Law unto itself?

The courts are often the last line of defence between controversial new technologies and the wider world, so it’s not too surprising that many scientists have an uneasy relationship with the legal profession. In Science at the Bar: Law, Science and Technology in America (Harvard University Press, £18.95 ISBN 0 674 79302 1) Sheila Jasanoff reveals the gulf between objective science and adversarial law in the US – and suggests some bridge-building answers, like better training for judges. Jasanoff professor of science and technology studies at Cornell, delves deep into case law and comes up with some absorbing and accessible analyses of the judicial treatment of issues such as genetic engineering, chemical toxicity and fetal rights. Timely stuff.