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SCIENCE UNDER STRESS
Vol. 90, No. 1 | Spring 2023
Ahmed Bawa, Guest Editor

In “Science under Stress,” articles speak to the issues about the shifts in the practice of science and that relate to science and society. Writers are drawn from diverse backgrounds—from the Global South and the Global North, from the natural, biomedical, and social sciences. While they speak to these issues from their contextual locations, the issues they address have pertinence across science systems….
While the survey of the pressures on science presented in this collection of essays draws on several regions of the world and covers different areas of inquiry, there are common threads that may be drawn through. The nonnegotiable place of science in addressing the grand challenges facing humanity is certain to reshape how science relates to society, how it is communicated, and how it is to navigate the risk-bearing complexity that must arise from its attempts to contribute to solving these seemingly intractable problems. The arguments for building broad-based public capacity in understanding the processes of science and the interactions between science and policy are compelling.

READ MORE FROM THE EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION >>>

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ari sitas

science and scientists in distress

This essay explores why science and technology have been questioned in recent years. It tracks doubts about the veracity of science and the motives of scientists since the Second World War. It also explores ways that nation-states have used and abused the veracity of scientific opinion during the contemporary health crisis.

geoffrey boulton

science for survival

The COVID-19 pandemic serves as a reminder that major and relatively unpredictable events can have a massive impact on the planet’s biosphere. Climate change poses an existential threat that requires a global response. The only major organization with the competence and experience to lead a global response is the UN multilateral system. This essay suggests ways this system could exploit the potential of the international scientific and technological community to address the climate crisis, though the political impacts could be profound and destabilizing.

shiv visvanathan and chandrika parmar

science and the covid epidemic in india

This essay explores the relationship between scientific knowledge and democracy in India, using COVID-19 as a case study. It shows how the state consolidates itself through technological fixes, ignoring deeper issues in civil society. The essay covers the impact of COVID-19 on migrants and the informal economy and suggests that civil society needs a biopolitics from below. It discusses the need to rework concepts like citizenship and vulnerability and cautions that the epidemic has to be seen as a prelude to the deeper demands of the Anthropocene.

 

elisa reis and felix lopez

clash between science and politics: the covid-19 pandemic in brazil

This article examines Brazil’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and the implications of the politicization of science. We seek to identify what made possible a relatively successful immunization campaign, notwithstanding the opposition of anti-vaccine forces within the government, and look at how political power struggles informed choices that impaired the national production of vaccines. Finally, we look at negative signs emerging in attitudes toward vaccines, exploring possible causes and discussing counteracting policy initiatives.

 

Safura abdool karim, quarraisha abdool karim, and salim abdool karim

covid-19: the challenge of global vaccine inequity

Several safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines were developed, evaluated, and made available in record time during the pandemic. But hopes of equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines were dashed by corporate greed, political expediency, global trade agreements, and intellectual property ownership, delaying or denying access for poor countries. Once vaccines became widely available, their benefits were curtailed by anti-science sentiment and anti-vaccine conspiracy theories. Building trust in science is key to preparing for the next pandemic.

 

Jasmine e. livingston

a global goal for climate change: the place of science in politics

Climate change presents one of the biggest threats to our planet today. This essay explores the science-policy nexus of an important symbol of climate action: the long-term global temperature goal (LTGG). In particular, it examines how the scientific and political considerations that led to the strengthening of the LTGG from 2°C to 1.5°C have potential implications for the global organization of science and the place of science in politics, as well as for scientific practice.

 

lizzie sayer, jenice goveas, AND geoffrey boulton

a pandemic-accelerated shift to openness: the case of scholarly publishing

The need to understand and respond to the COVID-19 pandemic presented an enormous stress test for scientists and for scientific research. The need for rapid access to the latest COVID-19 research highlighted a number of longstanding shortcomings in scholarly publishing, most notably delayed publication of scientific findings and barriers to access for both readers and authors to fee-charging journals. During the global health crisis, innovations were made in scholarly publishing toward greater openness, such as accelerated peer review processes and increased use of preprints. However, different stakeholders across the scientific community will need to make a concerted effort to ensure that the openness fostered during the pandemic contributes to long-lasting change in scholarly publishing.

 

melanie smallman

science to the rescue?

During difficult times, many argue that science will come to our rescue. Investment in science, technology, data, and innovation is seen to be vital if we are to tackle the most pressing concerns facing society. But not everyone shares this enthusiasm: Whether it be anti-vaxxers or climate change deniers, there has been an increased adoption of populist views that seemingly reject the rationalism of science. This rise is not evidence of a public rejection of rational thinking, however, but rather a growing difference in the way people experience the effects of science and technology. Rather than a perceived crisis of trust, our biggest source of concern should be the different ways that technology shapes our worlds.

michel wensing

social science in the time of covid-19

In the first years of the COVID-19 pandemic, social science was underrepresented in shaping government health policy. There are several reasons for this, which reflect the perceived low status of social science in health science. Nevertheless, social science is important to health science in confronting misinformation about the pandemic.

 

izabela wagner

presidential professorships: the tenure process in poland

In the final stage of the tenure track procedure in Poland, after a candidate has been recommended by a tenure commission, the Polish president must sign the candidate’s nomination. In several recent cases, this final act has been delayed, revealing how politicians in Poland are able to control academic careers. This article analyzes the complex relationship between academics and politicians in Poland and how this relationship challenges academic freedom. Autocensura (self-censorship) is one of the key consequences of this relationship.

previous issue

Guest edited by Paul A. Kottman

 

Articles by

Gregg M. Horowitz

David LaRocca

Dawn M. Wilson

Roger Hallas

Sherri Irvin

Julie Beth Napolin

Dale Hudson

Will Fenstermaker

Diana Allan

David Levi Strauss

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Guest edited by James Walkup


Articles by

Michael T. Heaney

Christian Borch

Yasemin Gülsüm Acar & Sara Vestergren

Brady Wagoner, Sarah H. Awad & Séamus A. Power

Gary Alan Fine

Mischa Gabowitsch

Stefan Jonnson

Robert Samet

Nusrat Sabina Chowdhury

MOST CITED
ARTICLES

 Chantal Mouffe, “Deliberative Democracy or Agonistic Pluralism?” (Fall 1999)

 Jerome Bruner, “Life as Narrative(Spring 1987)

 Peter Miller, “Governing by Numbers: Why Calculative Practices Matter” (Summer 2001)

 Richard S. Lazarus, “Hope: An Emotion and a Vital Coping Resource against Despair” (Summer 1999)

 Emanuel A. Schegloff, “Body Torque”  (Fall 1998)

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