Education, the Interpretive Agenda of Science, and the Obligation of Scientists to Promote this Agenda

This paper presents an argument that emphasises the following points: (1) the importance of public education; (2) the essential difficulty facing all involved in public education that is aimed at sustaining a biologically and culturally rich world; (3) the recognition of science as having both a technical agenda and an interpretive agenda; (4) the scientific interpretation of the universe: an evolutionary and ecological world-view; and (5) the importance of the interpretive agenda of science for public education and the obligation of scientists to promote this agenda.