Re: Pseudoscience and TV from Down-Under 2

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Thanks very much.  Some people here have wondered how this stuff is viewed
in the rest of the world.

>Jere,
>I would hope that there would be some science writers out there following
>this story, because it transcends the gee-whiz-bangery of much of the stuff
>they write. A recent article in one of the Australasian versions of Time
>Magizine chronicles the changing over from 'Stryne (Australian
>pronunciation and constructions-- like fair-dinkum (hardly heard nowdays),
>cobber (pr. cobba), and silly gallah (add a silent r to the end)-- to an
>americanized pastiche retaining much but not all pronunciation and
>significantly reducing the number and frequency of 'Stryne words. Words
>come and go; the dynamics of language cannot in my view be ignored, nor
>wished away. The importance and thrust of the article was the pervasion of
>US culture via television, because it was not until Australia began to
>import US programmes in a large way that the change became pronounced
>(pardon the pun) and extremely rapid.
>
>I fear that this is all too often the case with most media; the countries
>down the line, those who get the X files 1/2 year late will be
>disadvantaged all the more; because, by the time the programme is shown in
>Australia, the reaction, if any, in the print media via science writers
>will have dissapated and the poor cobba dowing a few tinnies at the tele
>will take this garbage as  "truth", largely because Moses (or at least his
>voice, dimly remembered from the movie the 10 commandments) will have
>spoken the word.
>
>For any on the list, there is a conference sponsored by the American
>Chemical Society (the 14th biennial Conference on Chemical Education taking
>place at Clemson College, August 4-8, 1996 that includes teaching science
>from grade 1 up to college (arts) students. Also, at a conference was held
>over a year ago at Harvard, "Science and Archaeology", and one of the
>topics of constant debate was how to get archaeological students to become
>aware of (a) the scientific method and philosophy and (b) (more
>importantly) how to get them to ACT like scientists, not just be consumers
>of technology.
>
>The problem raised by the TV show of NBC relates to a societal view at
>large, and not confined to the USA-- a modern society which has become
>technology-wise and science ignorant, and adamantly ignorant of the
>importance of curiosity and learning whether in science or the arts. In
>addition, TV programmes like this one and others, coupled with a
>conservative political structure which is now beginning its slow swing in
>the noose of government almost guarantee that funding for science, basic
>research type science will once again really dry-up, unless we as
>scientists raise our profile to that of an olympic athlete for example. We
>are strangling ourselves by our own propensity (not all of us mind you) to
>bury our research and personalities in places where they are not seen by
>the public. My sense in Australia is that there really IS a large segment
>of interest, and influential public, out there that would love to see some
>real science on TV-- but the producers and "buyers of public airtime" (god
>forbid we should call them sponsors) are not only a-political,  and not too
>sure where the line is drawn between immoral and or excessively violent
>programing they are  a-everything-- they don't give a stuff.
>
>So where to turn? It seems incumbent upon the scientific community,
>individually and in spite of a sense of futility, to keep yelling bloody
>murder to anyone other than another scientist when anti-intellectual
>anti-scientific material is being promulgated in any of the media.
>
>Feel free to send this and the original diatribes to anyone who cares.
>irately
>tom
>
>Thomas H. Loy, PhD
>Centre for Molecular and Cellular Biology
>                AND
>Department of Anthropology and Sociology
>The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland, 4072
>Email t.loy@mailbox.uq.oz.au
>Office +617 - 3365-4483 // Lab +617 -3365- 4391
>After Hours +617- 3378-4487