Science

How ‘Contagion’ Pushed Hollywood to Get Science Right

SCIENTIFIC METHOD

The movie wasn’t afraid to show failure as scientists struggled to race to find an antidote to a global epidemic—a refreshingly honest depiction of science in real life.

Paul Offit
Paul Offit
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Photo Illustration by The Daily Beast

Victor Moritz: “You’re crazy!”

Dr. Henry Frankenstein: “Crazy, am I? We’ll see whether I’m crazy or not.”

—Frankenstein (1931)

The entertainment industry educates the public about science in a different venue: movies, which not only shape opinion, but reflect some of our worst fears about science and scientists—a fear best crystallized...

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Paul Offit

Paul Offit

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