There’s A Gap Between What The Public Thinks And What Scientists Know

by eddie Wed Aug 17, 2016 10:33 pm

There’s A Gap Between What The Public Thinks And What Scientists Know

Scientists lament that public opinion on scientific issues is often shaped by fear and ignorance about science. A new pair of surveys, published Thursday in the journal Science, shows that there is, indeed, a large gap between public opinion and that of scientists on a wide range of scientific topics.

The surveys found broad support for government to spend money on science, but that doesn’t mean the public supports the conclusions that scientists draw. The biggest gap between scientists and the public came on issues that may elicit fear: the safety of genetically modified (or GMO) foods (37 percent of the public said GMOs were safe, compared to 88 percent of scientists) and the use of pesticides in agriculture (28 percent of the public said foods grown with pesticides were safe to eat, versus 68 percent of scientists).

There was also disagreement over the cause of climate change (50 percent of the public said it is mostly due to human activity, compared to 87 percent of scientists). Here’s a full list, via Pew Research Center, of the scientific issues the survey asked about:

There’s A Gap Between What The Public Thinks And What Scientists Know Image205

There’s A Gap Between What The Public Thinks And What Scientists Know Image205

Juxtaposing the public’s view against scientists’ could imply that one is right and the other wrong. But science can’t provide hard and fast answers on all of these issues. Some of these questions — are GMOs safe? — can be answered scientifically. But others (e.g., is animal research defensible? Should we frack more?) combine scientific information with value judgments. Science can provide data on risks and benefits, but ultimately these decisions require human judgments that often involve politics and ethical considerations too. Experts, even scientists, may disagree on the answers, even when they agree on the underlying science....

Much more in link: http://fivethirtyeight.com/datalab/theres-a-gap-between-what-the-public-thinks-and-what-scientists-know/

by Tommy Monk Wed Aug 17, 2016 10:58 pm

Politicians are much more likely to agree funding for projects that are likely to find results the politicians want people to believe...

by JulesV Fri Aug 19, 2016 1:00 am

If there is a gap it reflects badly on the scientists as it represents a failure to communicate properly with the public.

Communication is EVERYTHING!

by veya_victaous Fri Aug 19, 2016 4:43 am

Jules wrote:If there is a gap it reflects badly on the scientists as it represents a failure to communicate properly with the public.

Communication is EVERYTHING!

no most people are too dumb to understand that is the way it has always been.
if you don't possess the minimum education required to follow may as well be communicating to brick wall.
posters on here prove that regularly Rolling Eyes

Scientist are not priests, IT IS NOT Part of their job to care if you believe or not
You believing understanding knowing is of no relevance.
they are going to keep making discoveries regardless

You either take charge of your own education and gain the knowledge required to follow the conversation OR you were probably never smart enough to be a part of the conversation to begin with.

by JulesV Fri Aug 19, 2016 3:47 pm

veya_victaous wrote: no most people are too dumb to understand that is the way it has always been.
if you don't possess the minimum education required to follow may as well be communicating to brick wall.
posters on here prove that regularly

Many times I've gasped with shock at the lack of basic education in many of the general population too, especially in science and maths so the sentiments you express are not unique to you. I share those exact sentiments too.

ETA (obviously I don't share the personal opinions you made about posters here, I find the members here quite astute !!)

-------------------------------------------------------

veya_victaous wrote:
Scientist are not priests, IT IS NOT Part of their job to care if you believe or not
You believing understanding knowing is of no relevance.
they are going to keep making discoveries regardless

You either take charge of your own education and gain the knowledge required to follow the conversation OR you were probably never smart enough to be a part of the conversation to begin with.

Well the second sentence in the OP says scientists "LAMENT" the gap in knowledge (which ties in with what I wrote too) but you're saying they could not care less, which is the total opposite. You cannot both be right!

