This Popular Science editorial makes the point that the current level of scientific illiteracy isn't just pernicious, but in large part willful. In other words, we have chosen to relegate scientific knowledge to the status of stuff you might be quizzed about on Jeopardy! This strikes me as a pretty questionable attitude for a society whose continued wealth depends on science.
A key quote: "What's upsetting in these examples is not so much the positions taken by reasonable people on ethical and scientific issues as the fact that debates seem shaped by political operatives who bypass reason and instead leverage ignorance the way dot-com-era Wall Street leveraged phantom assets."
It's short, so read the whole thing.
(via Paul Riddell)
The personal blog of author Kelly Sedinger, chronicling the adventures of one overalls-clad wanderer.
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