The writer is a science commentator
本文作者是科学评论员
There is something for everyone in a new report on public trust in science. Optimists will rejoice that 84 per cent of Britons say they still trust in science to some degree, with only two per cent declaring no faith at all. Pessimists may dwell instead on the plunge in numbers trusting it “a lot”, down from 63 per cent in 2020 to 34 per cent today.
每个人都能从一份关于公众对科学信任度的最新报告中，读到自己想要的东西。乐观主义者会感到欣慰，因为84%的英国人表示他们仍然在一定程度上信任科学，仅有2%的人宣称完全不信任。悲观主义者则可能更关注“非常”信任科学的人比例骤降——从2020年的63%下降到了如今的34%。
But there’s another pattern that stands out in these disruptive times: science is increasingly seen as a fallible institution run by a liberal elite in its own interests. Three in ten Britons, the poll reveals, think science is too closely aligned to political causes, with nearly a third of Reform UK voters suspecting a left-wing bias.
但在当下这个动荡的时代，还有另一个模式清晰可见：科学正日益被视作自由派精英为了自身利益运行的、会犯错的体系。民调显示，三成英国人认为科学与政治事业结合得过于紧密，近三分之一的改革党(Reform UK)选民怀疑科学并不中立，而是偏左。