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Unscientific America: How Scientific Illiteracy Threatens our Future Paperback – June 8, 2010

by Chris Mooney (Author), Sheril Kirshenbaum (Author)

3.9 103 ratings

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In his famous 1959 Rede lecture at Cambridge University, the scientifically-trained novelist C.P. Snow described science and the humanities as "two cultures," separated by a "gulf of mutual incomprehension." And the humanists had all the cultural power -- the low prestige of science, Snow argued, left Western leaders too little educated in scientific subjects that were increasingly central to world problems: the elementary physics behind nuclear weapons, for instance, or the basics of plant science needed to feed the world's growing population.

Now, Chris Mooney and Sheril Kirshenbaum, a journalist-scientist team, offer an updated "two cultures" polemic for America in the 21st century. Just as in Snow's time, some of our gravest challenges -- climate change, the energy crisis, national economic competitiveness -- and gravest threats -- global pandemics, nuclear proliferation -- have fundamentally scientific underpinnings. Yet we still live in a culture that rarely takes science seriously or has it on the radar.

For every five hours of cable news, less than a minute is devoted to science; 46 percent of Americans reject evolution and think the Earth is less than 10,000 years old; the number of newspapers with weekly science sections has shrunken by two-thirds over the past several decades. The public is polarized over climate change -- an issue where political party affiliation determines one's view of reality -- and in dangerous retreat from childhood vaccinations. Meanwhile, only 18 percent of Americans have even met a scientist to begin with; more than half can't name a living scientist role model.

For this dismaying situation, Mooney and Kirshenbaum don't let anyone off the hook. They highlight the anti-intellectual tendencies of the American public (and particularly the politicians and journalists who are supposed to serve it), but also challenge the scientists themselves, who despite the best of intentions have often failed to communicate about their work effectively to a broad public -- and so have ceded their critical place in the public sphere to religious and commercial propagandists.

A plea for enhanced scientific literacy, Unscientific America urges those who care about the place of science in our society to take unprecedented action. We must begin to train a small army of ambassadors who can translate science's message and make it relevant to the media, to politicians, and to the public in the broadest sense. An impassioned call to arms worthy of Snow's original manifesto, this book lays the groundwork for reintegrating science into the public discourse -- before it's too late.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Chris Mooney is the author of The Republican War on Science and Storm World. A Knight fellow in science journalism at MIT, he contributes to many publications, including Mother Jones, Wired, the Boston Globe, and Slate. He lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Sheril Kirshenbaum is Associate in Research for Ocean and Coastal Policy at Duke University's Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions. She lives in Durham, North Carolina.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ 046501917X
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Basic Books; First Trade Paper Ed edition (June 8, 2010)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 239 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9780465019175
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0465019175
Reading age ‏ : ‎ 13 years and up
Grade level ‏ : ‎ 11 and up
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 8.8 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 0.6 x 8.25 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #204,052 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #61 in Science for Kids
- #698 in History & Philosophy of Science (Books)
- #5,496 in Philosophy (Books)

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3.9 103 ratings

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Chris Mooney
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Chris Mooney is a science and political journalist, blogger, podcaster, and experienced trainer of scientists in the art of communication. He is the author of four books, including the New York Times bestselling The Republican War on Science and most recently The Republican Brain: The Science of Why They Deny Science and Reality (April 2012). He blogs for Science Progress, a website of the Center for American Progress and Center for American Progress Action Fund, and is a host of the Point of Inquiry podcast.
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Sheril Kirshenbaum
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Sheril Kirshenbaum is executive director of ScienceDebate, a nonprofit nonpartisan initiative to restore science to its rightful place in politics. She works to enhance public understanding of science and improve communication between scientists, policymakers and the public.
Sheril co-authored Unscientific America: How Scientific Illiteracy Threatens Our Future with Chris Mooney, chosen by Library Journal as one of the Best Sci-Tech Books of 2009 and named by President Obama's science advisor John Holdren as a top recommended read. She is also the author of The Science of Kissing, which explores the science behind one of humanity's fondest pastimes.
Sheril's writing appears in publications such as Bloomberg and CNN frequently covering topics that bridge science and society from climate change to parenthood. Her work has also been published in scientific journals including Science and Nature and she is featured in the anthology The Best American Science Writing 2010.
Sheril has been a 2015 Presidential Leadership Scholar; a Marshall Memorial Fellow, a legislative NOAA Sea Grant Knauss Fellow in the U.S. Senate and a Next Generation Fellow through the Robert Strauss Center for International Security and Law. She speaks internationally about science communication and has appeared as a thought leader at events like TEDGlobal and Ciudad de las Ideas.
Sheril currently hosts "Our Table" at Michigan State University, an initiative to help consumers make more informed choices about food. She also serves as director of the University of Texas at Austin Energy Poll. Previously, she worked with the Webber Energy Group at the Center for International Energy and Environmental Policy and Duke University's Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions. Sheril has also been a visiting scholar with The Pimm Group, a fellow with the Center for Biodiversity and Conservation at the American Museum of Natural History and a Howard Hughes Research Fellow. She holds graduate degrees in marine biology and policy and lives in East Lansing, Michigan with her husband and sons.
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Customers find the book easy to read and well-researched. However, some readers feel the content is biased and inaccurate. The pacing and analysis are described as narrow and not wide enough. Opinions vary on the information quality, with some finding it insightful and informative, while others consider it repetitive and lacking scientific literacy. While some customers consider the book worthwhile, others consider it a waste of time and money.

