Public Understanding Of Science Research Articles

Accuracy, Authenticity, Fidelity: Aesthetic Realism, the "Deficit Model," and the Public Understanding of Science.

Argument "Deficit model" designates an outlook on the public understanding and communication of science that emphasizes scientific illiteracy and the need to educate the public. Though criticized, it is still widespread, especially among scientists. Its persistence is due not only to factors ranging from scientists' training to policy design, but also to the continuance of realism as an aesthetic criterion. This article examines the link between realism and the deficit model through discussions of neurology and psychiatry in fiction film, as well as through debates about historical movies and the cinematic adaptation of literature. It shows that different values and criteria tend to dominate the realist stance in different domains: accuracy for movies concerning neurology and psychiatry, authenticity for the historical film, and fidelity for adaptations of literature. Finally, contrary to the deficit model, it argues that the cinema is better characterized by a surplus of meaning than by informational shortcomings.

How messages about behavioral genetics research can impact on genetic attribution beliefs

Science communication has the potential to reshape public understanding of science. Yet, some research findings are more difficult to explain and more likely to be misunderstood. The contribution of this paper is threefold. It opens with a review of fascinating interdisciplinary literature on how scientific research about human genetics is disseminated in the media, and how this type of information could influence public beliefs and world views. It then presents the theoretical framework for my research program, providing a logical basis for how messages about human genetics may influence people's beliefs about the role of genes in causing human traits. Based on this reasoning, I formulate the genetic interpolation hypothesis, which predicts that messages about specific research findings in behavioral genetics can lead members of the public to infer greater genetic causation for other social traits not mentioned in the content of the message. While this framework offers clear, testable predictions, some questions remain unaddressed. For instance, what kind of message formats are persuasive enough to alter people's views? The third contribution of this paper is to begin to address this question empirically. I present the results of a survey experiment that was designed to test whether a simple, short paragraph about behavioral genetics is a powerful enough stimulus to cause the genetic interpolation effect.

Acceptance of evolution among American Mormons

Low public acceptance of evolution among Americans in general, and conservative Protestants specifically, has recently received increased attention among scholars of both religion and the public understanding of science. At the same time, members of another major religious tradition, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS), reject evolution at rates similar to evangelical Christians, yet there remains a dearth of studies examining the lack of acceptance of evolution among Mormons. Using a nationally representative survey of Americans that contains an adequate number of LDS respondents for advanced statistical analyses, this study examines patterns of evolution acceptance or rejection among Mormons. Findings reveal a moderating relationship between political identity and education, such that educational attainment has a positive relationship with evolution acceptance among political moderates and liberals, but a negative association among political conservatives. These findings highlight the central role played by the politicization of evolution in low rates of evolution acceptance among American Mormons and emphasize the need to—where possible—examine relations between ‘science and religion’ within and across specific religious traditions.

Communication of Scientific Knowledge About Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) Through Social Media (SM)

Traditional print media has been the most common source of science communication to date, even for innovative technologies like carbon capture and storage (CCS). Generally, print media simplifies discourse about science and technology in an effort to improve deficit in public understanding of science. Research has indicated that social media, may also be used to fill this deficit of public understanding. However, simple interpretations have the potential to increase misunderstanding of new science and technology. CCS, as a technology is proposed mainly for use by the fossil fuel industry and other industrial high energy users for carbon mitigation and is relatively unknown beyond this group. This paper focuses on the discourse about CCS in selected social media through netnography, which is a form of ethnographic analysis of data that people share freely through the Internet (1). The aim of the paper is to ascertain the patterns of discourse surrounding CCS deployment. The paper identifies scientific, social and economic aspects of the technology that are being discussed through social media – Facebook and Twitter. For this purpose, data has been scraped using the software “SocialReaper” from the Facebook and Twitter pages of 19 pro-CCS institutes and 11 industry players. Leximancer has then been used to analyse the text and identify the key themes and most frequently used terms through the use of concept maps. This identification of the key themes indicates the information about CCS and other key themes like alternative energy sources, finance and banking institutes, main countries involved, and also the ecological aspects of climate change. The information that is being communicated to public are using simple communication models-deficit model and transmission model. This paper shows that the pro-CCS institutes/networks are informing the public about CCS through social media, instead of the industry players.

Stellar Variability: from Citizen Science to Citizen Astronomy

AbstractThe contribution of citizens to research is irrefutable. Especially this century with the outburst of all-sky surveys, professional astronomers use citizen-science projects to engage the public in analysing and sorting large quantities of data, often leading to noteworthy discoveries. From crowdsourcing to acquiring data, citizens are leaving a significant mark in the science landscape, assisting professional astronomers with their work. In turn, citizen science is a means of increasing science literacy and public understanding of science. At the same time, the time domain enables a more active engagement of backyard observers in research. Citizen astronomers not only take data, but also reduce and analyse them, and participate in preparing scientific manuscripts.

