a Grand Scheme for systematics? (was Re: Electronic publishing (fwd))

[Jacques Rifkind]

Doug Yanega writes (in part):
> I've sometimes thought that perhaps what we need is a Grand >Scheme;
>a multi-national, multi-institutional program that can >attract its OWN
>funding, award grants, and be self-perpetuating.

I don't think this is what we need, above and beyond the question of whether
it is possible to achieve. Alpha taxonomy and natural history will continue
to be done by "amateurs" (sensu lato--including amateurs and
professionals)--those who love nature and want to "do" science for all the
reasons one does science. The actual work is relatively low cost--and I think
that collecting trips and microscopes could be paid for publically at current
funding rates--IF the interest was there on the part of Museum directors and
managers. What I am driving at is the idea that "grand scale" attempts at
almost anything very frequently devolve into political turf wars or
"prestige" generating bureaucracies that have little to do with their
ostensive charters. The US public secondary school system is a good example
of this. What we need to do is to fight the managerial mindset that pays
lipservice to the need for alpha taxonomy and "biodiversity" studies--but
time and again funds whatever is "a la mode" (usually involving genetic or
microbiological studies).

Sincerely,

Franz Rugose