Scientists can do a lot of things but they cannot conjure up money out of thin air, they still ultimately depend on the "uneducated" taxpayer for their funding, especially for the more academic specialities. They are not a self-sufficient breed living in a vacuum, they are fully accountable to the people who pay them. Yes they will keep making discoveries - but only if they have the funding and it's in their interest that they show their relevance and worth ............. via good communication which incidentally is essential in all works of life, not just in science.

by veya_victaous Sat Aug 20, 2016 2:10 am

well they lament but that isn't going to stop them with progress

they do have to tie their work to public good or profit for funding
which does limit work in fields like space engineering

I think what they really lament is lack of funding
but if people don't understand they can at least have faith
but to have 'educated' faith does require at least understanding the basic principals

by JulesV Sat Aug 20, 2016 9:51 pm

Yep. Funding is critical. CERN scientists have cause for conCERN. Those particle accelerators don't come cheap! lol!

by Tommy Monk Sat Aug 20, 2016 11:18 pm

Jules wrote:
veya_victaous wrote: no most people are too dumb to understand that is the way it has always been.
if you don't possess the minimum education required to follow may as well be communicating to brick wall.
posters on here prove that regularly
Many times I've gasped with shock at the lack of basic education in many of the general population too, especially in science and maths so the sentiments you express are not unique to you. I share those exact sentiments too.

ETA (obviously I don't share the personal opinions you made about posters here, I find the members here quite astute !!)

-------------------------------------------------------

veya_victaous wrote:
Scientist are not priests, IT IS NOT Part of their job to care if you believe or not
You believing understanding knowing is of no relevance.
they are going to keep making discoveries regardless

You either take charge of your own education and gain the knowledge required to follow the conversation OR you were probably never smart enough to be a part of the conversation to begin with.

Well the second sentence in the OP says scientists "LAMENT" the gap in knowledge (which ties in with what I wrote too) but you're saying they could not care less, which is the total opposite. You cannot both be right!

Scientists can do a lot of things but they cannot conjure up money out of thin air, they still ultimately depend on the "uneducated" taxpayer for their funding, especially for the more academic specialities. They are not a self-sufficient breed living in a vacuum, they are fully accountable to the people who pay them. Yes they will keep making discoveries - but only if they have the funding and it's in their interest that they show their relevance and worth ............. via good communication which incidentally is essential in all works of life, not just in science.

First bit... veya is exhibiting (what I call) "quantum thinking" again... this is where a leftie brain can hold two contradictory arguments at once and believe both to be true...

Second bit... govt and politicians decide and award vast amounts of the funding... all of which is taxpayers money... but little of it is in our interests...

by Ben Reilly Sat Aug 20, 2016 11:41 pm

Tommy Monk wrote:
Jules wrote:
veya_victaous wrote: no most people are too dumb to understand that is the way it has always been.
if you don't possess the minimum education required to follow may as well be communicating to brick wall.
posters on here prove that regularly
Many times I've gasped with shock at the lack of basic education in many of the general population too, especially in science and maths so the sentiments you express are not unique to you. I share those exact sentiments too.

ETA (obviously I don't share the personal opinions you made about posters here, I find the members here quite astute !!)

-------------------------------------------------------

veya_victaous wrote:
Scientist are not priests, IT IS NOT Part of their job to care if you believe or not
You believing understanding knowing is of no relevance.
they are going to keep making discoveries regardless

You either take charge of your own education and gain the knowledge required to follow the conversation OR you were probably never smart enough to be a part of the conversation to begin with.

Well the second sentence in the OP says scientists "LAMENT" the gap in knowledge (which ties in with what I wrote too) but you're saying they could not care less, which is the total opposite. You cannot both be right!

Scientists can do a lot of things but they cannot conjure up money out of thin air, they still ultimately depend on the "uneducated" taxpayer for their funding, especially for the more academic specialities. They are not a self-sufficient breed living in a vacuum, they are fully accountable to the people who pay them. Yes they will keep making discoveries - but only if they have the funding and it's in their interest that they show their relevance and worth ............. via good communication which incidentally is essential in all works of life, not just in science.

