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• Date of publication Jun 22, 2016 Category: Commentary

  Continuing professional development: evolution, complexity and variety in science communication training needs

  by Paola Rodari

  This commentary seeks to spark further discussion on the continuing professional development in science communication, presenting comments from practitioners who were asked to reflect on the competences and skills their profession requires, and to envisage what kind of training might provide them. This introduction presents some common issues that emerge within the comments: the necessity to face rapidly evolving professional landscapes, to answer to new missions and roles, to consider the growing impact and potential of new technologies. Alternative training methods are also discussed.

  How training can fix the existential crisis in science journalism

  by Andy Ridgway

  "Bird of another feather": re-envisioning professional development for museum learning experts

  by Maria Xanthoudaki

  Developing narrative exhibitions and science centres. Training needs of exhibition designers

  by Peter Higgins

  Talk on the wide side: professional development for wildlife and science filmmakers

  by Louis Nadelson and Ru Mahoney

  The Cheshire explainer. Musings about the training of explainers

  by Antonio Gomes da Costa

  Continuing professional development in the largest scientific laboratory in the world: perspectives and needs for a science communicator @ CERN

  by Paola Catapano

  Volume 15 • Issue 04 • 2016

• Date of publication Jun 22, 2016 Category: Commentary

  Developing narrative exhibitions and science centres. Training needs of exhibition designers

  by Peter Higgins

  In respect of the different modes of science communication including journalism, radio, online, I would propose that the process of making exhibitions and centres dedicated to science & technology is one of the hardest creative typologies. It also provides a very different type of engagement to other modes, in that it works in real time and space with real tangible objects and responsive media. The power of the real is also extended through the direct and collective involvement of people, providing a refreshing antidote to the potential alienating nature of social media and the ever-growing obsession with the virtual. In this paper I will discuss the skills required by a designer in order to solve the challenges contained within the client brief (the project document provided by the client), and therefore the skills a proper exhibition designer training programme should deliver.

  Volume 15 • Issue 04 • 2016

• Date of publication Jun 22, 2016 Category: Conference Review

  15th Annual STS Conference Graz 2016

  by Erik Stengler

  Celebrating 15 years of success and growth, the STS Conference Graz on May 9 and 10, 2016, gathered nearly 200 delegates from all over the world who had the opportunity to discuss and share research and experiences on 6 main themes: Policy and Technology; Gender and Queer STS; Mobility, Energy and Sustainability; Responsible Research and Innovation Studies; Nutrition, Health and Biomedicine; and Information and Communication Technologies, Surveillance and Society.

  Volume 15 • Issue 04 • 2016

• Date of publication Jun 22, 2016 Category: Commentary

  "Bird of another feather": re-envisioning professional development for museum learning experts

  by Maria Xanthoudaki

  The article draws on the case study of the European In-service training course ‘School and Science Museum: Cooperation for Improving Teaching, Learning and Discovering’ aiming to offer insights into the training of educators in museums. It discusses training and contributes suggestions in the context of the contemporary museum context as well as approaches to visitors' learning.

  Volume 15 • Issue 04 • 2016

• Date of publication Jun 22, 2016 Category: Editorial

  Five years of JCOM ― inclusive, comprehensive or could we do better?

  by Emma Weitkamp

  Looking back over the past 5 years of articles published in JCOM, this editorial looks at the topics covered and the geographies represented and asks: are we tackling all main contemporary issues in science communication/popularisation or public engagement? It invites you to contribute with your papers, letters, essays and news to help address the holes in our coverage and to enter into dialogue on our Facebook page.

  Volume 15 • Issue 04 • 2016

• Date of publication Jun 22, 2016 Category: Commentary

  Talk on the wide side: professional development for wildlife and science filmmakers

  by Louis Nadelson , Ru Mahoney

  Science and wildlife films are very common and widely viewed. Yet, most of the makers of these films have entered the profession because of their knowledge or interest in science and wildlife. Given the potential for a rather circuitous route to the profession many filmmakers benefit tremendously from engagement in professional development. We have detailed the professional development needs of novice and expert science and wildlife filmmakers ranging from keeping current with technology to consideration of engaging audiences beyond the viewing. We have also addressed gaps in the current knowledge of the professional development of these filmmakers and how film festivals may be structured to meet the ongoing educational needs of these professionals.

  Volume 15 • Issue 04 • 2016

• Date of publication Jun 22, 2016 Category: Commentary

  How training can fix the existential crisis in science journalism

  by Andy Ridgway

  Science Journalism has been through a huge transition period in the past two decades as digital outlets compete with print media ― and that transition is continuing. It's left many science journalists unsure of their place in this new ecosystem and unsure of how best to use the new tools they have been presented with, such as social media. Now is an important time for training in this sector to ensure that journalists ― and the publications they work for ― can find their place again. There is also a real need for training for new writers ― to bridge the gap between their degree and their first job as a journalist.

  Volume 15 • Issue 04 • 2016

• Date of publication Jun 17, 2016 Category: Book Review

  The new commodities of the new media landscape

  by Andy Ridgway

  BOOK: Content is king; News media management in the digital age.
  Graham, G., Greenhill, A., Shaw, D.Andvargo, C., Eds (2015), London, U.K.: Bloomsbury

  The ‘traditional’ media industry ― newspapers and magazines and the like ― have had a difficult time lately thanks to increasing competition online. This book's chapters consider ways the traditional media can reinvent themselves to secure their future. Two key themes that emerge from the chapters are the importance of building communities and the increasing role of credibility in today's highly-competitive media landscape. While this book does not focus on the science media, many of the conclusions are relevant to it, in fact some are cause for comfort for those involved with science journalism.

  Volume 15 • Issue 04 • 2016

• Date of publication Jun 09, 2016 Category: Article

  Democratizing science in the eighteenth century: resonances between Condorcet's Sketch (1795) and twenty-first century science communication

  by Lindy A. Orthia

  The twenty-first century has witnessed a shift in science communication ideals from one-way science popularization activities towards more reflexive, participatory approaches to public engagement with science. Yet our longue duéee histories of science communication's antecedents focus on the former and have neglected the latter. In this paper I identify parallels between modern science communication ideals and an iconic Enlightenment text, Condorcet's Sketch for a Historical Picture of the Progress of the Human Mind (1795). I show that Condorcet's carefully negotiated balance between scientific reason and radical principles of democracy has much in common with twenty-first century debates about science communication.

  Volume 15 • Issue 04 • 2016

• Date of publication Jun 09, 2016 Category: Article

  "We muddle our way through": shared and distributed expertise in digital engagement with research

  by Ann Grand , Richard Holliman , Trevor Collins , Anne Adams

  The use and availability of digital media is changing researchers' roles and simultaneously providing a route for a more engaging relationship with stakeholders throughout the research process. Although the digital realm has a profound influence on people's day-to-day lives, some researchers have not yet professionally embraced digital technologies. This paper arises from one aspect of a project exploring how university research and professional practices are evolving as researchers engage with stakeholders via digital media to create, share and represent knowledge together. Using researchers from the Open University (U.K.) as a case study, this paper reviews the extent to which they are developing multiple identities and functions in their engaged research through digital media.

  Volume 15 • Issue 04 • 2016