Cui bono?

E ducating the public is essential to the progression of scientific literacy. We should take the initiative, both as professionals and dilettantes, to actively engage the public at large, and to present, as accurately as possible, the ideas that are currently relevant in the scientific community. We must also work to dispel any misconceptions that many individuals may have toward science. Not only should we disseminate solid, evidence-based scientific ideas, if we do manage to pique their collective interest, it's also imperative that we make a concerted effort to keep them in the loop. I know that this may seem like a Sisyphean task, but for what it's worth, I've added my two cents.

D arkness rains. Darkness reigns; searching for the obligatory apologies that never come. She looks upon the silted landscape; hoping, pleading to whatever ear may catch her somber notes, that her savior will come to her with promises of salvation. Lost. She wonders. She wanders. She feels most impotent; the death throes are more frequent now. Guilt-ridden and blood-drenched, her eyes have witnessed the fiery destruction of humanity; oh, the humanity of it all. The ashes have supplanted the air that she once breathed; she gasps for it, like the proverbial fish out of water. She seizes. She ceases. She draws her last breath. He comes forth from the abyss, and with open arms, he shrouds her in his gelid embrace. He surveys the detritus; he turns in disgust. Her tears have yet to reach the ground. Suspended all.

T he man. The myth. George Carlin has inspired more than one generation of comedians, actors, and freethinkers. He will be sorely missed.