Difference between revisions of "War on science"

From Issuepedia
Jump to navigation Jump to search
(→‎attacks on science: inconsistency even on the jacket blurb)
(conclusions)
 
(3 intermediate revisions by 2 users not shown)
Line 5: Line 5:
 
* [[evolution by natural selection]] (re-branded as "[[Darwinism]]", i.e. just another ideology): overwhelmingly agreed upon by scientists (especially those in relevant fields such as biology, geology, and psychology) but now disbelieved by a majority of Americans
 
* [[evolution by natural selection]] (re-branded as "[[Darwinism]]", i.e. just another ideology): overwhelmingly agreed upon by scientists (especially those in relevant fields such as biology, geology, and psychology) but now disbelieved by a majority of Americans
 
* [[global warming]] (see [[global warming denial]]): agreed upon by the vast majority of scientists, but "controversial" in the US
 
* [[global warming]] (see [[global warming denial]]): agreed upon by the vast majority of scientists, but "controversial" in the US
 +
* [[anti-vaccination activism]]
 
===Usage===
 
===Usage===
 
The [[war on science]] refers specifically to initiatives which appear to be organized and widespread; individual or unorganized attacks on science are merely [[anti-science]].
 
The [[war on science]] refers specifically to initiatives which appear to be organized and widespread; individual or unorganized attacks on science are merely [[anti-science]].
 +
==Conclusions==
 +
[[Science]] has been attacked from both ends of the producer-consumer relationship.
 +
 +
On one end we have the no-nothing [[denier]]s who convince others that all medicine is invasive and harmful, or at least not to be trusted.
 +
 +
On the other, we have pharmaceutical companies who exploit the unthinking [[faith in science]] that many people, especially the well-educated, still have (and which many understandably dig into in the face of the no-nothing assault) by conflating "science" with "pharmaceuticals", people in lab coats or with science degrees, etc.
 +
 +
===solutions===
 +
# Better citizen access to raw data, and tools for understanding that data; the [[open science]] movement should help with this
 +
# An [[actuarial yardstick]] -- analogous to [http://xkcd.com/radiation XKCD's radiation dosage chart], but applied to odds of various events ranging from near-certainty to near-impossibility
 
==Related Pages==
 
==Related Pages==
 
* [[religion vs. science]]
 
* [[religion vs. science]]
 
** It is often argued or claimed, mainly in [[religious]] circles, that [[science destroys morality]]
 
** It is often argued or claimed, mainly in [[religious]] circles, that [[science destroys morality]]
 
==Links==
 
==Links==
 +
===Books===
 +
* ''[[The Republican War on Science]]'' by [[Chris Mooney]] ([http://www.waronscience.com/ official web site])
 
===Filed Links===
 
===Filed Links===
 
{{links.tagged}}
 
{{links.tagged}}

Latest revision as of 14:08, 26 March 2012

Overview

Persistent attempts to attack and undermine the credibility of science have been coming from the Bush II administration and the American political right in general.

These attacks have been most notable in the areas of:

Usage

The war on science refers specifically to initiatives which appear to be organized and widespread; individual or unorganized attacks on science are merely anti-science.

Conclusions

Science has been attacked from both ends of the producer-consumer relationship.

On one end we have the no-nothing deniers who convince others that all medicine is invasive and harmful, or at least not to be trusted.

On the other, we have pharmaceutical companies who exploit the unthinking faith in science that many people, especially the well-educated, still have (and which many understandably dig into in the face of the no-nothing assault) by conflating "science" with "pharmaceuticals", people in lab coats or with science degrees, etc.

solutions

  1. Better citizen access to raw data, and tools for understanding that data; the open science movement should help with this
  2. An actuarial yardstick -- analogous to XKCD's radiation dosage chart, but applied to odds of various events ranging from near-certainty to near-impossibility

Related Pages

Links

Books

Filed Links

  1. redirect template:links/smw

Humor

Books

reports on the war

attacks on science