Since opening it doors in 1868, Cornell University has produced cutting-edge science, not to mention, numerous nobel laureates. Its faculty innovated existing science, changed age-old technologies, and through their students, revolutionized the fields of entomology and ornithology. Today, we present a special edition of our weekly feature, The Scientist. We’d like to note that, although the consequences of these scientists can be seen everywhere on campus - from the extensive gardens of The Plant Science Building to the collections of Comstock Hall - the importance of these scientists can be felt throughout the scientific community.

At a time when Ann Coulter ’84 and Keith Olbermann’79 are butting heads over the legitimacy of the Ag School and the value of a communication degree, it seems appropriate for scientists to ask: Are there any facts in Ms. Coulter’s claims? I invite you to look at another (maybe, the third) side of the coin, what we call the narrative of science: Imagine Cornell without Agriculture, without the Life Sciences, without Communication (especially, in the life sciences)…