Class 1: Introducing Communicating Science

Well, we've started! Our first class was 9th October at lunchtime and I think we got off to a good start. After some introductions (of Alice and Sarah) and some admin (the course notes and reading list are both online in WebCT, to which all students should now have access), we played a card game. Not poker (there was no gambling involved), but a kind of swap shop of statements about science, the public, and the media. We quickly discovered that we already disagree about some things. The statement 'Scientists may be experts in one field, but citizens can be experts too' seemed particularly contentious, with some loving it and others hating it. This is definitely an idea we'll be coming back to!

Then there was just time for a quick story. It was a tale of two reports and one department: the 1985 Royal Society report 'The public understanding of science' (which started off this latest wave of interest in communicating science); Imperial's very own Science Communication Group, started in 1991 by John Durant as part of the PUS movement; and the 2000 House of Lord's Third Report on Science and Society. Not a snappy title, but a key moment in the shift towards 'dialogue' in science communication. On which more soon...

Next week we start our survey of news media. Don't forget to do the reading for the second session before the class!

And finally, a quick QUESTION that we didn't have time for in class today: What do students want to get out of the course? We'd be interested to know so comment and tell us your thoughts...