Curve Fit to Print: Science and Media

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Examples of problems in interactive media

Two examples of the challenges of interactive media in communicating science information:

A humourous take from SomethingAwful:http://www.somethingawful.com/d/news/wikigroaning-iii.php
A serious case of problems associated with traditional media turning attention to a blogger: http://scienceblogs.com/islandofdoubt/2008/04/16yearold_libels_james_hansen.php

To clear the palette, a positive example: http://www.askabiologist.org.uk/

Dealing with bad science reporting

This post provides a number of different examples of how science reporting can go wrong. It is primarily about the classical model of science communication, but it also relates to the interactive model, as this post is an example of the back-and-forth that can go on between different people of different levels of experience in the blog arena. The post is actually a reprint of a comment to another post of the blogger.

Of interest is the link to the anecdote about misreading information on company health that is an example of the danger of the inadvertent audience.

Deltoid: John Mashey: What to do about poor science reporting

Thursday, September 4, 2008

What is a "scientist": This year's Google Image search

At the start of classes every year, I do a Google image search for the word "scientist". Here are the top twenty results:

There's a lot to work with in these images. Including, but not limited to, a lot of glasses, a lot of chemistry lab equipment, and a lot of wild hair. On the other hand, we have one woman and one black man! This is a big step for these Google searches.

And who is that black scientist? Here are two earlier portrayals of the same character:
http://www.millionmonkeytheater.com/moviepics2/lmemorgan.jpg
http://badazzmofo.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/heston-omega.jpg

Monday, September 1, 2008

Hello, science students!

I'm hoping that over the next week or so a few science students notice this class and decide to at least look into it further. I think that developing an understanding of just how science is presented and perceived outside of the scientific community is very important for science in general and for many scientists in particular.

A course like this can help improve a student's skills in three areas of importance.

1. Scientists and non-scientists are interested in reading about science. The better a scientists (or a science student thinking of going into popular science writing) knows about the ways that people absorb scientific content, the better they can target their own writing.

2. Scientists need to communicate in order to earn money for research and to keep their jobs. Often this means communicating with non-scientists about their work. This course offers students a chance to practise their skills in writing about science for a more general audience.

3. Simply advancing scientific research often requires communication with a large group of other scientists. Developing writing skills is important in reaching that audience.

I've had a lot of experience studying and reading about scientific topics and a lot of experience with writing and with teaching writing. I feel that if a science student wants to take an essay course, then I can give them their best shot. Hopefully some of you will be reading this and sign up for the course!

Friday, August 29, 2008

The Omnivore 100

OK, this is only tangentially science related, perhaps.

However, a lot of science goes into today's food. There is a lot of money put into developing and applying techniques to keep food fresh and palatable while traveling and while on the shelf. Some very popular food items are unacceptable to eat toady because of concerns about the impact of harvesting those items on the environment. (I'm thinking primarily of endangered species here, but not exclusively.)

Anyway, on to the 100:

1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros*
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile
6. Black pudding (effectively)
7. Cheese fondue*
8. Carp
9. Borscht*
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. PB&J sandwich*
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses (I should have tried this by now)
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes*
22. Fresh wild berries*
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans*
25. Brawn, or head cheese (not going to happen)
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava*
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas (though I prefer wasabi peanuts)
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut*
35. Root beer float*
36. Cognac with a fat cigar (I prefer a nice, aged rum, myself)
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O*
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects (not intentionally that I can remember)
43. Phaal
44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more (when I finish my thesis)
46. Fugu (not likely!)
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini (No. Gin martinis should be served with lemon twists, not olive.)
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine*
60. Carob chips (I don't get this... people want to eat these?)
61. S’mores*
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin (The dirt, the band, or the Salior Moon character?)
64. Currywurst
65. Durian
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant.
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers*
89. Horse
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam*
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox*
97. Lobster Thermidor
98. Polenta*
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake

That's a total of 59 for me. Not bad. I had to look up some of these items, only to discover that, yes, I had indeed eaten them without knowing what they were!

To put a science spin on this, it would be interesting to look at the fat content of this list. We love fat and it can play a big role in how well a meal is perceived.

* These items I have made or cooked with myself.

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Cartoon Commentary

This cartoon is directly about something we discuss in class.

Scientists often have an ambivalent relationship with reporters. On the one hand, media attention can be important to a scientists. The exposure can bring interest from granting agencies, private donors, and other scientists working is similar fields. Additionally, popular articles on one's research can be used to justify the importance of one's work to these aforementioned groups. On the other hand, however, reporters can misinterpret or cherry-pick scientific results in order to promote (intentionally or not) their own agenda or they can uncritically report scientific results and communicate a false sense of certainty in scientific claims. Both of these drawbacks are assisted when a reporter does not give some insight into the reasoning from evidence that a scientist does in order to produce results.

Note that the scientist and reporter in the cartoon are seemingly taking part in the traditional or classic model of scientific communication. The scientist seems content to let the reporter do the work of mass communication, even though something will be lost in the translation.

Anyway, check out the comic for other science-themed strips.

PartiallyClips - A Webcomic for Grownups

Monday, August 25, 2008

A lecture on evolution in the middle of a trial

One of the interesting things about the Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District trial about the teaching of Intelligent Design in US public schools was the presentation of evidence for evolution. Now Nick Matzke has put together the testimony of Kevin Padian, a paleontologist, along with the slides shown in court. It might not be an great read for everyone, but it is an example of how a scientist uses visual aids in communicating with an audience outside of the scientific community. This is probably a good example because the audience is someone who is committed to being an impartial skeptic, there is a context where opponents to the science had presented arguments and would present further argument, and the presentation of the science, by Padian and others, was ultimatly successful.

Kitzmiller v. Dover: Padian demonstrative slides