Francesco Sylos Labini

In the last week, two different episodes concerning the public role of scientists have drawn public attention: physicist Carlo Rovelli’s intervention on war during the May Day concert and the controversy between geologist Alberto Prestininzi and Chloé Bertini of “Ultima Generazione,” a group of activists focused on climate change issues, on Corrado Formigli’s program, “Piazza Pulita.” However, there is a substantial difference between these two interventions.

Prestininzi is part of a small group of academics who deny the human impact on climate change and reject proposals to eliminate greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. He is known as a “climate change denier,” and for this reason, he was pitted against Chloé Bertini. The idea was to stimulate a famous “debate,” but this idea is flawed because Prestininzi and his colleagues, who are not climatologists, argue for a thesis that finds no support in scientific literature. A recent study of 88,125 scientific articles on climate has shown that 99.9% of them agree that climate change is primarily caused by human activity. Despite these results, surveys indicate the widespread mistaken belief that there is still significant debate among scientists about the cause of climate change.

This is the effect of broadcasts like the one hosted by Formigli: the general public often lacks the tools to understand scientific discourse, which does not take place on television but rather in scientific literature, where articles undergo peer review. The publication of a scientific article does not necessarily mean that it is correct, but the peer review process serves as a filter to eliminate unfounded theses. Often, when proposing an innovative idea, it is difficult to publish a scientific article, and anyone who proposes a new idea must do so carefully to establish it. However, this must take place within the context of scientific literature. Those who attempt to promote ideas outside this context move away from the dynamics of scientific research, and this is the problem with climate change deniers.

Contrasting positions also characterize the debate on the war in Ukraine, but delegation to experts, if they exist, is much more problematic in this case. In the media, the prevailing position seems to be in favor of sending arms to Ukraine with the idea that “if you want peace, prepare for war.” However, according to Carlo Rovelli, supporters of war benefit economically or politically from the continuation of the conflict and seek total victory, which, according to Rovelli, is a moral and rational mistake that could lead to a Third World War. In this case, it is not a debate in scientific literature but rather the expression of opinions supported by one’s own credibility, which is the role of an intellectual.

Minister Crosetto was called into question by Rovelli due to his conflict of interest for previously working as a consultant for Leonardo, one of the world’s largest arms manufacturers. Crosetto dismissed Rovelli’s criticisms by saying, “You should stick to being a physicist, focus on your obscure theories about white holes, and leave the rest alone.” Crosetto seems to prefer physicist Roberto Cingolani, who was appointed CEO of Leonardo by his own government. Cingolani has become a symbol of the “scientist of the regime,” accumulating numerous positions appointed by politics in various governments.

Carlo Rovelli, on the other hand, became known to the general public through his popular science books and was already a respected figure in the field of physics for his significant contributions to quantum gravity, an area that seeks to unify two seemingly incompatible theories: quantum mechanics and the theory of general relativity, used to interpret astrophysical phenomena. Rovelli has become one of the reference points in the debate on war and, despite advocating a contrarian thesis, has managed to maintain his credibility thanks to his intellectual stature. A great physicist of the last century, Isidor Rabi, said, “I think physicists are the Peter Pans of the human race. They never grow up and maintain their curiosity.” Who better than Carlo Rovelli has the ability to say that the emperor has no clothes?