As we have discussed on several occasions, scientists look for facts; pieces of information that result from their observations of the natural world. These tidbits can be numbers or observations, qualitative or quantitative. There can be uncertainty in their values or even their interpretation.
When disparate groups possess different facts, disagreements can crop up, between scientists or the groups which support them. We talk this week about the way facts can be incomplete and lead to decisions which do not always result in the best of all possible worlds.
Facts: Good, Bad And Ugly
KSMU