Quote:
Originally Posted by marki
What I think is missing in this thread is that the vast majority of minds on this planet are not wired to understand science and that makes us the minority. Each year I meet a new group of year 8's and by the third week I can tell you who will be sitting in the upper school physical science classes (barring some sort of personal disaster) sad but true. No matter how much I try only three in thirty kids on average show any real understanding and this is not just a reflection of my experience but is an aknowledged world wide trend that has been discussed for years. Kids don't like things they cannot master and they carry this into adulthood. It should stand to reason then that fools who set up websites bashing science will soon get a good following convincing many of the follies of science. This is compounded by how badley science is often communicated as well as the arrogance in which some of its most celebrated members treat those who don't understand ( I to have been guilty of this on a number of occasions luckily I am not celebrated  ). If we don't get better with our PR, we will be responsible for our own grief and hand more power to the likes of the idiots who setup such websites.
Mark |
Totally agree with your assessment, Mark. It's what I've said all along...some people can do science, some can't. Like some people are good at fixing cars and others can't even change a spare tire.
The thing, though, which really irks me is when someone ask a question, expecting to get an answer, then after getting that answer turns around and start arguing with you and says you're wrong and don't know what you're talking about (or, at least, implies just as much)...that's just not on. You wonder why we then don't bother with answering questions or get dismissive and defensive. Good PR is always a bonus and there's a few scientists that really need some guidance in this area, but when you have twits who can't count to ten unless they've got a calculator at hand telling you what you should know about something you've spent years studying, then you can't blame scientists for not bothering to explain anything. Or, seeming to appear arrogant and dismissive. They have every right to be. No one likes being treated like a fool, especially by those people who are the ones who are acting the fools.