February 04, 2007

Science (Fact) Writing

John the Science Librarian just blogged Cognitive Daily: How to report scientific research to a general audience in his entry called Writing about science.

Since I have some time on my hands (not teaching this semester, gasp!), I've been reading a lot of popular science, so this topic is especially relevant. I've been thinking about what makes a science article (either spoken or written) that I like to read. I am rather fussy. You can tell some of my favorite sources for science writing:

- The New Yorker.
- The New York Times Science News (especially their weekly Science Times podcast!)
- Wired -- their in-depth articles rival anything in the New Yorker.
- Australia's radio program All In The Mind
- Harvard Medical School's fall lecture series Science in the News (a wee bit uneven, but the writing is properly geared to a mass audience -- science + clear).
- and a new old favorite - MIT's Technology Review

Strangely, I never warmed to Scientific American or their Sci Am Mind spin-off. I like my science more techie and/or more cognitive. I sometimes enjoy New Scientist, but I don't read it regularly.

Read the Cognitive Daily article's detailed suggestions for good science writing, or check out the Confessions of a Science Librarian blog for the summary.

(thanks, Emily!)

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