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Demystifying science

Demystifying science earlier this year, the science and technology committee of Britain's House of Lords produced a long-awaited report on the relationship between science and society. The very first paragraph sets the scene for why such a report was considered necessary. "Society's relationship with science is in a critical phase,' it says. "Science today is exciting, and full of opportunities. Yet public confidence in scientific advice to the government has been rocked by bovine spongiform encephalopathy ( bse , popularly known as the mad cow disease); and many people are uneasy about the rapid advance of areas such as biotechnology and information technology

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