ABSTRACT
In this chapter, the author proposes that scientists should become very serious about engaging in systematic dialogue with “the other culture” (i.e., humanists), and with representatives of religious communities in particular. But when human nature and behavior become the focus of scientific inquiry, then fears begin to rise. This concern becomes especially urgent when one considers the issues brought forth by current brain research, one of the hottest domains in science these days. Scientific understandings of human nature and behavior are not compatible with every humanist or religious perspective, any more than these perspectives can be reconciled among themselves. The habits of mind dispose individuals to be active and critical seekers of new knowledge, while the narrative of cosmic evolution provides a coherent structure for assimilating and organizing virtually everything they learn. A science-friendly society, is one in which science functions as a reliable public resource for understanding the natural world and our place within it.