First bit... veya is exhibiting (what I call) "quantum thinking" again... this is where a leftie brain can hold two contradictory arguments at once and believe both to be true...

Second bit... govt and politicians decide and award vast amounts of the funding... all of which is taxpayers money... but little of it is in our interests...

It's always in our interest to know more about the universe, and we won't know more about it unless we explore it. Sometimes that exploration has to be open-ended, with no goal besides learning. History is riddled with examples of people who just looked for knowledge and ended up discovering or inventing something we now consider indispensable.

by Tommy Monk Sun Aug 21, 2016 4:10 am

Ben Reilly wrote:
Tommy Monk wrote:

First bit... veya is exhibiting (what I call) "quantum thinking" again... this is where a leftie brain can hold two contradictory arguments at once and believe both to be true...

Second bit... govt and politicians decide and award vast amounts of the funding... all of which is taxpayers money... but little of it is in our interests...

It's always in our interest to know more about (Insert any topic/subject/animal/mineral/vegetable/any other noun, here...), and we won't know more about it unless we explore it. Sometimes that exploration has to be open-ended, with no goal besides learning. History is riddled with examples of people who just looked for knowledge and ended up discovering or inventing something we now consider indispensable.

by 'Wolfie Sun Aug 21, 2016 5:20 am

YOU truly are a twat, Tommy...

Did you even take notice in science classes at school ?
You really are one delusional and clueless fool..

You really will have to try harder, trying to convince anyone that you know even the first thing about science or technology ! Rolling Eyes

by Tommy Monk Sun Aug 21, 2016 1:38 pm

Somebody farted?

by Andy Mon Aug 22, 2016 1:49 pm

Tom lives in the centre of the flat plate that is Earth. He is scared of falling off the edge, and thinks underneath is where lefties and coloureds live.

by veya_victaous Mon Aug 22, 2016 10:52 pm

So tommy proves my point most people are not smart enough to follow the conversation
and then there are ones as pitifully uneducated and lacking in cognative ability as himself
that just make noises of no real meaning.

by Tommy Monk Mon Aug 22, 2016 11:01 pm

I'm more than smart enough to follow a conversation... and smart enough not to be led by one when it is based on bullshit...

by veya_victaous Tue Aug 23, 2016 1:09 am

Tommy Monk wrote:I'm more than smart enough to follow a conversation... and smart enough not to be led by one when it is based on bullshit...

No you are not. ok maybe a conversation about football but not Science... not politic or economics either really. Rolling Eyes

You obviously do not understand most basic sciences as you demonstrate with the rubbish you post.

by 'Wolfie Tue Aug 23, 2016 4:47 am

REDUNDANT thought for today ==

Tommy is an idiot;
Tommy knows 'less than zero' regarding any matters scientific or technical;
Tommy's opinions aren't worth crap;
irregardless of what his cheer squad likes to tell him..

Go back to bed, Tommy Monk;
You're all too clearly well out of your depth on here ! Sleep

by Ben Reilly Tue Aug 23, 2016 5:09 am

Yeah, good luck with that. After learning he thinks the force of gravity is different in different parts of the universe, that he believes the Inuits noticed a dramatic tilt of the Earth's axis somehow not uncovered by the thousands of astronomers that dot the globe, and that he can't understand how a trait not related to reproduction could be beneficial to a species, I pretty much gave up on him.

by 'Wolfie Tue Aug 23, 2016 8:48 am

There’s A Gap Between What The Public Thinks And What Scientists Know 1858517897

OH, the pain...
One of Tommy's 2 or 3 fan's came me a red !!!

Oh the shame, the shame of it all !
I don't know how I will be able to live with myself.. There’s A Gap Between What The Public Thinks And What Scientists Know 1363015401

There’s A Gap Between What The Public Thinks And What Scientists Know 1363015401

by Guest Tue Aug 23, 2016 9:13 am

WhoseYourWolfie wrote:

OH, the pain...
One of Tommy's 2 or 3 fan's came me a red !!!

