Episode 2499: Thomas Levenson explains how modern scientific research has changed the world and saved tens of millions of lives

MIT professor Thomas Levenson is one of America’s most celebrated science writers and filmmakers. In his upcoming new book, So Very Small, Levenson charts the history of germ theory to underline how modern scientific research has changed the world and saved tens of millions of lives. Not surprisingly, then, Levenson expresses deep concern about the Trump administration's attacks on the American scientific establishment, particularly funding cuts affecting critical research. He warns against growing the anti-vaccine ideology, explaining how periods of rapid social change often trigger the kind of anti-expertise attitudes articulated by paranoid reactionaries like RFK Jr.

FIVE TAKEAWAYS

* Science in America is under assault by the Trump administration through funding cuts to critical research institutions like NIH, which doesn't just affect current work but dismantles research infrastructure that takes years to build.

* Levenson's book "So Very Small" traces how humans discovered microbes and developed treatments for infectious diseases, showing both scientific progress and persistent resistance to medical innovations like vaccines.

* Anti-vaccine sentiment has grown from fringe to mainstream, with RFK Jr.'s appointment as head of health policy representing a serious threat to public health despite the overwhelming evidence supporting vaccine efficacy.

* The COVID pandemic demonstrated both scientific triumph (developing vaccines in record time) and societal division, reflecting a pattern where rapid social change often triggers anti-expertise attitudes.

* Antibiotic resistance represents a growing crisis where previously curable infections are becoming untreatable, not because of scientific failure but because of social choices about how we've deployed these medications.

Thomas Levenson is a professor of science writing at MIT. He is the author of several books, including So Very Small, Money for Nothing, The Hunt for Vulcan, Einstein in Berlin, and Newton and the Counterfeiter: The Unknown Detective Career of the World’s Greatest Scientist. He has also made ten feature-length documentaries (including a two-hour Nova program on Einstein) for which he has won numerous awards.

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Named as one of the "100 most connected men" by GQ magazine, Andrew Keen is amongst the world's best known broadcasters and commentators. In addition to presenting the daily KEEN ON show, he is the host of the long-running How To Fix Democracy interview series. He is also the author of four prescient books about digital technology: CULT OF THE AMATEUR, DIGITAL VERTIGO, THE INTERNET IS NOT THE ANSWER and HOW TO FIX THE FUTURE. Andrew lives in San Francisco, is married to Cassandra Knight, Google's VP of Litigation & Discovery, and has two grown children.

Keen On America is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.