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Citizen Science

Sunday, March 21, 2021 8 Nisan 5781

3:00 PM - 4:00 PM

Citizen Science

Sunday March 21, 2021

3pm-4pm Central Time

The Illinois Chapter of Jews for a Secular Democracy invites you to join in a presentation and discussion of the current state of science education and its place in public policy.

Given the events of the past year, we don’t have to look far to see the consequences of science-illiteracy. But the problems posed by a lack of scientific understanding and related critical thinking are nothing new. Whether it is creationism, rejection of nuclear power, denial of climate science, anti-vaccination, etc., humanity has a long, complicated history with science.

 So how can we, as normal citizens, work to enlighten our friends, family, and co-workers to become more accepting of science and think critically? This presentation will try to address these questions by looking within and beyond science into how politics and philosophy can play a role in making our society more scientifically-literate.

Guest speaker Matthew Lowry is a gifted science high school and college educator, having also taught mathematics and astronomy in his 22 year career. Outside of his formal teaching career, he has long been a public advocate for science literacy and critical thinking, participating in numerous talks, lectures, and panel discussions on the topic over the years. He has also at times gotten into the trenches of these fights, from battling creationist attempts to take over local school boards to helping with research on pro-vaccination messaging. Recently, he also finished a degree in philosophy (because, why not?) and this has helped to broaden his approach to these topics.

 

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