Ira Glasser | May 26, 1991 | 3 min read
The history of science is full of examples of advances that seemed marvelous at first, but later turned out to have unexpected effects. Synthetic chemicals--detergents, for example--were produced and used on a large scale before anyone recognized the problems caused by their inability to biodegrade. A similarly adverse situation manifests itself today in the depletion of the ozone layer. The problem is more troubling when the effects of scientific development are legal or sociological. In such