Oh the shame, the shame of it all !
I don't know how I will be able to live with myself..

I'm learning all the methods of the 'paratrooper's' ...so I packed up - dropped in and gave you a greenie! It appears that the topics are allowed a huge percentage of IDIOT BASHING of the #1 Tommykins but only when Veya & Ben are involved in the topic Suspect

Then & only then does the FOUL ONE ignoreTommykins standard defenceless mental dribble! I'm still learning, the mood of the sensitive moderators is a tricky-wicket, Twisted Evil

Notation made!

by Andy Tue Aug 23, 2016 9:30 am

Tommy doesn't believe in gravity.
He thinks the earth sucks.
At least he hasn't boarded the lifeboat yet. Probably as well,he will get seasick on it.

by Eilzel Tue Aug 23, 2016 10:23 am

The media doesn't help. They catch wind of a single scientific experiment done at some university which raises some question or hints at a controversial conclusion and they report it as 'SCIENTISTS SAY...'

When actually they don't, some scientists were experimenting or still running tests, and the media blew it out of proportion.

But the damage to science has been done already. As always, the media fuck things up.

by Tommy Monk Tue Aug 23, 2016 10:24 am

veya_victaous wrote:
Tommy Monk wrote:I'm more than smart enough to follow a conversation... and smart enough not to be led by one when it is based on bullshit...

No you are not. ok maybe a conversation about football but not Science... not politic or economics either really.

You obviously do not understand most basic sciences as you demonstrate with the rubbish you post.

Believing bullshit doesn't make you smart... it shows you are not smart enough to understand the topic in hand or see the bullshit...

by Tommy Monk Tue Aug 23, 2016 10:39 am

Ben Reilly wrote:Yeah, good luck with that. After learning he thinks the force of gravity is different in different parts of the universe, that he believes the Inuits noticed a dramatic tilt of the Earth's axis somehow not uncovered by the thousands of astronomers that dot the globe, and that he can't understand how a trait not related to reproduction could be beneficial to a species, I pretty much gave up on him.

Gravity even varies on different places on earth you idiot!!!

http://www.spacedaily.com/m/reports/New_map_reveals_Earths_gravity_not_the_same_around_the_globe_999.html

And nasa have admitted a shift in earth's axis... was saying it was down to a tsunami/ earthquake and then described as a 'wobble' and then down to 'climate change'...

lol!

by Andy Tue Aug 23, 2016 11:46 am

The tilt in the earth's axis was due to the size of the shit that fell out of his gob and his arse.

by Tommy Monk Tue Aug 23, 2016 5:46 pm

Eilzel wrote:The media doesn't help. They catch wind of a single scientific experiment done at some university which raises some question or hints at a controversial conclusion and they report it as 'SCIENTISTS SAY...'

When actually they don't, some scientists were experimenting or still running tests, and the media blew it out of proportion.

But the damage to science has been done already. As always, the media fuck things up.

I totally agree!

And the idiots believe the media spun waffle, then starr accusing others of being stupid for not believing it...

As we see on this forum so often...

by eddie Tue Aug 23, 2016 7:23 pm

Does gravity vary across the surface of the Earth? (Intermediate)

"I have a debate with my friend regarding variations of gravity on Earth. We read in an article that gravity on the poles of the Earth and the equator are not the same, so I continued with this line of thinking to speculate that gravity also varies depending on the altitude of the place you measure it; for example, the gravity in the Dead Sea (which is the lowest place on Earth) will be stronger than at the top of Mount Everest (the highest place on Earth)."

" My friend does not agree with me. He claims that due to the movement of Earth, on its own axis and orbiting around the sun, every place on Earth, that is to say any point within the atmosphere, has the same gravity. I do not understand how the motion of a planet has anything to do with gravity within the planet, but I'm not an expert, so I hope you can help us resolve the dispute."

