In a week when the popular-but-contrary-to-the-evidence theory that video games contribute to gun violence is making the rounds again, I’m finding it hard to be optimistic about public engagement with science. Yet according to the latest Pew survey results, public trust in scientists to act in our best interests is up in the United States. That trust has been trending upward since at least 2016 (the earliest year shown in that particular report). I have to admit, I found that result surprising. I personally don’t feel more trusted over that time period; if anything I’d say the opposite. Of course, my feelings matter very little; presumably more relevant are statistics on vaccine refusal or climate change skepticism. Are dissenting voices galvanizing the trust of the rest of us, or do the questions allow for a distinction between scientists generally and specific claims and inferences?
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Science in Review: It Ain’t Rocket Science
Who doesn’t love space? We found out this week that a possibly habitable planet is just next door orbiting the star closest to us, and the Internet erupted with travel plans. People who might otherwise be complaining about an extra 10 minutes added to their commute were suddenly contemplating a journey that would take longer than all of recorded human history. Last year, more than four thousand folks paid actual money just for the chance to be considered for a mission to Mars that almost certainly won’t happen, probably wouldn’t succeed if it were attempted, and can’t possibly take more than a handful of people. The allure of space is strong, even though every single one of us is already an astronaut on a spacecraft traveling 250,000 miles per hour en route to the Andromeda Galaxy. I guess some of us are just really desperate to get away from (a Trump-led America | the European Union | a Clinton-led America | geopolitically topical punchline).
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Not What I’d Planned (Scholar’s Compass)
My flesh and my heart may fail but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. – Psalm 73:26
Reflection
Chronic illness is not what I’d planned. Chronic illness is not the path I would’ve chosen. Yet chronic illness is the laboratory where I’m learning to be a better wife, mother, daughter, professor, and friend. [Read more…] about Not What I’d Planned (Scholar’s Compass)
Journalism Notes: Faith in the “Spotlight”
Image courtesy of emw at Wikimedia Commons, under a Creative Commons license
With Sunday night’s Oscar win for best picture, “Spotlight,†the movie about the Boston Globe’s investigation into systemic child abuse by Catholic priests, provided renewed validation of the press’s role to hold the powerful accountable in our society. [Read more…] about Journalism Notes: Faith in the “Spotlight”