Crossing Borders, Crossing Boundaries is a most important book for both natural scientists and political scientists interested in how science affects public policy. This book is particularly important for scientists who are even remotely interested in becoming involved in the shaping and analysis of public policy. They will gain insight into a totally new and strange world of politics, in which perception is equally or more important than factual reality, almost totally unlike the world of science, where hard facts rule. Alm does a good job of selecting important quotations from congressional hearings that point out to scientists that they, like Dorothy and Toto, are no longer in Kansas but in a totally different and unknown world. He shows how policymakers who attempt to make scientists appear to be advocates of positions the policymakers favor can manipulate “scientific research.” The book also does a good job of informing scientists of what to expect if asked to testify before Congress and, accordingly, how to prepare testimony. The author demonstrates how science must be made policy relevant.

Students of the policy process will acquire considerable insight into the complex world of scientific issues as well as many of the difficulties inherent in the translation of scientific results into public policy. They will learn that scientists seldom are willing to provide conclusive “cause-and-effect” evidence that will support a particular proposal. Alm suggests that scientists who become substantially involved in promoting a specific policy do so at the risk of endangering their professional reputation. Such concerns encourage many scientists to be conservative in their statements, because they realize that new scientific evidence may be just around the corner that could substantially alter the basis of their research findings. Such conservatism often frustrates policy entrepreneurs trying to sell a specific policy solution. “Policy makers are selective, predisposed, and want certainty and scientists cannot give them that” (p. 92).

Alm employs John Kingdon's policy agenda setting framework to describe the role of scientists in acid rain politics. For example, Alm goes to considerable lengths to describe the central role that scientists play in establishing a consensus about the need for policy action on environmental problems, in general, and acid rain in particular. Similar to Kingdon, Alm shows how scientific experts have helped shape the alternative policy courses in the acid rain debate.

Alm's research spans more than ten years. During this time, he scrutinized public hearings on both sides of the U.S.-Canadian border in order to obtain detailed information about which scientists were called upon to participate in acid rain deliberations. He also conducted numerous interviews with American and Canadian natural and social scientists. His attention to detail provides considerable insight into the complex interaction between science and politics in public policy formulation.

Alm depicts what happens when the highly complex world of science collides with political realities. His interviews with scientists highlight necessary ingredients for successful collaboration with policymakers. Neither group has an accurate perception of the world in which the other must operate. Scientists do not appear to realize that compromises must be made among competing interests, and policymakers do not seem to realize or want to acknowledge that science-based policies simply have to operate with a high degree of uncertainty.

This book also has strengths with regard to insights into comparative politics. Alm perceptively identifies both political and scientific aspects, shaped by science, that continually loom over the delicate webs of cross-national policy linkages. He points out that natural and social scientists in the United States and Canada have different perceptions of their roles in the policy process. He also suggests that such differences may influence the policy position of the two governments, which potentially threatens the very foundations of transnational agreements. Alm made extensive efforts to address both Canadian and U.S. positions (scientifically and politically), and those interested in obtaining a better understanding of the intricacies of cross-national policy formulation and implementation should read this book. Despite a somewhat narrow focus on acid rain policy, this volume is useful as a case-study text for courses in environmental politics, international environmental policy, and science, technology, and public policy.