Why It's So Hard For Americans To Talk About Science

[eridani]

http://www.forbes.com/sites/techonomy/2015/02/19/why-its-so-hard-for-americans-to-talk-about-science/

A new report from the Pew Research Center helps crystallize the challenges in communicating science. The Pew researchers surveyed two groups—scientists and the public— with the same questions to highlight where views are similar and where they diverge. For example, the vast majority of scientists (88 percent) said genetically modified foods are generally safe, while only a third of the public group (37 percent) agreed. There were similar splits on the topics of whether childhood measles vaccines should be required (86 percent of scientists say yes, compared to 68 percent of the general public); whether humans have evolved over time (98 percent of scientists concur, but only 65 percent of public respondents); and whether climate change has been mostly caused by human activity (87 percent of scientists said yes, compared to 50 percent of lay people).

Education plays a role in this divide. Based on results of standardized tests, the U.S. lags behind more than 25 other developed nations in its citizens’ science proficiency. When people who have zero education about genetic science have to make a decision about whether GMO food is good or bad, they may just as easily base that decision on bad information or gut reactions as on solid scientific data.

But there are other contributing factors. Scientists are notoriously inept at translating their work for a non-technical audience, often leaning so heavily on jargon and esoteric concepts that even interested people can’t figure out why it matters. Another issue is that the public has often been burned: bad or incorrect science gets reported alongside good science, so why trust studies you hear about when at least some of them will later be proved wrong? Religion is also a factor for people who have trouble accepting scientific findings that challenge their beliefs.

[Curmudgeoness]

1. I still think that it is more about science education

than anything else. Most of the people who I run into in life do not know even the most fundamental things in science, nor do they want to know.

I agree that scientists do bear some responsibility. They do have problems explaining things to the masses.

I also blame the anti-scientists or the media. They seem to have a bigger soap box and they use it. It reminds me of the conservatives and their media blitzes that we do not counter with the same ferocity. We need to do a better job of getting facts out and doing it in an understandable way, even if it takes hours to figure out a way to explain it.

[AlbertCat]

4. We need to do a better job of getting facts out

How? When the media is owned by conservatives?

I mean... what do you do with a media that still goes to Dick Cheney and Phyllis Schlafly for comments....and not as some ironic joke.... but are serious!

[Curmudgeoness]

7. I see a lot of ways to get the facts out.

The media can be used....think Cosmos. We need more of that and if it is done well, it can be popular, and they will air it. Also, kids really do love science, and there are not enough programs aimed at them to get them interested. But don't focus on the media to help.

Getting local science programs started is also a good way, and it avoids the problems with the media. And what about the internet? I get constant spam emails from the right wingers about every conceivable political and woo subject. Are we above using that same tactic to counter the bullshit? Or take the "what color is this dress" viral photo.....that is a great opportunity to explain the science behind what is happening.

I could also go into the field that I have my degree in to explain why people learn to hate science. My degree is in biology education, but I would rather stick needles in my eyes than to teach it the way it has to be taught, at least by all the criteria that I had to teach it. Instead of making it fun, I had to make the kids memorize every freaking part of a cell, and what it does. This part of biology took over half of the year and it was boring. All kids need in a basic biology class is to know what cells are, and to know that there are many parts of a cell that have different functions.....let the details wait for the kids who are going into the sciences. I am not dismissing the importance of cells in biology, but this is overkill. And it is boring.

A little imagination will go a long way to getting people educated without them even realizing what is happening.

[Thor_MN]

9. Nothing worse than rote memorization.

Here's a list of 20 amino acids. Memorize the names. We will have a test on Wednesday.

By Friday, no one knows more than a handful. What purpose has been served? And why is that moron Tim Hall still a Pvt?

[Curmudgeoness]

10. Exactly. It is horrible.

I absolutely love science, and I think that kids could love it as much as I do.....but not when the only exposure to it is memorizing things that really do have no meaning to them in real life. I want kids to know about amino acids, but to just memorize names and processes would even kill my love.

[Thor_MN]

11. I've always preferred classes that taught rules rather than lists.

I want to know how or why something works.

If I need to, I can look up how to spell something, or the complete list of something.

[SheilaT]

2. There are two essential problems that underly this.

First is that for about a hundred years, religious people have stood in the way of teaching of science in the schools, most notably with the teaching of evolution. And without evolution, you really have no biology.

The other problem is that too often science classes are badly taught. It's frighteningly common for the football coach to teach biology, which means the person teaching doesn't know the subject very well, and probably doesn't care very much about it.

I was lucky in that I had very good science teachers back when I was in high school, but I seem to recall that the topic of evolution was tip-toed around.

[on point]

3. Also corporations have corrupted science and pushed that corruption

Which ruins reputation of other non corrupted science in public mind

[jakeXT]

6. Money still talks

Last spring, for the first time in 20 years, Indiana farmer Jim Benham planted his fields entirely with soybean seeds that hadn’t been genetically modified to withstand herbicides.

It wasn’t because the 63-year-old suddenly had embraced the anti-GMO movement. Instead, he was drawn to a nearly 14% per-bushel premium for non-GMO soybeans offered by a local grain terminal, which sells them to Asian feed processors.

...

Wendel Lutz, who farms about 500 acres near Dewey, Ill., said he has shifted his soybean fields entirely to non-GMO varieties and plans to plant more non-GMO corn this year. He said the lower-tech crops generally yielded about the same amount of grain and oilseeds as the biotech varieties.

“Money talks,” said Mr. Lutz, age 57, who said he secured a $2 per-bushel premium for his soybeans last year. “I’ll be looking to do it from here on out.”

http://www.wsj.com/articles/fields-of-gold-gmo-free-crops-prove-lucrative-for-farmers-1422909700

[AlbertCat]

5. Anti-intellectualism

Knowin' stuff is considered elitist.... not practical.

Knowing about science is an unnecessary luxury ...like art.... it's great for the kids, but now grow up and do something useful.


Quality in America means little to most. I mean, Teabaggers, who are so very concerned and worked up about something they think is way important can't even be bothered to spell their signs correctly.



It wasn't always so bad. In the 60's, we all knew about the Apollo missions and me and my friends did't build model planes or cars, but I had a kit and built a Lunar Lander and Saturn 5 rocket plastic model with airplane glue. In the 70's every dinky town inAmerica had a community theatre and dance company. "Dance in America" came on once a week! Teenage girls were swooning over Baryshnikov!

Dubya used to be the triumph of anti-intellectualism in this country.... but I think now the pinnacle is this Congress.

[on point]

8. Raygun era started it. He defunded liberal arts pushed

A focus on jobs related business and making money. So we descended down Maslow's hierarchy of needs from aspirational beauty and arts down to scrabble survival where people fight each other for scraps

[stone space]

12. It's even harder to talk about math. (nt)