Science? What’s that?

Being a renowned astrophysicist and astronomer, Carl Sagan has truly invested his life’s work into the world of Science. Along with the production of entertaining yet educational television shows, he has also written books about various topics that relate to the facts most Americans are unaware of during the late twentieth century. Despite the belief that a number of people in America have successfully managed the ominous depths of the college classroom when it comes to the sciences, Sagan manages to truly point out the faults that have been overlooked, not in the American people necessarily, but rather in the society they have been nurtured by. With this point in mind, Sagan has made quite an effort to publicize how necessary such information is in the world today- one of these attempts being documented as the essay, “Why We Need to Understand Science” which was published in Parade Magazine (1989) – in hopes that his readers truly interpret the effects of bettering themselves in this field.
According to the previously mentioned article written in Parade magazine, there is a serious lack of scientific knowledge among the American people and the society in which they live in could be held partially responsible. Between the scientists that don’t usually want you to know what they’re up to, the government who are providing less and less funding for education, and the lack of motivation that results from not seeing the products that come from an occupation in a science- related field, kids today are fighting an uphill battle to compete against the workforce of other countries. Allowing the audience to possibly classify themselves as a victim of this experience appears to be one of the methods utilized to grab their attention- hence where portraying the character “William F. Buckley” comes into play. Mr. Buckley represents those who have been led to believe information which hardly constitutes as factual due to the “pretense and confusion” of the articles allowed in the public’s eye. Through mentioning the effect this has on the country economically, Sagan continues to try and grab the attention of others who may have been more educated than this character, yet still don’t understand how important science is to the current way of life. For example he mentions information in the “A Prescription for Disaster” segment that ties in the economic consequences of remaining ignorant to give people some sense of a future that may not be so affected by their existence. Lastly, despite the bad occurrences that have happened as a result of its use, Ragan begins to identify all the good that science can do toward advancing mental processes and further encourages his readers to support it through personification of its ability to aid our way of life, as well as the way we think about the world. Whether it invites, urges, or counsels someone to embark on a path that intrigues the mind is up to that sole person, but Sagan’s point is that Science can aid you in reaching such a path.
To further convince his readers of such claims, the article supplies information (specifically statistics) which compares America to a few other countries that excel in the Math and Science fields. Through the comparison of not only college students, but elementary students as well, Ragan portrays the range of information that the American public is lacking, even at such a young age as 10 years old. Not only have Japan, South Korea, and British Columbia all gone down this path of “(Our country):1, America: 0” but also our Northern counterpart Canada has even surpassed the knowledge base of the United States.
In the eyes of the author, the students who were examined to determine these statistics have the aptitude to be as intelligent as their international competition in these particular subjects, it is just a matter of motivation and support. To ascertain that this is the case, it is recommended that the first problem to be observed is the work force who are educating children as well as working for industrial companies. Throughout the past few decades, the information which these two groups are required to know has increased, and yet the worker’s desire to fully perform at their jobs have decreased substantially in terms of their lack of training. Sagan also pulls the covers from everyone’s blind eye on the fact that discrimination has also played a hindrance on the workforce that America so desperately needs. Both sexism and racism have played a hand in this as companies reject women, and people of other races who could actually be more than capable of performing in their occupation. The second matter of business addresses the funding that the government failed to use in support of education. Without hands-on access that occurs usually in labs, students will be doomed to the bland pages of terms and formulas written on a page. This, along with the attitude seen commonly within classrooms that discourages the curiosity which naturally emerging in the youth from time to time, has surely diminished their vigor to learn about the world they exist in.
As for what can be done to help raise the bar placed in American education, the article suggests that one should aim “not just to train more scientists but also to deepen public understanding of science.” In Sagan’s eyes, what could be a major aid to this issue is the development of interest that the public once had in learning about science, as well as educating the youth that will soon be responsible for “tomorrow.” He embarks the reader’s interest in this topic by asking how America’s counterparts have excelled – thus gaging their minds to wonder and seek the answer in the article. As for the students themselves, the most effective way to enhance their development seems to be engaging in advanced math and science courses at a relatively early age. Parents can also enroll their children in a “Head Start” program or an “Upward Bound” program to spark the desire for learning that children are naturally born with, yet seems to dwindle with each passing scholastic year.
The article “Why we need to understand Science” has truly compelled me to really care about the educational future of our world. The complacency within American society is only a major wake up call to the diminishing interests in a subject that is quite vital to the progress of the human race and it is up to us to maintain that progress. As Carl Sagan had mentioned in his article, “its awesome power forces on all of us…a new responsibility- more attention to the long-term consequences of technology..”