Page 89 - Just Deserts

PIVOT

“Doesn’t matter,” shrugged the professor. “I’ve no time for
reading popular science magazines—but,” he hastened to add, “I’m
sure your readers will be interested in the work I’ve been doing.”
“Yes. As I mentioned on the phone, we are doing a series on the
leading theorists in biology, to give a picture of those scientists on the
cutting edge, so to speak. Your name came up several times during
my conversations with other people in the field, so that led me to the
Institute for Chromosomal Studies and your ground-breaking
research.”
Kingswater glanced sharply at Fuller. “And what did these people
tell you about my research?”
Fuller waved his pen in the air, sketching a spiral. “Not very much,
to tell you the truth. And I am not well-versed in the jargon of your
field, Dr. Kingswater; my own area of competence—beside technical
writing—is astrophysics. But I am aware that you have gotten some
sizable grants from the multi-national agribusiness and petrochemical
corporations, and that you are about to publish your results. These
things do get talked about, you know.”
The professor snorted. “Humph! Unless there’s a leak in my own
laboratory, none of the so-called experts in my field has a clue about
what I’ve done. And I certainly wouldn’t be discussing it with you—
but your timing is fortuitous. I have indeed submitted an article to
the ‘Journal of Experimental Genetics’ just this week. It can do me
no harm to tell the world about it now; my claims are, as it were,
registered, and the credit cannot be taken from me. Now, what can I
tell you?”
“Well, first of all,” said the journalist, flipping pages in his pad, “a
bit of background on yourself. It always helps to remove the ivory-
tower, remote man-of-science image that the layman carries around
as a stereotype. Let me just try to interview you as quickly and
painlessly as possible.”
Kingswater looked at his watch. “Okay. But don’t drag this out. I
have work to do.”
“Right. Now, where were you born, professor?”
“Lubeck, Maine. You want the date?”
“No, no, not necessary. Where did you get your degrees?”

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