Grabiner J V, Miller P D
Science. 1974 Sep 6;185(4154):832-7. doi: 10.1126/science.185.4154.832.
Readers may choose their own villain in the story we have told. Like us, some will find the greatest culpability in the scientific community itself, for the large-scale failure to pay attention to the teaching of science in the high schools. Others will blame the textbook authors and publishers for pursuing sales rather than quality. Some will attach blame to the politicians who exploited antievolution sentiment to get into, or remain, in office. Others will blame the conservative Protestant clergy. Some may blame the whole educational system for failing to teach Americans how to evaluate evidence. And many will blame the evolutionists for bringing the matter up in the first place. But whatever the lesson one wishes to draw from the history of biology textbooks since the Scopes trial, we think the story itself is worth knowing. That the textbooks could have downgraded their treatment of evolution with almost nobody noticing is the greatest tragedy of all.
在我们讲述的这个故事中，读者可以自行挑选他们心目中的反派角色。和我们一样，有些人会认为科学界自身罪责最大，因为它在很大程度上未能重视高中阶段的科学教育。另一些人会指责教科书作者和出版商一味追求销量而非质量。有些人会将责任归咎于那些利用反进化论情绪来获取或保住官职的政客。还有些人会指责保守的新教神职人员。有些人可能会责怪整个教育系统没有教会美国人如何评估证据。而且很多人会责怪进化论者当初把这件事提出来。但是，无论人们想从斯科普斯审判以来的生物学教科书历史中吸取什么教训，我们都认为这个故事本身值得了解。教科书竟然能在几乎无人注意的情况下降低对进化论的论述，这才是最大的悲剧。
