Our Reliance On The Validity Of A

Human Beings Exercise Responsibilities Within A Social Setting And A Framework Of Obligations Which Transcend The Principle Of Intelligence.

The Amount Of Knowledge Which We Can Justify From Evidence Directly Available To Us Can Never Be Large. The Overwhelming Proportion Of Our Factual Beliefs Continue Therefore To Be Held At Second Hand Through Trusting Others, And In The Great Majority Of Cases Our Trust Is Placed In The Authority Of Comparatively Few People Of Widely Acknowledged Standing.

A Free Society Is Regarded As One That Does Not Engage, On Principle, In Attempting To Control What People Find Meaningful, And A Totalitarian Society Is Regarded As One That Does, On Principle, Attempt Such Control.

Admittedly, The Body Of Scientists, As A Whole, Does Uphold The Authority Of Science Over The Lay Public. It Controls Thereby Also The Process By Which Young Men Are Trained To Become Members Of The Scientific Profession.

The First Thing To Make Clear Is That Scientists, Freely Making Their Own Choice Of Problems And Pursuing Them In The Light Of Their Own Personal Judgment, Are In Fact Co-operating As Members Of A Closely Knit Organization.