Science Communication Resource List

This list was originally compiled in February 2019 for a science communication breakout session at the AAAS conference called “Simplified Doesn’t Have to mean Dumbed-Down,” and has been updated occasionally since then. It is intended to provide a jumping-off point, not as a comprehensive end-point.

Note: The recommendations and opinions expressed here are entirely those of the session presenter (Miriam Krause), and are not official endorsements by the Center for Sustainable Nanotechnology or the National Science Foundation.

Books

Abel, Jessica. Out on the Wire: the Storytelling Secrets of the New Masters of Radio. Broadway Books, 2015.
Blum, Deborah. A Field Guide for Science Writers: The Official Guide of the National Association of Science Writers (2^nd Ed). Oxford University Press, 2005.
Dean, Cornelia. Am I Making Myself Clear? A Scientist’s Guide to Talking to the Public. Harvard University Press, 2009.
Jamieson, Kathleen, et al. (eds). The Oxford Handbook of the Science of Science Communication. Oxford University Press, 2017.
Kean, Sam (ed). Best American Science and Nature Writing 2018. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2018.
Olson, Randy. Houston, We Have a Narrative: Why Science Needs Story. University of Chicago Press, 2015.
Wilcox, Christie, et al. (eds). Science Blogging: The Essential Guide. Yale University Press, 2016.

Articles

Annenberg Public Policy Center. Science Media Monitor Report 2 – Media Framing of News Stories About the Ethics, Benefits, and Risks of CRISPR. 2018.
Bogost, Ian. The Myth of ‘Dumbing Down’ The Atlantic, Oct 26, 2018.
Carr, Teresa. Science, sensationalism, and the lessons of “Insectageddon.” Undark, May 15, 2019.
Goldacre, Ben. Don’t Dumb Me Down The Guardian, Sept 7, 2005.
Knoepfler, Paul. Science hype: award for worst CRISPR media headline of year. The Niche, Sept 27, 2017.
Little, Becky. How One Bad Science Headline Can Echo Across the Internet. Smithsonian.com, July 31, 2017.
Mandelbaum, Ryan. The Worst-Reported Science Stories of 2017. Gizmodo, Dec 19, 2017.
Resnick, Brian. Hyped-up science erodes trust. Here’s how researchers can fight back. Vox.com, June 11, 2019.
Schulson, Michael. In a new study on bird loss, some scientists say subtlety is lost, too. Undark, Sept 25, 2019.
Sutter, Paul. How to Spot Bad Science Headlines. Forbes, Jan 13, 2019.
Zivcovic, Bora. Science Blogs – definition, and a history. Scientific American, July 10, 2012.

Infographics

Hanlon, Shane. Watch your words: Geoscience Jargon. American Geophysical Union.
Sobie, Steve. How to explain scientific consensus with cake.

Video Series

Podcasts

Websites/Blogs

Conferences, Workshops, & Training

Research

Batts, S. A., Anthis, N. J., & Smith, T. C. (2008). Advancing Science through Conversations: Bridging the Gap between Blogs and the Academy. PLoS Biology, 6(9), e240. doi: 10.1371/journal.pbio.0060240
Burgelman, J.-C., Osimo, D., & Bogdanowicz, M. (2010). Science 2.0 (change will happen…). First Monday, 15(7), 1–12. doi: 10.5210/fm.v15i7.2961
Clough, M. P. (2011). The story behind the science: Bringing science and scientists to life in post-secondary science education. Science & Education, 20(7-8), 701-717. doi: 10.1007/s11191-010-9310-7
Jarreau, P. B. (2015). All the Science That Is Fit to Blog: An Analysis of Science Blogging Practices. Doctoral dissertation. Louisiana State University. http://etd.lsu.edu/docs/available/etd-04072015-094935/
Jarreau, P. B., & Porter, L. (2018). Science in the social media age: profiles of science blog readers. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 95(1), 142-168. doi: 10.1177/1077699016685558
Mahrt, M., & Puschmann, C. (2014). Science blogging: an exploratory study of motives, styles, and audience reactions. Journal of Science Communication, 13(3), A05. doi: 10.6084/m9.figshare.1120486
Song, Y., & Carheden, S. (2014). Dual meaning vocabulary (DMV) words in learning chemistry. Chemistry Education Research and Practice, 15(2), 128-141. doi: 10.1039/C3RP00128H
Su, L. Y.-F., Akin, H., Brossard, D., Scheufele, D. A., & Xenos, M. A. (2015). Science News Consumption Patterns and Their Implications for Public Understanding of Science. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 92(3), 597–616. doi: 10.1177/1077699015586415
Su, L. Y.-F., Cacciatore, M. A., Scheufele, D. A., Brossard, D., & Xenos, M. A. (2014). Inequalities in Scientific Understanding: Differentiating Between Factual and Perceived Knowledge Gaps. Science Communication, 36(3), 352–378. doi: 10.1177/107554701452909