ScienceWriters excerpts

- ScienceWriters magazine
Jul 14 2012
- ScienceWriters magazine
From ScienceWriters: A way with words for children

“A zebra’s stripes may protect it from blood-sucking insects.” May I say that in an article aimed at second graders? That wouldn’t be appropriate. “Protect” and “insect” are words that fourth graders understand, but not those in lower grades. From the Spring 2012 ScienceWriters.
- ScienceWriters magazine
Jun 30 2012
- ScienceWriters magazine
From ScienceWriters: It’s all in your head, or maybe not

As readers of this column likely experience on a regular basis, the way other people perceive our work can be quite context dependent. We are particularly sensitive to contextual variables like scientific literacy level and socioeconomic background in our audience. From the Spring 2012 ScienceWriters.
- ScienceWriters magazine
- Your business
Jun 14 2012
- ScienceWriters magazine
- Your business
From ScienceWriters: Filing time reminders for freelancers

When tax time rolls around, most filers receive refunds. Just because you receive one for tax year 2011, doesn’t mean your return passed muster and you can forget about an audit. All it means is that IRS computers checked arithmetic and other basic items. From the Spring 2012 ScienceWriters.
- ScienceWriters magazine
May 30 2012
- ScienceWriters magazine
From ScienceWriters: Social media for the science PIO

Social media takes many forms with Facebook and Twitter being the eight-hundred-pound gorillas in the room. But there’s also LinkedIn, Google+, YouTube, Crowdrise, Quora, Pinterest, and many others. It’s worth exploring a few to see which are the best ways to reach your particular audience. From the Spring 2012 ScienceWriters.
- ScienceWriters magazine
May 16 2012
- ScienceWriters magazine
From ScienceWriters: Two rivals, two strategies

The two influenza researchers whose work has triggered a far-reaching debate on the limits of scientific freedom could hardly have handled their publicity more differently. From the Spring 2012 ScienceWriters.
- ScienceWriters magazine
Feb 22 2012
- ScienceWriters magazine
From ScienceWriters: The polls are in

In the circles in which we run we have seen the results of polls that seek to tease out how the public perceives science and scientists. For this edition of Scholarly Pursuits, we are taking a look at one of these polls as well as exploring some recent papers that seek to elucidate how and why people perceive science in certain ways. From the Winter 2011-12 ScienceWriters.
- ScienceWriters magazine
- Your business
Feb 9 2012
- ScienceWriters magazine
- Your business
From ScienceWriters: Amending tax returns

An accommodating Internal Revenue Service makes it relatively easy to correct mistakes on previous returns without the need to completely redo the returns or go through any complicated red tape. From the Winter 2011-12 ScienceWriters.
- ScienceWriters magazine
Dec 15 2011
- ScienceWriters magazine
Science and risk communication: Two peas in a pod or Mars and Venus?

There is a good deal of academic research that focuses on risk communication, social construction of risk, and how certain theories apply to communicating with specific populations about specific issues. We saw several papers over the last few months that really help provide some context about the world views of our audiences. From the Fall 2011 ScienceWriters.
- ScienceWriters magazine
Dec 7 2011
- ScienceWriters magazine
Mistakes in scientific studies surge

When a study is retracted, “it can be hard to make its effects go away,” says Sheldon Tobe, a kidney-disease specialist at the University of Toronto. And that’s more important today than ever because retractions of scientific studies are surging. From the Fall 2011 ScienceWriters.
- ScienceWriters magazine
- World Conference of Science Journalists
Nov 22 2011
- ScienceWriters magazine
- World Conference of Science Journalists
Arab-Israeli tensions caused disruptions

By all accounts, WCSJ2011 was an impressive feat, marking the first iteration of the conference hosted by an Arab nation. But behind the scenes, political problems caused extensive debate and several disruptions. The inclusion of U.S.-Israeli journalist Anna Wexler on a panel caused divisions within the Arab Science Journalists Association (ASJA), a co-sponsor of the conference. From the Fall 2011 ScienceWriters.

ScienceWriters magazine

ScienceWriters is a quarterly magazine devoted to analytical reporting and commentary on issues in science journalism and public information, both staff and freelance, and to the special interests of members of the National Association of Science Writers, for whom it is published. Sample issue.

A typical issue contains first-hand reports by top-flight journalists on the coverage of major science news events, essays and sidebars on surfacing questions in journalism ethics and behavior, and practical advice from old hands on avoiding pitfalls. A section on useful tips for freelancers is also featured in every issue — from market surveys to what's happening with book and magazine contracts.

Lynne Friedmann, editor since 2000, has a background in journalism and biology. She was a public information officer for the Developmental Biology Center at UC Irvine and the west coast media representative for the National Academies of Science and Engineering before becoming a science communications consultant and freelance science writer in 1988.

NASW members who have obtained an NASW.org username and password can browse and search the full text of all issues of ScienceWriters issues since Fall 1995.

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