Science means constantly walking a tightrope between blind faith and curiosity; between expertise and creativity; between bias and openness; between experience and epiphany; between ambition and passion; and between arrogance and conviction – in short, between an old today and a new tomorrow. But, nowadays, research increasingly is misdirected toward lucrative prizes, professional recognition, and financial gains – rewards that are suffocating the creativity and passion that scientific progress demands. As T.S. Eliot put it, “Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowledge? Where is the knowledge we have lost in information?”
Heinrich Rohrer (physics Nobel laureate) on the ongoing misconduct in sciences. Of course in truth the science merely reflects human nature. There's no reason to expect that those who conduct science would be anymore 'righteous' than say politicians. It is not the nature of the practice, it is the nature of the man. Even in 'hard sciences' where the practice of critical rationalism and falsification takes a central in demarcating science from pseudo science, fraud and innuendo govern the day as well as the night.
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