Strong public interest in science, survey finds

There is a surprisingly high level of interest among the public in science programmes and reports about science, according to a new survey.

About half the population say they occasionally or frequently read, listen to or watch programmes about scientific and technological developments, according to the survey, carried out under the Government's Science, Technology and Innovation Awareness Programme.

About 20 per cent describe themselves as enthusiasts for newspaper reports and television broadcasts about the sciences, the survey found. Despite this only one in three adults felt that they were well or fairly well informed about science and technology.

The situation was worse among those over 50, two-thirds of whom said they were not very well or not at all well informed about science.

The awareness programme is managed by Forfas on behalf of the Office of Science and Technology. The survey also identified a rural-urban divide in the understanding of science, with 37 per cent of urban dwellers declaring themselves well informed compared with 30 per cent of the rural population and 22 per cent of farmers. More men (41 per cent) than women (29 per cent) felt they were well informed.

The centrepiece of the STI Awareness Programme is Science Week Ireland, a 10-day festival of science which will be opened on Friday by the Minister of State for Science, Technology and Commerce, Mr Noel Treacy. There are dozens of events planned around the State during the week including lectures, displays and presentations on science and technology.

Enterprise Ireland will be presenting "The Best of Irish Science", an exhibition of 40 individual research projects, at the RDS's Shelbourne Hall, Ballsbridge, Dublin, on Friday.