Science Communication Blog

2006-04-07T23:44:00.000-05:00

Science Communication Blog
Protecting the white moose of Foleyet
by Amy Henson

A new provincial regulation will help protect the culturally significant white-coloured moose of the Foleyet area.

Over the past 60 years, white moose have been regularly spotted along the highway 101 corridor between Chapleau and Timmins.

“We estimate that there are currently between four and six white moose in the area,” said Mike Bernier, information management supervisor for the Chapleau district of the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources.

The moose have been recognized to be spiritually significant by area First Nations and other local community wish to protect the moose in hopes to boost ecotourism opportunities in the area.

“The presence of the white moose encourages wildlife viewing and supports ecotourism potential in the northeast,” said David Ramsay, Natural Resources Minister of Ontario.

The new regulation under the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act prohibits the hunting of moose that are predominantly white in colour in Wildlife Management Units 30 and 31, located near Timmins, Chapleau and Foleyet.

“Even though the moose are white in colour, they are not albino,” explained Bernier. The term used for animals that have a white colour like the moose is ‘leuchistic’. Albino animals do not have any pigment in their bodies. The fur or skin is white and their eyes usually pink. Leuchistic animals have white fur or skin but still have pigment in other parts of their bodies like the eyes.

There are only four to six individual white moose around Foleyet. This is due to the limited expression os a recessive gene.

Two white moose mating will always produce white offspring. If two brown moose mate and each of those animals carries the recessive gene, there is a 25% chance that their baby will be white. If a white moose mates with a brown moose who does not carry gene, none of their offspring will be white. A white moose who mates with a brown moose who does carry the gene have a 50% chance of producing a white offspring.

Even though this white population of moose is protected, the amount of available moose tags for the area will not be affected. “ “Since both white coloured moose and brown coloured moose can carry the gene, hunting has shown to have had no effect on the expression of the white coloured gene,” said Bernier.

White moose are a natural part of moose populations. They are not only found in the Foleyet area, but can be found in other moose populations throughout Ontario and North America.

Our toughest critics

2006-03-05T02:47:00.000-05:00

How exactly do we communicate important issues with our toughest critics. By this, I mean the people who refuse to listen and those who refuse to believe that something is the way you tell them it is. People who think that water is a renewable resource, or those who have convinced themselves that there will always be enough oil to sustain all our energy needs. I often find myself arguing against people who believe that pharmacological companies are holding back a cure for cancer, because "well, they must have come up with something by now!!". I guess I'm not really arguing against them, but I'm trying desperately to debunk the myth that science is a saviour and that we have figured out the answers to everything. I guess that's really just it, these are the people who believe in the almighty science! If there is a problem in the world, it is not for them to worry about, science will have solved it, if not now, then at least before it gets to be a problem.

I hope this makes sense, its very train of thought..... I'd love to hear some comments.

Lisa!~

Risk Communication

2006-01-30T00:12:00.000-05:00

We’ve been learning a lot about Risk Communication and its a really interesting concept. Since the middle of last semester when we first started hearing about it I’ve noticed that I watch the news with a much more critical ear. Just the other day they were talking about an elevator accident in Toronto where the elevator dropped 5 stories and 5 people suffered major injuries, but none life threatening. The next day an official from an elevator company (I’m not sure if it was the company who made that particular elevator) was on the news explaining how hydraulic elevators worked. He said something to the effect that those types of elevators are only used to lift a few floors, commonly 1 or 2 floors, and then he broke the cardinal rule in risk communication when he said ‘and falling one or two floors isn’t as bad as falling five’. WOW! I couldn’t help but shake my head.

I guess I took for granted that the idea of risk communication would be something a company would look into when an accident or some other situation occurred. Well, my lesson is learned, you can never take anything for granted! So with placements coming up, this is knowledge that we might be able to bring to our ‘host companies’. Maybe some of us will have the opportunity to help out in ways that are unexpected.

