A leading Oxford University scientist has resigned from the UK's National Academy of Sciences, citing concerns over Elon Musk's continued fellowship.
Professor Dorothy Bishop is a professor emeritus of developmental neuropsychology and a leading expert on communication disorders in children. she said she returned it She attended a Fellowship of the Royal Society last week.
Mr Bishop told the Guardian that his actions were an instinctive reaction, adding that he met with the president and the chief executive after announcing his decision to resign, and stressed the need to follow due process against Mr Musk. added.
“I've started thinking recently that the Royal Society seems to be set up in such a way that it's going to be very difficult to get someone to resign or actually kick someone out, and given everything we know about masks, And it felt dirty, to be honest,” she said.
“Having him in the Royal Society seemed to contradict all the values of the Royal Society, and I wanted nothing to do with it.”
Bishop also pointed to the Royal Society's Code of Conduct, which emphasizes the need for colleagues to treat each other civilly.
“I'm not going to be polite and nice to Elon Musk, so I can't abide by the code of conduct,” she said.
Bishop said in a blog post that he did not expect his resignation to have an impact, but felt better about it.
“The joy of honoring the FRS is shared by the fact that it appears to be modeled after a Bond villain, a man of immense wealth and power who seeks to use it to blackmail. “The joy is diminished by the scientists who disagree with him,” she wrote.
Although Bishop does not explicitly cite it, last year Musk threatened to sue A group of researchers at the nonprofit Center to Combat Digital Hate, whose research revealed that Musk has since purchased the site now known as X. Increase in hate speech on the platform.
Musk is Selected as a 2018 Fellow He was recognized for his accomplishments and impact on the space and electric vehicle industries.
However, in August the Guardian reported that a number of Fellows had written to the Royal Society expressing concern over the tech billionaire's comments on the British unrest, raising the possibility that he would be disqualified as a Fellow. revealed.
In the same month, Downing Street criticized X owner's comments posted under a video of violent riots in Liverpool that said “civil war is inevitable”.
But Mr Bishop pointed out that Royal Society lawyers had since determined that Mr Musk had not breached the society's code of conduct.
“Many of the signatories of the letter, including myself, were dissatisfied with this response. We set out to gather further evidence of conduct that violated the Code of Conduct,” she wrote.
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The result was a list that included Musk's X posts about Anthony Fauci, the former chief medical adviser to the US president. Mr. Musk's post about promoting X vaccine conspiracy theory;Musk is clearly downplaying the climate crisis.
The Royal Society Code of Conduct states: “When speaking or making announcements in their personal capacity, Fellows and Foreign Members must still strive to uphold the reputation of the Association and those who work for it and be mindful of what is said or expressed therein. Individual abilities can still influence society. ”
Mr Bishop said part of the problem was that many of the Royal Society's senior fellows were not active on social media.
“The way you look at Elon Musk is whether you just read the Guardian or any newspaper that covers him, or if you’re like me and you’re hooked on social media and he does more outrageous things every day. “I think it’s going to be very different,” she said.
A Royal Society spokesperson said: “The Royal Society deeply regrets Dorothy Bishop's resignation from the Fellowship. She is an outstanding scientist and has made a significant contribution to the Society over her many years as a Fellow.
“If concerns arise about the conduct of a Fellow, the Society has a clear set of processes set out in our documents. code of conductwhich will be published on our website together with the relevant disciplinary regulations.
“Any issues raised regarding individual Fellows will be treated in the strictest confidence.”
