Thread by @MaydaNathan

npr.org/sections/goats… @NPRGoatsandSoda Usually a big fan of your journalism, but you guys did a disservice to your readers in the piece on gene drive in A. gambiae. Why would you reach out to anti-GMO activist Dr. Ricarda Steinbrecher for comment on this research? #malaria

First of all, asking Dr. Steinbrecher to comment on the consequences of using genetic engineering to suppress a disease vector is a bit like asking the pope about a newly developed form of birth control.

Of COURSE she’ll be against it - for ideological, arbitrary reasons

Plus, Dr. Steinbrecher’s degree is in developmental biology, not #ecology. Her statement about “ecosystem crashes” is absurd, and displays her ignorance in this area

Ecosystems are almost never like teetering Jenga towers - something the many researchers studying the #biodiversity-ecosystem function relationship today could tell you

I get wanting to address some of the concerns about a new technology, in your piece, but there were much better, less ideologically motivated people you could have reached out to…

theatlantic.com/science/archiv…
…like the Ghanaian and British scientists who, according to this article, are setting out to study this EXACT question: What are consequences of removing A. gambiae from Ghanaian ecosystems?

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.10…
…or the authors of this paper, who are all trained in entomology, biological control, and ecological risk-benefit analysis.

*Phew* sorry for the rant. It just pains me to see fringe ideology and cliches about ecology mixed up with solid scientific research.