Should You Be a Public Scientist?

2021 ◽  
pp. 375-380
Author(s):  
Dennis Meredith
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Resource Depletion ◽  
Public Understanding Of Science ◽  
Public Understanding ◽  
The Public ◽  
It Impacts ◽  
Global Problems ◽  
The Media ◽  
Understanding Of Science

Deciding whether to be a “public scientist”—using the media spotlight to highlight important issues—means deciding whether one is a natural explainer. Also, it must be decided how much time and effort can be committed to such outreach and how it impacts research and other activities. Explaining research does offer satisfactions, in that the researcher is contributing to public understanding of science. One problem is that the coverage of science and technology is small and shrinking. That said, opportunities to reach the public directly through websites and social media are considerable. The role of public scientists and the importance of explaining research in general are becoming ever more critical because failure to bridge the information gulf between researchers and the public will hamper, perhaps tragically, our ability to solve the massive global problems we face—climate change, resource depletion, ecological damage, food security, and disease.

scholarly journals The Croonian Lecture 2004 Risk: food, fact and fantasy

2005 ◽  
Vol 360 (1458) ◽  
pp. 1133-1144 ◽  
Author(s):  
John R Krebs
Keyword(s):  
Risk Assessment ◽  
Government Policy ◽  
Food Poisoning ◽  
Public Understanding Of Science ◽  
Public Understanding ◽  
Spongiform Encephalopathy ◽  
The Public ◽  
Understanding Of Science ◽  
The Individual

We all take risks, but most of the time we do not notice them. We are generally bad at judging the risks we take, and in the end, for some of us, this will prove fatal. Eating, like everything else in life, is not risk free. Is that next mouthful pure pleasure, or will it give you food poisoning? Will it clog your arteries as well as filling your stomach? This lecture weaves together three strands—the public understanding of science, the perception of risk and the role of science in informing government policy—as it explains how food risks are assessed and managed by government and explores the boundaries between the responsibilities of the individual and the regulator. In doing so, it draws upon the science of risk assessment as well as our attitudes to risk in relation to issues such as bovine spongiform encephalopathy, dioxins in salmon and diet and obesity.

What do we know about “don't knows”? Or, contexts of “ignorance”

1996 ◽  
Vol 35 (1) ◽  
pp. 15-37 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jill Turner ◽  
Mike Michael
Keyword(s):  
The Self ◽  
Public Understanding Of Science ◽  
Public Understanding ◽  
Late Modernity ◽  
The Public ◽  
Political Statement ◽  
Understanding Of Science ◽  
Don't Know Responses

This paper addresses the meanings of “ignorance” in the context of “don't know” responses to questionnaires. First, we consider some of the broader functions of questionnaires, suggesting that they reflect and mediate between particular types of institutions, respondents and society. We then unpack some of the meanings of “don't know” responses. Specifically, we argue that the “don't know” response is not merely a sign of deficit but, potentially, a potent political statement. Moreover, in relation to studies of the public understanding of science, it can be employed as a resource by people reflexively to express their identity through their relationship with science. Next we consider ignorance in the more expansive contexts of late modernity, which include concerns about the ambivalent role of science in general, the transgressive quality of biotechnology in particular and the impetus to narrate the self. Consideration of these factors, we argue, may be useful for further interrogation of the meanings of “don't know” responses.

The public understanding of science or the scientific understanding of the public? A review of the social context of the `new genetics'

1995 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 223-232 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sally Macintyre
Keyword(s):  
Social Context ◽  
Cost Benefit ◽  
Social Institutions ◽  
Scientific Understanding ◽  
Public Understanding Of Science ◽  
Public Understanding ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Social ◽  
Understanding Of Science

The `new genetics' have great potential for improving human health. In order for this potential to be realized, attempts to improve the public understanding of science should be complemented by attempts to improve our scientific understanding of the public. It is important to investigate existing popular understandings and practices, in relation to the role of heredity in human disease, chance and calculation of cost benefit ratios in situations of uncertainty, the management of the role of being `at risk' for particular diseases, and the ways in which individual and collective interests are balanced in a variety of health and welfare fields. Above all, we need to study what individuals, families and social institutions actually know, feel and do in relation to the `new genetics', rather than basing policy on assumptions about what they might know, feel or do.

