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Annotation for Derry, Chapter 13 - Contentious Questions: The

Shadowy Borderlands of Science

Derry, G. (1999). Chapter 13: Contentious Questions: The shadowy borderlands of science.

In What Science is and How it Works (Vol. 1196, pp. 174-188). doi: 10.1111/j.1749-

6632.2009.05320.x. The shadowy borderlands of science aren’t as bad as people think, but I still wouldn’t build

a summer home there. When discussing the “contentious questions”, Derry makes the case

that labeling research as “not science” is an unfair accusation. Essentially, is an unsuccessful

science not a science? Derry states the “characteristics of pseudoscience concern the methods

of thinking, not the unlikelihood of the content” (174). If science is characterized by the methods

as opposed to the outcome (process over product, if you will), then we must reconsider the

label as applied to fields such as parapsychology (ESP, psychokinesis, precognition, etc.) and

the pursuit of cold fusion (fusing of atomic nuclei at room temperature producing high energy).

These are indeed a science, even though their products have failed to stand up to their claims. Nuclear fusion is a very promising form of energy production. It’s yield potential in combination

with the abundance of fuel (water), multiplied still by the minimal radioactive waste products

form a recipe for social and economic implications of epic proportions. Unfortunately, this

process only occurs in stars and in weaponry. Indeed the hydrogen bomb is the fusion of that

element to create helium (its more complex than that, but for simplicity...). The only way that

is even possible is a result of the atomic explosion (splitting of an atom’s nucleus) needed to

generate the heat that triggers the fusion of hydrogen.

Given the extreme environment this needs in order to occur, when a couple of electrochemists

proclaimed they had achieved fusion at room temperature, the scientific community skeptically

tuned in. The team had not published their findings before a press conference was held to

announce their findings. The frenzy of media attention and the subsequent lack of attention

paid to empirical description of what had happened in the initial experiment generated a virtually

unreproducible finding. The evidence needed to accurately prove that cold fusion existed and

occurred was held against hundreds of years of scientific theory; the evidence had to match

very clear calculations about what needed to be observable. It did not. The end result was that

cold fusion does not exist.

Parapsychology has been explored by scientists intrigued by the possibility of the

unexplainable. The modern parapsychology movement originated at Duke University under the

direction of J.B. Rhine and L.E. Rhine. They worked to identify the weak paranormal abilities inaverage people, amassing thousands of statistical events and procuring substantial statistical

evidence that paranormal abilities exist. In order to counter the criticisms of fraud and lack of 

control of experimentation, parapsychologists have constructed devices to account for any

contentions of misleading science. The major difficulty with parapsychology is that there is no standard against which this science

can be measured. Unlike fusion, the product and outcome cannot be compared to anything.

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Additionally, the declaration of the existence of paranormal abilities would shake the foundations

of our understanding of the world and would certainly warrant a large burden of proof and would

be subject to “unprecedented critical scrutiny” (186). There are multiple lessons to be taken from Derry in regards to contentious questions. First ,

you can’t fool the scientific community. This has connections to last week’s readings onthe opposing camps in contention of the composition of scientific understanding. The body

of knowledge, however natural, is still dominated by a culture of scholars in the present.

Although “it is possible for a science to study effects that are not real” (185), those engaged

should be aware of the heavy criticism. Second , Derry states that “ the more radically an idea

diverges from the well-established knowledge, the more stridently we demand ironclad proof 

that the idea is right” (184). This cannot be ignored when working in the shadowy borderlands

of science. This is again part of the reality that exists as a result of the culture of academia and

science. It is proper that cold fusion and parapsychology would have to be pretty well supported

in order for it to become an accepted truth. Lastly , organize and publish your findings first, then

hold your press conferences. This is a bit “tongue-in-cheek” but speaks to the need for empirical

evidence which exceeds sharing your work. Whether cold fusion occurred that day or not, we’llnever know because of what we don’t know about the experiment. ~ lawrence bruce