{"id":10465,"date":"2014-07-28T21:16:36","date_gmt":"2014-07-29T01:16:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/esa.org\/esablog\/?p=10465"},"modified":"2014-07-28T21:16:36","modified_gmt":"2014-07-29T01:16:36","slug":"making-your-science-matter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vzbmt5sl65q.c.updraftclone.com\/esablog\/2014\/07\/28\/making-your-science-matter\/","title":{"rendered":"Making Your Science Matter"},"content":{"rendered":"

This guest post is by Chris Creese, a member of the \u201cEco Comm Crew\u201d behind the upcoming \u201cBeyond the Written Word<\/a>\u201d science communication workshop (#15) at ESA\u2019s Annual Meeting in Sacramento.<\/em><\/p>\n

See previous posts from EcoComm Crewmates: \u201cParachuting In: Writing that Drops Readers into the Field of Ecology<\/a>\u201d by Clarisse Hart, \u201cFrom Oceans to Mountains, it\u2019s all about Ecology\u2026Communication!<\/a>\u201d by Holly Menninger, and \u201c3 Reasons Why We Should Tell Stories about Scientists, Not Just Science<\/a>\u201d by Bethann Merkle.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"Beyond<\/a><\/p>\n

Get ready for some tough love, but I promise this will ultimately uplift you and your science.<\/em><\/h3>\n

How many people know about your research? Is that number even based on hard data or is it wishful thinking? Excluding parents, partners and colleagues\u2026 how big is that number now?<\/p>\n

With about 2 million science papers published a year1<\/sup><\/a>, the question is, who\u2019s really reading them. According to one study, up to half of all papers are never read by anyone other than their authors, referees and journal editors2<\/sup><\/a>. That could mean an audience of three, folks! Surely all your toil in the lab and field is worth more than that.<\/p>\n

Some of us might be feeling a bit smug knowing we\u2019ve got more than a few followers. Well, cheers if you\u2019re in this group, but keep reading because I\u2019m going to share how you can still massively amplify that number.<\/p>\n

Those of us feeling a touch defensive might decide it doesn\u2019t matter how many people follow our work because science isn\u2019t about ego. I agree, it\u2019s about contribution.<\/p>\n

The act of generating new information carries some innate value, but a greater sense of contribution comes from knowing where that information goes and what it accomplishes. \u201cImpact\u201d is more than a hook for your next NSF grant.<\/p>\n

So how do scientists better communicate their findings to make sure results have legs and reach more people?<\/p>\n

Journalists and press officers will tell you that a multimedia toolkit (and knowing how to use it!) is one of the answers. It\u2019s also the focus of our ESA workshop<\/a> taking place August 10th in Sacramento. This workshop<\/a> gives you a taste of the different media opportunities available to share your science in compelling ways. By popping in for a few hours of training you\u2019ll be ready to experiment with how to tell your story through photography, audio video (AV), illustration and writing.<\/p>\n

Are you ready to capture the imagination of the masses?<\/em><\/h3>\n

The trick, says BBC Science producer Helen Thomas, is to create a \u201cgawk\u201d moment. When you drop jaws with arresting images it\u2019s a lot easier to get your message across. She wasn\u2019t kidding \u2013 she showed me and a group of press officers a \u201csizzle reel\u201d of BBC science coverage that left us breathless. Having hooked our attention she could then chat in greater detail about the anatomy of a good pitch. Producers weighing out whether to cover your science are just like everyone else \u2013 they want to be dazzled.3<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

Lawrence McGinty, former science and medical editor of ITV News, similarly calls for more \u201cvisual grabbers\u201d. He thinks good pics, animation of journal article graphics, and video footage establishing the story are key to getting news coverage. These media elements are especially helpful when communicating \u201cblue skies\u201d research that has less of an emotional pull.3<\/sup><\/a> As we know, science isn\u2019t all save the sharks, cuddly pandas, and climate change.<\/p>\n

To get news and longer form coverage, talk to your university press office because they can help you with this. In the meantime, the fastest way to start spreading your science is to get cracking on creating multimedia yourself!<\/p>\n

Dr. Lindsey Keith, a scientist turned media producer and CEO at The Refinery, points out that while professionals cover science the best, scientists don\u2019t have to wait for professional coverage to get their stories heard. With some basic tools, she thinks we can make stuff ourselves that gets the message out.3<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

This is where our workshop picks up \u2013 with an orientation on how to tell a good story and the basics of how to capture it with multimedia. Then we\u2019ll get our hands dirty and practice what we\u2019ve learned by covering a science story at the meeting and posting these projects to the workshop website<\/a> and EcoTone blog<\/a>.<\/p>\n

So what are you waiting for? Get registered<\/a>.<\/p>\n

With your media projects online and in the news, your contribution will grow exponentially, and the metrics will give you a better sense of how many people actually know about your work. In addition to being worthwhile and fun as hell, the next time your equipment or R script fails, this stronger sense of contribution will keep you going!<\/p>\n

We hope you\u2019ll join us in Sacramento.<\/p>\n

Click here to learn more and register for the workshop<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u2014<\/p>\n

Footnotes<\/h4>\n

1 The stm report \u2013 an overview of scientific and scholarly journal publishing, by Mark Ware and Michael Mabe, November 2012.<\/a><\/p>\n

2 The rise and rise of citation analysis, by Lokman I Meho, Physics World, January 2007.<\/a><\/p>\n

3 TV news \u2013 how to get your science story on the box, event hosted by STEMPRA at University College London, 17 July 2014.<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014<\/p>\n

Related resources recommended by the team that you might find helpful:<\/h4>\n