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Readability Information quality Value for money Bias Pacing

10 customers mention "Readability"7 positive3 negative

Customers appreciate the book's readability. They find the prose clear and easy to understand, with a good mix of history, philosophy, and current events. However, some readers feel the content is simplistic and lacks important points.

"...a good mix of history, philosophy, current events and clear, concise prose as to make it a worthwhile read, especially scientists who care about..." Read more

"...It is easy to read and sympathies, and in many ways it is quite inspirational about encouraging your own scientific literacy and maybe become a..." Read more

"...This is an important book, with a critical theme. Unfortunately, he does not make a proper case. What is science?..." Read more

"I found the book well written and very informational, and mostly accurate in its dichotomy of Religion vs. Science...." Read more

23 customers mention "Information quality"11 positive12 negative

Customers have mixed opinions about the book's information. Some find it insightful and informative, with interesting facts. Others feel it lacks scientific literacy and objective thinking, and lacks any seminal ideas.

"...(I read it in it's entirety on a cross-Atlantic flight) and surprisingly insightful. I highly recommend the book; it is definitely worth the read." Read more

"...message to take from this book is that there is a huge disconnect between the scientific community and other influential communities in American..." Read more

"...In sum, the book contains a good mix of history, philosophy, current events and clear, concise prose as to make it a worthwhile read, especially..." Read more

"...and sympathies, and in many ways it is quite inspirational about encouraging your own scientific literacy and maybe become a scientist..." Read more

15 customers mention "Value for money"9 positive6 negative

Customers have mixed opinions about the book's value for money. Some find it interesting and worth reading, especially for scientists. Others feel it's a waste of time and money, with irrelevant topics that don't justify the cost.

"...But I felt the book was most powerful because it focuses on the role of scientists in disseminating scientific information...." Read more

"...In spite of these keen observations, the book has some shortcomings. It seems to suggest that scientists need to accept a number of big compromises...." Read more

"...current events and clear, concise prose as to make it a worthwhile read, especially scientists who care about increasing the scientific literacy..." Read more

"...This book however is lacking: Although it is full of good stuff, one can't help but feel that this is a rather overgrown magazine article..." Read more

3 customers mention "Bias"0 positive3 negative

Customers find the book biased and inaccurate. They say it's a liberal book that blames Republicans. The authors are described as Democrats who work for a Democrat Senator.

"...Much of it is biased, inaccurate, or outright fabrication...." Read more

"...This is a liberal bias book informing the reader to blame Republicans for the major reductions in innovations as a result of studies in the science..." Read more

"...I feel it is shallow and exhibits obvious bias. I am as dismayed as anyone by the apparent stupidity all around us...." Read more

3 customers mention "Pacing"0 positive3 negative

Customers find the book's pacing slow and the analysis lacking depth. They feel the end is simplistic and narrow for such a goal.

"...In fact, I took the book as marginally constrained, but rather prolonged attack on any scientist *with a few favored exceptions* who deals with one..." Read more

"...thoughts and observations, at the same time I think the analysis was not wide enough and perhaps not deep enough...." Read more

"...the suggestion at the end is quite simplistic and narrow for such a goal and makes you wonder if that is the problem in the first place...." Read more

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David J Kent
A must read book for anyone interested in science (which should be everyone)
Reviewed in the United States on July 28, 2009
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I'll start by highly recommending this book. Especially to scientists or those interested in science. As suggested by the title - Unscientific America: How Scientific Illiteracy Threatens our Future - the book acknowledges the limits of the public's understanding of science and how science works. But I felt the book was most powerful because it focuses on the role of scientists in disseminating scientific information. More on that later.

