Science Writers and Writing: The Inside Scoop
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e past nine years, Janet Raloff has been polkyltechnology editor for SCIENCE NEWS, a weekly magazine based in Washington, DC.
are inextricably linked and influenced by the success with which we interact. ABOUT THAT INTERACTION. Reporting, writing, and production are the three major facets of journalism. It is in reporting that the writer and scientist-as-source are most likely to interact. It's where I ask questions, listen carefully, prod my source to stay on the topic, and encourage speculation as to where findings may lead. It is the scientist's job to explain carefully, and if necessary, repeatedly; to be patient when I don't immediately intuit what is meant but not said; and to avoid jargon. That last may be the most important. Avoiding jargon is essential if good communication is to occur. Intentionally or unintentionally, jargon serves as a barrier to the Outsider. It is shorthand, a code used between practitioners of a common "art." It is the same as street slang, only codified by virtue of having been published in textbooks a n d Journal articles, or t a u g h t t h r o u g h c o n t e x t u a l use by a m e n t o r . Though jargon may be a useful and appropriate patois among colleagues, it is neither when the goal is communication with an "outsider," i.e., the writer or the public. Some jargon is arcane (such as instar in entomology, orogeny and ultramafic in geology, and flavonoid in chemistry). A small percentage is actually useful (such as flash point in chemistry, seamount in geology, and crosscurrent in electronics). But much is just piain confusing because it has borrowed everyday words — such as work, aromatic, function, or charm — and given them new m e a n i n g s . Finally, if for no other reason, jargon should be avoided simply because it can appear to be condescending. It can make those not fluent feel inadequate, if not piain dumb.
"Surveys show that scientists generally disparage journalists and their work," according to Friedman, D u n w o o d y , a n d Rogers. I am aware that to some who have encountered us professionally, journalists are little more than distracting annoyances, parasites feeding off the research community's accomplishments. Others recognize that we also serve the research Community in several important ways — by informing scientists of w h a t their colleagues are doing or saying, by disseminating research results much more widely and quickly than can the scientific Journals, and by making research data accessible to those who lack ... science journalism is the time, background, or motivation to largely an invention of this learn the Jargon that so often peppers scientific papers and talks. Particularly in Century. these days of Gramm-Rudman-Hollings, science writing can also help build a constituency interested in and willing to pay CONDESCENSION. Even slow students for the fruits of the research community's will cease learning w h e n m a d e to feel stupid. And it's no different with articulabors. When we do our Job well, most pay us late, quick learning and intuitive
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