Three things to look for in science reporting

Tags

science, science and society, Science communication, Science in Society

Some time ago I shared some of my thoughts on science communication, including the importance of learning “to approach issues critically, to question and to reason, [so they would] have the wherewithal to challenge fixed beliefs and undermine authority”.  I’ve also written about things like cognitive dissonance and how our social environment can shape the way we conduct research or interpret the results.  In this post,  I’d like to highlight a few of the flaws you might come across in scientific research and what you should look out for when you hear about a new study.  I’ve picked out just three things you can check to help reassure yourself that a science story is on sound footing, but I hope people will chime in with more suggestions in the comments!

Found while foraging (May 28, 2013)

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Accumulating Glitches, ants, dinosaurs, Dyson sphere, evolution, music, neuroscience, Popular science, science, science and society, Science in Society, Scitable, Species, synesthesia, vampire

It’s time for another Found while foraging!  I’m going to do things slightly differently this time.  Instead of just sharing various tidbits I’ve come across online since last time, I’m going to focus on science-related stuff to celebrate the recent launch of my new blog, Accumulating Glitches, as part of Nature’s Scitable network.  I’d also like to take the opportunity to also point you towards some of my favourite posts from the other new blogs in the relaunched network.  I hope you’ll find them enlightening and entertaining!  As always, though, feel free to add more links in the comments!

Whose genome is it anyway?

Tags

Angelina Jolie, biology, DNA, Education, Full genome sequencing, Genetic testing, Genome, genomics, Genotyping, Health, Human, People, Popular science, relatedness, science, science and society, Science in Society

Fifteen years ago it was the stuff of science fiction.  Now, you can just swab your cheek, send it to a company and, for only a few hundred euros, have your DNA analyzed.  You’ll find out about your ancestry and your predisposition towards certain inherited diseases or conditions (from cancer and diabetes to myopia).  You’ll also learn if you’re a ‘carrier’ — that is, if you’re carrying a gene that won’t affect you but might affect your children.  You can even get information about more light-hearted issues like whether you’re likely to have fast- or slow-twitch muscles or your ability to taste certain bitter flavours.  The technology is pretty great, but it also raises some interesting questions which I thought would be worth discussing (especially since I really enjoyed our previous discussion).

How are humans like ants?

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Behavior, brain, Cognition, Human, language, People, Popular science, science and society

Last year, I wrote about how some ants can find their way home after finding food.  They have the remarkable ability to account for all the twists and turns they made while foraging and calculate a direct path leading straight back to their nest.  A reader emailed to ask if I thought humans would ever be able to do something similar or to achieve the level of co-ordination shown by ants.  This post is based on my reply, where I pointed out several things that humans are amazingly good at doing  — in fact, we do them so well and with such ease that you might be surprised by how difficult they actually are!  I’ve spent a lot of time on Inspiring Science talking about behaviours and abilities which show that other animals aren’t just simple automata because I think it’s important to make the point that although humans are unique, we aren’t special; we’re just another species with our own particular tricks for surviving in this world.  I’ll take a different tack in this post and talk about some of the ways we stand out!

Found while foraging (April 2, 2013)

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art, bees, electric field, Erin Brockovich, gender, intersex, israel, Palestine, photography, plasma, Popular science, rape, science, science and society, Science in Society, sexism

It’s certainly been too long since my last Found while foraging!  Since I haven’t been posting as frequently as I’d like, I’ve preferred to post about scientific topics when I had a chance to post.  In the meantime, I’ve let my collection of links grow…so I decided to start the week with a Found while foraging and hopefully end it with a “proper” post.  Anyway, here’s what I’ve come across in the last couple of months — hopefully it’s not an overwhelming collection!  As always, feel free to add more links in the comments.

What makes our intelligence heritable?

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biology, G factor (psychometrics), Genetics, Genome-wide association study, GWAS, heritability, Human, intelligence, Intelligence quotient, People, Popular science, science, science and society

A study from the University of Edinburgh claims to have found the basis of our intelligence in thousands of genes scattered throughout our genome. Although the discovery was made possible by a new statistical method and modern sequencing technology, how the results are interpreted hinges upon a century-old debate about what intelligence is and how we measure it. Will we ever be able to measure something so indefinable or discover the genes behind it?

Found while foraging (January 28, 2013)

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Bacteria, brain, consciousness, evolution, gender, Genetics, Good Men Project, memory, mental illness, photography, pink, science, science and society, Science in Society, scultpture, sexism

January has been a busy month.  In addition to writing here, I worked on some websites for my family and submitted entries to a couple of science writing competitions for the first time!  I’ve also optimistically nominated Inspiring Science for the annual “Bloggies” awards; if you think it deserves a chance, why not head on over and add your voice? I’ve really enjoyed working on this blog for the past year and I’m looking forward to writing being an even bigger part of my life in 2013!  Anyway, here’s another batch of tidbits I found during my wanderings.  As always, feel free to add more links in the comments.

Found while foraging (December 31, 2012)

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brain, gender, Genetics, glaciers, Good Men Project, gut bacteria, lego, memory, mental illness, parasite, photography, science, science and society, Science in Society, sexism, stars, stem cell, virus

I was hoping to spend lots of time writing during the winter holidays, but instead I’ve been enjoying the opportunity to spend time with my family.  I’ve got a few promising posts in the works for early in the new year, but until then here’s another collection of odds and ends from around the web to keep you going.  As always, feel free to add more links in the comments.  I hope you’ve all enjoyed the winter/summer solstice and associated holidays.

Found while foraging (December 11, 2012)

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famous psychology experiments, games, gender, Genetics, math, memory, mind, parasite, photography, rape, science, science and society, Science in Society, sexism, stanford prison experiment, video, videogames, virus, woman scientist

It’s been a while since I last shared a mish-mash of assorted links.  Unfortunately I’ve been too busy recently to have the time to trawl aimlessly around the web, so there are fewer fruits from my foraging forays.  Anyway, enough mixed metaphors and strained writing; here’s my latest collection of tidbits from the web for you to enjoy.  Feel free to add more in the comments if you’d like.

A few thoughts on science communication

Tags

communicating science, Communication, Education, Popular science, science, science and society, Science communication, Science in Society

I originally wrote this as a guest post for Speaking of Science, a blog that tries to “de-mystify science communication by offering interviews, news, and anything else about it.”

When Julie asked me to write about why I think science communication is important, I started jotting down a list of reasons. Science has an undeniable impact and prominence in our world, which has benefited from the accumulated fruits of centuries of research. As citizens, we shape this world and are shaped by it, so it’s important to understand the science behind the questions we’re discussing, from antibiotics and GMOs to the value of a Mars mission or research in theoretical physics.  This kind of understanding can also be important on an individual level. Knowing more about how your body works can help you make informed decisions about diet and lifestyle or medical procedures — or even what kind of birth control to use. These are important aspects of science communication, but they’re not really a source of inspiration to me or a guiding factor in deciding what I write about. Science communicators do have a responsibility to fulfil a role in mediating these discussion, and though I try to keep aware of that and contribute, it’s not where my passion truly lies.