Science, Politics, And The Coronavirus: ‘A Tragedy of Denial’
The coronavirus crisis has exposed and exacerbated some fault lines in civic life, including the tension between science and politics. The goals and methods of scientists with expertise in public health and medicine don’t necessarily match the typical aims of politicians.
We’ve seen the growth of what my colleagues and I call ‘implicatory denial’ — people who reject scientific evidence, not because there’s anything wrong with the science, but because they don’t like its implications.
Naomi Oreskes
WBUR’s Sharon Brody spoke with Naomi Oreskes, a Harvard professor of the history of science, to help explore the historical context of this conflict. Listen to the interview HERE.
Science investigates; religion interprets. Science gives man knowledge, which is power; religion gives man wisdom, which is control. Science deals mainly with facts; religion deals mainly with values. The two are not rivals.”
M L King Jr.