Science for Sale

It was hard to fit all the relevant details into this cartoon, so I suggest reading this ThinkProgress article for background on the questionable Smithsonian exhibit, which reportedly presents a far too cheerful and uncomplicated view of the challenges posed to humanity by climate change.

An interactive game in the Koch Hall actually asks visitors to design a future human body adapted to “really hot” temperatures. “How do you think your body will evolve?” it asks. “Will you have a tall, narrow body like a giraffe? Or more sweat glands? Touch to choose the one you want.” This phrasing seems to imply that your own body is capable of magically transforming itself into a sweaty giraffe-person. This puts an awfully nice spin on the “death” part of natural selection. Moreover, dramatic temperature changes are predicted well before we’d be seeing those extra glands dominating the gene pool.

David Koch sits on the boards of both the American Museum of Natural History and the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History. Laughable exhibits aside, our scientific institutions should avoid even the appearance of corruption by mega-polluting donors such as the Koch Brothers.