Science Communications Research

2005 Geospatial Education Workshop
Integrating Geographic Information Systems and Remote Sensing: Technical Workforce Training at Two-Year Colleges

Representatives from the National Council for Geographic Education (NCGE); the Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI) Higher Education Office; the US Geological Survey (USGS) Land Remote Sensing Program; the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Landsat program are collaborating to investigate how we can contribute to the integration of GIS and remote sensing education at the two-year college level.

Blueprint for Change: Revolution in Earth and Space Science Education
This NSF-funded report, published in June 2001, was produced by Daniel Barstow, Ed Geary, and Harvey Yazijian, editors, and Sandra Schafer, designer. The concept of Earth as a rich and complex system of interconnected components and processes has become a dominant paradigm in science. Moreover, the Space Age yielded a new perspective on Earth, enabling us to see and explore our world at spatial, spectral and temporal resolutions never before possible. This report calls upon NASA, NOAA, the USGS and other agencies to open up the "treasure troves" of their data archives and render them readily accessible to the public -- particularly to educators and students. The report provides a blueprint for how to do so effectively.

Communicating Scientific Information Through Interactive Visualizations
Kristin Henry's presentation for April 12, 2006

Communication Strategies for Meeting the Information Needs of Science and Energy Policy Leaders
At the February 2003 AAAS Meeting, Damon Benedict and Jon D. Miller presented a paper based upon their research on the information consumption habits of Science and Energy Policy Leaders in the U.S. Their paper focuses on communications strategies that are best adapted to these particular target audiences.

Energy Policy Leaders in the United States: Attitudes, activities, and information needs
At the February 2003 AAAS Meeting, Joe W. Culver and Jon D. Miller presented a paper on the attitudes, activities, and information needs of energy policy leaders in the United States. Energy policy today deals with a wide range of issues, ranging from the supply of oil to global warming and climate change. In order to help us meet any unmet information needs that they may have, it is important to fully understand who are the leaders of energy policy in the United States; where they come from; what they believe about science, energy, and the world; and where they get the information that they use in formulating their views on energy policy issues.

High- and Low-Cost Realities for Science and Society
In this May 20, 2005, article appearing in the journal Science, Helga Nowotny reports, "Through the ongoing proliferation of images and symbols, information overload and hi-tech-driven media, science increasingly communicates with the public in ways that are deliberately designed and intended to meet the public (and political) imagination." This appeal to the imagination can be pursued through different avenues. Nowotny points to works such as The State of Fear by fiction novelist Michael Crighton, and Jared Diamond's Collapse as a cases-in-point. In this article, Nowotny grapples with the question of whether in the desire to communicate with society, science has contributed to a confusion between facts and fiction, or between "high-cost and low-cost realities" (in the words of Yaron Ezrahi).

Kate Tobin's video from her talk entitled "Science Reporting -- A Journalist's Perspective"
This is Kate Tobin's video from her talk on Wednesday, October 11, 2006 (abstract). The DVD has been converted to MPG format. Please be advised that this file is large (20.5 MB) and a high-speed internet connection is highly recommended.

Notes from Edward Tufte's Lecture at NASA Headquarters
On June 2, 2004, renowned statistician and graphic artist Edward Tufte gave a lecture at NASA Headquarters (David Herring was in the audience, taking copious notes). Tufte said we can think of science as improvements in resolution -- improved information resolution is an indicator of intellectual progress. He presented six grand principles of design to be used in the production of science visuals that enhance both resolution and clarity. Contrary to popular opinion, there is no relationship between amount of detail and difficulty of reading. Rather, more details written clearly and concisely enhance the reading experience and convey more information. Communicators should clarify and then add detail. Tufte's point is that theories are decided not by philosophers, but by people looking at evidence. From a reader's/viewer's perspective, absorbing information and assessing credibility of a report go hand-in-hand. A scientific presentation stands or falls on the perceived quality, integrity, and relevance of its content. (Tufte has written books and published papers on this subject, details of which can be found at http://www.edwardtufte.com/tufte/index.)

Qualitative Methods for Assessing Relationships Between Organizations and Publics
In 2002, James E. Grunig published a report on qualitative methods for observing and evaluating relationships between organizations and publics. Together with Linda Hon, Grunig reviewed research showing that public relations contributes value to an organization when its communication programs result in quality long-term relationships with its strategic publics -- also known as "stakeholders." This paper presents the details of their findings.

