Four scientists talk through the ways they now build outreach into their work as a way to spread their research’s impact – something that wasn’t the norm for past generations of academics.
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Scientists who engage with the public may have goals about influencing policy or behavior. But they also need to think about the short-term objectives that will help get them there.
Dr Ian Moffat explaining ground penetrating radar to community members during a survey of the Innamincka Cemetery.
Julia Garnaut
The impact of plant disease may be reduced if people are made aware of the many pathways for plant-killing microbes – and why preventing their spread matters to us all.
With the right skills, scientists can draw journalists like bees to honey.
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The scientific community enjoys one of the highest levels of trust among American institutions. But engaging in the political arena during a contentious election season comes with dangers.
Science communication has grown in leaps and bounds over the past 60 years. It plays a crucial role in democratising science and making it less mysterious.
The public loses when their only choices are inaccessible, impenetrable journal articles or overhyped click-bait about science. Scientists themselves need to step up and help bridge the divide.
What’s the point of academics producing amazing research if they don’t share it widely with the general public?
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Very few academics do a great deal to share their often important and relevant research with the general public. What’s holding them back?
Too many academic careers are shaped around writing journal articles nobody reads and planning twice-weekly lectures to a diminishing class of students.
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Prime Minister Turnbull has signalled a desire to move away from a ‘publish or perish’ academic culture toward one that prioritises public impact and engagement. It’s a challenge scholars should embrace.
Should professors engage with the lay public?
Illinois Springfield
Two scholars discuss the joys of writing for a lay audience. So why aren’t more academics writing for the public?
UCSF neuroscience grad student Sama Ahmed, whose three-minute talk on ‘how to know your species’ won first place at the campuswide contest, will compete for the Grad Slam championship in Oakland May 4.
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Janet Napolitano, University of California, Office of the President
The president of one of the country’s leading research university systems argues that the academic community has to make sure researchers and scientists engage with the general public.
Professor of Management & Organizations; Professor of Environment & Sustainability; Professor of Sustainable Enterprise at the Ross School of Business and School of Environment and Sustainability, University of Michigan