Sir
The editorial on The X Files made some excellent points — especially about the rigour of Mulder and Scully's investigative methods (Nature, 394, 815; 1998). The editorial went on: “The popularity of The X Files suggests that the public clearly has more of a feeling for the spirit of scientific enquiry than some give it credit for”.
Although I would like to believe this statement, I think it is false. The success of The X Files is part of a popular reaction against science. Many cultures (particularly in the West) are increasingly secular, and there is a prevailing feeling that there is no longer any mystery that science cannot elucidate. The X Files offers the comforting spectacle of science not coming up with answers — in fact, of frequently falling flat on its face. The programme's massive popularity results much more from the decline of the church (formerly a wellspring of mysticism), and scientific rumours of an imminent ‘Theory of Everything’, than from a true spirit of scientific enquiry.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Davies, D. Popular reaction against science. Nature 395, 740 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1038/27310
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/27310