Lisa!~

"The Mystique of Science in the Press" - A Reading Report

2005-12-08T04:28:00.000-05:00

Article of Review: Nelkin, Dorothy. “The Mystique of Science in the Press.” Selling Science: How the Press Covers Science and Technology. New York: W. H. Freeman and Company, 1987. pp 14 – 32.

Summary
In her chapter, The Mystique of Science in the Press, Dorothy Nelkin argues that the press creates an air of mystique around science which is responsible for a public perception of it as being esoteric and possessing greater value than any other pursuit of humanity. Rather than promoting public understanding, Nelkin claims that such media coverage distances the real importance of science from the grasp of citizens. She constructs her view on the basis of four themes: the scientist as a star, science as a resource, the purity of science, and the authority of scientific theory.

The Scientist as Star
Nelkin’s first theme illustrates the media’s tendency to glorify scientists, portraying them as heroes or celebrities who are engaged in an international competition for awards and esteem.

Science as a Resource
In her second theme, Nelkin addresses the frequent portrayal of science by the media as the most important resource of society. In her opinion, such an idealization casts a light of diminished importance on other human endeavours, such as liberal arts.

The Purity of Science
Nelkin’s third theme focuses on the media’s depictions of science as being a profession apart because it is unemotional, impartial, and possessing higher values than those in other fields. She argues that the media idealizes science by portraying cases of scientific fraud as being aberrations.

The Authority of Scientific Theory
In her final theme, Nelkin discusses how, in its choice of theories to advance, the press sometimes uses disputed and unproven science to promote certain views. This has the consequence of blurring the line between that which is regarded as “hard evidence” and that which is considered “theoretical.”

Conclusion
Nelkin concludes by commenting on the accessibility gap between citizens and science that is perpetuated by “the mystique of science in the press.” Such a gap concerns her in a time when science is so integral to society, especially in policy making.

Commentary
Who was Dorothy Nelkin?
Without ever attaining an advanced degree beyond her Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from Cornell, she achieved the status of University Professor in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences at New York University. She was an author of some 26 books on various topics related to science and technology in society. Much of her work revolved around exposing the potential societal consequences of “unchecked” advances in science. She was a sceptic when it came to believing that science would live up to the desires of its advocates. In 2003, she died of cancer at the age of 69.

My Views on the Mystique of Science in the Press
An interesting point I noted was in Nelkin’s theme “scientist as star” where she addresses the media’s propensity to portray female Nobel laureates as down-to-earth, everyday people which starkly contrasts depictions of male Nobelists. She states that: “As a remarkable exception to the usual coverage of scientists in the press, the portraits of female Nobelists only highlight the prevailing image of science as an arcane and superior profession, and points up the lack of attention to its substance.” Her use of this particular illustration was a source of confusion for me, preventing me from identifying how it highlights or even relates to “the mystique of science in the press.”

Nelkin’s theme “science as a resource” presents an argument that struck a chord with me regarding the superior representation of scientists, or “techs”, relative to liberal arts types, or “fuzzies”, by the media. When I was in University and even as far back as my highschool days, I was discouraged by my parents, peers and science teachers to pursue studies outside of science with the exception of English and other requisite courses. Little did I realize then of the significant impact that greater exposure to liberal arts would have had on my ability to communicate, particularly with respect to writing.

Another point of interest I found in Nelkin’s theme “the purity of science” makes reference to the age old reverence of science by its contributors — being primarily male — and by the media as having purely logical, as opposed to emotional, motivations. This relates to a discussion we had as a class in which, if I recalled correctly, the consensus was that science, as a product of culture by definition, necessitates that emotional motives, in addition to logical ones, be attributed to its proliferation.

In Nelkin’s theme of “the authority of scientific theory,” a noteworthy point that she neglected to make, which I feel would have added to her argument, was of the media’s widespread dependence in legitimizing stories on the alleged “reliability” of the peer-reviewed scientific community. When the press cites scientists in an effort to validate their view, I think that the effect is to further propagate the idea in the public’s psyche that the word of scientists should be taken at face value and undisputed.

