Notebook: The social character of scientific knowledge

Many of us want to know how the SARS-CoV-2 virus originated. If the virus is au naturel, we would have to institute and/or expand pathogen surveillance, eliminate wildlife trafficking, and improve social security measures to ensure populations can withstand outbreaks without becoming distressed. To quote philosopher Nicholas Rescher, “no one can say in advance what questions natural science can and cannot answer.” But science communication has taught me not all of us can know everything unless we invest considerable, perhaps even impossible, resources. Science journalists like me communicate science by providing for scientists’ claims, to quote Rescher, “the backing of a rationale that renders correctness evident”, but I still demand a considerable amount of faith from readers. When people encounter a weighty concept scientists aren’t able to explain fully, the social character becomes more apparent than it normally is.