The first two chapters give a very nice background on the role science has played, from its high funding and close relationships with policy-makers soon after World War II, to its period of low funding and disconnect from policy-makers, to the more recent "war on science" (the topic of Mooney's previous book).

Much of the main part of the book looks at the intersection of science and other institutions. Individual chapters look at science as it relates to politics, to religion, to its portrayal in Hollywood, and to journalism, all within the subcontext of C.P. Snow's "two cultures" theme. In short, different ways of thinking, and different needs, affect the interaction of the two institutions in the dyad. For example, whereas the needs of the media are episodic, science is more incremental. So every incremental finding coming from scientific studies can be picked up by the media and presented as if it is a revelation. Except it might suggest the opposite of yesterday's revelation. No matter that the two studies merely looked at different parts of the picture and support the full knowledge base, the media assume each piece stands on its own. This can be, and usually is, highly confusing to the public. Similar conflicts in the messaging occur between science and religion, scientist depiction in film (usually as a stereotypical caricature), and politics.

One chapter discusses the role of blogs. As newspapers and broadcast media have been eliminating science coverage, at least 1000 science blogs have sprung up. While blogs can help disseminate information broadly, the authors say "[t]he problem with the internet is obvious to anyone who has ever used it; There's tons of information available, but much of it is crap." Misinformation thrives, and those who want to manipulate the debate can publish whatever they want, and unfortunately, usually do. Much of it is biased, inaccurate, or outright fabrication. Which is why blogs may be useful for rapidly getting the word out, they cannot be relied upon for an accurate assessment of the science itself.

The authors refer repeatedly in the book to Carl Sagan, an astronomer who was also a stellar communicator, but whose popularity was often seen by other scientists as an indignity (i.e., to traditional scientists who preferred to do their science and leave the communication to others). But in the end the authors of Unscientific America, one a journalist and the other a scientist (who together write a blog called The Intersection), assert that disseminating the science to the lay public, to the media, and to policy-makers is an "integral part of the job description of scientists themselves." Essentially, they say that it should be part of every scientist's responsibility to communicate the science accurately, and to make sure that the science is not misrepresented by those who would misuse it.

The book is eminently readable (I read it in it's entirety on a cross-Atlantic flight) and surprisingly insightful. I highly recommend the book; it is definitely worth the read.

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J. G. Schulze
An in-depth analysis of the state of scientific awareness
Reviewed in the United States on June 30, 2009
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Unscientific America: How Scientific Illiteracy Threatens our Future, by Chris Mooney and Sheril Kirshenbaum

I recommend this book for its analysis of where we are. It is essential to understand a problem before trying to devise a solution.

We take it for granted that the American populace is not terribly scientifically literate. For some reason, we imagine that the populace of other nations tends to have a better grasp of basic scientific principles. I have no reason to believe that it is necessarily the case, and apparently neither do the authors. They point out that citizens of other nations do not do much better on scientific literacy surveys than we do (305-309)*. Going to the conclusion, where the authors state the problem best, they explain, "The fact is, we don't merely need a smarter population that can regurgitate what's in the textbooks. We need one that cares about science, has it on the radar, sees it as salient and relevant. And we don't simply need a bigger scientific workforce: We need a more cultured one, capable of bridging the divides that have led to science's declining influence." (2007)

A strong case can be made--and indeed was made by one of the authors of this book--that the previous administration did not give science its due. I recommend Chris Mooney's The Republican War on Science The Republican War on Science : Revised and Updatedif you are interested in that topic. One of the recurring themes in this book is that we should not allow the election of Barack Obama to lead us to believe that all is once again right with the world. Many of the problems brought on by the Bush administration's disregard of science are still with us.

The authors are at their best when they explore and explain the nature of America's scientific illiteracy. It is not simply that we do poorly on pop quizzes. It is far more complicated than that. The authors begin with World War II. After Sputnik, Americans were alarmed and turned to science. Ever since then, there has been a widening rift between the scientific community and other sectors of society. The press has less money to spend on covering science, and consumers of the media's product are less interested in it. Politicians and scientists have different interests and far different ways of doing things. There has been a rift between religion and science--which the authors believe is largely unnecessary--which has done harm to the goal of having a scientifically engaged and literate populace. Hollywood has consistently relied on negative stereotypes of scientists, with notable exceptions to be sure, as either nerds or villains or occasionally both.

The authors also note that the material rewards for young men and women entering the scientific field are scarce. From an employment standpoint, it is more lucrative for a gifted student to concentrate on business or any number of other fields.

