• By Danny Rose
• From: AAP
• February 23, 2010 4:06PM

 

SCIENTISTS are "improving society", the majority of Australians believe.

A survey has found 84 per cent of Australians feel positive about the impact of science and technological advance on the community, and this figure has remained stable over the past five years.

The news would come as some relief to scientists who have faced a concerted and public attack on issues such as climate change and immunisation in recent months, agreed Dr Craig Cormick.

"That's fair to say," he said. "... but just because something is getting negative coverage in the media we shouldn't presume that it is mirroring public attitudes.

"Public support and trust in Australian scientists certainly remains very, very high."

The poll of 1,100 Australians, conducted in October last year, pointed to medical advances including the recent development of swine flu and cervical cancer vaccines, along with internet technologies, as key reasons for recipients' positive views of science.

While 84 per cent of people were in the affirmative, this figure was down from a high of 89 per cent in 2008 but still up from 81 per cent support seen in 2005.  While trust in scientists remained high, Dr Cormick said the community's responsiveness to global issues had shifted in recent times as a reaction to the global financial crisis.

"If you went back two years the big issue was climate change and people were in much concern about the state of the globe ... they were very much what we'd call `global citizens`," he said.

"There has been a bit of a step back from that, a lot of it driven by the global financial crisis, where people are now what we call `nesters` ... who worry about their own family, friends, finances.

"They are much more introspective and we've seen that reflected in the broader debate on climate change trust."

Dr Cormick is manager of public affairs and community engagement at the federal government's Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research.

The figures were drawn from research which probed views surrounding nanotechnology and, more broadly, perceptions of scientists and how their work impacted on society.

The research also found 74 per cent of Australians have heard of nanotechnology - though about a third of these people did not know what the term meant.

Nanotechnology is the process of controlling matter, or creating tools that operate on, a molecular or atomic level.

Applications include creating bandages impregnated with anti-bacterial properties and patches that can deliver medicines.

The survey was presented in Sydney at ICONN 2010 - Australia's International Conference on Nanoscience and Nanotechnology.

 

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/breaking-news/scientists-improving-society-poll/story-fn3dxity-1225833537253