Science writing news

Alleluia! Next week is the blogger's Holy Week: ScienceOnline 2012. Here's how you can be there even if you're not there. Also links to the program, the people, and everything else #SciO12. Including a session on how to create an eBook, organized by Carl Zimmer and me.

There is a good deal of academic research that focuses on risk communication, social construction of risk, and how certain theories apply to communicating with specific populations about specific issues. We saw several papers over the last few months that really help provide some context about the world views of our audiences. From the Fall 2011 ScienceWriters.

Hurray, NASA has found Earth's twin orbiting a sun-like star! Or is it? Should we be searching only for life-as-we-know-it? Pardon Alan Turing. Open Lab 2012 winners. Once more, are bloggers journalists? Big news about the Higgs boson next week?

When a study is retracted, “it can be hard to make its effects go away,” says Sheldon Tobe, a kidney-disease specialist at the University of Toronto. And that’s more important today than ever because retractions of scientific studies are surging. From the Fall 2011 ScienceWriters.

Canids galore: Where did dogs come from? Bad news for bulldogs. Pleiotropy, pre-adaptation, and the domestication of silver foxes. Silver Fox, blogging geology. It's Sand Dune Week!

By all accounts, WCSJ2011 was an impressive feat, marking the first iteration of the conference hosted by an Arab nation. But behind the scenes, political problems caused extensive debate and several disruptions. The inclusion of U.S.-Israeli journalist Anna Wexler on a panel caused divisions within the Arab Science Journalists Association (ASJA), a co-sponsor of the conference. From the Fall 2011 ScienceWriters.

Neutrinos continue to be faster than light. Perhaps. A flood of stem-cell blogging: At the American Heart Association meeting, one small trial yields positive results, another doesn't, and the media fumble coverage. Stem-cell pioneer Geron shuts down its tiny clinical trial and flees the field. Some bloggers mourn, while others jump for joy.

ADVERTISEMENT
Knight Science Journalism Fellowships at MIT

ADVERTISEMENT
The Victor K. McElheny Award

ADVERTISEMENT
Logan Science Journalism Fellowships

ADVERTISEMENT
Advertise with NASW