spring books and arts straightforward in decrying the political own enterprise”. The path of science does took it as one of their tasks to define science. influence in the United States of fundamen- not run smoothly — at times it is indeed Quite a few philosophers of science today talist religious tenets on the teaching of quirky. But is science really subjective, even think that attempting to draw a line between evolution and the pursuit and application richly subjective? Gould spends a lot of science and everything else is not very help- of research on embryos. Watson passionately time debunking the myth of objectivity as ful. There is no ‘essence’ to science, no set of objects to the current situation, in which US a psychological characteristic of scientists. attributes that characterizes all scientists and “politicians continue to pander to the out- As anyone who studies science soon begins only scientists throughout all time. Science spoken religious minority”. And he speaks to realize, scientists are not very objective has evolved and continues to evolve. For for many scientists when he says: “I do not when it comes to their own work, but some reason, Gould thinks that our concepts dispute the right of individuals to look to group objectivity is what matters. Individual must be absolutely sharp to be of any use at religion for a private moral compass, but scientists may lack objectivity when it all. Despite having a history, Gould argues, I do object to the assumption of too many comes to their own pet hypotheses, but they have and must have an essence as well. religious people that atheists live in a moral others will happily take up the slack. Science A second weakness of this book is that it vacuum.” These statements would be even is organized so that subjectivity can be is largely a collection of essays and parts of more powerful if the chapter on recombinant reduced, resulting in as much objectivity as essays that have been welded into a single DNA was not entitled “Playing God”, thereby scientists need. narrative. The seams show. Readers might perpetuating a tool used by those who would Gould warns of the great harm done in wonder about the quirky, although arresting, inhibit modern genetics research. science and elsewhere by caricaturing title. The contrast between the hedgehog The unfortunate errors aside, this book one’s opponents. The contrast between the and the fox is initially meant to distinguish is more inclusive and is better reading traditional ‘positivistic’ views of science and between being very good at one thing (the than similar attempts by science journalists. more recent ‘postmodernist’ views is ripe hedgehog curling up in a ball when attacked) Although aimed at a general audience, the for caricature. Supposedly, positivists think and reasonably good at many things (the ignorance among many biomedical scien- that scientists are infallible and provide fox). He refers to this metaphor frequently tists of the history of their science suggests absolute truth, whereas postmodernists in his book, but for me it doesn’t add much to that they too can learn a great deal from the insist that scientists are driven to come up his exposition, and the Magister’s pox hardly book, and enjoy doing so. I with the views that they do primarily by such merits a mention except to rhyme with fox. Maxine Singer is president emeritus of the social forces as sexism, racism and homo- Gould expends much effort arguing that Carnegie Institution of Washington, 1530 P Street phobia. Gould tries to skate between these science, once it is properly understood, is Northwest, Washington, DC, 20005, USA. two extremes. Science is socially embedded, not in conflict with the humanities. But he but the recognition of this fact can only aid says little about the help, if any, that science scientists in their goal of recording and can give to the humanities. explaining the natural world. Another reason why Gould introduces A second contribution that the humani- the notion of magisteria is to help usher in A final call for peace ties can make to science is to help scientists the Age of Aquarius, when peace will guide The Hedgehog, the Fox, and the improve their communication skills. Gould not only the planets but also academic disci- Magister’s Pox: Mending the Gap thinks that academics in general do not write plines. He himself has been badly burned, Between Science and the well, with scientists especially deficient in especially in connection with the controversy Humanities this respect. One of the things that made over E. O. Wilson’s ‘sociobiology’. Wouldn’t by Stephen Jay Gould Gould stand out from his contemporaries everyone benefit if we all worked together and Harmony: 2003. 288 pp. $25.95 was that in general he wrote as well as any the lamb were to lie down with the lion? Published in the UK on 29 May by Jonathan humanist ever has. Young academics in I too like peace and quiet, Cape, £18.99 departments of English are stuck teaching cooperation David Hull courses in remedial writing, just as those of us in departments of philosophy are Stephen Jay Gould’s Rocks of Ages investi- stuck teaching courses in remedial gated the relationship between science and thinking, but neither group is religion. In The Hedgehog, the Fox, and the likely to take much satisfaction Magister’s Pox, published posthumously, from the goal that Gould has Gould turns his attention to the relationship assigned them. between science and the humanities. During Finally, Gould claims the Renaissance, what we now term ‘scien- that those of us in the tists’ were at odds with humanists, whose humanities are charged goal was to recover the wisdom of antiquity, with setting out the proper not to generate new ideas by means of boundaries of all magis- empirical investigation. An appropriate teria, including science. mantra for Renaissance humanist scholars One of the weaknesses of was ‘been there, done that’. When the sciences this book is that Gould cast off the heavy hand of the humanities in does not say enough the Renaissance, a new adversarial attitude about his central notion — took its place. In this book, Gould strives to magisteria — and turning outline a more peaceful, mutually support- to a dictionary does not help. ive view of the relationship between the As far as I can tell, magisteria sciences and the humanities. are something akin to areas of Gould sees three ways in which the expertise shared by groups of humanities can contribute to science. First, experts. About the only characteristic “science needs the humanities to teach us that Gould attributes to magisteria is the quirky and richly subjective side of our that they are non-overlapping. Positivists 810 © 2003 Nature Publishing Group NATURE | VOL 422 | 24 APRIL 2003 | www.nature.com/nature spring books and arts and generosity, and all areas of human endeavour can at times be characterized in these terms, but not often. Why are people so loath to apply to them- selves the basic principles that they apply to everyone else? Because it all depends on whose ox is being gored. Throughout this book, Gould preaches peace. In particular, he would like to end his conflict with Wilson, but in the final third of this book, Gould can- not resist taking one last swipe at his long- time adversary. Although Gould is as gentle and gentlemanly as possible, he attacks Wilson’s reductionism under the guise of William Whewell’s ‘consilience of induc- tions’. A consilience of inductions occurs whenthe data used to support one hypothesis also turn out to support another hypothesis as well. Gould argues that Wilson has got Whewell all wrong: Whewell’s notion of consilience is not in the least reductionistic. In his final collection of essays, I Have Landed, Gould could not help wondering what comes next. Unfortunately, what came next was a second bout of cancer and premature death. But had he beaten the odds did not end with the war in 1918. It contin- had failed, Felix Klein, a mathematician a second time, I think Gould would have ued to torment the citizens of Berlin until second only to David Hilbert in fame and continued to do battle with Wilson. I picture 1933, and led them finally to put their fate in authority, spoke in Göttingen to an audience two warriors sinking into quicksand as they the hands of Hitler. Hitler was able to gain of leading industrialists and government flail away at each other one more time — power by promising to erase the tragedy and officials. He talked confidently of the coming just one more time. I bring back the happy days of the empire victorious conclusion of the war, of the David L. Hull is emeritus professor in the when Germany was prosperous and united. harmonious collaboration of German sci- Department of Philosophy, Northwestern “There are, to be sure, too many biogra- ence with industry and the armed forces, University, 1818 Hinman Avenue, Evanston, phies of Einstein and not enough of Poin- and of the expected increase in support for Illinois 60208-1315, USA. caré,’’ writes Peter Galison in a forthcoming mathematical education and research after book, Einstein’s Clocks and Poincaré’s Maps. the victory was won. Every aspect of Einstein’s life — the personal, The state of mind of the mandarins in the political, the scientific and the philo- Berlin was very different from that of their Einstein’s view sophical — has been described in detail and enemies in Paris and London. In Paris the analysed in depth by his various biographers.