Category Archives: science communication

Creativity Mustn’t be Allowed to be Hijacked

Posted on 20 January 2019 by Athene Donald

 ‘In 2019, the “two cultures” described by CP Snow in 1959 will have finally ceased to have meaning.’ So said Russell Foster in a recent article in Wired. Russell is clearly an optimist and I fear I do not share … Continue reading →

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Under the microscope

Posted on 21 May 2014 by Sylvia McLain

This week I attended ‘Circling the Square’ – a conference on science, science communication and science policy at the University of Nottingham (lovely Campus – well worth a visit). I certainly felt in the minority being a physical scientist rather … Continue reading →

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Get out of the laboratory

Posted on 4 May 2014 by Stephen

The Society for General Microbiology (SGM) kindly awarded me this year’s Peter Wildy Prize Lecture, which I delivered at their Spring meeting in Liverpool just a few weeks ago. The prize is given for “an outstanding contribution to microbiology education … Continue reading →

Posted in communication, science communication, Scientific Life, SGM, Society for General Microbiology, YouTube | Comments Off on Get out of the laboratory

Losing my virginity and the Café Scientifique Reading List

Posted on 30 April 2014 by Stephen

Last night I lost my virginity. To be precise, I lost my Café Scientifique virginity because I gave a talk about science in a café in Portsmouth at the kind invitation of local organiser Maricar Jagger. It was a really … Continue reading →

Posted in book review, Cafe Scientifique, communication, public engagements, science, science communication, Scientific Life | Comments Off on Losing my virginity and the Café Scientifique Reading List

Spotting bad science – is it really so easy?

Posted on 27 April 2014 by Sylvia McLain

On the Interwebs – I have seen several links to this helpful PDF on How to spot bad science – a rough guide. Learning how to sniff out bad science – or really bad science reporting which is what this … Continue reading →

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Gut Feelings

Posted on 17 February 2014 by Henry Gee

Decisions, decisions. The job as a manuscript editor at Your Favourite Weekly Etcetera largely consists of making decisions – whether to consider a manuscript for publication, or to send it on its way elsewhere. Because we receive a very large … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Gigerenzer, Gut Feelings, recognition heuristic, Research, science communication, science publishing, Writing & Reading | Comments Off on Gut Feelings

Scientific road maps for the future – proceed with caution.

Posted on 15 July 2013 by Sylvia McLain

I spent the last week at the ICNS (International Conference of Neutron Scattering) in Edinburgh. This particular conference is only held every 4 years – bouncing back and forth between North America, Europe and Oceania. It is particularly fun, when … Continue reading →

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Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without Carbon

Posted on 12 December 2012 by Stephen

I may not know much about Chemistry but I know what I like. And I like carbon. In fact, I’ve decided that it’s my favourite element. I’ll tell you why in the short video below, which is part of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Carbon, communication, Protein Crystallography, Royal Institution, science communication | Comments Off on Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without Carbon

Enough with the criticism already

Posted on 4 July 2012 by Sylvia McLain

Ever wonder why scientists are odd? For the record, I don’t think scientists are really odd, any more than any group of people can be called ‘odd’, as Micheal Crichton said ‘in my experience scientists are very human people.’ Leaving … Continue reading →

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To equate or not to equate

Posted on 7 May 2012 by Sylvia McLain

One of our jobs, working in academia, is giving talks. I don’t mean teaching, but rather presenting research. Lately I have had a spate of talks to give, largely as a result of being new in my Department.

Posted in Maths, science communication | Comments Off on To equate or not to equate