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Artists and Scientists in Times of War
by Roger Malina, Leonardo Executive Editor
Email: rmalina@alum.mit.edu
Some time ago, I was contacted by Leonardo co-editor Michele Emmer, who
proposed a Leonardo editorial project on "The Role of Artists and
Scientists in Times of War." At that time Michele found himself under
the flight paths of bombers headed for Kosovo. As a result of Michele's
initiative, Leonardo has published a number of articles by artists and
scientists documenting their work that seeks to grapple with the
continuing conflicts in our world. Contributions have come from members
of the Leonardo network, from Colombia to Los Angeles, from Italy to
Russia.
Today, I am writing this from my office in Marseille, and overhead I
hear the bombers readying for action and warships are steaming for the
Mediterranean. Marseille is a port city and has been for at least 2,600
years. This city has witnessed the warriors of innumerable cultures
pass through, from Hannibal's elephants to the Third Reich's enforcers,
from the Crusaders to Napoleon, from Roman centurions to Arab
stallions. Now Americans and their allies are in a new war for minds
and hearts, for bodies and resources.
I am the American Director of a French astrophysics laboratory. Last
week we held our three minutes of silence and, like many of you, I felt
emotionally reassured by the spontaneous outpouring of support and the
cry "We are all Americans," echoing the rallying cry of "We are all
Berliners" at the peak of the Cold War. Today I feel less sure of the
reassurance. Are we all Americans? Or is this the wrong kind of
categorization? I have no doubt the phrase "We are all Romans" was
heard two millennia ago on these very streets of Marseille. And only 50
years ago, my father Frank Malina, founder of Leonardo, was one of the
founding staff of UNESCO--a generation dedicated to building world
organizations that would prevent the occurrence of a new world war. At
that time we were all Europeans.
During the week of the atrocities in New York and Washington, we were
meeting here in Marseille with American colleagues, discussing our
dreams to build a new space telescope that would study supernovae, the
largest of cosmic explosions, in order to understand the very forces
that structure our universe. Nervously, we joked that the same
telescopes we were imagining to unravel the mysteries of the newly
discovered repulsive force (ironically called Dark Energy) could also
be pointed down at the earth, and with sufficient resolution and
sensitivity, track warm bodies moving around the surface of the earth.
We live in a highly linked system that has particular vulnerabilities.
The crimes in New York and Washington resulted in thousands of victims
and tens of thousands of displaced people. This is far less than the
human losses in recent years in floods in Bangladesh or earthquakes in
Turkey or China. Yet the attack in the U.S. triggered almost instant
global reaction. The largest industry on the planet, the tourist
industry, has seen a drop in business by a factor of several. Already
layoffs and increased unemployment numbers in the hundreds of thousands
in the U.S. alone within 1 week of the event. We live in a highly
linked world. The same Internet that promotes diversity of opinion and
of analysis can also show global oscillations that manifest themselves
as group-think and group instabilities. Whether in the bunkers of Camp
David or the new Arab quarters of Marseille, each one of us is forced
to analyze, to try to understand and decide what is an appropriate
response. And in a highly linked network, a well-mobilized minority of
the world population can lead to large-scale system response. And as we
all know, inaction, lurking or listening in the network, is also part
of the system behavior that will determine the course of future
outcomes.
Since the attacks, the Leonardo editors, like all of you, have been in
touch making sure that each is well, and bringing friendship to those
who have experienced deep loss in the attacks. We thank all those who
have contacted us and the Leonardo community, and we send our support
to all those hurt and displaced.
Now the Leonardo network must decide an appropriate course of action.
Michele Emmer is preparing a new editorial, updating "The Role of
Artists and Scientists in Times of War" project. The Leonardo
publications and projects belong to the Leonardo community. We are open
to your ideas and thoughts on how we can all contribute to a saner and
safer world that respects the rights and dignity of every person.
Art & War Project Description and Call for Papers
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