Department of Philosophy and Moral Sciences, Ghent University, 9000 Ghent, Belgium.
Department of Plant Systems Biology, VIB, 9052 Ghent, Belgium; Department of Plant Biotechnology and Bioinformatics, Ghent University, 9052 Ghent, Belgium.
Trends Plant Sci. 2015 Jul;20(7):414-8. doi: 10.1016/j.tplants.2015.03.011. Epub 2015 Apr 10.
Public opposition to genetically modified organisms (GMOs) remains strong. By contrast, studies demonstrate again and again that GM crops make a valuable contribution to the development of a sustainable type of agriculture. The discrepancy between public opinion and the scientific evidence requires an explanation. We argue that intuitive expectations about the world render the human mind vulnerable to particular misrepresentations of GMOs. We explain how the involvement of particular intuitions accounts for the popularity, persistence, and typical features of GM opposition and tackle possible objections to our approach. To conclude, we discuss the implications for science education, science communication, and the environmental movement.
公众对转基因生物（GMO）的反对仍然强烈。相比之下，研究一再表明，转基因作物为可持续农业的发展做出了有价值的贡献。公众意见与科学证据之间的差异需要解释。我们认为，人们对世界的直观期望使人们的思维容易受到对 GMO 的特定误解。我们解释了特定直觉的参与如何解释了 GM 反对的流行、持续存在和典型特征，并解决了对我们方法的可能反对意见。最后，我们讨论了这对科学教育、科学传播和环境运动的影响。
