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Jamahl Peavey

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The Science Reporter: Who is ultimately responsible for reporting significant findings to the public?

Are science reporters like other reporters? Reporters are suppose to be objective and independently investigate stories that are of public interest. They are generally proactive and go after the story rather than having the story come to them. They are also knowledgable enough to present the dynamics and content of a story to the public. Who is ultimately responsible for reporting significant scientific findings to the public when science reporters are unable to act as other reporters?

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    Theodore A. Hoppe 200+

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    Feb 11 2013: I am enrolled in an online course that is offered by the Santa Fe Institue on Complexity.
    This is one of the guest lectures. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Tm1KB6y_X4Y

    Be the science writer, here is the question : How would we make the information Krakauer and Mitchell are discussing available to the public?
    Thoughts?

    • Jamahl Peavey

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      Feb 12 2013: The answers is both simple and hard. I watched the video and complexity is a powerful idea. These individuals have professorships and a university behind them. That actually does most of the work.

      The public doesn't really care about ideas, they want applications. Collaborating with others in the university is hard because they are all competing for limited research dollars and job security across disciplines.

      Collaborate with companies that are using the same ideas in applications. New applications is the hard part but once you have that, you have the money, the public and a potential product. The company of course has to be big enough for R&D or you spin off a company. Many professors do that but it's hard.

      The interviewer/reporter did a good job.

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