A Letter to Popular Science

Dear Popular Science,
   I recently read your article on the Iceman of the Alps and found it engaging and well-written. Discovering so much about our history from the remains of some one's stomach is fascinating. Or at least I find it facsinating. And being able to trace the patterns of human travel around the globe, simply by a virus, makes my mind race with all the other possibilities this discovery could mean for the future of uncovering history. Previously, I had not heard about the Iceman, so the small background on him is appreciated.

 It seemed that this article lacked varying viewpoints, though. Do other opinions exist among the scientists working on this project such as, Is this inhumane? Did this virus come from some other location? Or, is there dispute surrounding the origin of the Iceman? Science and history both have large margins of error, where it is often uncommon to find something that we can hold up and say it is undeniably truth and fact. The way this article is written, it appears that everything stated is fact, when there may very well be doubt surrounding him. This goes for the heritage of both the Iceman and the virus H. pylori, too. They are both assumed to be evolved to their present state. Evolution is just a theory, an opinion, held by some, and it seems hard to believe that there are not other scientists and historians, even working on this project, who voice differing opinions about how this virus and Iceman came to be.

 I understand that including other opinions and ideas leads to a greater workload. Not to mention there are probably so many of them that it would be nearly impossible to ever entertain all those ideas. Also, I understand that everyone, in their own way, has bias, no matter how hard they try to be impartial. Still, presenting both sides of the story is vital in the news. News is there to inform us and challenge us to think. And in the end it's alright if it doesn't give us all the answers, we now must think for ourselves. That's a blessing, not a curse.

Thank you.

Sincerely,
              Elizabeth Menard