NAS ANNUAL FUND
PUBLIC UNDERSTANDING OF SCIENCE

A robust science enterprise depends on policymakers and citizens understanding and appreciating science’s fundamental contributions to our society, as well as the rational processes which create these new resources and capabilities. Ideally, the public will come to regard the intellectual explorations of science as a vibrant thread interwoven in the fabric of American society.

The Academy’s program in public understanding of science pursues these goals through several initiatives, the most prominent of which is Beyond Discovery: The Path from Research to Human Benefit -- a continuing series of articles that describe the scientific origins of important technological and medical advances.

To date, 16 issues of Beyond Discovery have been published in print and online -- covering topics ranging from underwater acoustics and plate tectonics, to polymers and treatments for childhood leukemia -- and read by tens of thousands of teachers and students, citizens and policymakers.

Ultimately, the capacity of the public to respond intelligently and responsibly to scientific and technological issues depends not only on their familiarity with scientific “facts” but also on their ability to discriminate among conflicting assertions and opinions through an appreciation of the underlying scientific evidence and of how such evidence is derived. So, the Public Understanding program is developing new vehicles and approaches designed to help the public sort through the current unprecedented flood of information and opinions -- often conflicting -- about scientific and technological issues and their implications.

More information on Beyond Discovery and other public understanding programs is available at www.nationalacademies.org/opus. Use your browser's Back button to return to this page.

To make an Annual Fund gift or Campaign pledge, use our secure on-line form or check out the Making Your Gift section of our website.

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For more information about any of the programs mentioned in these pages -- or about the Annual Fund in general -- please contact us at giving@nationalacademies.org or 202.334.2431.