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Americans Overwhelmingly Support Science, but Some Think the U.S. Is Lagging

scientificamerican.com

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Re: Americans Overwhelmingly Support Science, but Some Think the U.S. Is Lagging

#2
The US is lagging by every reasonable measure.

What has changed is primarily 2 things:

1) People in positions of authority are now openly anti-progress in an effort to pacify entrenched interests.

2) These same people are also openly anti-immigrant. In the past, a lot of science in the USA has been imported from other countries by way of immigration.

Less science equals less/inferior technology which equals smaller economy and weaker USA.

Re: Americans Overwhelmingly Support Science, but Some Think the U.S. Is Lagging

#3
The US has become a world leader in suing curious people into submission. As soon as you touch any commercially available tech and do anything that the manufacturer dislikes, you're at risk, thanks to § 1201:

"No person shall circumvent a technological measure that effectively controls access to a work protected under this title."

Extending your digital camera with new firmware? Illegal.

Inventing a custom ink or add-on for your printer? Illegal.

Repairing a tractor? or a ventilator? Illegal.

How do you expect anyone to get world-leading science done in this environment?

Re: Americans Overwhelmingly Support Science, but Some Think the U.S. Is Lagging

#4

The US is lagging by every reasonable measure. What has changed is primarily 2 things: 1) People in positions of authority are now openly anti-progress in an effort to pacify entrenched interests. 2) These same people are also openly anti-immigrant. In the past, a lot of science in the USA has been imported from other countries by way of immigration. Less science equals less/inferior technology which equals smaller e…

The US is destroying it's own advantage. For decades the US was pulling the best and brightest from all over the world into its Universities and companies. Why would anybody think stopping that would lead to a 'Golden Age'.

Re: Americans Overwhelmingly Support Science, but Some Think the U.S. Is Lagging

#5

The US has become a world leader in suing curious people into submission. As soon as you touch any commercially available tech and do anything that the manufacturer dislikes, you're at risk, thanks to § 1201: "No person shall circumvent a technological measure that effectively controls access to a work protected under this title." Extending your digital camera with new firmware? Illegal. Inventing a custom ink or add…

In fairness that sounds like extending capabilities of something that already exists. For personal use that should be okay. For commercial use, that would run afoul of IP -unless we’re talking about open source, though even then you might have obligations depending on the license.

If you want to start from square 1, using your own IP, you should be able to.

Now, sure it sucks that you can’t do those things you mention for ordinary use, which we should, but you are still able to come up with your own ground-up solution for commercial purposes.

Re: Americans Overwhelmingly Support Science, but Some Think the U.S. Is Lagging

#6
Everyone in the world "supports" science, exactly the same way everyone "supports" healthy lifestyles, democracy and other "good things".

The problem is that everyone has a different idea of what these good things are.

For some, science is vaccines, understanding global warming and the theory of evolution.

Others will say that real science is denying global warming, creationism, anti-vaxers or homeopathy.

Re: Americans Overwhelmingly Support Science, but Some Think the U.S. Is Lagging

#7

Everyone in the world "supports" science, exactly the same way everyone "supports" healthy lifestyles, democracy and other "good things". The problem is that everyone has a different idea of what these good things are. For some, science is vaccines, understanding global warming and the theory of evolution. Others will say that real science is denying global warming, creationism, anti-vaxers or homeopathy.

Are those two groups of people’s opinions on the subject equally valid?

Re: Americans Overwhelmingly Support Science, but Some Think the U.S. Is Lagging

#10

>Americans Overwhelmingly Support Science Considering on the average 7/10 people either voted for Trump or didn't vote, (with Trump openly stating that he wants to neuter universities) Americans "think" they support science.

Americans think "supporting universities" is not necessarily the same as "supporting science."
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