Re: Strawpersons Living in Houses of Cards

E. Ann Clark (ACLARK@crop.uoguelph.ca)
Mon, 18 Nov 1996 04:53:38 EDT

Woody: when I lecture on this type of material - not biotech so much
but the linear thinking that underlies all of modern agriculture -
it leads to the image of a leaking dam, with people dashing about
patching leaks. The water level is rising higher and higher
(reflecting increasing yield), but with each rise, more leaks spring
up until eventually (I argue) the dam (the linear approach to
cropping) will collapse. When preceeded by several weeks of very
well documented examples of "leaks", this is an effective metaphor
for helping undergraduate students visualize what you referenced in
your mpost. Ann
ACLARK@crop.uoguelph.ca
Dr. E. Ann Clark
Associate Professor
Crop Science
University of Guelph
Guelph, ON N1G 2W1
Phone: 519-824-4120 Ext. 2508
FAX: 519 763-8933