Historical moments in public understanding of science: 1977, The Visible Scientists identifies a new scientist for the mass media age.

Historical moments in public understanding of science: 1977, The Visible Scientists identifies a new scientist for the mass media age.

Psychology and its publics

This paper introduces the special issue dedicated to ‘Psychology and its Publics’. The question of the relationship between psychologists and the wider public has been a central matter of concern to the historiography of psychology. Where critical historians tend to assume a pliant audience, eager to adopt psychological categories, psychologists themselves often complain about the public misunderstanding of them. Ironically, both accounts share a flattened understanding of the public. We turn to research on the public understanding of science (PUS), the public engagement with science (PES) and communications studies to develop a rich account of the circuitry that ties together psychological experts and their subjects.

Media portrayal of stem cell research: towards a normative model for science communication

As the field of science communication has matured over the past 50 years, there has been a significant move away from the conventional understanding that mass media’s role in the public communication of science is limited to reporting new scientific discoveries. Media have been increasingly viewed as important for the legitimation of science and scholars have recognized their agenda-setting effects and ability to facilitate interaction between the public, scientific community, policymakers, interest groups, and other social actors. This article draws on analyses of news media coverage of stem cell research between 1998 and 2013 to demonstrate the active role of mass media in validating scientific claims about discoveries in the field and shaping the public understanding of key bioethical and policy issues. It further assesses whether media, in their attempts to construct the “right” position, have instigated a rational-critical discourse on the controversy. I argue that media representations in different cultural contexts have largely failed to meet normative expectations about the democratization of public discussions on biomedical innovation, as set out in the public engagement with science and technology (PEST) model of science communication. Rather than deconstructing the major terms of science policy debates as framed by stem cell advocates and their opponents, media coverage has mostly replicated discussions in political and legislative arenas, presenting the controversy as a strict binary opposition. Media have rarely provided critical reflection on the hype surrounding breakthroughs in stem cell research, thus reinforcing the public’s unrealistic expectations about the future of this biomedical innovation.

From top-down to bottom-up: a short history of science communication policy in Japan

Japan's policy of “public understanding of science” (PUS) has shifted to “science communication” since 2003. That year, there were a number of simultaneous developments with regard to science communication. The key report that advocated for the promotion of science communication and a textbook on science communication were published then. The most important consequence was that the report triggered a policy change at the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT). The following year, MEXT published the White Paper on Science and Technology 2004, the main theme of which was concerned with science communication. Although the shift may have begun as a somewhat top-down contrivance, it has subsequently sunk down firm roots throughout Japan. In 2011 the Japanese Association for Science Communication was founded. People's awareness of science communication was significantly changed by the Great East Japan Earthquake that occurred on March 11, 2011. Why was such a policy shift possible? How did such a cascade effect occur? This paper will discuss the reasons behind these phenomena.

Interview: Danielle George

Professor of Radio Frequency Engineering at the University of Manchester's School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Danielle George has a high profile in promoting the public understanding of science in the media. She's also founder of the world's first recycled robot orchestra.

GeoGuides, Urban Geotourism Offer Powered by Mobile Application Technology

Scientific research about geological and geomorphological heritage recently proved to be the base of new opportunities for tourism. The peculiar case of urban landscape analysis offers new frontiers to the traditional urban cultural tourism. The tourism offer based on natural aspects of urban areas is described in this paper thanks to three examples of urban geotourism tools: GeoGuide Lausanne, TOURinSTONES and GeoGuide Rome mobile applications. Each case focuses on the transfer of geoscientific knowledge from scientific research to the “tourist” content, with the innovative support of the mobile application technology. The apps contribute to the promotion of the links between cultural and geological heritages, which is the goal of urban geotourism: to convey the message that substrate profoundly influences the culture that is established on it. The mobile application technology has many strengths for interpretation, e.g. by overlaying images or adding sounds and videos, which allow the visitors to discover landforms now covered by buildings and infrastructures; it has also technical strengths, such as looking for additional information and organizing the city visit at home or to reexperience it after the trip. The apps do not have any impact on the field; they are concise, easy to read, interactive and funny. The public understanding of science is very important; it helps enhancing the role of the researchers and the impact of their work on the society and the daily lives of citizens. In this context, GeoGuide apps are useful to transfer knowledge and make it usable to people.

