As part of my research on science denial I bought this book/comic. Not only does it outline some of the fears/worries/facts about major scientific issues such as fracking, homeopathy, vaccinations etc, it explains them in an unbiased and very straight forward way. Plus an entire chapter on science denial.
The use of the comic medium has often been used to tackle political issues in small snippet comics/illustrations but tackling major issues in a large novel format is something rarely done. After blitz reading this in under two hours (not out of necessity but seriously I was that absorbed into it I just kept reading) I went straight to Amazon to buy his other book on the economic super crash.
Here are some sections from it I really enjoyed and some issues that I would like to look into further.
Thabo Mbeki president of South Africa didn't believe in scientific cures for AIDS he isn't thought that natural remedies could cure HIV positive mothers. Because of his actions an estimated 300,000 people died and many children were born HIV positive.
Also I want to look more into homeopathy and the negative effects this quack form of medicine has had. The book mentions a story about Penelope Dingle, a cancer patient who turned her back on traditional medicine despite her tumour being very small and said to be curable. She ended up dying because of her faith in homeopathy and I know this isn't the only case.
Anti(whatever)campaigns and fact suppression. All evidence linking smoking to cancer was suppressed and the ones that found no correlation revealed. I think there may be the modern equivalents- anti vaccination studies being one.
The story behind the anti vaccination movement and how much damage it has caused since then.
The difference between evidence and opinion. Also why people are scared of science? Is it simply because they don't have all the facts or is it because they believe a fact and an opinion are one and the same?
Climate change. How can people deny it? Why do people deny it?
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