You are right - gravity does change across the surface of the Earth and throughout its atmosphere, due to several effects.

First, there is the variation of gravity with latitude that you alluded to: you weigh about 0.5% more at the poles than on the equator. There are two effects that contribute to this, and they are discussed in more detail in a previous question. (It should be noted, however, that only one of these effects is due to an actual difference in the gravitational force between the equator and poles - the other effect is due to the fact that the Earth is spinning, which affects the weight you would see when you stepped on a scale but does not actually represent a change in the value of the gravitational force.)

Second, gravity does indeed change with altitude. The gravitational force above the Earth's surface is proportional to 1/R2, where R is your distance from the center of the Earth. The radius of the Earth at the equator is 6,378 kilometers, so let's say you were on a mountain at the equator that was 5 kilometers high (around 16,400 feet). You would then be 6,383 kilometers from the Earth's center, and the gravitational force would have decreased by a factor of (6,378 / 6,383)2 = 0.9984. So the difference is less than 0.2%.

Finally, there are very small differences (on the order of 0.01% or less) in gravity due to differences in the local geology. For example, changes in the density of rock underneath you or the presence of mountains nearby can have a slight effect on the gravitational force.

http://curious.astro.cornell.edu/about-us/42-our-solar-system/the-earth/gravity/93-does-gravity-vary-across-the-surface-of-the-earth-intermediate

by eddie Tue Aug 23, 2016 7:24 pm

I know zilch about gravity but a quick Google reveals that some scientists / astronomers think that gravity changes.?

by Tommy Monk Tue Aug 23, 2016 11:37 pm

Wasting your time eddie... the idiots will pretend they haven't seen this... then just carry on spouting their same nonsense on other threads...

They don't let the truth get in the way of their bullshit...

by veya_victaous Tue Aug 23, 2016 11:50 pm

it is a poorly constructed question. Gravity is not a object it is an aspect like temperature.
low temperatures even negative temperatures do not equal ‘no temperature’. similar with gravity both are just scales.

"Earth's gravity" is constant but the amount of force it exerts on a body is variable depending on location. just like the heat from a fire will change depending on how far you are from it etc.

keep in mind we are affect by the sun's gravity and the moon's gravity and Jupiter’s gravity too all while still being effect by the earth's gravity.

the answer while not incorrect is not really right either Suspect

weight changes, which is why physics doesn't really use it, Physics uses mass and the mass would be the same (weight is just and object's mass in a specific time and location)

by veya_victaous Tue Aug 23, 2016 11:51 pm

Tommy Monk wrote:

Wasting your time eddie... the idiots will pretend they haven't seen this... then just carry on spouting their same nonsense on other threads...

They don't let the truth get in the way of their bullshit...

So again proving you need to go back to school Wink

it is one thing to not know
it is another to use your ignorance and a reason for a position.

by Tommy Monk Wed Aug 24, 2016 12:00 am

Waffle...

by veya_victaous Wed Aug 24, 2016 12:18 am

Tommy Monk wrote:Waffle...

go back to school Rolling Eyes

by Andy Wed Aug 24, 2016 5:35 am

Jeez,Tom,I ate a radish with more debating skills than you.
Perhaps you need reminding of the argument sketch from Monty Python

.https://youtu.be/kQFKtI6gn9Y

by Tommy Monk Wed Aug 24, 2016 8:45 am

Hand shandy... I shat out a turd with more relevance to debate than you...

by 'Wolfie Wed Aug 24, 2016 12:06 pm

TOMMY Twat Face...

His definition of "truth" == whatever he wants it to be;
* His defintion of "facts" == whatever suits his statement;
* His definition of "reputable" experts == whoever supports his current agenda/purpose..

