"Even if you know all the science, you still have to make value judgments," Morgan says. "One of the areas where there's room for legitimate disagreements is the relative importance that should be given to certain risks."
But these value judgments bring back the question of the role of the scientist in public policy.
"When you have this unbelievable infusion of financing, it is hard to do it without ethical problems," says the CSPI's Collins. "It raises questions about the whole purpose of the educational mission."
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--Staff writer Catherine E. Shoichet contributed to the reporting of this story.
--Staff writer Jonathan H. Esensten can be reached at esensten@fas.harvard.edu.