Jun 7, 2016 06:20 PM
http://nautil.us/blog/why-neil-degrasse-...ontroversy
EXCERPT: [Carl] Sagan’s mordant behavior as a public scientific figure, of course, wasn’t limited to the subject of racial bias. In protest of the United States’ preparation to wage nuclear war, in 1987, he was arrested [...] This combination—of a public sociopolitical conscience allied with scientific expertise, as well as what Isaac Asimov called an “unmannered style” of address—is arguably what made Sagan such an inimitable figure in the public’s engagement with science. Today, after becoming the star host of "Cosmos", the popular reboot of Sagan’s classic television series, it can seem that Neil deGrasse Tyson has, as it were, taken up Sagan’s mantle as the preeminent science communicator of our time.
“There’s blood on the tracks from him having done this in a way that no one had even approximated before,” Tyson told Sam Harris, a philosopher and neuroscientist, on Tuesday, on Harris’ Waking Up podcast. [...] “I benefit,” Tyson said, “from the fact that Carl Sagan sort of did this first.” Just exactly how to do “this”—ensuring that science has a say in society—was the main subject of the episode, “Thinking in Public: A Conversation with Neil deGrasse Tyson.” Harris’ title could seem generic, but it’s actually apt. Their discussion, nearing two hours, is a pointed and illuminating exchange on how popular scientific experts, like themselves, should behave toward the public.
Anyone familiar with Harris will know that his approach can come off as cavalier. Not long ago, when he was on Real Time with Bill Maher, he was discussing the causes of Islamic terrorism. [...] When Harris sketched Muslims’ basic belief-system, and said, “Islam at this moment is the mother lode of bad ideas”—for the way, he said, it’s ripe for violent and theocratic application—Ben Affleck, who was also on the show, was appalled. Such statements, he said, were “ugly,” “gross,” and “racist.” [...]
Tyson, on the other hand, can’t be heard staking definite, controversial positions on any topic. “I think as an educator, I can help train your mind how to think about information and how to arrive at conclusions. Then you’re empowered, and then you can make whatever politically leaning decisions you must, but have them anchor on objectively verifiable science—that’s my goal,” he told Harris. “That’s why you don’t see me debating people. I’d rather just educate you in the first place so that the debate isn’t even necessary.” But Harris questioned this neutral posture: “Do you feel that you need to walk a razor’s edge between political passions and polls on questions of religion or hot button issues—culture-war science, evolution, etc.—because you’re trying to preserve a trust from both sides insofar as that’s possible?”
“Initially,” Tyson said, “I thought I was walking a razor’s edge, because I’m not out here to offend anybody. I just want to enlighten people, as an educator.” [...] "I have a duty to alert you of those objective truths,” Tyson said. “What you do politically, in the face of those objective truths, is your business, not my business. I have opinions on many things, but they’re not the kind of opinions where I give a rat’s ass if you agree with my opinion. [...] That’s the difference, I think, between me and many others who are scientifically astute, or are scientists themselves, and take up a platform that involves trying to get people to see the world the way they do—even politically. I have no such interest in doing that.”
But, Harris countered [...]
In the end, Tyson sees his role as attacking the fact that people don’t understand the facts, not as attacking the exploitation, by politicians, of people’s ignorance. When that segment of their discussion ends, the conservation continues to be anything but stale. They shift to Tyson’s apparently shifty attitude toward identifying as an atheist, his relative silence on the race issues roiling cities and college campuses, and his own critiques of the way Harris [...] communicates to the public...
EXCERPT: [Carl] Sagan’s mordant behavior as a public scientific figure, of course, wasn’t limited to the subject of racial bias. In protest of the United States’ preparation to wage nuclear war, in 1987, he was arrested [...] This combination—of a public sociopolitical conscience allied with scientific expertise, as well as what Isaac Asimov called an “unmannered style” of address—is arguably what made Sagan such an inimitable figure in the public’s engagement with science. Today, after becoming the star host of "Cosmos", the popular reboot of Sagan’s classic television series, it can seem that Neil deGrasse Tyson has, as it were, taken up Sagan’s mantle as the preeminent science communicator of our time.
“There’s blood on the tracks from him having done this in a way that no one had even approximated before,” Tyson told Sam Harris, a philosopher and neuroscientist, on Tuesday, on Harris’ Waking Up podcast. [...] “I benefit,” Tyson said, “from the fact that Carl Sagan sort of did this first.” Just exactly how to do “this”—ensuring that science has a say in society—was the main subject of the episode, “Thinking in Public: A Conversation with Neil deGrasse Tyson.” Harris’ title could seem generic, but it’s actually apt. Their discussion, nearing two hours, is a pointed and illuminating exchange on how popular scientific experts, like themselves, should behave toward the public.
Anyone familiar with Harris will know that his approach can come off as cavalier. Not long ago, when he was on Real Time with Bill Maher, he was discussing the causes of Islamic terrorism. [...] When Harris sketched Muslims’ basic belief-system, and said, “Islam at this moment is the mother lode of bad ideas”—for the way, he said, it’s ripe for violent and theocratic application—Ben Affleck, who was also on the show, was appalled. Such statements, he said, were “ugly,” “gross,” and “racist.” [...]
Tyson, on the other hand, can’t be heard staking definite, controversial positions on any topic. “I think as an educator, I can help train your mind how to think about information and how to arrive at conclusions. Then you’re empowered, and then you can make whatever politically leaning decisions you must, but have them anchor on objectively verifiable science—that’s my goal,” he told Harris. “That’s why you don’t see me debating people. I’d rather just educate you in the first place so that the debate isn’t even necessary.” But Harris questioned this neutral posture: “Do you feel that you need to walk a razor’s edge between political passions and polls on questions of religion or hot button issues—culture-war science, evolution, etc.—because you’re trying to preserve a trust from both sides insofar as that’s possible?”
“Initially,” Tyson said, “I thought I was walking a razor’s edge, because I’m not out here to offend anybody. I just want to enlighten people, as an educator.” [...] "I have a duty to alert you of those objective truths,” Tyson said. “What you do politically, in the face of those objective truths, is your business, not my business. I have opinions on many things, but they’re not the kind of opinions where I give a rat’s ass if you agree with my opinion. [...] That’s the difference, I think, between me and many others who are scientifically astute, or are scientists themselves, and take up a platform that involves trying to get people to see the world the way they do—even politically. I have no such interest in doing that.”
But, Harris countered [...]
In the end, Tyson sees his role as attacking the fact that people don’t understand the facts, not as attacking the exploitation, by politicians, of people’s ignorance. When that segment of their discussion ends, the conservation continues to be anything but stale. They shift to Tyson’s apparently shifty attitude toward identifying as an atheist, his relative silence on the race issues roiling cities and college campuses, and his own critiques of the way Harris [...] communicates to the public...
