what is harmful of science
Answers
Speaking with regards to the broader scientific community as a whole, why is it that so much bad science (or, as it’s sometimes called, “junk science”) continues to pervade society?
Before we answer that, let’s first clarify what we mean by this decades-old term. Junk science doesn’t just have to apply to the kind of con artistry we see from shysters-turned-TV pitchmen, who offer up false hope to unhealthy individuals in the form of “miracle cures” with zero scientific merit - though, that’s certainly one extreme.
Rather, the term encompasses anything that passes itself off as legitimate science, but is ill-intentioned. Either it has an ulterior motive seeking to counteract credible scientific facts or has little to no real significance to the human population.
This could include several things: studies paid for by companies looking to alter their public perception, results that create a cloud of misconception around things already proven in order to serve politically motivated agendas, or even breakthroughs in which a scientist will skew and manipulate results to make a name for him- or herself.
Sadly, as long as there are scientists willing to act in less legitimate manners, and people who either willfully ignore the merits of good science, can’t tell the difference or upon whom doubts are easily cast, bad science will continue to have an audience.