Yep. One of the hallmarks of the oppressive soviet system, in cinema, back in the height of the cold war days was the presence of a "political officer" in science facilities or aboard military crafts/missions. We cannot change the factual outcome of experiments with PR statements. We cannot cause an epidemic to go away by rejecting its existence.
"I'm an inconsequential man, Valery. That's all I've ever been. I hoped that one day I would matter but I didn't. I just stood next to people who did."
"We've arranged a civilization in which most crucial elements profoundly depend on science and technology. We have also arranged things so that almost no one understands science and technology. This is a prescription for disaster. We might get away with it for a while, but sooner or later this combustible mixture of ignorance and power is going to blow up in our faces."
its not like us scientists have any fucking say over anything that happens with our funding anyways
in one of the science subreddits, I saw there was a group that discovered a correlation of frog gut bacteria and colon cancer cell cytotoxosis (didnt read the article/paper just the headline). An anti-intellectual may argue against that research in the first place because “why would we ever need to study frog guts?” and then this is the constituent base for said politicians…
I feel like I need to have a deep conversation with a sociology professor or something because I am genuinely fed up with people who don’t know shit consolidating power/wealth for the sake of generating profit at the expense of people’s livelihoods.
This is coming from a researcher in a heavily funded buzzword field who has been directly negatively affected by two executive orders: (1) Took away my funding and I had to live off savings for 4 months while completing my PhD, and (2) Took away funding from an NIH research study for one of the most advanced cancer screenings and declassified it enough that insurance could deny it as “not medically necessary” for my partner who had just undergone 6 months of chemo for his stage 3 cancer
I grew up in a republican household in the middle of bumfuck nowhere on a horse ranch. I’m very well acquainted with “republican values”, and I still don’t understand how it got this bad other than this has been a plan in the works since before I was born (90’s baby). I feel like if I were president I couldn’t even fix this… wish in one hand, shit in the other and see which one you get first I guess
The framework for promoting conspiracy thinking and automatically rejecting ideas produced by educated people was cultivated for decades. It only needs refinement to suit whatever agenda the current commander of the vast Army of Stupid has.
There are lots of new things the Army of Stupid wants destroyed, sure, but it wasn't much of a stretch to go from what they wanted destroyed 15 years ago to what's going on now.
how does the Army of Stupid keep growing? The obvious answer to me is access to information where everyone has an equal platform (smartphones/social media). But, it has to be fueled by american culture at its core…
I’ve read enough Sagan and Huxley to know this isn’t a new sentiment, but is one of the branches for a cure just better communication of science to society? Also analogous to chemo, I recognize that a multi-faceted and multi-medicine cure is necessary for a problem like this, but is there anything us practicing science and research can do to actually combat this bullshit?
Science journalism is bad, and there are no incentives in academia to communicate science to the public. Legitimate science, as an institution, is effective sealed off from the general population. So science can be ripped apart and people outside of its immediate economic impact won't notice or care.
The truth sucks because it is inconvenient and hard. The truth is that we need a lot more scientists in political office and we need a lot more scientists permeating pop culture everywhere, planting seeds for the Army of Stupid to consider. The bubble has to be popped.
More funding and science workshops/centers out in the field you say?
Here in Germany, where I’m currently based, a local billionaire built a science center called experimenta. It’s an interactive, hands-on museum where visitors can explore fundamental scientific principles. Admission is very affordable (and children get in free), plus it stays open year-round.
I think it helps quite a lot to make people more open to progress.
The blind leading the enlightened isn't a good idea?
This is currently happening at all levels of government through the United States. Appointees with no skills, education or possibly even interest, running governmental organizations, because they were owed a favour, donated money or had something on the president. :)
Wayelder | 13 hours ago
So ‘Soviet Science’ returns and shows up in the states.
ewokjedi | 13 hours ago
Yep. One of the hallmarks of the oppressive soviet system, in cinema, back in the height of the cold war days was the presence of a "political officer" in science facilities or aboard military crafts/missions. We cannot change the factual outcome of experiments with PR statements. We cannot cause an epidemic to go away by rejecting its existence.
loco500 | 6 hours ago
"I'm an inconsequential man, Valery. That's all I've ever been. I hoped that one day I would matter but I didn't. I just stood next to people who did."
Unique-Coffee5087 | 8 hours ago
Lysenkoism
Well, I'm glad many scientists are leaving the country, so they won't be waiting their careers here.
SeVenMadRaBBits | 12 hours ago
"We've arranged a civilization in which most crucial elements profoundly depend on science and technology. We have also arranged things so that almost no one understands science and technology. This is a prescription for disaster. We might get away with it for a while, but sooner or later this combustible mixture of ignorance and power is going to blow up in our faces."
autocorrects | 11 hours ago
its not like us scientists have any fucking say over anything that happens with our funding anyways
in one of the science subreddits, I saw there was a group that discovered a correlation of frog gut bacteria and colon cancer cell cytotoxosis (didnt read the article/paper just the headline). An anti-intellectual may argue against that research in the first place because “why would we ever need to study frog guts?” and then this is the constituent base for said politicians…
I feel like I need to have a deep conversation with a sociology professor or something because I am genuinely fed up with people who don’t know shit consolidating power/wealth for the sake of generating profit at the expense of people’s livelihoods.