‘Nullius in verba’ and ‘nihil in verbis’: public understanding of the role of language in science

1994 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 55-64 ◽  
Author(s):  
Clive Sutton
Keyword(s):  
Royal Society ◽  
School Science ◽  
Learning Activities ◽  
Public Understanding Of Science ◽  
Traditional View ◽  
Public Understanding ◽  
Scientific Language ◽  
The Public ◽  
Understanding Of Science

This paper is about how the motto of the Royal Society has sometimes been misread, but it is also about how such a misreading could arise at all, and why it persists. I argue that the error is intimately associated with a traditional view of scientific language as a medium for descriptive reporting, a view which has been very influential in schools, and is consequently perpetuated in the public understanding of science. Much new scholarship confirms that this ‘straightforward’ view of what scientists do can no longer be accepted at face value, and that the role of language in science is more intimate and subtle in its interpretive and persuasive qualities. A renewed study of the motto is interesting in itself, but it will also serve to introduce these wider matters. Perhaps it may help some more teachers to escape from those received ideas about language which have restricted the range of learning activities in school science, and discouraged a full attention to the words in which scientists choose to express their ideas.

Developing a Sociological Model to Improve Public Understanding of Science among Citizens (Case Study: Isfahan City)

2015 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 84
Author(s):  
Zahra Maher ◽  
Ali Rabbani Khorasgani
Keyword(s):  
Structural Equation Modeling ◽  
Mass Media ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Science And Technology ◽  
Public Understanding Of Science ◽  
Public Understanding ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Media ◽  
Understanding Of Science

<p>In recent years, along with attributing more importance to the knowledge and information, the presence of the  knowledgeable and well-informed manpower has gained significance and the existing level of knowledge and information among the common people of society has been considered as one of the preconditions and essential elements  of the development in that country. One of the important issues confronting the sociologists who analyze the sciences is how to present sciences in the mass <strong>media</strong>. Besides, today, communication in many different fields is held within the exclusive control of the <strong>mass media</strong> and these media are the only source of information for most of the people.The present study, therefore, aims to explain the quality of "public understanding of science and technology" among the Isfahanian people and to produce the required data for the evaluation of general knowledge of and attitude toward science and technology. In particular, this study deals with the mechanisms applied by <strong>mass media</strong> to enhance the public understanding of science and technology.</p><p>As to research methodology, the present study follows the purpose of obtaining the quantitative statistical results from one sample. a systematic interview in the form of a questionnaire with closed-end items was used for collecting the required data. The research population for this study is the residents (aged between 15 to 79 years) of the 15 regions of Isfahan city of whom the number is 1564553, based on the public census in 2014. As for determining the sample size, Cochrane equation was used and 630 participants were chosen for the interview using a quota sampling. The main hypothesis of the quantitative phase was made based on the structural equation modeling to examine the "mechanism of media contribution to the enhancement of public understanding of science among citizens". This hypothesis was tested using Amos software.</p><p>The results of this study are as follows:    </p><p>In the formulated Structural Equation Modeling, it was observed that the media increase the communicative competence of their addressees through translation and simplification of the scientific notions. Such an increase in the "addressees' competence in communicating with science", in turn, increases "their participation rate in the science and technology programs" and ultimately, enhances the public understanding of science and technology.  Media played also some part in "representing the cultural and intellectual bio-life prevailing in society" and reflecting the dominant intellectual atmosphere of society. On the other hand, results showed that the media which are the mediator agents within the network, could reinforce the features of the sciences supportive culture through the representation of cultural and intellectual atmosphere prevailing in society and this was another factor which had a mediator role in the contribution of media on the enhancement of public understanding of science. <strong></strong></p>

Understanding 'science and the public'

10.5912/jcb73 ◽  
1969 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jane Gregory
Keyword(s):  
Public Sphere ◽  
Public Understanding Of Science ◽  
Public Understanding ◽  
Public Acceptance ◽  
Ongoing Task ◽  
Social Scientists ◽  
The Public ◽  
Understanding Of Science ◽  
The Public Sphere

