ALAN HALE'S LETTER -- SCIENCE OPPORTUNITIES

[Randall_F_Brich@RL.gov]

     RADSAFERS: THE FOLLOWING LETTER FROM THE DISCOVERER OF COMET HALE-BOPP 
     WAS POSTED RECENTLY ON "GROUNDWATER" AND I HAVEN'T SEEN IT, YET, HIT 
     RADSAFE. ACCORDINGLY, ENJOY. 
     RANDY BRICH
     USDOE
     RICHLAND, WA. E-MAIL: randall_f_brich@rl.gov
     
     "All our science, measured against reality is primitive and childlike 
     and yet it is the most precious thing we have." Albert Einstein
     
     Science Opportunities
     
     An open letter to the scientists of my generation:
     
     I am Alan Hale, the co-discoverer of Comet Hale-Bopp which, as I'm 
     sure you're aware, is getting a tremendous amount of media attention 
     at this time. Like I'm sure is true for many of you, I was inspired by 
     the scientific discoveries and events taking place during my childhood 
     to pursue a career in science only to find, after completing
     the rigors of undergraduate and graduate school, that the 
     opportunities for us to have a career in science are limited at best 
     and are which I usually describe as "abysmal." Based upon my own 
     experiences, and those of you with whom I have discussed this issue, 
     my personal feeling is that, unless there are some pretty drastic 
     changes in the way that our society approaches science and treats 
     those of us who have devoted our lives to making some of our own 
     contributions, there is no way that I can, with a clear conscience, 
     encourage present-day students to pursue a career in science. It 
     really pains me a great deal to say something like that, but I feel so 
     strongly about this that I have publicly made this statement at almost 
     every opportunity I have been given.
     
     I am trying to use the media attention that is currently being focused 
     upon me to raise awareness of this state of affairs, and perhaps start 
     to effect those changes that will allow me to convey a more positive 
     message to the next generation. So far, I'm sensing a certain 
     reluctance among the media to discuss this issue, as they seem far 
     more interested in items which I consider to be irrelevant and 
     unimportant. But I intend to keep hammering away at this, and I'd like 
     to believe that eventually some are going to sit up and take notice. I 
     am also attempting to schedule meetings with some of our government 
     leaders, to see if I can at least get some acknowledgement from 
     Washington that this is a problem that needs to be dealt with.
     
     My reason for writing to you is to ask your help. I know that I'm not 
     alone in being frustrated about the current prospects for pursuing any 
     kind of decent career within science, and I'm quite sure that many of 
     you have "horror stories" about your searches for decent employment 
     that are quite similar to my own. I'd like to hear them. I'd 
     especially like to hear from those of you who are on your second or 
     third or fourth post-doc, or who have left the field as a result of 
     the employment situation, or who have experienced severe personal 
     difficulties (e.g., break-up of a marriage, etc.). I realize that some 
     of these might be painful to discuss, but I'd like to show that we are 
     not a bunch of impersonal statistics, but that we're human beings 
     trying to make an honest living and perhaps make a contribution or two 
     to society while we're at it. Speaking of statistics, though, if you 
     received any information about the numbers of applicants to some of 
     the positions you applied to -- which was often a 3-digit number in my 
     case
     -- I'd like to hear that, too.
     
     Please e-mail your stories to me at ahale@nmsu.edu, with a subject 
     line of "horror stories" or something like that. Please let me know if 
     you would prefer to remain anonymous when I share these stories with 
     the press and the government. Also, please pass this message on to any 
     of your friends and colleagues who might be interested in sharing 
     their stories with me, and keep in mind that I would like to receive 
     stories from as many scientific disciplines as possible. (Because of 
     the amount of e-mail traffic I'm receiving these days, along with 
     everything else that's going on, I probably won't be able to 
     acknowledge each message individually.)
     
     Thank you for your time, and I hope to hear from you. Perhaps, with 
     the opportunity we have before us right now, we have the chance to 
     make a difference.
     
     Sincerely,
     
     Alan Hale