The 2019 Nils Klim Seminar: "Why Trust a Scientist?"

2019 Nils Klim Laureate Finnur Dellsén and other prominent scholars discuss the role of experts in public debate, as well as issues of trust. There is a growing concern that the public no longer trusts scientists’ expert judgments on the most pressing questions of our time, such as climate change. At the same time, we are slowly realizing that not all scientists are worthy of the public’s trust, e.g. because of bias, incompetence, overzealousness, or outright fraud. So how can the public tell which scientists to trust? And how can trustworthy scientists make it easier for the public to tell that they are in fact among the trustworthy ones? Clearly, the answer will not just consist in teaching the public more science, since there are obvious limits to how much the public can be expected to keep up with modern science — especially in this age of hyperspecialization. Thus, we will need to look for more creative ways to bridge the gap between trustworthy scientists and a rightly skeptical public. Finnur Dellsén, the 2019 Nils Klim Laureate, is Associate Professor in Philosophy at the University of Iceland and og Associate Professor II at Inland Univeristy of Applied Sciences. His research focuses on epistemology and philosophy of science. Liam Kofi Bright is Assistant Professor at the Department of Philosophy, Logic,and Scientific Method, London School of Economics. Hanne Andersen is Professor of Philosophy of Science and Head of the Department of Science Education, University of Copenhagen. K. Brad Wray is Associate Professor at the Centre for Science Studies, Aarhus University. Ole Thomassen Hjortland will moderate the event. Hjortland is Associate Professor at the Department of Philosophy, University of Bergen. Venue: Auditorium A, Ulrike Pihl House, Bergen, Norway Time: 11:00 A.M. – 01:00 P.M. (CET + 1)