This article addresses, from the standpoint of the Social Studies of Science and Technology, the consequences of the publication, in 2003, of a scientific paper contradicting the consensus on the causal relation between passive exposure to tobacco smoke and certain risks to health. The controversy is employed to demonstrate the processes occurred within the scientific community in order to eliminate the "interpretative flexibility" and to determine the valid results. Furthermore, this paper tries to show that "nonscientific" elements - i.e. the symbolic and moral system related to health and disease in contemporary societies - are fundamental for putting an end to controversies, as well as for the construction of epidemiological models and their use in public policies and individual decisions.
Sociology of Science; Controversy; Passive smoking; Morality