Dear all,
As fellow scientists specializing in structural biology, it's disheartening to witness a decline in society's trust in science; perhaps many of you have come across the remarkable book "The Deadly Rise of Anti-science: A Scientist's Warning" by Dr. Peter Hotez. To help restore this trust, we co-founded a non-profit and launched an educational app. If you are concerned as well, please read on (the app even touches on structural biology): As you know, scientists and other fact-finding professions like journalism currently face significant challenges. Our crucial work as reputable sources and the scientific consensus we build can be readily undermined by misinformation and conspiracy theories. There is probably no bigger problem in today’s world than the battle between facts and mis- and disinformation, a conflict that not only fuels other large global struggles such as vaccine hesitancy and climate change denial but also leads to societal division and its consequential challenges. These dynamics collectively contribute to heightened stress and suffering, both on individual and global scales. It's unlikely that any of the world's biggest challenges can be solved as long as people remain so easily swayed by misinformation and disinformation. To address this pressing issue, we co-founded the non-profit organization Knowledge Advances Inc., dedicated to educating individuals on navigating the complex ecosystem of information and misinformation. We assert that information of higher reliability is a basic human need, akin to water, food, and shelter. To initiate our efforts, we recently launched an app called *Advance: Life training*. The app employs a comprehensive, active learning approach through quizzes to teach users how to identify sources of higher reliability, discern information of greater credibility, and understand biases. For additional details and to download the free *Advance: Life Train*ing app, please visit our website: https://knowledgeadvances.org/ If our approach and app resonate with you, we kindly ask you to support us by rating our application on the app stores and sharing this information with your friends and colleagues. Please feel free to contact us for further information or feedback. Best regards, Focco Focco van den Akker, Ph.D. President, Knowledge Advances Inc. Associate Professor, Dept. Biochemistry, Case Western Reserve University Email: focco.vandenak...@knowledgeadvances.org https://knowledgeadvances.org/ https://case.edu/medicine/biochemistry/faculty/focco-van-den-akker ######################################################################## To unsubscribe from the CCP4BB list, click the following link: https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/cgi-bin/WA-JISC.exe?SUBED1=CCP4BB&A=1 This message was issued to members of www.jiscmail.ac.uk/CCP4BB, a mailing list hosted by www.jiscmail.ac.uk, terms & conditions are available at https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/policyandsecurity/
