continued importance of a project whose brilliant performance is impossible to miss, is such an uphill task, surely, it does not augur well for other science and technology projects that may not produce visible results right away.

How should the scientific community engage the administration and the public at large, in its undertaking? This is a question that troubles every group within the scientific community. Clearly, some groups have been more successful in making their case! Look at the dollars that have poured into supercomputing, for instance.