Since we have some people on SAGG who apparently don't understand about science and the scientific method I thought I would post a link to this discussion of why some people resist science.
The Edge:WHY DO SOME PEOPLE RESIST SCIENCE?
By Paul Bloom and Deena Skolnick WeisbergI'm not going to do much discussion of the subject, I will just post a few judicious quotes from the Implications topic in the paper.
In sum, the developmental data suggest that resistance to science will arise in children when scientific claims clash with early emerging, intuitive expectations. This resistance will persist through adulthood if the scientific claims are contested within a society, and will be especially strong if there is a non-scientific alternative that is rooted in common sense and championed by people who are taken as reliable and trustworthy.
But this rejection of science would be mistaken in the end. The community of scientists has a legitimate claim to trustworthiness that other social institutions, such as religions and political movements, lack. The structure of scientific inquiry involves procedures, such as experiments and open debate, that are strikingly successful at revealing truths about the world.
Given the role of trust in social learning, it is particularly worrying that national surveys reflect a general decline in the extent to which people trust scientists. To end on a practical note, then, one way to combat resistance to science is to persuade children and adults that the institute of science is, for the most part, worthy of trust.
Bill Gill