The problem is that not only is the general public scientifically illiterate, other influential segments of society either do not know or do not care enough about science. There are a number of reasons for this, which the authors explore in depth. The authors suggest a number of solutions. They recommend creating a range of jobs for young scientists for the express purpose to connect science with other fields of society. They suggest that scientists could be taught the communication skills to relay their knowledge and convey their experience to help specialists in other fields understand and apply the scientific perspective to what they are doing. (1970-90).

As I see it, the problem with this solution is finding someone to pay for this. Private industry is not going to do it. If private industry thought such an investment would improve the bottom line, they would have already started making the investment. Should the government spend money promoting scientific understanding and literacy? I think it probably should, but just as there is a tradition of distrusting intellectuals in American society, there is also a tradition of distrusting government. It may be--and in my experience often is--completely unfair. But it is there and it is real. For reasons the authors explain well, the media as currently constituted is not going to do it. With media consolidation, the emphasis is on the bottom line, and science reporting is not a sufficiently profitable investment. Certainly wealthy benefactors could fund foundations to do this good work, but there is a great demand for charity, particularly now with the economy in shambles. So who is going to make this investment?

The important message to take from this book is that there is a huge disconnect between the scientific community and other influential communities in American society. It is not so much the "man in the street" who should concern us. It is the lack of scientific literacy among the leaders in government, politics, journalism, business, and even large parts of academia. To a large extent, scientists speak a different language. Science is by its very nature complicated, nuanced, and seldom subject to simple yes or no answers. It seldom fits into a storyline for a newspaper article. It seldom conveniently lends itself to an up or down vote. American society ignores the contributions of the scientific community at our peril. Must we wait for the next Sputnik to wake us from our complacency?

JG "Gerry" Schulze

*Note: These references are to Kindle "locations," not to pages. I read this book on the Kindle. I recommend the Kindle for many reasons. I have filled my bookshelves and at this moment have stacks of books on the floor with no place to go. Books are less expensive on the Kindle. I can "sample" books on the Kindle. I can annotate books easily with the Kindle. I can carry my library with me on the Kindle. And here, I got the book before it was available in print. There are two disadvantages for this type of book, though. First, it does not give page numbers, so my references are to Kindle "locations." Second, there is the problem with footnotes. Some Kindle books link to footnotes or other references. Others do not. This one did not. The reason may have been that half of the text of this book, judging by the Kindle locations, consists of references. The sheer number would have been distracting.

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Luis Monroy Gómez Franco
Unscientific America
Reviewed in Mexico on January 31, 2017
Verified Purchase
Es un excelente libro que diagnostica y propone soluciones para incorporar a la ciencia a la "cultura popular" norteamericana. En particular, se centra en analizar uno a uno los distintos mecanismos que determinan la presencia de la ciencia en la cultura popular: los medios de comunicación, los políticos, la religión, el apoyo gubernamental.

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Ms. Z. Bremer
Ignorance is bliss?
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 25, 2016
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A very telling subject of how lack of scientific education holds a society back.

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C. Riordon
Reminds us of how close we come to disaster on a daily basis
Reviewed in Canada on November 27, 2014
Verified Purchase
This was so true before Obama, is true again now that the Republicans control both houses of government, is certainly true in Canada, where scientific expression is being suppressed à la W Bush. Science is not good or evil, people. Science is like a screwdriver, or a thermometer. Science is a way of analyzing and organizing information to try to understand how the world works. We may not always like what science shows us about the world, but is it not better to know the truth and act based on factual information, rather than rely on someone's unsubstantiated belief that something is so because someone said so?

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Martin Berthiaume
repeat once more please
Reviewed in Canada on January 28, 2010
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First of all, if you do not live in America this book doesn't apply to you, so don't bother;
Second of all, this is a book that needs to be read at the exact moment that it was published ,so if you buy it in a year, forget it , it will be already badly outdated.
Third of all ,if you can't stand politics of all sorts, Geez , are you in for a long read....and you thought you were going to read about science!
Fourth...this book doesn't contain 220 pages of information, at best there might be 50 pages worth anything, thereis some pretty good insight, but also lots of stuff you have already read before (from the same author); and then it is just the same stories over and over and over again until it finally ends.

This book feels a lot more like a long cover story that repeat itself way too many time (oh, sorry have I already said that?)
What could be like a good starting point about how America is loosing it (be realistic buddy) is just in the end some sort of pep talk that I can't just bear with after a while.
Who is this book for anyway? people with an unscientific mind will not waste their time reading it , so why bother.
This ,as I might have already pinpointed to you, should have been published in a newspaper, week end edition , special report that could have been edited to 50% of it's present already thin coverage.

The Dark Cyclist in Canada

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