Seeing how much attention people like Honey Boo Boo and the Kardashians get genuinely depresses me at times, and it’s even worse when monumental scientific events like the detection of gravity waves only receive a fraction of that attention. It’s not all bad though, because a study by the National Science Foundation has found that the majority of Americans believe that science it important to our future, and that the government should be funding scientific research. What’s more, Americans are more likely to trust leaders in the scientific community more than any other leaders outside of the military.
Eight out of ten kids will tell you that science is cool and the coolest things about science are “explosions!” and “robots!” Only one kid with a runny nose said, “antibiotics!” OK, we just made that up. But while it’s pretty obvious that science and technology are essential parts of our society, there is now a study by the National Science Foundation that proves that most Americans’ perception of science and scientists are actually favorable. Research also showed that they believe that the benefits outweigh the negatives when it comes to science and that technology will open more doors for future generations. While people often don’t actively think about the fact that science is in our bodies, our bedrooms, our kitchens, our cars, it is. So it’s pretty important that Americans dig it. More than 1,500 people were surveyed on the matter and 2014 General Social Survey data was used for a biennial report presented to the POTUS and Congress by the National Science Board, “Science and Engineering Indicators.” One reason the survey is a big deal is because data is gathered through face-to-face interviews.