In conclusion, Nelkin’s chapter opened my eyes to the notion that the press, without doubt, is largely responsible for creating a public perception of mystique around science. My personal sentiments coincided with Nelkin’s concern that, in an age when science has profound influence over societal decision-making, such a circumstance subsists.

That's all for now!

Amazing Science Search – A constructivist activity for science adventurers

2005-12-08T03:51:00.000-05:00

I recently devised a science scavenger hunt, which was inspired by television’s Amazing Race, for the Science Adventurer Boys program at Science North. The boys were aged 8 to 11 and, as members of Science North, all had some prior exposure to the science centre. My aim was to use the existing science infrastructure at the centre in a way that was novel to the boys. Drawing from constructivist learning theory, I geared the activity to provide an experience that was both challenging and stimulating (Hein, 1998). I designed the science search to present the participants with tasks and questions pertaining to the content of the science centre. These tasks and questions had multiple conclusions and “correct” answers, in a sense, giving the activity multiple entry points and layers.

When I began writing the science search, I was admittedly uncertain of how to gauge the motives and interests of boys of the 8 to 11 age group. I had little prior experience with this type of audience other than time I’ve spent with my 10 year-old nephew. In an attempt to better understand my target audience, I combined my knowledge of my nephew’s behaviours with memories of my childhood. I also gathered some useful suggestions from my classmates. An important factor that they got me to consider was that boys of this age range tend to have short attention spans. This led me to realize that it was important to design the search so that it could be completed within an hour. I decided too that it was necessary to divide the search into several stages with each requiring no more than ten minutes to complete. When I finished designing the search, I was confident in having made an effort to understand my audience.

Implementation of the science search began by dividing the boys into two teams of three. I supervised one team and Alan Nursall, Science North's science director, supervised the other. We gave the boys the search instructions which directed them to various stops throughout the centre. At each stop, the instructions prompted the teams to complete a few tasks and answer questions about their findings. Alan had the idea of giving each team a digital camera so that they could document their discoveries, which turned out to be a novelty for most them because they had few if any previous opportunities to use cameras. Upon successful completion of the tasks at each stage, Alan and I would assign our respective teams a letter (e.g. “O”). Once all of the stages were completed, the teams each had six random letters that, when unscrambled, spelled the word FOSSIL. We then directed the boys to the Nature Exchange where they were each entitled to choose a small fossil for keeping.

After seeing the science search in use, and getting feedback from the boys and Alan, I was proud to discover that, for all intents and purposes, it was a success. The boys seemed to appreciate the challenging and competitive nature of the search, and the motive of finding a treasure. I achieved my attempt to have multiple entry and exit points as indicated by the varying findings of the two teams. For example, one of the tasks I gave the teams was to “find an animal that has protective armour.” I further asked them to identify the animal as being either warm blooded or cold blooded. Alan’s team found the porcupine and classified it appropriately as warm blooded. In contrast, my team opted to use the cold blooded snapping turtle in their findings.The main lesson that I gathered from this experience was that, before engaging an unfamiliar audience, it’s necessary to make a multi-pronged research effort in order to better understand their needs and motivations.

That's all for now!

Reference
Hein, G. E. (1998). Learning in the Museum. Routledge, New York, NY. pp. 25 – 40.

Simpsons goes environmental

2005-11-19T16:38:00.000-05:00

As Professor Frink looks into the future....

Marge and homer receive a post card from a teenage Maggie who is sunning herself on the tropical beaches of Alaska. A polar bear, skiiny and gasping for breath walks in front of her and collapses as Homer comments "Darn widlife, serves them right!"

Wow! A comment on both global warming and the ignorance of some North Americans.....

