Barack Obama used to talk about ‘putting science in its rightful place’. He meant that panels composed of his hand-picked experts would decide how the rest of us live. Obama’s rhetorical ploy was clever; science is one of the few institutions that still enjoys widespread approval in our society. Ignoring the mendaciousness in the slogan, the question makes sense. What is science’s rightful place?
Distilling Expertise
One thing science is not, is the arbitrator of social life. Examples abound where following ‘science’ led to disastrous consequences, often lasting decades. Ugly architectural blight was designed ‘scientifically’. Policies that lead to an increase in crime were based on expert knowledge and sold under the rubric of science. For over half a century a number of psychiatric illnesses were blamed on mothers.
Scientific knowledge, of course, can be faulty. Sometimes scientists get the wrong answer. But there is a bigger problem when it comes to translating knowledge into social policy—the problem lies in the nature of the expert panels Mr. Obama so loved.
Knowledge in science is dispersed; no scientist can know everything and what they think they know is often faulty. Creating a panel automatically reduces the knowledge available. Worse, panels are usually politically and ideologically stacked, with experts of similar bent appointing each other. Many controversial, difficult questions, are decided when the experts are hired. Like in the Simpson trial, where the verdict came the moment the jury was seated.
Philosopher-Kings
Unlike Plato’s idealized rulers, experts cannot be expected to behave both wisely and impartially. They are human, like the rest of us, with the same set of virtues and vices. They often adhere to one tribe or another, or form their own. They bring their assumptions into their work—how could they not? This usually works out when the peer-review process works as intended, but when it comes to public policy, the peer-review process no longer applies. Recommendations coming from such panels may be right or wrong, but they are no longer science.
Science’s Place
Science is a tool for finding things out as well as a body of knowledge. But it is not a modern-day Golden Calf we should all worship. It has no rightful place, because it only exists in the minds of men. It has no place in telling us how to live our lives.
