Science Language, Please

You don’t have to be a linguist to appreciate the assaults on our use of the language of science over the past few years. Redefining words and phrases to confuse, and other adolescent shenanigans, are just irresponsible behaviors. They do not lend themselves to the gravity of communication in meeting the challenges of a pandemic.

The language of science, and Medicine in particular, have always been unique. The use of Latin and Greek to more clearly to define the meaning of a word, based upon the component parts of the word, has been the basis of a scientific education for generations. Complex ideas refined down to words that while difficult to pronounce, provided concise meaning in scientific conversations.

Then political leaders stepped in, appropriating scientific language, demonstrating ignorance of the meanings of that language, and confusing everyone listening – including the speakers themselves.

What a mess.

This confused word usage complicates the making of sound healthcare decisions. A liberal use of common sense and some understanding of technical reading certainly seem to be in order.

I sincerely hope this helps.

Defining Concepts of Science in Language

Saying what you mean and meaning what you say, while not commonly found in political playbooks, contributes to managing our daily lives. COVID-19 and our leaders’ responses to circumstances have ultimately shown the need for educated individuals to translate science into our commonly understood language. When confused and confusing signals from “leadership” are provided, the onus is on each of us to be as well-informed as possible and make decisions upon the best available information at the time.

Political obfuscation aside, let’s look at some of the concepts and language used to define the Science connected with the health crisis at hand.

Average

The word average describes a mathematical model. We all likely remember learning about averages in grade school where we added the sum of a series of numbers and divided by the number of figures tallied. This gave us a number to describe the middle of that group of numbers. Just a derived number used for comparison purposes

Average is not a goal or particularly special number except to compare sets of numbers. Whether it is people’s height or the number of doctor’s visits a particular group makes, it is still just a number. Relax.

Science Absolutes

Science operates with very few absolutes. It is a process that never completely ends. Observe, hypothesize, test, observe, etc. What we know today changes with the arrival of new data tomorrow. If someone is coming at you with scientific rules and certainties that say things things are just so, what they are telling you is questionable. Be skeptical.

Language of Emotion

I have… ahem… been known to mention in passing that Science is not qualified. Results are not “good” or “bad”. Results of scientific inquiry are just that, results. They give you information, but the information needs to be interpreted by qualified individuals. (I was amazed at the number of amateur epidemiologists that kept stepping up to the mic to share their professional opinion about COVID matters. Who knew that non-science degrees provide such professional insight into the complexities of virology?) Goodness or badness concerning any group of data is purely in the eye of the beholder. Science doesn’t qualify its answers – any qualities are added by the person(s) reporting. A healthy helping of skepticism works well here too.

Poor Study Habits

This is not to say that there are not bad scientific studies available. There is LOTS of poor scientific research published most every day where they study just a few instances/individuals, or an entirely different species of animal, and extrapolate conclusions for an entire human population. As a consumer of scientific studies, it is on us to peer behind the curtain and see if research appears reliable. Don’t expect media sources to do your homework for you.

The “S” Word

Invoking the word “Science” during any argument does not mean that there is any scientific support for the argument. Weaponizing scientific information as being on the right side of a policy is always questionable. Science is about supporting evidence – not saying the words.

Numbers

Science is full of numbers, but they are a tool used in a process. We have seen numbers abused especially poorly during the pandemic. Certain sets of numbers do not necessarily connect with other sets. For example, positive COVID-19 test results were recently cited to argue for vaccine use. Vaccines don’t prevent becoming infected, so the two sets of numbers are not related as the argument says so. When someone starts shouting number sets to support their contentions, warning bells should go off for you to look at the data more closely. The evidence may be there, or it may not. Find out for sure.

Personal Convictions

 Speaking an opinion does not necessarily make it so. I have read about individuals “speaking ideas into reality” but holding onto an opinion exclusively, declining any conversation or debate, mostly just reveals the speaker. Scientists providing unsupported personal or ideological opinions that generate public attention is not the same as providing educated opinions based upon current scientific knowledge. Cheerleaders for ideological points-of-view are not scientific leaders. To quote some forensic dramas, “Follow the evidence”. THAT is Science.

Getting Comfortable with Uncertainty

Welcome to the grown-up world. Though there are some aspects of science that can produce some wow-wee effects, science is not magic. It can be mind-numbingly boring at times, if you must know but science is the best tool we for solving problems and improving our lives.

Scientific study is fluid and ongoing. And yes, sometimes the best answer provided through scientific study is “we don’t know yet”. Science provides answers to many things in our universe. Just not all the answers.

Let’s be responsible and not let numbers and conclusions manufactured by others guide our daily decision-making. Evaluate the reasonableness of medical interventions based upon sound evidence available at the time. Scientific evidence doesn’t arbitrarily change according to political whim. It changes when there is substantiated reason to do so.

Let’s follow the science.

The saddest aspect of life right now is that science gathers knowledge faster than society gathers wisdom.
― Isaac Asimov