Re: Re[2]: Baucus Bill

["Robert G. Tuck Jr." <tuckr@digital.net>]

> Many important discoveries are made
> by amateurs, discoveries which are credited by any decent 
scientist.

We astronomers owe a great debt to amateurs, who discover comets (for 
example) while professionals are busily engaged in narrow 
astrophysical (and arcane) research.

We herpetologists also owe a great debt to amateurs, who take the 
time to observe the behaviour and life histories of otherwise 
unexciting species in their own back yards.

-= Tuck =-
(past president of the Maryland Herpetological Society; past 
vice-president of the China Lake [California] Astronomical Society; current 
honorary member of the Brevard [Florida] Astronomical Society; former 
natural history museum adviser to the late Shah of Iran)