Decadal Plan for Space Science
Researching
Science
Communication
Science tends to be set apart from daily life, yet it is inextricably linked with it. C.P. Snow said those that don't know science don't talk about it, and those that do know science can't communicate it. Yet science is a cultural experience, the achievements of great scientists like Darwin or Einstein as impactful on society as the works of Van Gogh or Dickens.
A real turning point for me was an hour-long interview with the cosmologist and author Dr Carl Sagan in the late 1980s - demonstrating that scientists, contrary to Snow's view, could communicate and even drive the course of the interview too. The experience shaped a life-changing decision to seek answers as to why this is limited to a few scientist-communicators.
I eventually left daily science journalism to spend some time in the university environment, initially as a temporary step in understanding the communication issues. That was more than a decade ago. Making a long-term difference, particularly at the interface between the Digital Age and science communication, has become infinitely more interesting to me than daily informing, though I still love to write.
My main focus has been, and continues to be, communicating astrobiology and space exploration. My specific research focus is in data-driven science communication. Between 1998 and 2000, a team of top science journalists and communicators forged a 'best practices in science communication' document for NASA's Marshall Spaceflight Center. A key finding was that for a data driven enterprise, science did not demand evidence of the effectiveness of science communication (Borchelt, 2001). Other researchers have also pointed to the same lack of data. In Australia, where I am based, there are no Government-backed surveys of the scientific literacy of the adult population, and hence no test of the effectiveness of high school science education - even though its key aim is scientific literacy (Goodrum and Rennie, 2007).
I have a research Masters in science communication from Central Queensland University and in 2007 this allowed me to supervise Mikayla Keen and Eric Dalgliesh in their Honours Year. In New South Wales, a First Class Honours immediately after completing an undergraduate degree, then allows a student to apply for a doctorate. Both Mikayla and Eric achieved this goal - and in Mikayla's case, this was in science communication.
Mikayla's work confirmed my own: that when Australian students are measured for scientific literacy by similar standards to those expected of adults, the majority would be considered scientifically illiterate.
My research into communicating science - particularly astrobiology and space exploration - is continuing. My doctorate was submitted in July, 2008. To see more details of this please download my resume.
References:
Borchelt, R. (2001) Communicating the Future: Report of the research roadmap panel for the public communication of science and technology in the twenty-first century, Science Communication 23:2 pp 194-211
Goodrum, D., and Rennie, L.J. (2007) Australian School Science Education National Action Plan 2008-2012, Vol 1 The National Action Plan