Gallery

Explore our collection of purposeful art.

Each piece is a commentary on the intersection of science, ethics, and data.

Every lie we tell incus a debit to the truth -- Valerie Legasov

In the theatrical adaptation of Chernobyl, Valery Legasov delivers an insightful verdict into the consequences of putting institutional reputation above transparency and honesty: "Every lie we tell incurs a debit to the truth." In real life, Legasov was more cautious, stating “We told the truth, but not the whole truth.” The outcome of Soviet secrecy was tragic. The Soviet state's obsession with protecting it's reputation meant that design flaws in the RBMK reactor could never be admitted and hence could never be addressed. Furthermore, critical safety information was withheld from reactor operators. As a result, operators across the Soviet Union were forced to discover the reactor’s vulnerabilities through trial and error, rather than learning from shared experience.

Transparency transforms near misses and close calls into the angels of wisdom in high-risk complex systems with unknown risk profiles. Lack of transparency prevents problems from being recognized and hence improved. Institutional cover-ups sacrifice these critical opportunities for improvement on the pyre of preserving the institutional reputation.

Whistleblowers need two kinds of courage -- one to resist, and one to risk

NOTE: This is a place sketch holder only, the image is in preparation. This piece will be a cross-stitched tapestry generated using 8 colored floss on 16 inch square, 14 count Aida cloth.

For every whistleblower, there are scores of others who cling to the familiarity of obedience. The humorous image on this tapestry hides a painful truth. There is a reason that institutions with thousands of employees that engage in systematic misconduct may yield only one or a few whistle blowers. Extensive research on this topic by social scientists has demonstrated that the pressure to conform to the team is strong enough that only a minute fraction of people are expected to jump off of a tribe-ship and venture the cold waters of the sea alone, with nothing but a life raft made of the most minimal protections provided to whistle blowers.

Data + Metadata + Expertise = Science

Data - Metadata - Expertise = Power

This image is a placeholder. The oil on canvas piece is in preparation. It will depict the fundamental truth that underlies this advocacy organization: any attempt to sideline the PI responsible for experimental data will undermine the availability of sample preparation meta data and of subject matter expertise. Without these two components, any attempt to perform science using pirated data is foolishness at best and fraud at worst.

You are not truth, but its stone -- forged in courage, guided by justice.

This image is a placeholder. The oil on canvas piece is in preparation. It will depict the challenge that often undermines whistle-blowers: arrogance. Goliath does not fear the whistleblower. Goliath fears the truth. The whistleblower is merely the stone, the instrument of the truth, tasked only with one purpose: to fly straight, strong, and true.

The stone must have no allegiance, affection, or affiliation. Any of these will be used by the enemies of truth. The stone must have only purpose, to convey the truth to power, however difficult, long, and painful the road may be.