I'm talking about the fact that scientists form a community (or several) and that any community has its myths: stories they tell themselves about the community and that hold the community together.

In many ways the way the history of science is presented to young people as a recruiting tool reminds me of the way that young children only hear about the biblical stories that sound like harmless fairy tales or adventure stories. The grisly details of sexual depravity, cruelty and the vengeful and capricious God of the Old Testament, or the deeply mysoginous writings of Paul or the cultish protection racket that was the early Church are not mentioned and are only discovered later in life, when the person is vested in the community.

We have met the enemy, and he is us — Pogo