You’ve heard it before: Science is under attack!
But what kind of “science,” exactly, do we want to defend? The history of science is full of examples of scientists confusing their scientific expertise with a right to exercise political power. Science has given us pasteurized milk, solar panels, and a better understanding of how ecosystems interact, but it has also produced eugenics, tools for mass surveillance, and weapons of mass destruction. Science is made by people, and people are embedded in social and cultural systems. People are complicated, and science is too.
Never Just Science is a newsletter that explores the intersection of science, history, and politics—what is, what has been, and what might be. “Science” is never just about science, and science without values can never be just. Subscribers can expect posts on Tuesdays (some of them, anyway) on contemporary science policy, the history of science, the scourge of scientism, and viable alternatives.
Free subscribers receive the basic newsletter plus access to the archives (available via this site). Premium members additionally receive special bonus issues, polls, and community benefits, including the Never Just Science Book Club.