The War on Science

Who's Waging It, Why It Matters, What We Can Do About It

By: Shawn Lawrence Otto

Narrated by: Peter Berkrot

"Wherever the people are well informed," Thomas Jefferson wrote, "they can be trusted with their own government." But what happens when they are not? In every issue of modern society - from climate change to vaccinations, transportation to technology, health care to defense - we are in the midst of an unprecedented expansion of scientific progress and a simultaneous expansion of danger. At the very time we need them most, scientists and the idea of objective knowledge are being bombarded by a vast, well-funded, three-part war on science: the identity politics war on science, the ideological war on science, and the industrial war on science.

The result is an unprecedented erosion of thought in Western democracies as voters, policymakers, and justices actively ignore the evidence from science, leaving major policy decisions to be based more on the demands of the most strident voices.

Shawn Lawrence Otto's provocative new book investigates the historical, social, philosophical, political, and emotional reasons for why and how evidence-based politics are in decline and authoritarian politics are once again on the rise, and offers a vision, an argument, and some compelling solutions to bring us to our collective senses, before it's too late.

©2016 Shawn Otto (P)2016 Post Hypnotic Press Inc.

An incredibly important book

The issues are highlighted in exquisite detail, and then final portion of the books presents a sampling of proposed solutions. Extremely intricate (but clear and methodical) breakdown of the massively complex, multi-pronged assault on science and education in the modern workd.

Good not Great

Very informative, but slightly pedantic. The what to do about it section not reasonable. Okay.

couldn’t be timelier

In an emergency, medics are taught to look for those that are not speaking among those who are screaming for help. In a similar light, we may be missing those most important scientific voices because they can’t be heard above the din of media attention some unscientific work gets. In the audiobook, The War on Science: Who's Waging It, Why It Matters, What We Can Do About It, by Shawn Otto, it’s clear that the issue is complex and he doesn’t shy away from the whole story. In this 20- hour volume, which resembles an eloquent offering from the Great Courses line-up, we get the full story from beginning to end, that we as a country, are often in the dark.

The volume couldn’t be timelier as the new administration, whether you are for or against, puts stops on the dissemination of information from the USDA, the CDC, and EPA. Before tackling the current issues, it makes sense to look back at the rise and decline of our leader's desire for scientific evidence.

Who would want to listen to twenty hours of content? Scientists. policymakers, and those with a vested interest in science and government that want the free and transparent distribution of information. The writing is at a very high and sometimes inaccessible level for many and the sheer depth of research would normally make it difficult to digest. However, the logic is sound, the arguments clear, and well documented. The expectation for many would be to listen from beginning to end, but with multiple parts, chronological movement from a presidential policy of one administration to another, it becomes difficult to follow if in that way. It is really, I believe, a great catalyst for upper-level undergraduate or graduate classroom discussion. The book provides a great return on investment for the single credit Audible charges.

About the Narrator

Peter Berkrot is a veteran narrator with a few hundred titles on Audible.com alone. I first listened to him with The Design of Everyday Things, a classic from Donald A. Norman and his voice works especially well for non-fiction. With his readings of the 30-hour Untold History of the United States and other classics, it’s not just a veteran narrator, but a key fit.

Audiobook was provided for review by the publisher.

Please find this complete review and many others at my review blog

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Definitely worth listening to.

Excellent book. Takes a much broader perspective than books such as Merchants of Doubt, which focus more specifically on corporate interference with and obfuscation of science to protect industrial interests. Otto covers this, but also looks more deeply at cultural and philosophical threats to science, as well as the failure of science to promote itself and nurture its own relationship with society.

In some places the early chapters are a little thinly argued, but I think that's just a consequence of taking a broad perspective and trying to cover a lot of territory in a single book.

The audio is slightly marred by Peter Berkrot's delivery. His voice is fine, but unfortunately he has the intonation of a video game villain. It really isn't appropriate to the subject matter and was very distracting for the first several chapters, although I eventually got used to it.

Important Read

This is an important book for politicians, educators, scientists, and all individuals who want to be responsible citizens in a democracy. Shawn Otto diagnoses the problem, explains the importance of change, and provides specific recommendations for a “cure“. He explains that, unless we recover our understanding and appreciation of science, the vibrancy of our democracy and economy is seriously threatened. If that assertion seems extreme, see how you feel after reading this book.