Cassini astronomer looks to the cultural ascent of science at atheist convention

Dr. Carolyn Porco
(Photo: Paul Fidalgo)

Planetary scientist Carlyn Porco, best known for her work on the imaging for the Cassini probe mission to Saturn, told a convention of atheists in Burbank, California Saturday that atheism faced an uphill climb for wider acceptance and adoption, and that science suffers from an overwhelmingly negative portrayal by the popular culture. Her lecture prompted conference co-host Richard Dawkins to dub Dr. Porco the next Carl Sagan for her promotion of science enthusiasm.

Dr. Porco began her address to the Atheist Alliance International convention by making a distinction between a scientist's agnosticism versus the same for a non-scientist. Agnosticism on the subject of god-existence, for a scientist, is technically required because one cannot with utter certainty exclude the possibility of the existence of God.  "When a scientist says there is no God," said Porco, "he is not giving a scientific conclusion on a subject, he is expressing a belief or an opinion."

For herself, however, she stressed, "In the complete absence of facts…as a regular schmo, my very strong faith--my very, very strong belief--is that there is no God." Noting that while religion encourages the acceptance of ideas with no basis in fact, science encourages the continued accumulation of real data.

Dr. Porco highlighted the challenge faced by atheist activists, saying that God-belief is an incredibly intractable notion in human culture. Telling a firm believer that there is no God, she said, "is like telling the French that the English are better than they are."

For religions to lose significant influence, and for secularism to take hold, Porco said that change would require a "cultural timescale," citing the long history of unquestioned religious belief, but that we now find ourselves in a rare moment in time when the promotion of rationality is more possible than ever.

The hurdle, according to her, was the deeply ingrained image of scientists and technology as negative, the near-universal portrayal of scientists and intellectuals as villains, as cold, or as socially inept. Often set up as archetypes to be ridiculed, hated, or feared, Porco said that popular culture usually associates science with disasters, "Frankensteins", and people who are "too brilliant for their own good."

"It is not uncommon for people to respond [to scientists and science] with ambivalence," she said. "To see the evil scientist receive his or her comeuppance is soothing."

Dr. Porco advocated for a new brand of characterization of scientists and science in TV and films, one that emphasizes the adventurous and heroic aspects of science and critical thinkers. She suggested that story lines highlight such facets of science as mystery-solving, sacrifices made by scientists to discover small truths (even when they are proved to be wrong), and even plots with "scientist-as-ordinary-guy," as opposed to the bumbler, ultra-nerd, or mad scientist.

Dr. Porco, whose work as head of the imaging team for the Cassini missions that produced breathtaking pictures of Saturn, was also a model for Carl Sagan in the development of the heroine in his novel Contact, and Porco served as an adviser on the film version. Porco told the atheist crowd to enormous laughter, "It was hard for me to imagine any religious zealot to be as sexually effusive as Matthew McConaughey."

Following her address, Richard Dawkins took the podium to declare, "Clearly, we have a new--and female--Carl Sagan in our midst."

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