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CHALLENGES FOR SCIENCE AND SOCIETY |
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by Doug Ward |
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The relationship between science and culture was the subject
of a Templeton Lecture given by Dr. Dorothy Chappell at
Chappell, the Dean of Natural and Social Sciences at
Prof. Chappell began her lecture by surveying the amazing scientific progress
that has occurred in recent decades.
Science has been advancing at a breathtaking rate that shows no signs of
slowing down as we enter the twenty-first century. She noted that
discoveries in areas like nanotechnology, genetics, and medical research have
the potential to either greatly benefit mankind or do massive harm, depending
on how they are applied.
How will boundaries be set for the ways in which our scientific knowledge is
applied? Chappell asserted that the scientific community can not---and
should not---make those decisions on its own. Giving a negative answer to
the question in her title, she said that ideally, such decisions should be made
by well-informed societies after considerable dialogue and
reflection.
Two Areas of Concern
Looking at how that dialogue has been conducted in
recent years, Dr. Chappell identified two areas that are of special concern to
her. One is the fact that the “public intellectuals” who have informed
the general populace about scientific subjects---people like Carl Sagan,
Richard Dawkins, and Stephen Jay Gould---do not adequately represent the views
of the entire scientific community. In particular, few if any of the
prominent scientific spokesmen are people of faith.
A second area of concern is the polarization that often occurs in the ongoing
``culture wars'' in the
Professor Chappell's concerns highlight major challenges for scientists and
other scholars who are people of faith. Too often such scholars, working
in environments that are hostile to traditional Judeo-Christian views, are reluctant to speak up about their private convictions.
For the benefit of society as a whole, these views should be effectively and
forcefully articulated.
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