Risk Reporting: Why can't they ever get it right?
What should journalists report about risks? Is it better to ignore an uncertain risk and avoid panic, or to report it anyway? If scientists can't figure out risk, how can journalists? Susanna Hornig Priest tackles these questions and more in this book chapter. She writes, "Risk is not only a technical concept, it is also a social concept. In fact, some social theorists have proposed that post-industrial societies can be reconceptualized as 'risk societies' in which... avoidance of risk is the new organizing principle." Priest explores these ideas and more in this fascinating essay.

Science & Engineering Indicators -- 2002
In 2000, the National Science Foundation (NSF) commissioned a report entitled Science & Engineering Indicators, which was updated in 2002. This monumental report assesses what Americans know about science & technology (S&T), and touches on many aspects of science communications and public relations strategy, including what are the most effective media and methods. Among other things, the study finds that most Americans do not know a lot about S&T. While most Americans get their information from television and newspapers, various studies show the Internet is making inroads rapidly. Moreover, people who have access to the Internet at home have more knowledge about science and the scientific process, and they harbor fewer reservations about science & technology than those who don't have Internet access. (Attached here is Chapter 8 from the 2000 version of that report. But I recommend you visit the 2002 version on line.)

Science Policy Leaders in the United States: Attitudes, activities, and information needs
At the February 2003 AAAS Meeting, William Valdez and Jon D. Miller presented a paper on the attitudes, activities, and information needs of science policy leaders in the United States. Science policy today deals with a variety of issues, ranging from the very definition of health and illness to the long-term prognosis for life on this planet. It is important to fully understand who the leaders of science policy in the United States are, where they come from, what they believe about science and the world, where they get the information that they use in formulating their views on science policy issues, and what - if any - unmet information needs that they may have.

Social Values and the Governance of Science
In this December 23, 2005, article appearing in the journal Science, George Gaskell (et al.) note that as research increasingly enters value-laden areas, scientists must engage with other communities on the ethical, legal, and social implications of science and technology, and for the "public voice" to be brought into the formative stages of decision-making. In this paper, the authors (including Susanna Hornig Priest) present findings from recent surveys in the U.S., Canada, and the European Union on who the public thinks should make decisions on science policy and what criteria should guide such decisions.

The Broadband Difference: How online Americans' behavior changes with high-speed Internet connections at home
The Pew Internet and American Life Project (http://www.pewinternet.org/) has been conducting a series of studies focused on the Internet and Americans' use of the medium. Authored by John B. Horrigan and Lee Rainie, this report documents the increase in home broadband Internet access and examines how Americans' behavior changes with high-speed Internet connections. Three noteworthy features of home broadband users are: (1) They are creators and managers of on-line content; (2) they use their "always on" connections to satisfy their queries; and (3) they do many things online on a typical day, including getting news, research, taking courses, listening to music, and downloading large files.

The Case for Climate Literacy in the 21st Century
The advent of the Internet and evolutionary advances in geospatial data browsers, virtual globes, and immersive visualization displays have significantly increased the potential for a more climate science literate public. In the same time, space-based Earth-observing agencies like NASA and NOAA have geometrically increased the volume of data they collect everyday, over the entire globe. Fortunately, Moore's Law held true during that same time span so that the processing capacity of modern computers enabled scientists to collect, process, and share these data with increasing efficiency and turn-around time. In just the last two decades the combination of these technologies has substantially increased public access to cutting-edge climate science data and information. But has there been a corresponding increase in public climate science literacy? And, if so, has there also been a corresponding increase in positive public attitudes and opinions about climate science research? In this paper we review some current research about the public's awareness, understanding, and opinions about current climate research. We review some initiatives that our agencies have taken to help improve climate science literacy. Our own research, and others', suggests it is possible to improve climate science literacy and positive attitudes about modern climate research, given the use of particular methods of communication. We conclude with a call for collaborators to work with NASA and NOAA in the assembly of a "synergetic" new climate science communications and education infrastructure, as articulated by the late Buckminster Fuller, in which the whole works together much more effectively than the sum of the individual parts. We argue that the inherent difficulty of improving public climate science literacy, much less addressing the problems that stem from illiteracy and negative attitudes toward the science, render the problem too great for any one agency or effort to tackle alone. Attacking the problem synergistically increases the potential for success while enriching all who are involved in the collaborative effort.