Public acceptance of the products of biotechnology is an important issue for the industry. This paper looks at relevant academic and policy developments in the field of public understanding of science, which considers the role of science in the public sphere. It traces the interaction of scientists, social scientists and the public in the move from early 'deficit' conceptions of public understanding to more recent positions in which the public are seen as active participants in a variety of contexts for science. These newer conceptualisations could usefully contribute to the biotechnology industry's ongoing task of establishing constructive relations with its various publics.

scholarly journals Evaluating Public Attitudes and Farmers’ Beliefs towards Climate Change Adaptation: Awareness, Perception, and Populism at European Level

Land ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 4 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandra Ricart ◽  
Jorge Olcina ◽  
Antonio Rico
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Meteorological Data ◽  
Public Attitudes ◽  
Public Understanding ◽  
Social Forces ◽  
Adaptation To Climate Change ◽  
Natural Systems ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Media

The scientific understanding of climate change is firmly established; it is occurring, it is primarily due to human activities, and it poses potentially serious risks to human and natural systems. Nevertheless, public understanding of this phenomenon varies widely among farmers and the public, the two-target audience of this paper. This paper introduces two research questions: (1) How climate change is perceived by public-farmers’ nexus; and (2) How perception and populism (as a thin-ideology moved by social forces) interact? In order to address both questions, we review insights from different sources (literature, research projects, and public opinion services) over the last 10 years. The results proved how public experience of climate change is interdependent with the belief that climate change is happening. What is also notable is that the greater the years of farmers’ farming experiences, the greater the percentage rate of their climate change awareness. Differences among farmers and public perceptions were also noted. Uncertainty, coupled with skepticism, the media, and political will, are common findings when asking to farmers and the public for the main weaknesses in adaptation to climate change. However, scientific consensus, meteorological data, barriers to adaptation, and the role of technology are subjects in which both differ.

Don’t Trust the Scientists! Rejecting the Scientific Consensus “Conspiracy”

2018 ◽  
pp. 201-213
Author(s):  
Josh Pasek
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Scientific Literacy ◽  
Scientific Evidence ◽  
Public Understanding Of Science ◽  
Public Understanding ◽  
The Public ◽  
Scientific Consensus ◽  
Understanding Of Science ◽  
Scientific Facts

Scholars assessing the public understanding of science have long regarded informing Americans about scientific facts as key to raising Americans’ scientific literacy. But many Americans appear to be aware of the scientific consensus and nonetheless reject it. The individuals who are aware of the scientific consensus and reject its tenets tend to distrust scientists. They also focus their rejection on particular issues for which they may be otherwise motivated. This rejection may be driven by elites, who argue against the scientific consensus on issues like climate change by asserting either that the science is unsettled or by contending that the scientific consensus is itself a conspiratorial ploy. Individuals’ patterns of beliefs seem to imply that they view scientific evidence they dislike as the result of a conspiracy.

Transformation of the media landscape: Infotainment versus expository narrations for communicating science in online videos

2020 ◽  
Vol 29 (7) ◽  
pp. 688-701 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lloyd S. Davis ◽  
Bienvenido León ◽  
Michael J. Bourk ◽  
Wiebke Finkler
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
University Education ◽  
Public Understanding Of Science ◽  
Public Understanding ◽  
User Generated Content ◽  
On Demand ◽  
Online Videos ◽  
The Media ◽  
Good For ◽  
Understanding Of Science

Society is undergoing a transformation in the way people consume media: increasingly we are using online on-demand videos, with the fastest growing segment of online videos about science being user-generated content that uses an infotainment style of delivery, in contrast to the traditional expository narrations of professionally generated content. In this study, we produced two otherwise identical videos about climate change to test the effects of an infotainment or expository narration. A total of 870 survey participants (419 English; 451 Spanish) were randomly presented with either an infotainment or expository version of the video. The expository narration was liked and believed more, and this held irrespective of language, age, sex or online viewing habits. However, the infotainment version was liked more by viewers without a university education and, further, viewers were better able to recall information from it, suggesting that user-generated content with infotainment-style narrations may actually be good for increasing public understanding of science.

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