National Institutes of Health Director Urges Americans To Believe Science
Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health, is decrying the political polarization that has led some Americans to question the science behind climate change and COVID-19.
Collins, who led the Human Genome Project that mapped human DNA, urged Americans to renew their commitment to “truth and reason” while accepting the 2020 Templeton Prize, one of the world’s top religious awards, on Thursday.
“Of all the developments that cause me concern over the past few years, none is greater than the growing disregard of maintaining a high standard of objective truth,” said the 70-year-old geneticist and devout Christian, who received the award for demonstrating how science and faith are compatible.
“Somehow, with a lot of assistance from social media, the adherence to fact over fiction, to accurate narrative over conspiracy theory, has taken a major hit. All thinking persons should raise the alarm about this,” he said.
Collins is one of the researchers credited with pinpointing the genes responsible for genetic disorders such as cystic fibrosis. In 2009, former President Barack Obama tapped him to lead the National Institutes of Health, the government agency that heads up medical and public health research.
Collins spoke during the awards ceremony about how he spends “almost every waking hour” fighting COVID-19 ― from trying to accelerate the development of better diagnostic tests to working on vaccines to prevent future infections.
When the pandemic first emerged as a global threat, Collins said he hoped it would draw people together against a common enemy. Instead, people have become more divided, he said. The geneticist bemoaned how simple, scientifically approved ways of combating the virus — such as wearing a face mask or getting a vaccine once one becomes available — have become controversial issues.
“What should have been harmony in the name of saving lives has become a conflict,” Collins said.
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