The Conceptualization and Measurement of Policy Leadership
At the February 2003 AAAS Meeting, Jon D. Miller presented a paper on the meaning of policy leadership in the context of the American policy system. Miller outlines some procedures for the operational definition and measurement of the leadership of science and technology policy and energy policy in the United States.

The Digital Disconnect: The widening gap between Internet-savvy students and their schools
The Pew Internet and American Life Project (http://www.pewinternet.org/) has been conducting a series of studies focused on the Internet and Americans' use of the medium. Written by Douglas Levin and Sousan Arafeh, this report documents the fact that Internet-savvy students rely on the Internet to help them do their schoolwork. They use the Internet as both a virtual textbook and reference library. Yet many schools and teachers have not yet recognized #-- nor responded to -- the ways in which students communicate and access information over the Internet.

The Glory of the Story: A Summary of Kendall Haven's Presentation at the May EPO Colloquium
On Wednesday May 3, Kendall Haven was the featured speaker at the monthly Education and Public Outreach Colloquium. Haven's presentation was entitled Voice of the Mind: The Amazing Power of Story... and What It Means to You; the full presentation is available here (PDF, 203 KB.)

The basic question Haven set out to answer was: Does the form and structure used for narrative presentation affect the way the reader/viewer understands the material presented, creates meaning, and retains the information (memory and recall), based on scientific information, concepts, and research presented. In short, the answer is a rather emphatic YES!

The Internet and Education: Findings of the Pew Internet & American Life Project
The Pew Internet and American Life Project (http://www.pewinternet.org/) has been conducting a series of studies focused on the Internet and Americans' use of the medium. Written by Amanda Lenhart, Maya Simon, and Mike Graziano, this report presents data on student use of the Internet, as well as data on their parents' views of the Net. For instance, in 2001, 71% of on-line teens said they used the Internet as the major source for their most recent major school project or report. Chock full of interesting data, this report is a must read.

The Rise of the E-Citizen: How people use government agencies' Web sites
The Pew Internet and American Life Project (http://www.pewinternet.org/) has been conducting a series of studies focused on the Internet and Americans' use of the medium. One of the fastest growing activities online in recent years has been the use of government Web sites. Written by Elena Larsen and Lee Rainie, this report documents how many people visit government agencies' Web sites, and what types of information they are seeking.

The Role of Cognitive Theory and Research in the Design of Mathematics and Science Teaching & Learning
Professor James Pellegrino, University of Illinois, gave a colloquium talk in June 2004 at NASA GSFC. Pellegrino contributed to the popular book How People Learn and more recently he authored Knowing What Students Know: The Science and Design of Educational Assessment. In this PowerPoint presentation, Pellegrino elaborates on how theories of learning and knowing impact curriculum, instruction, and assessment. He details what we know about how people learn. He discusses some issues in bridging research about and practice of effective pedagogy. (Warning: this PowerPoint file originally linked to some movies files which are no longer present.)

The public opinion climate for gene technologies in Canada and the United States: competing voices, contrasting frames
In this article appearing in the journal Public Understanding of Science, Susanna Hornig Priest reports on her recent survey findings regarding public opinion in the U.S. and Canada about gene technologies. Her results indicate that most people believe risks or costs and benefits should be weighed in developing policy, and that this should be done by experts ("utilitarians"). This group and two other cluster groups identified in the analysis ("moral authoritarians" and "democratic pragmatists") exist in roughly equivalent proportions in both countries, with some regional variation evident within each.

Voice of the Mind: The Amazing Power of Story (And What It Means to You)
Kendall Haven's presentation slides for his talk on May 3, 2006

Question
Does the form and structure of narrative presentation affect reader/viewer:
   - Understanding,
   - Ability to create meaning,
   - Retention (memory & recall)
From the scientific information, concepts, and research you describe?

When Scientists Become Advocates
Communication, Governance and Policy-making in the Face of Scientific Uncertainty

This presentation file goes with Susanna Priest's talk on March 8, 2006. An abstract can be found here.

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