This is coming from a researcher in a heavily funded buzzword field who has been directly negatively affected by two executive orders: (1) Took away my funding and I had to live off savings for 4 months while completing my PhD, and (2) Took away funding from an NIH research study for one of the most advanced cancer screenings and declassified it enough that insurance could deny it as “not medically necessary” for my partner who had just undergone 6 months of chemo for his stage 3 cancer
I grew up in a republican household in the middle of bumfuck nowhere on a horse ranch. I’m very well acquainted with “republican values”, and I still don’t understand how it got this bad other than this has been a plan in the works since before I was born (90’s baby). I feel like if I were president I couldn’t even fix this… wish in one hand, shit in the other and see which one you get first I guess
lobsterbash | 11 hours ago
The framework for promoting conspiracy thinking and automatically rejecting ideas produced by educated people was cultivated for decades. It only needs refinement to suit whatever agenda the current commander of the vast Army of Stupid has.
There are lots of new things the Army of Stupid wants destroyed, sure, but it wasn't much of a stretch to go from what they wanted destroyed 15 years ago to what's going on now.
autocorrects | 10 hours ago
how does the Army of Stupid keep growing? The obvious answer to me is access to information where everyone has an equal platform (smartphones/social media). But, it has to be fueled by american culture at its core…
I’ve read enough Sagan and Huxley to know this isn’t a new sentiment, but is one of the branches for a cure just better communication of science to society? Also analogous to chemo, I recognize that a multi-faceted and multi-medicine cure is necessary for a problem like this, but is there anything us practicing science and research can do to actually combat this bullshit?
lobsterbash | 8 hours ago
Science journalism is bad, and there are no incentives in academia to communicate science to the public. Legitimate science, as an institution, is effective sealed off from the general population. So science can be ripped apart and people outside of its immediate economic impact won't notice or care.
The truth sucks because it is inconvenient and hard. The truth is that we need a lot more scientists in political office and we need a lot more scientists permeating pop culture everywhere, planting seeds for the Army of Stupid to consider. The bubble has to be popped.
NeverIntendedToHurt | 2 hours ago
More funding and science workshops/centers out in the field you say?
Here in Germany, where I’m currently based, a local billionaire built a science center called experimenta. It’s an interactive, hands-on museum where visitors can explore fundamental scientific principles. Admission is very affordable (and children get in free), plus it stays open year-round.
I think it helps quite a lot to make people more open to progress.
TrexPushupBra | 5 hours ago
The people who want the army to grow are in charge of most media including social media and the government.
It grows because there is an entire network of influencers and organizations devoted to growing it.
Cersad | 10 hours ago
In the 90s and 00s the Republican voters had the gall to tell us to go get degrees in science or engineering.
Those of us that followed that advice got rewarded by today's Republican voters deciding they didn't want America to have good science or engineering.
tgrantt | 11 hours ago
r/noshitSherlock
ILikeNeurons | 10 hours ago
Is this mostly about stifling climate science?
https://www.environmentalvoter.org/get-involved
/r/ClimateOffensive
TrexPushupBra | 5 hours ago
So much more than that.
Vaccines, birth control, trans healthcare, all medical research that RFK jr doesn't like.
Anything that could demonstrate the existence of bigotry or refute its claims.
All of it in the hands of shameless liars and con artists.
DeadbeatJohnson | 10 hours ago
Russell is a vile piece of garbage.
TraliBalzers | 9 hours ago
This everything makes me feel sick.
Liesthroughisteeth | 8 hours ago
The blind leading the enlightened isn't a good idea?
This is currently happening at all levels of government through the United States. Appointees with no skills, education or possibly even interest, running governmental organizations, because they were owed a favour, donated money or had something on the president. :)
Glum_Material3030 | 6 hours ago
Keep politics out of science! (Unless you are a political scientist doing research… then carry on!)
SjalabaisWoWS | 11 hours ago
Obvious point is obvious...unless you're a politician, I guess, they have these flexible perceptions of reality...
Known_Attorney_456 | 8 hours ago
Well I guess this would be where we say DUH .
Neekool_Boolaas | an hour ago
Well the scientists are being paid by Big Science, they need to be stopped!
/s
costafilh0 | 8 hours ago
The only thing we want from politicians is for them to finally be replaced by AI and robots.
They need to be the first to be replaced.
TrexPushupBra | 5 hours ago
So now the person who controls the training weights of the model controls everything forever?
FailedToRemit | 5 hours ago
Well yeah, the people we elect should have more direct control over tax spending and not random employees.