Bringing scientists and non-scientists together to maximize the relevance and usability of research
Science occupies a very special position in modern society. The research industry has given us striking successes, innovations and discoveries that continue to change the world for the better. But today, scientists struggle with flaws in the systems for generating and publishing research. Meanwhile, hands-on practitioners in science-based fields (e.g. medicine, agriculture, environmental management, child development, and mental health treatment) have to sort through a deluge of information in a world where ~3 million new scientific papers are published every year – some of them affected by serious quality issues.
Among non-scientists, views on science are increasingly polarized. According to data from the University of Chicago’s General Social Survey, between the early 1990s and 2010, the percentage of both liberal and conservative Americans who said they had a “great deal of confidence” in scientific institutions hovered around 40%. But then, opinions began diverging. The percentage of Democrats with high confidence in science rose, peaking at 64% in 2021 and standing at 49% as of 2024, while the percentage of very confident Republicans fell, reaching 25% in 2024.
In the same survey, nearly 70% of Americans who self-identified as upper class expressed high confidence in science in 2024, compared with fewer than 30% of Americans who self-identified as lower class or working class.
How can scientists and non-scientists work together to maximize the relevance and trustworthiness of scientific research and maintain the high standards of evidence that good science requires?
Join me as I explore:
• Why it’s important to consider the value that members of the public get from scientific research and how we can increase that value
• How the structure of the research industry contributes to a replication crisis – the failure of influential scientific findings to hold up to further testing – that is shaking up science fields
• Why laboratory workers are organizing for better working conditions in academic science departments across the US, and what working conditions have to do with the quality of scientific results
• Surprising stories from science’s past and present that show how science can benefit when its practitioners and institutions stay in touch with the real world
• How building bridges between scientists and non-scientists can help science capture the knowledge of patients, farmers, and other “outsiders” who have hands-on knowledge about scientific questions
• How scientists can learn from ways of thinking, people, and cultures that have experience in cultivating humble attitudes and self-correcting practices
Read Project Bridge articles here