Science for Policy and Policy for Science

This course studies the science-policy interface: how it works, how it fails, and how to revamp it. It will critically examine whether the kinds of evidence science produces match the kinds of evidence useful for policy. Topics: self-correction in science (theory & practice); science reform; science journalism; public trust in science; modeling the science-policy boundary; evidence synthesis; the roles of scientific & non-scientific evidence, and values; policy making under incomplete evidence; theories of policy change; science funding. Student papers will empirically advance understanding of these topics and/or develop proposals for reform.