TY - JOUR
AU - Trachtman, Leon E.
AB - 10 STHV. Summer 1981 LEON E. TRACHTMAN The Public Understanding of Professor of Communication. and Associate Dean. Science Effort: A Critique School of Humanities. Social Science. and Education Purdue University West Lafayette. IN 47907 and desirable-even essential-that the general Partly as advocatus diaboli-but partly because public be informed at length and in depth about some nagging doubts persistently intrude them­ science and technology. Even faced with the selves on my consciousness-I propose in this technical and linguistic difficulties in explaining paper to question the validity of the premise that more recondite and abstruse scientific materials, I democratic public policy considerations dictate have held to the belief that having some knowl­ that the general public be informed about science edge is better than having none, and the more the and technology. I do not, of course, suggest that better. interested laymen not inform themselves about Little in the public pronouncements by mem­ science any more than they not inform them­ bers of the scientific and journalistic com­ selves about Renaissance madrigals, non­ munities questions this belief. I And respectable objective art, or Greek tragedy. I do, however, scientific and media organizations such as the raise the question of whether a 
TI - The Public Understanding of Science Effort: A Critique
JF - Science, Technology, & Human Values
DO - 10.1177/016224398100600303
DA - 1981-07-01
UR - https://www.deepdyve.com/lp/sage/the-public-understanding-of-science-effort-a-critique-QdHHl71hhM
SP - 10
EP - 15
VL - 6
IS - 3
DP - DeepDyve
ER -