"Scientific and technological advances have a huge impact on our lives, yet science and society have an ambivalent relationship: science needs democracy to flourish but its techniques are beyond political accountability. In this thought-provoking book, Collins and Evans assert that "science gives substance to the way of being of democracy". Consequently, science is a key to achieving and safeguarding our democratic ideals." --Barry Barish, Linde Professor of Physics, Emeritus, Caltech; PI and Director of LIGO, 1994-2005 "Free-market ideology threatens both science and democracy. Collins and Evans respond not with philosophical arguments but an appeal to common sense. They ask us first to see that we face a basic moral choice, and then to choose the values of modern science. A provocative and thoughtful book." --Mark Brown, Professor of Government, California State University, Sacramento "Should we only give credence to an expert in any given field, thereby discounting the view of non-specialists? Doing so would seem rather undemocratic.

It would also appear to reduce the scope for holding experts accountable. [. Collins and Evans'] theory not only tries to explain how knowledge is acquired but also legitimises the contribution which non-practitioners can make to scientific practice." --The Irish Times.