Different people may have different ideas about what “the science is settled” means. In many political discussions, the phrase actually is used to argue for or

Different people may have different ideas about what “the science is settled” means. In many political discussions, the phrase actually is used to argue for or against the quality of the data. Often, when discussing climate change, or perhaps even evolution, the phase is used to say the data is clear, the earth is warming, or all living organisms share a common ancestor. Likewise, I think the science is settled that vaccines save lives. And the science is certainly settled that heavy and light objects fall at the same rate in a vacuum. Being skeptical that “the science is settled” because of some poorly understood edge case makes it very difficult communicate where there is uncertainty, and where there isn’t (because the data is clear and the science well understood).