Photo: Rachit Tank/Unsplash.
We need some amount of common sense to appreciate the everyday science around us. Common sense is not entirely logical, but it influences intellectual abilities such as perceiving, guessing, decision-making, and acknowledging the reach and limits of reason. However, it is also vulnerable to ignorance, and if compromised could trivialise scientific facts.
Common sense is a combination of simple knowledge and an ability to reason the way things work. For example, before the COVID-19 pandemic, it was common knowledge that covering one’s face when one coughed or sneezed prevented the spread of infectious agents. However, the act of wearing masks during the pandemic has become a matter of debate in more than a few countries.
When scientific findings are twisted into snippets of misinformation that don’t require critical thinking to process and internalise, they become vulnerable to falsification. And falsified information becomes glued in people’s minds if it agrees with preconceived notions, especially if it is cemented there by ideological biases as well. The suspension of common sense – deliberately or otherwise – contributes significantly to the spread of scientific misinformation.
The growing inability to distinguish between what is true and what is false diminishes the ability of people to make informed decisions – in a way, disenfranchising them from the democratic process. And more often than not, many people don’t know it.
There has been a noticeable shift in public conversations these days towards manipulation, and away from reasoning. Scientific misinformation is admittedly more powerful than facts partly because the former often seeks to comfort the listener, offering ‘what could be’ instead of ‘what is’. And online and offline, but online especially, information spreads like wildfire – misinformation even more so. Both together, misinformation has been misrepresenting science’s scope and twisting its message, and hijacking its stated relevance to advance unscientific claims.
Due to the nature of their work, scientists seldom communicate directly with the people at large. Scientific papers are complex and can’t be digested without specialised education or professional assistance – e.g. of science journalists. Then again, when these journalists are not mindful of the nuances of the topic they’re covering, inaccuracies or misstatements could creep in, and end up misleading readers.
Clickbait headlines don’t help. During the COVID-19 pandemic itself, false cures, rumours, anti-mask myths and conspiracy theories about the virus’s origins have found themselves in the headlines alarmingly often. They have been joined by other long-standing claims like ‘cannabis can cure cancer’, ‘vaccines are harmful’ and ‘ionised water helps get rid of diabetes’. And when you share such headlines with others – even if you don’t know exactly what they mean or why – you’re doing them an injustice. Failing to slow down just at this stage is one of the main drivers of misinformation.
Finally, it’s important to acknowledge that little knowledge, as they say, is a dangerous thing. Those labouring with the delusion that they are correct, without actually being correct, pass on under-researched, unverified and often socially, politically or religiously prejudiced claims without applying common sense.
This way, we are all responsible for the mess we are currently in. The importance of reading, and reading widely, has become diminished. In its stead is a system that does not devalue false information because the truth is complicated, and less profitable. The consequence is a lack of trust in science, especially confusing uncertainty for ignorance and due diligence for incompetence. And this is no trivial threat – not when it threatens the edifice on which our socio-economic civilisation rests.
To mitigate it, consider these six points.
First, knowing is not enough. We must understand something, by say analysing or auditing it.
We must outlaw misinformation, and systematically demand well-researched information – from all sources.
Ask yourself what you stand to gain after consuming an article or report. Is it going to add to anything you may already know? Does it contradict what you already know? If the answer to either of these questions is ‘yes’, ask yourself how and why.
Promote critical and trustworthy science journalism. Before clicking ‘like’ or ‘retweet’, consider the source, voice your opinion, leave question(s) in the comment box and check if you need further clarification (from the authors). Report misinformed news and information.
Scientists should communicate more with the people, in accessible language, and undertake public engagement towards improving clarity on scientific issues related to policy debates.
Finally, initiate and/or participate in dialogues, discussions and debates with others in an effort to promote civic literacy.
We need a scientifically literate nation – and we also need a common-sensical attitude towards science. This will obviously take us some time, but the wait could very well be worth it. And the first step in this direction is, the next time you hear or read something, to have your common sense ask you: Is this correct?
Vineeta Tanwar is a cardiovascular research scientist at the Dorothy M. Davis Heart and Lung Research Institute, the Ohio State University.