Göttweig Abbey library in Austria, one of the largest collections of information in the pre-internet world. Image credit: Jorge Royan under c.c.a.-s.a.-3.0.

Make America Informed Again

The way to greatness requires us to look forwards, not backwards.

“Whenever I found out anything remarkable, I have thought it my duty to put down my discovery on paper, so that all ingenious people might be informed thereof.” -Antonie van Leeuwenhoek

According to the internet, there’s a famous saying: “The problem with internet quotes is that you can’t always depend on their accuracy.” Of course, according to that same internet, the source of that quote is Abraham Lincoln, from 1864. Obviously, that’s false information, but there are a great many reports out there full of false information that isn’t so easy to spot. Occasionally, misinformation originates from reporters or news outlets that have an agenda to push; even those of us who aren’t conspiracy-minded at all are aware of this “message marketing” that takes place. But more insidiously — and perhaps more recently — there’s simply bad reporting going on because it’s easier to do and it makes you more successful than good reporting does. Even when it comes to something as objective as science.

Many enthusiasts have proposed using an “impossible space engine” for interstellar travel, but there’s a long way from a mysterious thrust observed to a starship. Image credit: Mark Rademaker, privately (via Twitter), composed for NASA Eagleworks.

Think about it for a moment: a new scientific study comes out, with a sweeping and…