Soundbites

Here is a sampling of quotations from Cornell University faculty, students and staff that have appeared recently in the national and international news media:

"I did not feel that they would say that radio astronomy should be protected at all costs."

--Paul F. Goldsmith, professor and director of the National Astronomy and Ionosphere Center at Arecibo, commenting on efforts by radioastronomers to convince the Federal Communications Commission to limit interference caused by the increasing numbers of satellite networks being launched by private telecommunications companies, in the Chronicle of Higher Education, May 29.

"This doesn't detract from the complexity and beauty of the game."

--Thomas Gilovich, professor of psychology, on the fact that the laws of statistical probability rather than a player's "hot streak" affect each shot in basketball, interviewed on NPR Talk of the Nation May 29.

"A lot of what's being done today will be obsolete in a decade."

--Charles J. Arntzen, president of the Boyce Thompson Institute at Cornell, commenting on how quickly technology is evolving in the development of bioengineered crops, in The Wall Street Journal, May 26.

"Even if a 12-year-old then [30 years ago] had access to a gun, he would have been less able to point it at a human being and shoot. An increased dose of violence and things like point-and-shoot video games break down children's inhibitions the same way they break down soldiers'."

--James Garbarino, professor of human development, talking about empowering children in the battle against violence, in the Boston Globe, May 21.

"If you look at how people do risk assessment for themselves, you see a lot of rationalization. They see an outcome as the one they want, so they will buy something and rationalize why they do it. But if they don't want to change, they'll say they don't know what the risk is or what the alternatives are."

--Nellie Brown, western regional director of the Cornell Chemical Hazard Information Program, explaining why Americans use hair dyes and other products containing hazardous chemicals at the same time they seek out organically grown vegetables and low-fat food, in the May American Demographics.

"If you look at the job-growth figures, the biggest expansions are health aids, cashiers and janitors. You can't support a family or go to college with the wages from these jobs."

--Kate Bronfenbrenner, director of Labor Education Research, explaining why low unemployment figures don't necessarily mean a sound economy, in the Christian Science Monitor, May 11.

"Developing nations must put more emphasis on fund input and personnel training in biotechnological research."

--Ray Wu, professor of biochemistry and molecular biology, discussing the importance of investing in biotechnology to deal with grain shortages in developing countries, in a Xinhua newswire (China) article, May 6.