The one day I get to watch Oprah

2005-10-27T16:19:00.000-05:00

So I am never home at this time of day, so during reading week, I get to watch Oprah. I keep thinking to myself I'm slowly becoming that typical working woman where Oprah is like an escape from reality HA! Anyway, today's show was striking as it featured two guests. Dr. Michael Oppenheimer from Princeton University and Leonardo DiCaprio. I am not a fan of old Leo, so I was about to chnage the channel thinking it was a typical celebrity interview when a change in Oprah's usual set caught my eye. A large satellite picture view of Earth sat behind them. I then listened quite intently as the three of them discussed global warming. Apparently Leo is an environmentalist! And that this is the first time Oprah has ever heard of compact fluorescent light bulbs. It made me wonder what sort of status and say do celebrities have in the U.S.? I would enjoy some comments about this one. If you have a moment, Leo directed and wrote a couple of interesting simple films about global warming and water resources. You can view these on his website at http://leonardodicaprio.org. There are links from there.
Happy Reading Week!
Amy

A different cultural view.

2005-10-15T18:07:00.000-05:00

Check out htis interesting essay from Science that is from the perspective of science in a different culture. It really hit home as a marine biologist and the things that can face scientists when out there in the real world.

" We do science not in a vacuum but against the grinding poverty and environment-unfriendly character of modern times…"
Read the full essay by Jurgenne Primavera

Crisis: The Paradigm Shift Fuel. A Quasi-Philosophical Response

2005-10-07T09:07:00.000-05:00

I have to agree with James, we are most definitely in an instant gratification society, and everything must be done on a large scale. We can see that from the houses we live in, the cars we drive, the meals we order. However, when we realize that those 'things' may be causing us to be unhealthy, unhappy, or in financial turmoil we look around for someone to blame! We are society, and society is creating this need, scratch that, desire for everything to be when we want it, how we want it. Along the same lines, no one, whether it be science, society, or individuals makes a paradigm shift until we are at the brink of crisis. Smokers don't quit until they get some sort of a cancer scare, obese don't change their lifestyles until their doctors tell them they will be dead shortly. The question is how do we light a fire under society to start what we see as the necessary paradigm shifts before we are at the brink of crisis?

Secord Out!

Is Crisis the Only Solution? (a quasi-philosophical rant)

2005-10-05T18:40:00.000-05:00

Do we, human beings, only make widescale, unified efforts for change in the wake of crises? Insofar as many of the pressing scientific issues facing humanity are concerned, I believe that this is the case. What areas of science are in need of a paradigm shift now? In the next decade? In the next century? And whatever these issues may be, will a crisis in each scenario have to be reached before drastic measures will be taken? Any answers that I might offer to any of these questions would be pure speculation.
It seems to me that humans, particularly in this day in age, live a life of instant gratification. Have we always been this way? Is it in our nature? Regardless of the answers to these questions, humans do need to be gratified instantaneously in our time. In my opinion, this nature of humans has huge implications for the future of our species, be it in a hundred years or a hundred thousand years.
I'll leave it to you to draw your own conclusions.
Thank you very much.
That's all for now

New Orleans is sinking... to a greater understanding

2005-09-26T21:11:00.000-05:00

I was thinking during our discussion today with Lowell about the ironic reference to New Orleans being below sea level after the recent Katrina tragedy. We also talked a little today about how people under certain contexts would have a great knowledge on a certain subject and a greater desire to gain that knowledge (eg. Walkerton and water quality). Because of the tragic circumstances of this even in New Orleans, do you think that this portion of the Climate CHange Theatre has a greater impact than it might have 2 months ago? What do people think?
AMY

Leave-the-car-at-home day

2005-09-23T10:25:00.000-05:00

So, what did you think about the event last night? (I was seduced away by Cinefest and will even confess to driving there. And yes I even bought gas at the opportunistic price of $1.099.)Anyway, was it a success? Large crowd? Opinions changed? Planet saved?

