Top Tweets for #divinewatchmaker

2 days ago

What is the state of #public #trust in the #naturalsciences? It took a long time for the natural sciences, rather than #religiousfaith, to become the means by which the world was explained. God had shifted from being an "active guide" to a "#divinewatchmaker", a concept increasingly shaped as early as the 17th century by pioneers of #Deism such as René #Descartes (1596–1650) and Isaac #Newton (1642–1726). Today, we have the Internet; every mobile phone is a high-performance computer; and we are planning to establish crewed stations on the Moon and even colonize Mars. Is this a triumph of the natural sciences? According to a #newsfeature by H. Pearson in #Nature (July 2026), there is a widespread #concern, spanning South America, the US, and Europe, that trust in the natural sciences has #declined. Right at the start, the article points to two studies that appear to confirm this: one British #study found that only 40 percent of respondents consider scientific findings to be correct, while a global study indicated that as many as 70 percent of respondents #believe #unprovenclaims. However, the specific focus of a survey clearly matters. A representative survey conducted in 2022/23, covering 72,000 people across 68 countries, found a relatively high level of trust, 3.6 out of 5 points (study: https://t.co/J8duC3Y3aU). Is the fear that segments of the population are turning away from science therefore unfounded? By no means, according to the Nature article's author; other studies, and statements by sociologist Gordon Gauchat of the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, point to the increasing #politicization of the natural sciences, particularly among #rightwing #politicalgroups. Naturally, this leads to ideological conflicts regarding issues such as the need for climate-neutral practices in light of predominantly human-induced #globalwarming, or for example the benefits of #vaccines. I have gained the impression that wherever #extremists form #autocratic #governments, the dissemination of knowledge to the population is always infiltrated by #propaganda. But only far-right governments replace the Divine Watchmaker in 17th- and 18th-century Deism with the ideology of #stupidity and #narrowmindedness. And I assume this happens because right-wing autocrats don't believe in their own ideologies, but know perfectly well that education always stands in the way of their unbridled lust for power. This is why, for example, the German far-right party #AfD announces in its current party platform its intention to abolish #compulsoryeducation. Therefore, right-wing extremism always poses a threat to the advancement of science and thus stands only for the consolidation of power, the antithesis of diversity and of each perspective of globalization, as well as of each necessary, well-founded orientation towards the future. In doing so, it deliberately exploits the disorientation among those who are already poorly educated and who nowadays can no longer even use a World Cup as an outlet for their pent-up #hatred. The #intercultural composition of modern football teams seems increasingly unsuitable for promoting right-wing narrow-mindedness. But hopefully even the most foolish right-wing politician knows in truth that there can be never any future without the ongoing freedom of the natural sciences. © #StefanF.Wirth, July 2026, Berlin Please support my science writing and my science education efforts: https://t.co/4nN4eRHB6I Reference: H. Pearson in Nature (July 2026): https://t.co/eqGrU7TCW3 #Illustrations: © Stefan F. Wirth, July 2026, #AIassisted artistic illustrations, based in my hand-drawn storyboard sketches, manually edited and modified: 1) - 4) about the conflict between science and its future oriented acting and the appeal of parading simple ideologies of order, equality, and a fabricated shared national identity, grounded in a futile attempt to claim ethnic roots in ancient local traditions

wirthstef's tweet photo. What is the state of #public #trust in the #naturalsciences?

It took a long time for the natural sciences, rather than #religiousfaith, to become the means by which the world was explained. God had shifted from being an "active guide" to a "#divinewatchmaker", a concept increasingly shaped as early as the 17th century by pioneers of #Deism such as René #Descartes (1596–1650) and Isaac #Newton (1642–1726).
Today, we have the Internet; every mobile phone is a high-performance computer; and we are planning to establish crewed stations on the Moon and even colonize Mars. Is this a triumph of the natural sciences?

According to a #newsfeature by H. Pearson in #Nature (July 2026), there is a widespread #concern, spanning South America, the US, and Europe, that trust in the natural sciences has #declined. Right at the start, the article points to two studies that appear to confirm this: one British #study found that only 40 percent of respondents consider scientific findings to be correct, while a global study indicated that as many as 70 percent of respondents #believe #unprovenclaims. However, the specific focus of a survey clearly matters. A representative survey conducted in 2022/23, covering 72,000 people across 68 countries, found a relatively high level of trust, 3.6 out of 5 points (study: https://t.co/J8duC3Y3aU). Is the fear that segments of the population are turning away from science therefore unfounded? By no means, according to the Nature article's author; other studies, and statements by sociologist Gordon Gauchat of the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, point to the increasing #politicization of the natural sciences, particularly among #rightwing #politicalgroups. Naturally, this leads to ideological conflicts regarding issues such as the need for climate-neutral practices in light of predominantly human-induced #globalwarming, or for example the benefits of #vaccines.

I have gained the impression that wherever #extremists form #autocratic #governments, the dissemination of knowledge to the population is always infiltrated by #propaganda.
But only far-right governments replace the Divine Watchmaker in 17th- and 18th-century Deism with the ideology of #stupidity and #narrowmindedness. And I assume this happens because right-wing autocrats don't believe in their own ideologies, but know perfectly well that education always stands in the way of their unbridled lust for power. This is why, for example, the German far-right party #AfD announces in its current party platform its intention to abolish #compulsoryeducation. Therefore, right-wing extremism always poses a threat to the advancement of science and thus stands only for the consolidation of power, the antithesis of diversity and of each perspective of globalization, as well as of each necessary, well-founded orientation towards the future. In doing so, it deliberately exploits the disorientation among those who are already poorly educated and who nowadays can no longer even use a World Cup as an outlet for their pent-up #hatred. The #intercultural composition of modern football teams seems increasingly unsuitable for promoting right-wing narrow-mindedness. But hopefully even the most foolish right-wing politician knows in truth that there can be never any future without the ongoing freedom of the natural sciences.

© #StefanF.Wirth, July 2026, Berlin

Please support my science writing and my science education efforts:
https://t.co/4nN4eRHB6I

Reference:
H. Pearson in Nature (July 2026):
https://t.co/eqGrU7TCW3

#Illustrations:
© Stefan F. Wirth, July 2026, #AIassisted artistic illustrations, based in my hand-drawn storyboard sketches, manually edited and modified:
1) - 4) about the conflict between science and its future oriented acting and the appeal of parading simple ideologies of order, equality, and a fabricated shared national identity, grounded in a futile attempt to claim ethnic roots in ancient local traditions

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Dr. Simon Phillip Thomas @WhoisSimon

over 9 years ago

Picked this up blowing around on campus. Can't decide if it was intelligently designed or not? #DivineWatchmaker #SummaJokes

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