CAMPUS CURRENT
Pre-Sputnik Mentality Urged MADELEINE JACOBS SAYS RAISING AWARENESS OF CHEMISTRY IS KEY
College News
Noted chemist Madeleine Jacobs shares her insight with Nelson Series co-organizer Prof. Jerry Van Hecke ’61 and a student participant.
In preparation for the International Year of Chemistry, numer- ous countries issued postage stamps celebrating the long-vener- ated “science of matter.” Notably missing is the United States’ version, demonstrating that chemistry does not always receive the appreciation it deserves, a noted chemist observed this fall while speaking on campus. “People don’t fully appreciate what chemistry does for dai-
ly life,” Madeleine Jacobs, executive director and CEO of the American Chemical Society, told a near-capacity audience Oct. 6 during the 2011 Dr. Bruce J. Nelson ’74 Speaker Series. Clearly, much is needed to raise the level of consciousness about chemistry. “If there’s a single challenge in the world that does not
involve chemistry, I cannot tell you what it is,” said Jacobs. “Chemists and chemical engineers will be part of solving [those] challenges—it’s important that people understand this.” Jacobs is an honored science journalist and an internationally acclaimed public speaker with an extensive understanding of the chemistry field. According to Jacobs, more chemists, chemical engineers and other scientists are needed to solve the world’s most pressing problems. She said students like those at HMC—“the elite”— are embarking on a noble calling. “Although some of you may not become scientists and en- gineers, the studying you are doing at Harvey Mudd will serve
you well,” she said. “There is nothing that goes on in the world that does not involve understanding.” Still, Jacobs said she is concerned about what she perceives is a lack of interest in science, a shortcoming she believes begins at a young age. The passion and rigor that have long characterized science and technology in the U.S. are fading, she said. In part because of that, the U.S. faces a strong challenge to its longstanding pre-eminence in science and technology. “We can still claim superiority—we have the best colleges
and universities in the world,” Jacobs said. “The standard of liv- ing that we enjoy and hope to extend around the world is due to advances in science and technology.” Despite the challenges, Jacobs said hope lies in the exciting
opportunities available to the country’s best and brightest. “There must be a return to the feeling of the pre-Sputnik
era,” Jacobs said. “We need to get back to the sense that science and engineering are noble callings that will do good things for humanity. Being a scientist is about helping people, and that’s really the end goal of everything you do.” Talks by each of this year’s Nelson Series speakers—Jacobs,
Peter Atkins, Peter Dervan and Judith Giordan—can be found on the HMC YouTube channel.
—Steven K. Wagner Nelson Talks:
youtube.com/watch?v=iGyV_51mm3I&feature=youtu.be.
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Har vey Mudd College FALL/WINTER 2011
VIDEO
WILL VASTA
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