Design of science communication is my particular interest so I'm curious to know how well the event was prepared:
Was the content well presented and appropriate to the audience?
What kind of experiences did the participants have, to engage them with the content? How much was passive, active?
How did the activities relate to their life outside the event? Connections to their past experience? Potential for following up afterwards to increase their knowledge if they choose to?

If I come off sounding teachy here it's because I miss the day to day interaction with the group.

Dave

IMAX FYI

2005-09-19T20:38:00.000-05:00

folks,
a few of us watched the 2 imax's playing: adreneline and mysteries of the nile. both were great.... i definately recommend checking them out...i'd like to go again myself

has anyone seen wings yet? it's a 3D experience...maybe we could all go together sometime...oui?

s-ro

Good job Amy

2005-09-18T23:18:00.000-05:00

Good job Amy. We had given up on Whose Water .... all the enquiries must have sent somebody scurrying to find copies. I will talk with Chantal about ordering enough for us all through the SN Gift Store.

Talked with the MOE Director of Biomonitoring today (at the fish and chip stall in Killarney - knew he was around with an MOE gang in the park for a getaway weekend). I think we might be visiting him and his people in Toronto on Sept 29 - will do some more checking next week and let you know what we have in mind.

Thanks for the compliments about the launch - but there would have been nothing to launch without students. So thanks to all of you for buying tickets for the ride .... I look forward to where you all might be in 10 years when we have the reunion !

Science Communication Blog

2005-09-16T17:53:00.000-05:00

Whose Water is It?
It can all be ours!

I just got an order confirmed by chapters.ca for the book Whose Water is it? If you would like to get your own copy, or if we want to order them for the class that might be the way! I believe the book should be here within the next couple of days. I'll let you know for sure whether it has arrived.
Have a great weekend! I am off to catch some fish.

Let's get this going....

2005-09-15T22:02:00.000-05:00

Nothing to add really, other than I thought today was a great day, and I had better get something - anything - posted to this forum so that I have a post under my belt. It was a testament to the energy and leadership of Dave and Chantal that this day came to pass and be so well received.

I'm wondering if James's gorilla photo is in any way related to the Evolution Schmevolution Week, this week on The Daily Show - the Tuesday edition dealt with human-ape similarities, in a manner of speaking. Leave it to Jon Stewart and crew to cut to the heart of the anti-science ethic rampant in the US.

Here's a view of science I find easy to remember:
Science is nothing but trained and organized common sense, differing from the latter only as a veteran may differ from a raw recruit.
Thomas Huxley

OK, next post will be modestly coherent.
Al

It's official

2005-09-15T21:35:00.000-05:00

A great performance by all, leading up to the official inauguration of the program. Maybe it wasn't exactly science communication but it was communication on display. And from the conversations afterwards, I'd say the communication about science communication is already well underway. DG

We look spiffy!

2005-09-15T19:19:00.000-05:00

I thought we all looked pretty amazing today - what an awesome group.
A big thanks to Chantal, Dave and the entire Laurentian and Science North team for putting on an amazing media event today! Can't wait now for the ten-year reunion!

Shame on you Samson!!

2005-09-14T18:34:00.000-05:00

I thought that Kirsti, Lisa and Serena would appreciate this photo after the conversation we shared earlier today regarding the behavioural similarities between gorillas and people. Note: The photo's low resolution was intentional in an attempt to mask it's potentially offensive content.

I plan to expand on the details of the conversation in the very near future for those of you who might be interested.

Over and Out.

PS - Who is this Big Al character who recently joined the contributors list?? I have a strange feeling that the Nerd on a Nickel has struck again.

Another branch

2005-09-14T15:23:00.000-05:00

The blog is a great idea, James - I especially appreciate it as I am on sabbatical and will not have regular contact with everyone otherwise.

Since trees seems to be an emerging theme, I'll add one. Yeah, I know it's 1.5 Mb and I'll be more careful next time. This tree is in a park up the north shore from Baie-Comeau. I know it's alive and beautiful; I'm fairly sure it's an evergreen, but beyond that I defer to the botanists among us.

