We’re In an Epidemic of Mistrust in Science
Polling shows that the number of people who believe science has "made life more difficult" increased by 50 percent from 2009 to 2015.
Send us a link
Should Climate Scientists Fly?
Wrong question; instead of scapegoating individual researchers, we should blame the centers of power, including corporations and political leaders.
Loss of Trust? Loss of Trustworthiness? Truth and Expertise Today
Loss of Trust? Loss of Trustworthiness? Truth and Expertise Today
A discussion of how trust in expertise is placed or refused, highlighting the affective dimension of epistemic trust, and discussing the danger of a 'context collapse' in digital communication.
"It’s a Toxic Place." : How the Online World of White Nationalists Distorts Population Genetics
"It’s a Toxic Place." : How the Online World of White Nationalists Distorts Population Genetics
A graduate student is analyzing how Stormfront and other racist websites misunderstand, and misuse, new scientific papers.
A Remedy for Broken Science, or an Attempt to Undercut It?
Reproducibility issues pose serious challenges for scientific communities. But what happens when those issues get picked up by political activists? A report from the National Association of Scholars takes on the reproducibility crisis in science. Not everyone views the group’s motives as pure.
Artificial Intelligence Reveals How U.S. Stereotypes About Women and Minorities Have Changed in the past 100 Years
Empowering Early Career Scientists to Engage in Science Advocacy, Policy and Communication
How Genetics Is Changing Our Understanding of Race
If scientists avoid discussing the topic candidly, racist theories will fill the vacuum.
The Science People See on Social Media
Science-related Facebook pages draw millions of followers but 'news you can use' posts or ads outnumber ones about scientific discoveries.
Why Are Scientists Anxious?
Public regard for scientists is as strong as ever, but you wouldn't know it. Public trust in scientists has risen over the past three decades in the United Kingdom, even in the post-Brexit era.
Artificial Intelligence Could Identify Gang Crimes—and Ignite an Ethical Firestorm
Artificial Intelligence Could Identify Gang Crimes—and Ignite an Ethical Firestorm
A new algorithm is trying to automate the process of identifying gang crimes. But some scientists warn that far from reducing gang violence, the program could do the opposite by eroding trust in communities, or it could brand innocent people as gang members.
Open Philanthropy Project
The Open Philanthropy Project’s mission is to give as effectively as we can and share our findings openly so that anyone can build on our work. Through research and grantmaking, we hope to learn how to make philanthropy go especially far in terms of improving lives.
Teach Young Scientists the Importance of Societal Impact for Research
Societal impact should be rated more highly in scientific publishing and research evaluation. To this end, we suggest that ways to achieve it should be introduced as an important component of curricula at higher-education institutions.
Universities Should Encourage Scientists to Speak Out about Public Issues
Universities Should Encourage Scientists to Speak Out about Public Issues
Opioids. Fracking. Zika. GMOs. Scientists should be speaking up about all sorts of science-based issues that affect our lives. Especially now, when Trump administration officials tell us that climate change is debatable.
No Masks or Capes, but These Heroes Are Saving the World
They may be too humble to call themselves heroes, but there's no better way to describe them according to Bill Gates.
The Public Disengagement With Science
The results of the latest public opinion survey undertaken by Research!America showed that 67% of respondents had a positive image of science and indeed thought that public policy should be based on the best science available.
Can Science Save Humanity? The Debate Between HG Wells and George Orwell Is Still Relevant Today
Can Science Save Humanity? The Debate Between HG Wells and George Orwell Is Still Relevant Today
There is no shortage of problems facing humankind. What role science has in tackling them has long been debated.
In China, a Three-Digit Score Could Dictate Your Place in Society
In China, a Three-Digit Score Could Dictate Your Place in Society
China is taking the idea of a credit score to the extreme, using big data to track and rank what you do - your purchases, your pastimes, your mistakes.
Katherine Hayhoe: 'The True Threat Is the Delusion That Our Opinion of Science Somehow Alters Its Reality'
Katherine Hayhoe: 'The True Threat Is the Delusion That Our Opinion of Science Somehow Alters Its Reality'
Climatologist Katherine Hayhoe says that scientists have no option but to fight against the politicisation of science.
Is Media Driving Americans Apart?
Social media gets all the attention for polarization, but TV is doing more than its share.
Our Fight Against Climate Change Is Failing. One Technology Can Change That.
Carbon capture has a bad reputation. But after a year of reporting, I’ve come to a conclusion: It's both vital and viable.
Peter Hotez vs. Measles and the Anti-Vaccination Movement
Texas is at risk of a deadly measles outbreak, and yet few have been willing to cast blame on the state’s burgeoning—and notoriously combative—anti-vaccine movement.
Climate updates: progress since the 5th Assessment Report of the IPCC
Climate updates describes how our understanding of the science of climate change, and its impacts, have progressed since the 5th Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
×