Recently, readers of the Science Writers' Handbook blog took a survey that asked science writers — both employed and freelance — about their work-life balance. Hannah Hoag reports on the results. From the Winter 2013-14 ScienceWriters.
Science writing news
In Citizen Canine, David Grimm explores good, bad, and bizarre outcomes of turning pets into people
In The Soil Will Save Us, Kristin Ohlson tells how plants and soil microorganisms created our lush world, how humans disrupted that partnership, and how visionary scientists, farmers, and other land managers are working to create healthy, carbon-rich soil to restore ecological health.
In Animal Wise: How We Know Animals Think and Feel, Virginia Morell explores the inner lives of wild and domesticated animals, and tells how animal behaviorists gain such knowledge. In February 2014, Morell’s book was chosen as a finalist in the science and technology category of this year's LA Times Book Award competition. It previously was named a Kirkus Reviews’ "Best Book of 2013" and an American Library Association "Notable Book for 2014."
Multiple events that came to light in late 2013 revealed that the science-writing community is not immune to professional issues of sexual harassment. A ScienceWriters2013 session titled The XX Question served as a forum for a broad range of issues related to professional status and recognition for women in the field. This post is a commentary from “LadyBits” blogger Rose Eveleth on issues raised in the session. From the Winter 2013-14 ScienceWriters.
Murray Carpenter offers a high-energy take on modern caffeine culture in Caffeinated: How Our Daily Habit Helps, Hurts and Hooks Us.
In her fourth novel addressing science and medical topics, Permanent Makeup, Terra Ziporyn explores domestic abuse and family relationships.
The IRS wants to help freelance writers and other owners of home-based businesses who take deductions for home offices. An accommodating agency announced that freelancers have the option to use new, simpler rules based on the size of their offices, starting with returns for calendar year 2013 that are filed in 2014. From the Winter 2013-14 ScienceWriters.
Nine talented juniors and seniors from the East Coast to the West Coast and as far north as Montreal, gathered in Chicago Feb. 13-17 to report on the 2014 American Association for the Advancement of Science meeting. These travel fellows were selected by the NASW Education Committee from a competitive set of applicants. The NASW Travel Fellows’ dispatches from The Windy City have been posted here.