What does the author think open debate can do?In the age of the internet, there's no such thing as a private debate. But is that bad for science? Some scientists have had concerns. When debates in any sector move beyond the halls of universities and government agencies, there's potential for information to be used incorrectly, leading to public confusion; yet, open debate can also promote communication between the scientific community and the public.请根据材料选择正确答案。A、Help the public to better understand science.B、Clear up confusion in the scientific community.C、Settle disputes between universities and government agencies.D、Prevent information from being used incorrectly by the public.

考查要点：本题主要考查学生对文章主旨的把握能力，需要结合上下文理解作者对“开放辩论”作用的态度。

解题核心：抓住材料中的转折词“yet”（然而），明确作者在承认开放辩论可能引发问题后，转而强调其促进科学界与公众沟通的核心观点。

关键点：

1. 转折结构：材料先指出开放辩论的潜在风险（信息误用、公众困惑），再通过“yet”引出其积极意义。
2. 逻辑关系：作者认为开放辩论的核心价值在于打破科学与公众的隔阂，而非单纯解决科学内部或外部的争议。

选项分析

A. Help the public to better understand science
材料最后一句明确指出“open debate can also promote communication between the scientific community and the public”，即开放辩论通过促进交流帮助公众理解科学，与选项A完全对应。

B. Clear up confusion in the scientific community
材料中“public confusion”（公众困惑）是开放辩论可能引发的负面结果，而非科学界内部的困惑，且文中未提及开放辩论能解决科学界内部问题。

C. Settle disputes between universities and government agencies
材料仅提到“debates in any sector move beyond the halls of universities and government agencies”，但未涉及开放辩论对解决两者争议的作用。

D. Prevent information from being used incorrectly by the public
虽然材料提到开放辩论可能“lead to public confusion”，但作者并未认为开放辩论能防止信息误用，反而认为这是开放的潜在风险。