Silent Spring

The sedge is wither'd from the lake,

And no birds sing.  

Keats




Rachel Louise Carson at home with cat Moppet.

The 'control of nature' is a phrase conceived in arrogance, born of the Neanderthal age of biology and philosophy, when it was supposed that nature exists for the convenience of man (Carson 1962, p.243).

The book I have chosen for the 20th century is Silent Spring by American biologist Rachel Carson. Silent Spring catalogued the impact of widespread and indescriminate spraying of DDT (dichlorodiphipheny/trichloroethane) and other even more toxic organochlorines such as aldrin, chlordane and dieldrin on wildlife, marine life and humans alike, and questioned their use without proper investigation of their long-term effects. She meticulously describes how DDT enters the food chain and lodges in the fatty tissue of birds and animals. DDT, though first synthesized in 1874, was not discovered to be an insecticide until 1939. After World War II it was made available to farmers as an agricultural insecticide. By the late fifties more than 30,000 tons a year were being used in the United States alone. The agricultural use of DDT was banned in most developed countries in the 1970s and 1980s with Britain being one of the last, not banning it until 1984.
Like Darwin below, Carson spent a number of years researching her book. She knew that it would feel the full force of the powerful chemical industry. It has over 600 references which take up almost fifty pages at the end of the book.   What is the book's legacy? Steiguer (2006 p. 40) states:

Rachel Carson's most important legacy may not be found in the laws of Congress nor in the halls of Washington's bureaucracy, but in the minds of the people. She shocked us into awareness of the deadly threat posed to present and future generations when the air, water, and soil are used casually as repositories for toxic substances.

                            Video taken from Britannica briefly illustrating Carson's struggle with the chemical industry.

Silent Spring was published in the 1960s, 27 September 1962 to be precise. These were times of great change and tumult in the United States and in many other parts of the world as well. The Cuban Missile Crisis happened in October 1962, the Berlin Wall was erected in August 1961 and the Soviet Union had sent the first man into space in April 1961.






                      
                                                           Have some DDT on your porridge, why don't you?

Carson bequeathed her manuscripts and papers to Yale University. A complete listing can be found here.
Silent Spring is mentioned at number 16 in the collection of the 25 greatest science books of all time collated by Discover magazine. It is mentioned in Time magazine's all time 100 non-fiction books. It is also mentioned in the Guardian's 100 greatest non-fiction books.

Reflection on research

Having now moved into the 20th century the research for this blog, while not becoming easier, at least has much more visual content available. For instance it is not known what Spinoza truly looked like, the picture I have used of him on this blog was constructed from notes. I also note that as the World Wide Web does not refuse content, there are all matter of articles on the subject of Silent Spring out there with many people pushing their own agenda. The use of authoitative sources are vital. I am still using Britannica and the catalogue of the State Library along with YouTube and podcasts.

References

Carson, Rachel. [Video]. Encyclopædia Britannica Online, viewed 6 May 2012, <http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/media/112348/Learn-about-world-renowned-biologist-Rachel-Carson-who-alerted-the>.

25 Greatest Science Books of All Time | DISCOVER Magazine, 2012, viewed 6 May 2012, <http://discovermagazine.com/2006/dec/25-greatest-science-books/article_view?b_start:int=1&page=2>.

Carson, Rachel. [Video]. Encyclopædia Britannica Online, viewed 6 May 2012, <http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/media/112348/Learn-about-world-renowned-biologist-Rachel-Carson-who-alerted-the>.

Carson, R & CBS News. 1963, The Silent spring of Rachel Carson, CBS News, n.p.
DDT so safe you can eat it 1947, viewed 5 May 2012, <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtcXXbuR244&feature=related>.

De Steiguer, JE 2006, The origins of modern environmental thought, University of Arizona Press, Tucson.

Lear, L 2012, The Life and Legacy of Rachel Carson, viewed 5 May 2012, <http://www.rachelcarson.org/>.

Rachel Carson - Hosted by Google,[image], takenSeptember 24, 1962, viewed 6 May 2012, <http://images.google.com/hosted/life/8eeaae5c2a9b455e.html>.

Silent Spring | All-TIME 100 Nonfiction Books | Entertainment | TIME.com, 2012, viewed 6 May 2012, <http://entertainment.time.com/2011/08/30/all-time-100-best-nonfiction-books/>.

The 100 greatest non-fiction books | Books | guardian.co.uk, 2012, viewed 6 May 2012, <http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/jun/14/100-greatest-non-fiction-books>.