These are heady times for old biology teachers. Every day, news reports inform us of discoveries and studies either confirming or casting doubt on that which we already know. Arguments and disagreements abound. Acceptance of new ideas and theories is often met with great skepticism, some of which is healthy. Some is not. One thing we do know is that what we know pales in the face of what there is to know.
In the mid 1500s Copernicus introduced heliocentrism (the sun as center of the solar system) to the western world. One hundred years later, the Roman Catholic Church imprisoned Galileo for promoting the theory. Officially, the church recognized heliocentric theory as fact in 1992. That is one slow-moving train.
The germ theory of disease represents the work of many, but is most commonly credited to Ignaz Semmelweis, Louis Pasteur, and Robert Koch from their experiments throughout the 1800s. From this theory comes the development of basic rules of sanitation.
Germ theory did not catch on quickly. Semmelweis discovered that doctors themselves through poor sanitation were the cause of deadly childbirth fever. It took decades for the medical community to promote handwashing as a requirement. It was a difficult concept for many to accept that disease was caused by organisms too small to see rather than as the retribution of an angry God. Some still promote this ancient idea.
Imagine a restaurant today announcing publicly that they were no longer going to require their employees to wash their hands after using the restroom. Disgusting right? However, microorganisms, some deadly, are passed through the air just as readily as through contaminated hands. There is no need to adhere to basic rules of sanitation if God is in charge, even in the midst of a deadly pandemic, as we have heard many in the community say.
On a recent walk through Bluffton’s Pickett’s Run Park I was reminded of the history of this space as a sluiceway of human effluent purposefully flowing directly into the Wabash River and downstream to Markle, Indiana. After considering that this vile cesspool was responsible for many cases of cholera, typhoid, dysentery and a host of other deadly infections, Mayor Martin Walbert cast the deciding vote on a plan to eliminate this public nuisance. The plan narrowly passed the city council by a vote of 5-4 in 1891.
I began teaching biology at Bluffton High School in 1973. At that time, lessons included the theory of global warming through the increase of atmospheric carbon dioxide from burning of fossils fuels. By nature, CO2 is light transparent and heat opaque, trapping excessive warm air in the atmosphere and facilitating the rise in global temperatures. That was 50 years ago. Some still deny this truth that is consistently supported empirically and reinforced by scientists the world over. It truly is an inconvenient truth.
While many may not understand fully the differences between a hypothesis and a theory, it is a critical difference. A hypothesis is an idea, possibly supported by a single study or observation. A theory is supported by an overwhelming preponderance of evidence through countless studies. As an example, gravity is a theory, as are the germ theory of disease and evolution. All are open to study and change, but all three are accepted as fact in the world of science. That does not mean that the mechanisms and details of such are settled. However, it does mean that there is overwhelming and indisputable evidence for the underlying theory.
I loved my father, but he was a stubborn man; a trait for which he paid a dear price. In 1974, at the age of 55, he was feeling lethargic and exhibiting many symptoms consistent with Type 2 diabetes. He did not like his doctor, calling him arrogant, and refused to take his prescribed medications. He said the medications made him feel awful. Dad loved to eat, and after initially making some prescriptive changes in diet, he soon gave way to his culinary desires. He decided he would eat what he wanted despite protestations of family attempting to help.
The price? Within two years he was legally blind and suffering severe complications in his feet and legs. Within five years his right leg was amputated.
For sure, better therapeutics and more accurate information exist today in treating diabetes. Today such a patient as my dad, even a stubborn one, could expect to achieve better outcomes. Still, this is a serious disease that requires serious attention and following expert medical advice.
Dad died in 1994 as my youngest brother and I held his hand in Wells Community Hospital. His last gasp for air still rests palpably in my memory. Effectively, this independent man who loved to drive, loved politics, and to sing in church, spent the last 20 years of his life confined to a chair in the living room in front of a television he could barely see. His mind was sharp to the end, but his body was ravaged by this insidious disease. This was a devastating price to pay for rejecting the science.
In my view his experience and misguided actions parallel the response from many in regard to the COVID-19 vaccine. History will write the story, but I imagine our descendants will shake their heads in wonderment over how many chose tribal political arguments ahead of safety and protection for themselves, their family members, and their communities. In the last two years, this pandemic has exacted a dear price.
Here’s the thing: Collectively we suffer from a form of science illiteracy. Truth and lies, and fact and opinion, are not equal sides of the same coin. It has become acceptable in some segments of society to disparage “experts” and “intellectuals.” Every demagogue who has risen to power in history has derided the most highly educated in their midst because they challenge the lies. New controversies and great challenges await just beyond the horizon. We would do well to heed the advice of those who have spent their life’s work studying and preparing for the unknown hurdles coming in this grand global human experiment.
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Editor’s Note: This is one of a series of articles written by a group of retired teachers — Ken Ballinger, Billy Kreigh, Marianne Darr-Norman, and Anna Spalding. Their intent is to spur discussions at the dinner table and elsewhere. You may also voice your thoughts and reactions via The News-Banner’s letters to the editor.
