Silent Spring, the 50th anniversary of Rachel Carson’s book

David Pimentel

doi:10.1186/1472-6785-12-20

Abstract

EditorialDavid Pimentel is a professor of ecology and agricultural sciences at Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853–0901. His Ph.D. is from Cornell University and had postdoctoral research at the University of Chicago, MIT, and fellowship at Oxford University (England). He was awarded a distinguished honorary degree from the University of Massachusetts. His research spans the fields of energy, population ecology, biological pest control, pesticides, sustainable agriculture, land and water conservation, livestock, and environmental policy. Pimentel has published more than 700 scientific papers and 37 books and has served on many national and government committees including the National Academy of Sciences; President’s Science Advisory Council; U.S Department of Agriculture; U.S. Department of Energy; U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare; Office of Technology Assessment of the U.S. Congress; and the U.S. State Department. He is currently Editorial Advisor for BMC Ecology. In this article, he reflects on 50 years since the publication of Rachel Carson’s influential book, Silent Spring.

Highlights

David Pimentel is a professor of ecology and agricultural sciences at Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853–0901
The book had a tremendous impact on environmental protection, food production, and human health, and raised the vital issue of the toxicity of pesticides on human health, bird populations, fisheries, and numerous other animal species
In her work she was concerned for human health, fishes, birds, insects, plants, and all organisms in the environment. She is credited with the start of applied ecology throughout the world. As she worked for the U.S Bureau of Fisheries, she was fully aware of the decline in young salmon populations that was occurring in Northwest Miramichi River

Summary

Introduction

David Pimentel is a professor of ecology and agricultural sciences at Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853–0901. Rachel Carson’s book “Silent Spring” [1] was published 50 years ago. The book had a tremendous impact on environmental protection, food production, and human health, and raised the vital issue of the toxicity of pesticides on human health, bird populations, fisheries (including salmon), and numerous other animal species. I was only a graduate student when Rachel Carson’s publications hit the ecological and pest control literature.

Results

Conclusion