The Pew Research Center conducted a survey recently polling Americans’ views on scientific topics like the issue of global warming. Much to a surprise, the survey revealed that the American public does not have a similar opinion as the scientists. While, on one hand, Americans are receiving criticism for being ignorant and scientifically illiterate, another researcher stepped up to contradict the claims of the survey. A professor at the Yale Law School, Daniel Kahan, presented his own research that does not match the Pew Researcher Center’s (PRC) poll.
The PRC survey was carried out by taking the poll of as many as 2,002 American public and 3,748 scientists. The questionnaire sought to take their opinion on issues such as global warming and the e effects of genetically modified food on human health. The survey found that while 28% people believed that it is safe to consume genetically modified food, a larger fraction of scientists said that the food is safe for human consumption. 8 of 10 scientists voted in favor of such food.
The poll also established that there is a large gap between the views of the two groups of people over most scientific topics. In general, this difference was found to be significantly large, as much as 20%, in every eighth scientific topic that was probed.
On the other hand, Kahan, a member of the Cultural Cognition Project, argued that the results do not highlight the scientific ignorance of the people. He explained that people tend to be divided in their opinions on such issues and the more knowledgeable they are, the more polarized they tend to be. He said that people, in general, tend to believe the scientific consensus. But most people do not understand how science works. They are easily influenced by the modifications that science boosts around them. Scientists, on the other hand, are politically liberal, and their opinions stem out of biases.