I was delighted to read your thoughtful comments1 on Iraqi science. I agree with you wholeheartedly. Also, I have been saying similar things here at the National Academy of Sciences and the United States State Department, in addition to similar organizations in the Arab world.
In the meantime, the real work has to be initiated and performed by the scientific community at large. For this reason, I believe that the call by The Scientist is most appropriate and very timely.
Farouk El-Baz
Boston University
Boston, MA
farouk@bu.edu
***
Your editorial1 on rebuilding Iraqi science brings out the fact that Iraq has quite a number of doctorates (around 10,000) who will help build an Iraq dampened by dictatorship and destroyed by recent bombardment. Iraq's social stability rests with its scientific foundation. Science is open and scientists are technical builders of society. Therefore, in a free country the scientists have a choice ...
