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Abstract Detail

The Importance of Communicating Science

Getting more than 20 strangers to care about your research: Why would you want to?

You became a scientist because you wanted to discover new things about the world, not because you wanted to spend your time on Facebook or Twitter or because you wanted to become a YouTube star. You want to spend your time collecting and analyzing data, writing papers, and talking about science with your students and colleagues, and you have to find time to write grant proposals so that you have money to do all of those things.
Now your dean and your funding agency are telling you that they want you to spend time on outreach and engagement. Why should you listen to them? Should you listen to them? There are at least three reasons you should: (1) The institutions your science depends on will thrive only if people appreciate the relevance of science to their lives (and they can't appreciate something they haven't been told about). (2) Our democracy can prosper only if people and policy makers have the evidence they need to make good decisions (and you can bet that there will be others ready to give them their version of the evidence, even if you don't). (3) People can share in the joy of wonder and discovery only if we share our excitement about our discoveries (and we owe it to everyone not to hoard the treasures we have found).

1 - University Of Connecticut, Department Of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, 75 N. Eagleville Road, U-3043, STORRS, CT, 06269-3043, USA

Keywords:
science communication
Twitter
Facebook
Social media
broader impacts.

Presentation Type: Symposium Presentation
Session: SY01, The importance of communicating science
Location: Chatham Ballroom - B/Savannah International Trade and Convention Center
Date: Monday, August 1st, 2016
Time: 10:45 AM
Number: SY01007
Abstract ID:807
Candidate for Awards:None