"What I also see is a failure by some media reports and most blogs or
comments on newspaper websites to understand how science works and how
the scientific community operates."
And this is why I find it so frustrating that so many people criticise
the How Science Works GCSE curriculum, just on principle. (I'm looking
at you, Alom Shaha;-))
I mean we can argue about the details of implementation, but broadly,
this is exactly what HSW is designed to get over. And I for one think
it's a good thing!
Sophia Collins
Producer
I'm a Scientist - Winner of the Sciencewise-ERC People's Choice Award for excellence in Public Engagement with Science.
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Stephan Matthiesen wrote:
> Hi,
>
> Am 15.02.2010 15:34, schrieb Chris Stokes:
>> Out of interest, how easily do science communicators nowadays go
>> about engaging the public in dialogue about climate change without
>> acknowledging the contested nature of the science?
>
> Well, the science is not really contested. However there is a change
> in public perception that is very worrying. I've spent too much time
> recently reading skeptics' blogs and newspaper comments recently and
> there isn't much of a scientific argument (although they do show
> graphs and stuff), but clearly mostly driven by a political agenda
> (often libertarian or pseudo-intellectual, i.e. criticising
> authorities for the sake of appearing critical).
>
> What I also see is a failure by some media reports and most blogs or
> comments on newspaper websites to understand how science works and how
> the scientific community operates.
And this is why I find it so frustrating that so many people criticise
the How Science Works GCSE curriculum, just on principle. I mean we can
argue about the details, but broadly, this is exactly what HSW is
designed to get over.
> For example, that just because universities are government funded that
> doesn't mean they are like a government agency where politicians
> determine the agenda. Or a failure to see that universities and
> research institutes are inherently open with millions of students
> passing through and lots of researchers moving between institutions,
> which would make it really difficult to orchestrate a big cover-up.
>
> And everybody is trying to do something that hasn't been done before,
> so often there are no established protocols, and mistakes and errors
> can happen, which are mostly discovered (and sometimes not) but don't
> invalidate the whole picture. That scientists are neither the perfect
> geniusses nor the perfect scrupulous villains that appear in movies
> and TV productions (have you ever seen a scientist in a drama who was
> just a normal guy?). Etc. etc.
>
> Most of the debate seems to be about these aspects, there are very few
> solid argument that would change the scientific conclusion one bit.
>
> You've probably seen the recent BBC poll about a significan swing of
> opinion in short time. Personally I think this is an indication that
> the dynamics and social aspects of science are not understood by
> non-scientists, otherwise a swing like this would hardly be possible.
>
> I don't want to be critical, but to be honest I think there is a
> certain failure of the science communication community to make it
> clear to non-scientist how science works in social terms; who the
> scientists are, how they think and what drives them.
>
> I have seen many science communication "shows", and many do appear as
> shows - slick presentations of "fun"tastic phenomena etc. But they
> seem just like many other entertainment shows, from stage magicians to
> TV special effects. Everybody knows these are fakes - so how do we
> know the science shows are real? Sometimes shows are presented by a
> "mad scientist" because everybody thinks that's fun. Yes it is, but it
> also reinforces the stereotypes about scientists' personalities.
>
> There can be a place for these activities, no doubt, to get people
> interested. But I think as science communicators we also have to put
> more emphasis on showing non-scientists how science works in practice,
> with all its mess, uncertainties and trying to make sense of results
> that are far from obvious. I don't think this really comes across in
> many engagement activities.
>
> Back to climate: I'm teaching an open studies class on climate change
> and human history right now, looking at how climate in the past has
> influenced human history. Before the course I expected to have all
> climate skeptics in the course (that's why I read all the blogs, see
> above). But fortunately that's not the case. However, in the
> discussions students told me that they find it very difficult to make
> sense of the contradictory newspaper reports. They come from different
> backgrounds, some with more technical knowledge (retired teacher,
> engineers), others not so much (artists for example). Mostly these
> classes attract a more educated audience though.
>
> In the class we have great discussions, and as the evidence from the
> past is of varying quality (both with respect to climate and to the
> response of human societies) there is plenty of opportunities to
> discuss uncertainties and also give an impression how different
> researchers interpret certain evidence differently. It really works
> well, but of course can only be done in small groups (I have 14
> students, the course runs 10 weeks with 2 hours per week).
>
> Now I've written more than I planned and have to get back to work to
> prepare tomorrow's class!
>
> But I hope this personal comment helps
> Cheers
> Stephan
>
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