Tommy has always the same simple answer to counter his critics and betters -- he always falls back on calling them idiots, fuckwits, gullible -- but rarely manages to back those accusations with any actual substantiation. cyclops

by eddie Wed Aug 24, 2016 12:29 pm

Why are you so jealous of Tommy that you keep being so negative toward him, wolf?

by nicko Wed Aug 24, 2016 12:36 pm

I notice that some posters are very free with their insulting words, is it because they feel "inferior" in some way?

Was there not some rule about "attack the post not the poster"?

by Tommy Monk Wed Aug 24, 2016 1:48 pm

veya_victaous wrote:
Tommy Monk wrote:

Wasting your time eddie... the idiots will pretend they haven't seen this... then just carry on spouting their same nonsense on other threads...

They don't let the truth get in the way of their bullshit...

So again proving you need to go back to school
it is one thing to not know
it is another to use your ignorance and a reason for a position.

I said gravity is different at different places on earth... and this has been confirmed... so what am I wrong about that I need to learn about?

by Victorismyhero Wed Aug 24, 2016 10:05 pm

Err NO tommy...GRAVITY is the same wherever you are in the universe

however the FORCE it applies depends on your relative position to the source of the gravity (or rather the sources of gravity, since even the very air molecules above you exert a miniscule grvitational pull on you.

Gravity is a PRIME characteristic of matter....and (untill someone shows otherwise with good reason) is considered invarient.

by Tommy Monk Wed Aug 24, 2016 10:22 pm

I'm not wrong... you are just elaborating on the subject... and saying stuff I already agree with!

by eddie Wed Aug 24, 2016 10:35 pm

Lord Foul wrote:Err NO tommy...GRAVITY is the same wherever you are in the universe

however the FORCE it applies depends on your relative position to the source of the gravity (or rather the sources of gravity, since even the very air molecules above you exert a miniscule grvitational pull on you.

Gravity is a PRIME characteristic of matter....and (untill someone shows otherwise with good reason) is considered invarient.

I did Google this out of interest and I found a few articles that said gravity wasn't the same everywhere dependent upon this, that and the other?

But that's where I bail out because I don't know enough about the subject to give my opnion.

by Ben Reilly Wed Aug 24, 2016 10:41 pm

Tommy Monk wrote:I'm not wrong... you are just elaborating on the subject... and saying stuff I already agree with!

You said gravity was "different in different places in the universe." It's not. It's a universal constant force.

You bought into the supposed Inuit claim that "their sky had changed!" even though I proved to you that can't be possible, using Stonehenge to prove it (i.e., the equinox sunrise has been visible through the same stones there for at least a thousand years, which would not happen if the angle of the Earth's axis had been tilted -- not to mention that it would require a LOT more force than an earthquake to knock a planet on its axis).

You also claim that homosexuality isn't natural despite the fact that it does indeed exist in nature, and you by and large cry "bollocks" anytime you read something you don't want to believe.

by veya_victaous Wed Aug 24, 2016 11:47 pm

eddie wrote:
Lord Foul wrote:Err NO tommy...GRAVITY is the same wherever you are in the universe

however the FORCE it applies depends on your relative position to the source of the gravity (or rather the sources of gravity, since even the very air molecules above you exert a miniscule grvitational pull on you.

Gravity is a PRIME characteristic of matter....and (untill someone shows otherwise with good reason) is considered invarient.

I did Google this out of interest and I found a few articles that said gravity wasn't the same everywhere dependent upon this, that and the other?

But that's where I bail out because I don't know enough about the subject to give my opnion.

this is what i was explaining Gravitiy is constant it is just how much you are feeling it dependign on how far you are from it.

by 'Wolfie Thu Aug 25, 2016 7:18 am

nicko wrote:
I notice that some posters are very free with their insulting words, is it because they feel "inferior" in some way?

Was there not some rule about "attack the post not the poster"?

YOU really shouldn't be so harsh on eddie, or Tommy either, there nicko...

They're probably just both having a bit of a bad week.. Smile

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