How We Think About Variation Is at the Heart of Our Scientific Literacy Crisis

In a recent essay, Martin Rees, an astrophysicist and retired University of Cambridge professor, says he is certain that, for good or ill, we are coming upon the limits of human knowledge -- a point at which computers could one day overtake us. The idea certainly taps into deep-seated fears about artificial intelligence, but I'd argue that we shouldn't worry about computers outsmarting us, or even the real (or imagined) limits of human knowledge. What we need to worry about is wasting the knowledge we already have. It is not a question of whether there is a limit to scientific understanding but whether we are limiting ourselves in our scientific understanding. Science, be it in the form of cancer biology or climatology or statistics, can help provide perspective and potential solutions for many of our most pressing problems.