Why Democracies Need Science

By: Harry Collins, Robert Evans

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Paperback | 24 January 2017

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Paperback
200 Pages

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21.6 x 14.0 x 1.5

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We live in times of increasing public distrust of institutions, to which science has not been immune. Within the academe, the social sciences and humanities have offered strong critiques of scientific practice and knowledge, with a particular emphasis on the social contexts in which science operates and the questionable neutrality of its conclusions. A picture of science builds up in which the basis of scientific expertise is disputed, charged with being authoritarian and opened up to political debate, championing democracy as the victim of scientific hubris.

The critique of science and fears for democracy have led to a levelling down of science such that we no longer seem to know or care what is special about it. Harry Collins and Robert Evans warn that therein lies dystopia. Challenging the overblown implications of these otherwise enlightening critiques, they show how science can still be valued for its normative structure. They argue that as one institution after another succumbs to corruption, from the greed of the banks to the doping of athletes, we desperately need science to take a leadership role in showing democracies how to make difficult decisions with integrity.

Industry Reviews

"Scientific and technological advances have a huge impact on our lives, yet science and society have an ambivalent relationship: science needs democracy to flourish but its techniques are beyond political accountability. In this thought-provoking book, Collins and Evans assert that “science gives substance to the way of being of democracy”. Consequently, science is a key to achieving and safeguarding our democratic ideals."
—Barry Barish, Linde Professor of Physics, Emeritus, Caltech; PI and Director of LIGO, 1994–2005

"Free-market ideology threatens both science and democracy. Collins and Evans respond not with philosophical arguments but an appeal to common sense. They ask us first to see that we face a basic moral choice, and then to choose the values of modern science. A provocative and thoughtful book."
—Mark Brown, Professor of Government, California State University, Sacramento

"Should we only give credence to an expert in any given field, thereby discounting the view of non-specialists? Doing so would seem rather undemocratic. It would also appear to reduce the scope for holding experts accountable. [... Collins and Evans'] theory not only tries to explain how knowledge is acquired but also legitimises the contribution which non-practitioners can make to scientific practice."
—The Irish Times

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