Paul Nurse - Political Views

Political Views

Nurse criticized the potential Republican candidates for the US presidential nomination for opposing the teaching of natural selection, stem cell research on cell lines from human embryos, and anthropogenic climate change; he blamed scientists in part for not speaking up. He was alarmed that this could happen in the U.S., a world leader in science, "the home of Benjamin Franklin, Richard Feynman and Jim Watson."

One problem, Nurse said, was "treating scientific discussion as if it were political debate," using rhetorical tricks rather than logic. Another problem was science teaching in the schools, which does not teach citizens how to discuss science, and is compromised by religious schools, even in the United Kingdom.

"We need to emphasize why the scientific process is such a reliable generator of knowledge with its respect for evidence, for skepticism, for consistency of approach, for the constant testing of ideas," wrote Nurse.

Finally, scientific leaders "have a responsibility to expose the bunkum," said Nurse. They should take on politicians, and expose nonsense during elections.