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Is it TikTok or global crisis? How the world lost trust in scientists like me

anenefan 3y ago
There are sadly people who love and work hard to do what they do ... and those who don't who are more there for the paycheck and / or only know as much to repeat what they learned by rote and don't really fathom / appreciate the field they are in. As such, it's a problem everywhere, but IMO when it comes to scientists one bad apple tends to be very alarming for the fact these are the very people who are supposed to live by ... or at least understand the scientific method. Where there are repeated snafus in a field, it merely reinforces mistrust. The other side of the problem are those laypeople who put certain scientists on a pedestal, and may trust absolutely, putting any particular scientist above accepting bribes or being immune from letting their own beliefs get the better of their efforts - they'll continue to repeat any misinformation that appealed to them, long after the data is discredited or connection to a lobby group is exposed. Social media where users can block other's correcting their nonce comments is IMO the main problem, since that's now referred to as bullying, and asking social media to perform fact checking is a little bit BS since they themselves might not be that knowledgeable. Mainstream media also has a hand in fanning flames all in the name of click bait articles, and are loathed to set things right if it'd mean the discussion would instantly come to an end.
bell-cot 3y ago
> ...the country’s ministry of health asked me, as a scientist, to appear on a 50-second TV spot, explaining why vulnerable people should get another [vaccine booster shot] > [Author] is a theoretical physicist ... Maybe we should start by asking why a theoretical physicist is being rolled out as a front man "scientist", when the actual subject is immunology & public health? > Many countries are experiencing rising inequality, job insecurity, unemployment ... > In a nutshell, scientists are thought to be part of the elite and, therefore, not trustworthy. THIS, 100X. In a world where the uber-rich keep getting uber-richer, life keeps getting worse for the have-nots, and experts of all types seem both (1) eager to enjoy the perks of being "priesthoods" to the uber-rich and (2) oblivious to the plight of the have-nots ...well, d'oh. Why would any reasonable have-not trust the have-it-alls and their cronies?
- Simulacra 3y ago
  Ask Greta Thunberg....
tamimio 3y ago
> How the world lost trust in science Mandating COVID vaccines or your life is on halt, fired from your job, can’t buy even groceries in some countries, other scientists/doctors have their licenses revoked to say otherwise, among others, all of that in the very early stages of a research that nobody knew the outcome of, that’s how you crush trust in any system, regardless of whether what you did is actually good or not, similar to when you have an uprising against a dictatorship. >How to rebuild it The first step to rebuild any “trust” is admitting that what you did was wrong, say we fucked up under the pressure of the good (trying to save lives) or bad (big pharma) and we did this and that, and these are the next steps. If you never do this, never expect any “trust” to be restored. It is really that simple. And making the science approach clearly defined and not following the mainstream political narrative or whoever is funding that research. A bad apple will spoil the rest of the good ones. A lot of people were ok to have flu vaccine before the pandemic, they stopped taking it after (anecdotal, but I used to see long waiting lines at the college to take the flu shot. After, barely anyone). A lot of people believed in doing good for the environment, they are not so much eager after the pandemic. So definitely a lot of efforts should be taken to rebuild the credibility of science, not trust. You trust and have faith in God and religions, science is not.
Simulacra 3y ago
The trust with scientists was broken as soon as they started spouting government propaganda that ran completely contradictory to science. At best, they carried the governments, water, and used inaccurate science to suppress speech and punish anyone who disagrees. Scientists have done tremendous damage to public confidence.
Roman__001_ 3y ago
[flagged]
anwar_s8 3y ago
[flagged]
naz_afghan38 3y ago
[flagged]

There are sadly people who love and work hard to do what they do ... and those who don't who are more there for the paycheck and / or only know as much to repeat what they learned by rote and don't really fathom / appreciate the field they are in. As such, it's a problem everywhere, but IMO when it comes to scientists one bad apple tends to be very alarming for the fact these are the very people who are supposed to live by ... or at least understand the scientific method. Where there are repeated snafus in a field, it merely reinforces mistrust. The other side of the problem are those laypeople who put certain scientists on a pedestal, and may trust absolutely, putting any particular scientist above accepting bribes or being immune from letting their own beliefs get the better of their efforts - they'll continue to repeat any misinformation that appealed to them, long after the data is discredited or connection to a lobby group is exposed. Social media where users can block other's correcting their nonce comments is IMO the main problem, since that's now referred to as bullying, and asking social media to perform fact checking is a little bit BS since they themselves might not be that knowledgeable. Mainstream media also has a hand in fanning flames all in the name of click bait articles, and are loathed to set things right if it'd mean the discussion would instantly come to an end.

bell-cot 3y ago

> ...the country’s ministry of health asked me, as a scientist, to appear on a 50-second TV spot, explaining why vulnerable people should get another [vaccine booster shot] > [Author] is a theoretical physicist ... Maybe we should start by asking why a theoretical physicist is being rolled out as a front man "scientist", when the actual subject is immunology & public health? > Many countries are experiencing rising inequality, job insecurity, unemployment ... > In a nutshell, scientists are thought to be part of the elite and, therefore, not trustworthy. THIS, 100X. In a world where the uber-rich keep getting uber-richer, life keeps getting worse for the have-nots, and experts of all types seem both (1) eager to enjoy the perks of being "priesthoods" to the uber-rich and (2) oblivious to the plight of the have-nots ...well, d'oh. Why would any reasonable have-not trust the have-it-alls and their cronies?

Simulacra 3y ago
Ask Greta Thunberg....

tamimio 3y ago

> How the world lost trust in science Mandating COVID vaccines or your life is on halt, fired from your job, can’t buy even groceries in some countries, other scientists/doctors have their licenses revoked to say otherwise, among others, all of that in the very early stages of a research that nobody knew the outcome of, that’s how you crush trust in any system, regardless of whether what you did is actually good or not, similar to when you have an uprising against a dictatorship. >How to rebuild it The first step to rebuild any “trust” is admitting that what you did was wrong, say we fucked up under the pressure of the good (trying to save lives) or bad (big pharma) and we did this and that, and these are the next steps. If you never do this, never expect any “trust” to be restored. It is really that simple. And making the science approach clearly defined and not following the mainstream political narrative or whoever is funding that research. A bad apple will spoil the rest of the good ones. A lot of people were ok to have flu vaccine before the pandemic, they stopped taking it after (anecdotal, but I used to see long waiting lines at the college to take the flu shot. After, barely anyone). A lot of people believed in doing good for the environment, they are not so much eager after the pandemic. So definitely a lot of efforts should be taken to rebuild the credibility of science, not trust. You trust and have faith in God and religions, science is not.

Simulacra 3y ago

The trust with scientists was broken as soon as they started spouting government propaganda that ran completely contradictory to science. At best, they carried the governments, water, and used inaccurate science to suppress speech and punish anyone who disagrees. Scientists have done tremendous damage to public confidence.

Roman__001_ 3y ago

[flagged]

anwar_s8 3y ago

[flagged]

naz_afghan38 3y ago

[flagged]