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Trust and Confidence at the Interfaces of the Life Sciences and Society Does the Public Trust Science? A Workshop Summary (2015) / Chapter Skim
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4 Government, Politics, Science, and Trust
Pages 21-26

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From page 21...
... Politicians bring science and scientists into the policy arena in an effort to say "the science is on my side." However, this strategy, which tries to leverage the trust that the public's historical trust in scientists, to move political agendas forward has a serious downside: the American public, which generally has an unfavorable view of politicians, can extend its negative feelings toward science when it perceives that science is being used for political purposes, Goldston warned. That warning echoed the assertion of James Grunig of the University Maryland, that when there is societal debate, public trust often becomes a function more of political ideology than of scientific fact -- a consideration that brings trust out of the scientific domain and places it in a political one.
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From page 22...
... Identifying Common Goals for Trustworthy Forest Partnerships Bartuska described her experiences in interacting with the public about a project that involved harvesting trees for research purposes. Although the project aimed to maintain forest health by understanding forest dynamics in response to insects, diseases, and wildfires, Bartuska encountered segments of the public that believed that harvesting of trees for research was something to be avoided except perhaps for wildfire prevention.
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From page 23...
... Leveraging Scientific Authority During the Anthrax Attack Holt drew on his experiences as one of the few Congressman-scientists during the 2001 anthrax scare He recalled the anxiety in the US Capitol after letters tainted with anthrax arrived in congressional offices in 2001. The anxiety was accompanied by a desire on the part of some of Holt's colleagues to obtain reliable information about anthrax, and these colleagues approached Holt saying, "You're a scientist, you must know about anthrax." Holt said he was puzzled by that assumption because his scientific training was in physics, a field that has little to do with life sciences or medicine.
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From page 24...
... " GETTING AHEAD OF THE ISSUES Building public trust takes time, and time is of the essence for such issues as the 2014 Ebola outbreak and the 2001 anthrax attack. Is there a way for the science community to "come out in front of the political or cultural narratives that sometimes arise around issues like Ebola and climate change?
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From page 25...
... However, she said, the partisan switch can be turned off if a speaker does not come across as partisan. A person who receives a diagnosis with cancer, does not consult Rachel Maddow or Rush Limbaugh; the person finds someone who has expertise in medicine and asks, "Doctor, if I was your wife or daughter, what would you ask me to do?
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Key Terms

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  • germline editing
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  • annenberg public

  • policy intersections
  • bring science
  • policy institute
  • scientific process
  • restrict research

  • scientific professional
  • public interface
  • approached holt
  • brings trust
  • oak forest

  • affects public
  • scientific editorials
  • political narrative
  • policy center
  • political agendas

  • scientific literacy
  • political purposes
  • trust takes
  • research purposes
  • public engagement


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