On the grapevine
None shall be heroes
A CEO who refuses to offer the latest software, and a psychologist who wants to dethrone heroes of science. We take a look at some science issues of global relevance.
Avind Krishna, CEO of IBM | Image: zVg
In June 2020, Avind Krishna, the CEO of IBM, wrote an open letter to the US Congress in which he opposed mass surveillance and racial profiling. He insisted it is now “time to begin a national dialogue on whether and how facial recognition technology should be employed by domestic law enforcement agencies”.
Stuart Ritchie, King’s College London | Image: zVg
The Scottish psychologist Stuart Ritchie from King’s College London suggested to the online magazine Unherd – which is devoted to unusual ideas – that “there should never be heroes in science”. Even the most vocal of them – such as John Ioannidis – ought to be subjected to critical questioning, he says.
