# New head of Australia's science agency (CSIRO) has a loose grasp of what is science **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [October 20, 2014, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-head-of-australias-science-agency-csiro-has-a-loose-grasp-of-what-is-science/701899 "2014-10-20T04:33:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-head-of-australias-science-agency-csiro-has-a-loose-grasp-of-what-is-science/701899/1 "2014-10-20T04:33:09Z")
Larry Marshall was [recently](http://www.smh.com.au/technology/sci-tech/entrepreneur-larry-marshall-to-head-csiro-20141009-113k2b.html) made head of the [CSIRO](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commonwealth_Scientific_and_Industrial_Research_Organisation), Australia’s Science and Research Organisation, and one of his first suggestions is to [develop technology that can divine water](http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-10-20/nrn-csiro-ceo-water-divining-dowsing/5822472). Apparently he’s seen it with his own eyes, so accepts it as possible. I suggest he does some more research before talking about things like this, or he’ll be fired by the weekend. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 11:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-head-of-australias-science-agency-csiro-has-a-loose-grasp-of-what-is-science/701899/2 "2014-10-20T11:23:45Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > or he’ll be fired by the weekend. This is the part that I wish we had in America. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-head-of-australias-science-agency-csiro-has-a-loose-grasp-of-what-is-science/701899/3 "2014-10-20T12:28:16Z")
You want a corporation to actually be accountable, Smeg? ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-head-of-australias-science-agency-csiro-has-a-loose-grasp-of-what-is-science/701899/4 "2014-10-20T12:44:20Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > Larry Marshall was [recently](http://www.smh.com.au/technology/sci-tech/entrepreneur-larry-marshall-to-head-csiro-20141009-113k2b.html) made head of the [CSIRO](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commonwealth_Scientific_and_Industrial_Research_Organisation), Australia’s Science and Research Organisation, and one of his first suggestions is to [develop technology that can divine water](http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-10-20/nrn-csiro-ceo-water-divining-dowsing/5822472). Apparently he’s seen it with his own eyes, so accepts it as possible. > > I suggest he does some more research before talking about things like this, or he’ll be fired by the weekend. Under the current government? Having no clue about science would be regarded as a qualification not a disqualification. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-head-of-australias-science-agency-csiro-has-a-loose-grasp-of-what-is-science/701899/5 "2014-10-20T12:59:14Z")
> [@Princhester](#): > > Under the current government? Having no clue about science would be regarded as a qualification not a disqualification. If he’s fired, will he be in line to be our next Ebola czar? ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-head-of-australias-science-agency-csiro-has-a-loose-grasp-of-what-is-science/701899/6 "2014-10-20T13:01:41Z")
> [@Smeghead](#): > > This is the part that I wish we had in America. Do they actually have that “part” in Australia? The article is remarkably kind to the man’s suggestion; it doesn’t venture at all into the total lack of evidence for the efficacy of “water dowsing,” as it’s commonly understood. (I do think there’s a roundabout way in which it can be fairly said that dowsing “works,” but it involves practitioners thereof being unconsciously aware of surface clues which indicate ground water – when I say “dowsing,” though, I am referring to the more common meaning of a force other than human muscles which operates to pull down crossed sticks when water is present underground.) ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-head-of-australias-science-agency-csiro-has-a-loose-grasp-of-what-is-science/701899/7 "2014-10-20T13:25:37Z")
> [@Bricker](#): > > The article is remarkably kind to the man’s suggestion The ABC tries to be very unbiased in most of its news articles. They have various news programmes that venture opinions and may take sides, but their articles try to be objective and just lay out the facts. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-head-of-australias-science-agency-csiro-has-a-loose-grasp-of-what-is-science/701899/8 "2014-10-20T14:34:09Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > The ABC tries to be very unbiased in most of its news articles. They have various news programmes that venture opinions and may take sides, but their articles try to be objective and just lay out the facts. So if he advocated burning witches, would they lay out a neutral pro and con story? 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-head-of-australias-science-agency-csiro-has-a-loose-grasp-of-what-is-science/701899/9 "2014-10-20T15:04:12Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > So if he advocated burning witches, would they lay out a neutral pro and con story? 😛 At the very least, I’d expect data on emissions vs. those from burning coal. ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-head-of-australias-science-agency-csiro-has-a-loose-grasp-of-what-is-science/701899/10 "2014-10-20T15:26:51Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > The ABC tries to be very unbiased in most of its news articles. They have various news programmes that venture opinions and may take sides, but their articles try to be objective and just lay out the facts. Not only that, but the rabidly anti-science crowd in Australia is also, in many cases, quite rabidly anti-ABC, so they’re probably being extra careful with this story. ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-head-of-australias-science-agency-csiro-has-a-loose-grasp-of-what-is-science/701899/11 "2014-10-20T16:19:17Z")
Some editorials over the last couple months for the monthly magazine of the Society of Exploration Geophysicists (oil/gas related) have treated water dowsing as real and supported by tons of anecdotes. And these people have advanced degrees in geology and geophysics. I grieve. I really do. On the other hand, I also know the vast majority of them are nearing retirement age and will soon no longer be blessing us with their outdated inanity (including their latent and often not-so-latent sexism, racism, AGW denial, etc).