The AAAS's bizarre nomination of Prof. Patrick Harran is a grave disservice to their stated mission

I hear through the Twitterverse that the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAS) has appointed Prof. Patrick Harran of UCLA as a new member for 2015. I have to say that this choice leaves me both befuddled and disappointed.

Most of us would remember that Prof. Harran was charged on four felony counts for the laboratory death of undergraduate Sheri Sangji in December 2008. The case dragged on for several years, and in 2014 Prof. Harran and UCLA struck a deal with prosecutors that allowed him to avoid the charges in exchange for a fine and community service. The charges were not refuted; they were negotiated for.

Now I am certainly not of the opinion that someone like Prof. Harran should not be rehabilitated into the scientific community in some way or another. I am also not in a position to pass legal judgement on the degree of his culpability. Nor do I think that he should never be recognized for his ongoing research.

But that’s not the point here at all. If the award was from, say the ACS, for purely technical achievement I would have been less miffed. As it happens it’s a recognition from the AAAS: the American Association for Advancement of Science. 

Advancement of Science does not just mean advancement of the technical aspects of science; it means advancement of the sum total of the scientific enterprise, a key component of which is the intersection of science with public appreciation and public policy. The AAAS was set up in 1848 with the express goal of not just recognizing scientific achievement but of facilitating scientific discourse in the public sphere. Past presidents of the AAAS have included Robert Millikan and Stephen Jay Gould, both of whom put a premium on scientists actively engaging with the public.

Let’s take a look at the official mission of the AAAS as noted on their own website:

• Enhance communication among scientists, engineers, and the public;
• Promote and defend the integrity of science and its use;
• Strengthen support for the science and technology enterprise;
• Provide a voice for science on societal issues;
• Promote the responsible use of science in public policy;
• Strengthen and diversify the science and technology workforce;
• Foster education in science and technology for everyone;
• Increase public engagement with science and technology; and
• Advance international cooperation in science.