This weekly Nautilus column highlights some of the online discussion at Nature Network in the preceding week that is of relevance to scientists as authors and communicators.
The Nature Network week column is archived here.
Barry Hudson has been listening to the opinions of a range of scientific editors and writers at a recent panel discussion hosted by the Columbia Biological Society and Columbia Science Review. The panel discussed the bleak prospects for traditional science journalism as a career move; some of its members were apprehensive about the role of blogs and the internet in replacing the traditional medium, though others championed the role of blogs and other online forums as a way to bridge the broader reporting of science to those unlikely to want to read the original paper but curious for more detailed, accessible information. Even though endangered, there are plenty of media journalists keen to ask scientists about their latest research. Caryn Shechtman passes on some advice to help you promote your research and career. And Chris Taylor weighs in with a manifesto to tame the blogosphere. Good luck, Chris!
Scientia pro publica is the latest science blog carnival: Bob O’Hara has all the details, including a link to the automatic submission form, should you care to enter a piece of your own writing.
Gabriela Litre announces a conference on the human dimensions of global change. The International Human Dimensions Programme on Global Environmental Change (United Nations University) will take place in Bonn from 26 to 30 April 2009. Gabriela draws attention to the round table “Catastrophe Sells”, about the media coverage of environmental news, on Tuesday 28 April, moderated by Deutsche Welle’s Irene Quaile with panelists Walter Ammann (Davos Forum), Ortwin Renn (Director of DialogiK), and Richard Klein, of the Stockholm Resilience Center. James Painter of BBC World will also participate, as well as Stefan Krug, spokesperson for Greenpace Germany. See Gabriela’s post for more information.
Do you remember “reprint request cards”? Wouter Achten has a nice example for those too young to remember the practice.
Fast communication and publication brings a new dimension to the age-old problem of being scooped, as might have been the case for a poster Brian Derby and his group presented at a recent meeting. One option to consider is the preprint server, which provides a verified “time stamp”. Hilary Spencer of Nature Precedings provides some clarification of “paranoia, preprints and press embargos” from the Nature Publishing Group perspective.
Further science-related blog reading and online discussion can be enjoyed at:
Nature.com’s science blogs index and tracker
Nature Network’s many blogs and forums