9.6 Correspondence MH

CORRESPONDENCE NATURE|Vol 435|9 June 2005 the gain setting used to produce detector stand to gain anything from preventing Controls on exports saturation by the remaining portion of the such exchanges. will defend security, original signal. John R. Cohn Although attempting to curtail illegitimate Thomas Jefferson University, 1015 Chestnut without harming labs manipulation of digital images is very Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19107, USA important, it is also relevant to consider SIR — Your News story “Academics stress the veracity of raw images. A solution licence threat to US science” (Nature435, would be to require a statement about 4; 2005) usefully focuses attention on detector settings in the methods section A boycott could do good in US export-control regulations and their of publications and, further, to require that Israel, as in South Africa application to scientific research. But it original unenhanced digital images, in the repeats a common misperception regarding proprietary format, which will usually SIR — We find it curious that your News the scope of the export-control regulations contain details of the microscope settings, story “Palestinian unease sparks fresh calls in the context of domestic academic are included in online supporting material. for Israeli boycott” (Nature434,813; 2005) laboratories. Jeremy Adler portrays scientific collaboration between The News story states that a licence is Department of Developmental Biology, Palestinian and Israeli academic institutions required for certain foreign nationals to The Wenner-Gren Institute, as a “beacon of hope” at a time when Israel’s operate controlled equipment. This is Stockholm University, S106 91, oppression of the Palestinians is ongoing and, not the case. A foreign national may work Stockholm, Sweden in fact, intensifying. with controlled equipment, so long as no Plain logic would lead us to think that controlled technology is released to the liberation is required first, and then perhaps foreign national in the process. The controls collaboration, with justice having already apply to the release of technology, not to the Academic boycott would been achieved. To suggest that collaboration use of equipment. damage chances for peace despite occupation is a sign of hope defies The News story also states that the controls any understanding of conflict, oppression apply to technologies relating to a wide range SIR — As your News story, “Palestinian and the struggle for freedom, justice and of equipment. But licences are only required unease sparks fresh calls for Israeli boycott” genuine peace. for release of a relatively small subset of (Nature434,813; 2005) notes, intermittent In our view, boycott constitutes one of technologies to foreign nationals from a attempts have been made to boycott Israeli the very few possibilities for Palestinian limited number of countries. For instance, academics, in order to protest at the lack of non-violent resistance to occupation. Boycott the article cites lasers as an example, yet no resolution of the Israeli–Arab conflict. as an instrument of civil resistance did not licences would be required to teach a foreign These efforts — such as the recent attempt originate in Palestine. It has been effectively national how to use most lasers. by some members of the UK Association of used elsewhere, notably in South Africa, Finally, US companies and many University Teachers to impose a boycott and has earned much support from various universities are already complying with of two universities, which was overturned groups worldwide. these export controls. The president of the last month (Nature435,550; 2005) — are In the case of Palestine–Israel, a moral, if University of Maryland, Dan Mote, is quoted counterproductive in an environment not active, support of the boycott of Israeli as considering that obtaining the required where mistrust is a key obstacle to peace, academic and cultural institutions is the licences could “bring work to a halt” in our particularly after four years of escalated least that one expects from conscientious nation’s laboratories. On the contrary, proper violence. This has included closures of academics, scientists and intellectuals compliance with these rules will strengthen Palestinian universities by Israeli forces worldwide. Would Naturehave described our nation’s security while ensuring that and direct attacks on Israeli institutions the collaboration of blacks and other American science maintains its pre-eminent of higher learning, such as the terrorist liberationists in South Africa with the research capabilities. bombing of the cafeteria at Hebrew apartheid government and its institutions Peter Lichtenbaum University that killed and injured nearly as a “beacon of hope”? Acting undersecretary for industry and security, 100 people, mostly students. Rita Giacaman*, Jacqueline Sfeir†, US Department of Commerce, In addition to reducing the enmity that Ismat al-Shakhshir‡ 14th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue, must be overcome before peace can be *Institute of Community and Public Health, Washington DC 20230, USA achieved, collaboration between Israeli and Birzeit University, Birzeit, West Bank, Palestine Palestinian academics has brought millions †Department of Education, Bethlehem University, of dollars in funding to suburban Jerusalem’s Bethlehem, West Bank, Palestine Al-Quds University. Joint efforts have ‡Department of Chemistry, Al-Najah University, Veracity of raw images can enhanced the training and skills of the Nablus, West Bank, Palestine also come into question Palestinian faculty members — skills they and their students will need in any future The News story in question was describing SIR – Your News Feature “CSI: cell biology” Palestinian state, if it is to be viable, events and attitudes, not presenting an (Nature434,952–953; 2005) raises questions productive and at peace with its neighbours. editorial perspective. For the record, about the legitimacy of editing images. In this Even at the height of the Cold War, with Naturehas consistently opposed boycotts, context, I am regularly surprised at the nuclear missiles aimed at each other’s heart- both of South African academics in the essentially binary appearance of many lands, the United States and the Soviet Union time of apartheid and, more recently, of published fluorescence microscopy images, considered academic exchanges a worthwhile researchers in Israel — Editor, Nature. with the apparent absence of both inter- way of enhancing the prospects for peace. mediate intensities and Poisson noise. Although there are, of course, major Contributions to Correspondence may This may predate Photoshop and arise at differences between the two conflicts, the be submitted to [email protected]. the time of acquisition, when alterations to same principle holds true for Israelis and They should be no longer than 500 the offset of photodetectors can be used to Palestinians. Only those who are interested words, and ideally shorter. Published suppress low or intermediate signals and in perpetuating this conflict indefinitely contributions are edited. 736 © 2005Nature PublishingGroup.

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