Shouting across the chasm

As people are interested in science, we assume science is interesting. But if you want to be an effective science communicator, you must assume the exact opposite. After more than 20 years working on the public understanding of science, the thing that continues to astonish and trouble me is how many people shudder at the word “science,” or at any sniff of the words, cadences, or even attitudes associated with science. And yet those are the people we most desperately need to reach. Thus, to communicate science is to cross a chasm of interest, knowledge, inclination, and language. With a few examples, I will talk about the ways that voice, structure, and emotional experience can help us shout across that chasm, and the ways in which audio storytelling, in particular, can shine a light on how to get people to listen to us when we talk about science.

Young Adults' Belief in Genetic Determinism, and Knowledge and Attitudes towards Modern Genetics and Genomics: The PUGGS Questionnaire.

In this paper we present the development and validation a comprehensive questionnaire to assess college students’ knowledge about modern genetics and genomics, their belief in genetic determinism, and their attitudes towards applications of modern genetics and genomic-based technologies. Written in everyday language with minimal jargon, the Public Understanding and Attitudes towards Genetics and Genomics (PUGGS) questionnaire is intended for use in research on science education and public understanding of science, as a means to investigate relationships between knowledge, determinism and attitudes about modern genetics, which are to date little understood. We developed a set of core ideas and initial items from reviewing the scientific literature on genetics and previous studies on public and student knowledge and attitudes about genetics. Seventeen international experts from different fields (e.g., genetics, education, philosophy of science) reviewed the initial items and their feedback was used to revise the questionnaire. We validated the questionnaire in two pilot tests with samples of university freshmen students. The final questionnaire contains 45 items, including both multiple choice and Likert scale response formats. Cronbach alpha showed good reliability for each section of the questionnaire. In conclusion, the PUGGS questionnaire is a reliable tool for investigating public understanding and attitudes towards modern genetics and genomic-based technologies.

Cardiff sciSCREEN: A model for using film screenings to engage publics in university research

Cardiff sciSCREEN is a public engagement programme that brings together local experts and publics to discuss issues raised by contemporary cinema. Since 2010, Cardiff sciSCREEN (short for science on screen) has exhibited more than 50 films alongside short talks and discussions that draw on a range of disciplinary perspectives to explore the broad repertoire of themes found within different film genres. The aim of Cardiff sciSCREEN is to increase the local community's access to university research, while enabling university staff and students to engage a variety of publics with their work. In this paper, we first describe our method of public engagement, and then draw on data from a research survey we administered to sciSCREENers to discuss the relationship between the theory and practice of public engagement. Using research from public understanding of science (PUS), public engagement with science and technology (PEST), science and technology studies (STS) and film literacy, we discuss the ways in which our flexible characterization of science has made the programme inclusive, attracting a wide and varied audience. We consider the benefits of cross-disciplinary perspectives when communicating and engaging contemporary developments in science, where the term 'science' is taken to stand for the breadth of academic research and not merely the natural sciences, as well as discussing the importance of space in public engagement events.

Sir Harold Walter Kroto. 7 October 1939 — 30 April 2016

Harry Kroto received the Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 1996 for his discovery of several new allotropes of carbon and in particular the now-famous C 60 , whose atoms are arranged in the spheroidal shape of the truncated icosahedron and which he named as buckminsterfullerene after the architect famous for his design of geodesic domes. Earlier in his career he made important discoveries concerned with the production of small, semi-stable molecules by pyrolysis methods and their characterization, mainly by means of microwave rotational spectroscopy. He was proud to have discovered by this means the compound CH 2 =PH because it contains the first known example of a carbon–phosphorus double bond. He later also made notable contributions to the field of materials chemistry, especially through his work on carbon nanotubes. Harry used his charismatic personality to very good effect in furthering the public understanding of science and was particularly good with children in this context. He also had strong views about science and religion which led him to become a campaigning atheist. He was a loyal and supportive friend and led a very happy family life with his wife Margaret and their two sons.

