Perception, image, and reality

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editoridly /pea king Perception, Image, and Reality There is very little doubt that the relationship between the aualitv of life in modern society and the advancement of ihemical knowledge is not fully understood or appreciated by most citizens. Indeed, sensitive ohservers in this area report a widespread distinctively anti-science attitude, i.e., a feeling that societv would he hetter off without science or the technological r&ults of its application. For example, a recent survey of French adults indicated a high proportion helieve:

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Scientific progress always leads to increased government power. Technical progress increases unemployment. Scientists, because of their knowledge have a potentially dangerous power. Science is of little help in understanding our lives.

There are other indications that such impressions are commonly held in many societies and that they have produced unfavorable images of chemistry in the minds of many people. For example, chemists are perceived as:

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Asocial. They just sit in their labs all day pouring chemicals from one test tube to another. They are all wrapped-up in their own work. live as solitaries, have few hobbies, and no social life. ~ e s ~ o n s i bfor l e pollution and unwarranted deaths. Bomb-makers.

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come to understand that manv of the ouestions relating- to pollution are psychological, societal, and economic rather than technoloeical. - responsi. , which is imnortant not for shifting hility away from chemistry hut rather focusing efforts to areas where nrouer solutions to such urohlems can he mounted. Increased basic knowledge leadsto increased opportunities for making personal judgments; a systematic thinking process provides a basis for logical value judgments. The results of such processes may not he to our personal liking, hut at least we can perceive the basis of irrationality. Lead-free gasolines are available. Are we willing to pay higher prices and forgo unnecessary horsepower and joy riding to clean un the air? \ h m c;trcrul lwwll~nrof p r m ~ n will c dtrrc?r