Questions Anyone?

2005-09-14T13:45:00.000-05:00

Today was our first day of Science in Society with philosopher and poet Dr. Roger Nash. The class was focused on asking questions about science, defining the terms needed to answer the question, and try to develop a way in which we can articulate them to the desired audience, but always keeping in mind that we need to answer our original question.

When I got home today I found in my email a quote of the week that I thought was perfect for the topic that today's Science in Society class focused on:

"It is better to debate a question without settling it

than to settle a question without debating it." - Jeseph Joubert

Problems using the SCB???

2005-09-14T12:34:00.000-05:00

If anyone is experiencing difficulties in using this blog, please send an email to my hotmail.com account. Include, in your message, a personal email address other than your Laurentian address (e.g. a hotmail or yahoo address).
That's all for now.

CBC

2005-09-14T08:26:00.000-05:00

ok folks, here i go again...is anyone else severely upset at the CBC strike? CBC to me, is a canadian icon. it is the source of any and most information to us canadians and here they are on strike. even at times when i've been in the middle of nowhere, CBC was there. i miss my daily dose of markus and anna maria in the morning with my coffee. i just feel that being such an important information source to canadians from west to east, north to (semi) south it's awful that they're on strike as well as unprofessional to an extent.

on a sci comm perspective, i feel as though i've missed out on the world's news essentially for the past weeks of strike...perhaps some of you feel the same...i dunno...i didn't use my rhetoric (HA!) in this piece but had to get this off my chest.

sarahmiester

back to school

2005-08-29T19:13:00.000-05:00

well it's almost time folks, the countdown is on! i'm actually really excited.......sounds like we're really going to be the centre of media attention too...yikes!...so what are we saying here...peddlers or 1500 patio for the 5th?.....maybe i shouldn't be talking about social events on this 'educational' website...james will only be upset at me for defacing it again...oh well!

ciao folks!
sarah

Goodbye Blogging Virginity!

2005-08-09T14:51:00.000-05:00

My first official blog! So much pressure! I have nothing sciencey (yes its a real word, at Laurentian anyway) to say today...but I wanted my name on the list of contributors!
Look thats me -->

An African Acacia for Miss Sarah

2005-07-26T22:46:00.000-05:00

Apparently the tree of life that I posted was not what Miss Sarah had in mind when she requested that I post a picture of a tree. So to rectify the situation, I've posted a picture of an African Acacia, which low and behold is one of Miss Sarah's favourite species.
That's all for now.

As per Miss Sarah's request... A picture of a tree

2005-07-26T12:05:00.000-05:00

arg

2005-07-19T22:52:00.000-05:00

is this working?

Laurentian University and Science North to offer Canada's first graduate program in Science Communication

2005-07-15T07:19:00.000-05:00

Sudbury is about to become the first place in Canada where students can study for a Graduate Diploma in Science Communication. Laurentian University and Science North, Sudbury's highly respected science centre, are joining forces to offer a one year program in the public communication of science, that is now only available in Australia and Europe. The program will start in September 2005 following its approval by the Ontario Council on Graduate Studies on June 24.
Students will take courses at the Laurentian University and at Science North. These will cover subjects like learning theory, science and society, and rhetoric as well practical aspects of communicating science to the public using media such as electronic technology and exhibits.

-Reproduced from an article by Paul de la Riva, Public Affairs, Laurentian University

Science Communication Blog - We Have Lift Off!

2005-07-14T20:42:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the Science Communication Blog (SCB). I am pleased to submit it's inaugural posting.
I have established the SCB as an outlet for the expression of individual views on the ever changing world of science. My intention for this blog is to create a community of readers and contributors who are eager to learn and communicate old, new, revolutionary and controversial issues in science and technology.
Regardless of the importance and seriousness of its content, I hope to see a sense of humour maintained as much as possible in this blog.

Happy blogging!
That's all for now.