A Saúde da Nossa Gente: a popularização da ciência nos veios da educação não formal

Este artigo é resultado do trabalho desenvolvido no grupo de Pesquisa Cultura Científica e Produção de Conhecimentos Educacionais, do Programa de Pós-Graduação em Educação da Universidade Federal do Maranhão, que centra sua investigação na divulgação científica, popularização da ciência ou compreensão pública da ciência, termos usados neste trabalho com o mesmo sentido, a fim de buscar aproximações entre as ações de divulgar e educar. Para tanto, utilizou-se a História Oral como metodologia, uma vez que por esse aspecto da pesquisa qualitativa é possível explorar as relações entre história e memória, que se constitui na essência desta pesquisa. A construção da história e memória dos programas Alimentação é Vida e A Saúde da Nossa Gente veiculados na Rádio Educadora Rural do Maranhão, nas décadas de 1980 e 1990 foram realizadas por meio do diálogo com as fontes coletadas: narrativas das pessoas, gravações em fitas dos programas, entre outras, sob o veio teórico da Educação Popular de Paulo Freire e de estudiosos da educação não-formal, como Maria da Gloria Ghon, possibilitaram constatar que esses programas radiofônicos constituíram-se importantes instrumentos de educação não-formal, pelo fato de tornarem dinâmicas as ações que tratavam o conhecimento científico como prática social, permitindo que, por um curto espaço de tempo, a ciência fizesse parte do cotidiano das pessoas da periferia e da comunidade rural do Maranhão.

Strife of Brian: Science and Reflexive Reason as a Public Project. An interview with Brian Wynne

We met Brian Wynne in late April 2013. The place was Hell, Norway, which is nicer than it sounds, especially if you are attending the first Nordic STS Conference. We had recently established NJSTS, and when we heard that Brian Wynne was giving a keynote lecture at the conference, we took the opportunity to interview a pioneer in the field about the so-called political turn in STS. The topics of Wynne`s work rangesfrom technology and risk assessment, public risk perceptions, and public understanding of science, focusing on the relations between expert and lay knowledge and policy decision-making. He has promoted STS and its democratizing potential since the very beginning, and has never been known to shy away from the more controversial aspects of public understanding and engagement in science. Neither did he in this interview: It seems despite his strifes, he is still going with a strong programme.Professor Wynne has addended the interview with some clarifications and references.

Public Understanding of Science and K-12 STEM Education Outcomes: Effects of Idaho Parents’ Orientation Toward Science on Students’ Attitudes Toward Science

Over the past few decades, public anxiety about how people interact with science has spawned cycles of discourse across a wide range of media, public and private initiatives, and substantial research endeavors. National and international STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) education initiatives and research have addressed how students interact with science and pursue careers in STEM fields. Researchers concerned with adult interaction with science have focused on factors that influence how citizens gather and interpret scientific knowledge and form positions on scientific issues, applications, and/or policy in a politicized democratic milieu. Building from research on how the public interacts with science in and outside of formal education, this study focuses on attitudes toward science among students in 4th, 7th, and 10th grades and their parents. Little research to date has paired the STEM experiences of adults with their children. We find that the extent to which parents are positively oriented toward science significantly shapes their children’s attitudes toward science. Furthermore, between 7th and 10th grades, students with parents holding positive orientations toward science are more likely to sustain positive attitudes toward science. Since the foundation for most adults’ interactions with science develops in the K-12 environment, we demonstrate that the foundation, as expressed in adulthood, may directly affect the ways the next generation of students interacts with science. We offer insights into the importance of developing student learning into the social scientific research on public understanding of science and how important scientific issues of today interplay with society.

Where civics meets science: building science for the public good through Civic Science.

Public understanding of science and civic engagement on science issues that impact contemporary life matter more today than ever. From the Planned Parenthood controversy, to the Flint water crisis and the fluoridation debate, societal polarization about science issues has reached dramatic levels that present significant obstacles to public discussion and problem solving. This is happening, in part, because systems built to support science do not often reward open-minded thinking, inclusive dialogue, and moral responsibility regarding science issues. As a result, public faith in science continues to erode. This review explores how the field of Civic Science can impact public work on science issues by building new understanding of the practices, influences, and cultures of science. Civic Science is defined as a discipline that considers science practice and knowledge as resources for civic engagement, democratic action, and political change. This review considers how Civic Science informs the roles that key participants-scientists, public citizens and institutions of higher education-play in our national science dialogue. Civic Science aspires to teach civic capacities, to inform the responsibilities of scientists engaged in public science issues and to inspire an open-minded, inclusive dialogue where all voices are heard and shared commitments are acknowledged.

Transfer Entails Communication: The Public Understanding of (Social) Science as a Stage and a Play for Implementing Evidence-Based Prevention Knowledge and Programs.

Many social science-based interventions entail the transfer of evidence-based knowledge to the "target population," because the acquisition and the acceptance of that knowledge are necessary for the intended improvement of behavior or development. Furthermore, the application of a certain prevention program is often legitimated by a reference to science-based reasons such as an evaluation according to scientific standards. Hence, any implementation of evidence-based knowledge and programs is embedded in the public understanding of (social) science. Based on recent research on such public understanding of science, we shall discuss transfer as a process of science communication.