The Dismal Reputation of Science

To understand why science has such a dismal reputiation, you need to accept that power is the ultimate currency of value in human society. Viewed through this lens, how does science appear?

First, does power accrue to those who carry out science? Basically, no. An idea, standing on its own, has little value. This is hard for most scientists to accept, since they have devoted their lives to pursuing ideas. However, they should realize that they get what they pursue - the truth, not social recognition. On the one hand, there is "pure" science, which is basically about understanding the universe. While some of the results of this work can eventually be converted into applications that supply (politcal) power, this requires the effort of so many other people that the scientist with the idea has little leverage on his own. Furthermore, he usually actually has to sell his new idea to others before it is even accepted as valid, and by this time the idea is widespread and accesible to everyone. Applied science - the creation of useful devices - has a more direct link with power, since tools can be used to convince others to do what you want them to (the flamethrower is an obvious example, but this applies to more subtle coercion such as convincing someone to buy something). However, the invention has to be financed by someone, and requires production, advertising, etc.. This means that applied science tends to be a little more valued, and paid, but that it doesn't get a huge amount of appreciation since the idea of the invention requires the efforts of so many others to actually create something useful.

But why does this make science have such a dismal reputation, rather than simply mediocre wages? The reason is that science is an obstactle to those with real power, in general, and therefore they dislike it. Since they have power, their perspectives are the most important and pervasive (as any underling who considers saying "no" to the boss must realize). If you already have power, what can science give you? Well, it can give your opponent the edge, if you are not careful, by giving him more useful tools than you. Alternately, you must spend your own resources to pay off these irritating "idea men" to stay abreast in the "arms race" of ideas. Furthermore, many scientific ideas tend to be a bit hard to grasp, and this has the potential for making the boss look ignorant, which diminishes his power (this doesn't go over well either). So overall, science is primarily a nuisance that must be dealt with by those who have power.

That's my idea, for what it's worth :/

Ray