Edward E. David Jr.

Credentials

• Sc.D., Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1950). [1]
• M.S., Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1947). [1]
• B.S. degree in electrical engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology (1945). [1]

Background

Edward David is an American electrical engineer. He served as a past science advisor to president Richard M. Nixon. He resigned from his position with Nixon in 1973, because of “disappointment that his advice had not been heeded.” [2]

David was past president of Exxon Research and Engineering Company and Vice-President of Science and Technology of Exxon Corporation. [3], [4]

He was also the past executive director of Bell Telephone Laboratories, and President of his own investment firm, EED, Inc. He is now retired. [5]

Stance on Climate Change

David was one of sixteen “scientists” who signed an inflammatory Wall Street Journal opinion piece titled “No Need to Panic About Global Warming” that stated: [6]

“The lack of warming for more than a decade—indeed, the smaller-than-predicted warming over the 22 years since the U.N.’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) began issuing projections—suggests that computer models have greatly exaggerated how much warming additional CO2 can cause. Faced with this embarrassment, those promoting alarm have shifted their drumbeat from warming to weather extremes, to enable anything unusual that happens in our chaotic climate to be ascribed to CO2.”

Key Quotes

“The time has come for a closer and more intimate relationship between industry and academia.” [7]

Key Deeds

January 27, 2012

David is one of 16 scientists who appended their signatures to a Wall Street Journal article titled “No Need to Panic About Global Warming.” [6]

The article argues that elected officials should avoid implementing climate change policy because it would “divert resources from real needs and are based on alarming but untenable claims of ‘incontrovertible’ evidence.”

Other “scientists” whose signatures appear include Claude Allègre, J. Scott Armstrong, Jan Breslow, Roger Cohen, William Happer, William Kininmonth, Richard Lindzen, James McGrath, Rodney Nichols, Burt Rutan, Harrison H. Schmitt, Nir Shaviv, Michael Kelly, Henk Tennekes, and Antonino Zichichi..

Interestingly, 255 members of the United States National Academy of Sciences wrote their own essay, this on the realities of climate change, which had been rejected by the Wall Street Journal in favor of the sixteen-scientist letter. [8]

Media Matters also reported on the WSJ article, and also found that most of the scientists who signed the Op-Ed “Do Not Actually Publish Peer-Reviewed Climate Research.” They also contacted Yale Economist William Nordhaus who had been cited by the article, and he replied that it was a “Complete Mischaracterization Of My Work.” [9]

Affiliations

• Exxon Research and Engineering Company — President of Research and Engineering, 1977 – 1986. [3]
• The Washington Advisory Group — Past “Principal” [10]. The group’s website no longer exists, and it is unclear whether it is still in operation.
• John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation — Trustee (1982 – 1998). Past trustees included skeptic Frederick Seitz (1973 – 1983). [11], [12]
• Scientists’ Institute for Public Information — Past Member, Board of Trustees (As of May, 1993). [13]
• EED Inc. — Past President. [14]
• Protein Polymer Technologies — Director, 1989 – 2003. [15]
• Spacehab Inc. — Past director (1993). [16]
• Charles A. Dana Research Institute for Scientists Emeriti (RISE) at Drew University — Member, Advisory Board. [11]
• Inter VU Inc. — Founding Director. [17]
• Century Foundation — Past Member, Board of Trustees. [18]
• Intermagnetics General Corp. — Member, Board of Directors (1987 – 2000). [19]

Publications

According to a search of Google Scholar, there do not appear to be any publications in peer-reviewed journals by an “Edward E. David Jr.”

The search does list him as the “Panel Chair” for a 1979 policy report at the New York Academy of Sciences. The report discusses alternative energy sources. At the time he was President of Exxon Research and Engineering Company, and Vice-President of Science and Technology of the Exxon Corporation.

The report’s introduction states that “Any hope of utilizing fusion, photovoltaics, the breeder, biomass, solar, or solar thermal energy on a large-scale economically feasible basis in the next two decades is based on a thin thread of optimism, as is the hope for massive reductions in energy demand through end-use conservation.” [4]

Resources

1. “Edward E. David,” Nixon Presidential Library & Museum. Accessed January, 2012.
2. Lyons, Richard D. (January 3, 1973). Science Adviser to Nixon Leaving for Industry Job. New York Times
3. “Science and Technology in the National Interest: The Presidential Appointment Process (2001),” Committee on Science, Engineering, and Public Policy. The National Academies Press. See page 10.
4. “Overview of Policy Issues: Panel Report,” NYAS, Vol. 334, Pages 108-115 (December, 1979).
5. “Corporate Membership: Edward Emil David, Jr. ’47,” The MIT Corporation. Accessed January, 2012.
6. “No Need to Panic About Global Warming,” The Wall Street Journal, January 27, 2012.
7. Edward E. David Jr. “Science Futures: The Industrial Connection,” Science, 203(4383), March 2, 1979: 837. Quoted in “Big Oil U.” (PDF), Center for Science in the Public Interest.
8. Peter Gleick. “Remarkable Editorial Bias on Climate Science at the Wall Street Journal,” Forbes, January 27, 2012.
9. “The Journal Hires Dentists To Do Heart Surgery,” Media Transparency, January 30, 2012.
10. “The Washington Advisory Group Page,” November 23, 2004, Smokerhistory.com. Accessed January, 2012.
11. “The Edward E. David Jr. Page,” Smokerhistory.com, September 27, 2003. Accessed January, 2012.
12. “Board of Trustees 1997,” John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation. Archived January 24, 1998.
13. Allen B. to Gomez.  Scientists Inst. for Public Information, 1993. Retreived January, 2012, from tobaccodocuments.org.
14. “Dr. Edward E. David, Jr.,” Center for Science and Technology Policy Research. Accessed January, 2012.
15. “Protein Polymer Technologies 2002 DEF 14A,” Securities and Exchange Commission, 2002.
16. “Spacehab 2002 DEF 14A,” Securities and Exchange Commission, 2002.
17. “InterVU Inc. 2000 DEF 14A,” Securities and Exchange Commission, 2001.
18. “The Centuary Foundation Annual Report 2000: Trustees and Officers” (PDF), The Century Foundation. Archived January 13, 2003 at tcf.org.
19. “Intermagnetics 2000 DEF 14A,”  Securities and Exchange Commission, 2001.
20. “Edward E. David Jr.”, Wikipedia Entry.

Other Resources