In part, the divorce of science and politics can be explained by the very different worldviews that inform each field. - Chris C. Mooney

For a very long time, American scientists have found themselves pitted against both our businesslike, can-do attitudes and our piety.

The emergence of the religious right onto the political stage in the 1970s—motivated in part by its adherents’ resentment of the nation’s intellectual and scientific elites—was also a major factor in curtailing the role of science in public policy.

But it is only half the story. If powerful religious commitments lead to politically driven abuses of science, so does an unswerving commitment to the bottom line.