Writing for Your
Science
A few tips for researchers when
working with science writers
Why Should
Researchers Care About
Science Writing?
Benefits/Consequences
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Funding, Funding, FUNDING!
 Articles and Citations lead to funding
 Grant boards & Private donors
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Large scale – tax payers
Recognition & Collaboration in your own field
Help you understand it better!
Competing in the Information Age
The Sharing of Information Across Scientific Boundaries
National Mindset
For the Love of Science!
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NSF
“Reading my friend Lawrence
Krauss’ new book.”
Science Writing is Here to Stay
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Scientist – Science Writer – “Public”
Raw science into good prose requires
communication
Keep in Mind
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Science Writing is a new and changing field
Imperfect, variable, beautiful and useful
The Land of Science
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“Science Writer” has a lot of
meanings
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Bridge the gap; bring it to you
Journalist, Writer, Scientist
But, very, very important…
My Own Research
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Calla Cofield
BS Physics/Astrophysics, Intern APS, Intern
SLAC
Seen Research turn into Writing from the
bottom up
Objectives
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Make my job easier
Make things easier on both parties
See science properly represented
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Get scientists involved in the process of
presenting their work to the “public”
See more science represented
Its ALL About Your
Audience
Direct and Indirect
Direct Audiences: Journals
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Immediate Colleages
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Nature, Science, PRL rank/highlight based on
readability and accessibility
Research Papers:
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Summaries/Press Releases
Science Jouranlists
Scientists outside your immediate field
Direct Audiences: PIO’s and
Internal Writers
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Public Information Officers
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Why you should love your PIO:
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Talk to them!!
Don’t undermine a press release.
PhysOrg, Slashdot, Science Daily, ect.
Work with you; get your approval; promote your work.
If you don’t explain it, someone else will.
Many PIOs are not scientists.
Internal Pubs & Communications Depts
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SLAC Today! Symmetry! Symmetry Breaking!
Talk to them!
Direct Audiences: Journalists
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Know it before you talk about it.
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Know your science; have prepared an
explanation, elevator talk, simplification.
What you want to say and don’t want to say.
“On the record” “Off the record” “On Background”
Watch out for specific language.
Journalists are not required to check an
article with you before it is published.
Some Tough Truths
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Physics has an uphill climb.
Sometimes there’s simply nothing to write
about.
Prepare to be censored.
Prepare to have the focus changed.
A Few General Tips
About Explaining Your
Science.
Take them with a grain of salt.
Simplify and Explain: Two
Different Words
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An Electron is…
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Wikipedia: The electron is a fundamental subatomic particle that carries a negative
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Electrons are one of the building blocks of all matter. They
are necessary to create everything from air to gold to your
own body.
electric charge. It is a spin ½ lepton that participates in electromagnetic interactions, and its
mass is approximately 1 / 1836 of that of the proton. Together with atomic nuclei, which
consist of protons and neutrons, electrons make up atoms. The electron(s) interaction with
electron(s) of adjacent nuclei is the main cause of chemical bonding.
“Dalitz plot analyses involving D decays to final
states containing an eta, a Kaon and a pion".
“The Dalitz plot analyses I was referring to are
studies of three-body decays from D mesons which
are often dominated by resonant processes.”
A Few Tips…
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Prepare an Elevator Talk
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Hallway Talk
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2-4 minutes.
Office Talk
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A talk you can give to ANYONE in 30-60 seconds
describing what you do and what purpose it serves.
No notes. No illustrations.
10 minutes.
Guest Lecture
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15-20 minutes plus materials.
A Few Tips: More Specific
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What you did
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What does this be used for?
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New…technology? Theory? Understanding? I don’t know.
Perspective
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What your paper is reporting
Unique; New; Different; Theory; Experiment; Simulation
Zoom out.
Zoom out farther.
MUST make it applicable.
Physics’ Uphill Battle
Indirect Audiences
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Scientists.
Writing about science allows for the
advancement of science.
Symmetry Magazine
From Eye To Sight:
A particle physics technology is
revolutionizing the study of how we see.
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“To biologists, using this
many electrodes to
record from live animals
was inconceivable–they
didn't see how it was
technically possible,”
Litke says. “But to me,
we were doing this daily
at CERN!”
Indirect Audiences:
Science Enthusiasts
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They’re out there!
Love them! Cherish them!
The information age allows scientists and
science lovers to have a very intimate
relationship.
Indirect Audiences:
General Public
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Yahoo News, CNN, BBC, FOXNews
NOVA, Wired Science
Energy Crisis, Evolution, Medical, Funding
These things all involve scientists!
Larger Lesson
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Science writing is not just about explaining
and simplifying science for entertainment or
general curiosity.
It is about how science is portrayed to the
public.
It is about communication, which advances
science.
Its going to happen whether you want it to or
not, but it can’t happen without you.