Science writing news

Whether we are trying to figure out how to avoid participating in a “trust fall” activity at an office team-building event or debating how much our key stakeholders trust the scientific information that they see in the media, trust is a recurring theme in our professional lives. With all of the time our community spends focusing on trust, we thought it would be worth exploring some recent research that can provide some insight into how issues of trust play out in science communication.

NASW member Kathleen Wong and colleagues tell the story of the University of California Natural Reserve System (NRS) and its mandate to provide outdoor classrooms, protect research sites, and conserve ecosystems for the people of California. Wong, a science writer at NRS, pulled the book together in only six months.

The Supreme Court declares — unanimously — that the Myriad Genetics patent on BRCA genes is not valid. The decision is being interpreted to mean no "natural" genes can be patented, but that patenting cDNA is a possibility. Patent lawyers are hopeful. Is the Court's genetic ignorance patently obvious? Justice Scalia expresses a second opinion that reveals he's a genetic ignoramus — or maybe a very clever wordsmith. The disgraced and disgraceful Jonah Lehrer has bounced back with a new book.

The contraception debate gets legally weirder. Judges and the FDA don't agree on how the morning-after pill should be sold. The two-pill version is really one-step too. The health care system is a dumping ground for all our sexual anxieties. Michael Douglas, the poster child for HPV vaccination. An etymological aside on Latinate dirty words. A NASA video assures young gays that things will get better.

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A rectangle graphic with a yellow background. The text reads Sharon Begley Science Reporting Award, Honoring a midcareer journalist. Deadline April 30. CASW.org. There is an image of Sharon Begley.

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Stanford Center for Biomedical Ethics

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