Science communication is taking on increasing priority with the gathering evidence that people just might need a little more science in their lives. After attending the Science Online 2011 conference in North Carolina, it was evident that social media was encouraging some exciting changes in science that many people were suggesting might foster an open science revolution. When or how this revolution will manifest itself is still up in the air.

Until the day comes when we enjoy complete scientific transparency and translation, there is plenty of work for science communicators looking to spread the good word online. To outline some of this work, I had Bora Zivkovic (http://coturnix.org) try to pin down the ever-shifting definition of “blogging”. Then we put Bora’s long-standing science blogging efforts and current position as the Scientific American blog editor and community manager to good use by asking how social media might transform science.

Next up, we speak with Chris Gunter, or @GirlScientist (http://twitter.com/girlscientist) on Twitter. I ask her, “What’s in a username?”, and then we talk about the importance of twitter as a marketing and networking tool for scientists. Although currently Director of Research Affairs for the Hudson Alpha Institute in Alabama, she used to edit papers for Nature, so we talk about whether journals like Nature or Science have a place in our open science future

Prof. Greg Gbur (http://skullsinthestars.com) from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte began blogging as an Assistant Professor and got so many hits on his website that he decided to include it as a part of his tenure application. Also, we revive the age-old discussion regarding what the past can teach us in the present while we’re ushering forth the future.

We finish the show with Prof. Marie-Claire Shanahan (http://twitter.com/mcshanahan) from the University of Alberta, who provides a potential solution to scientific illiteracy; education. Her research with groups of high school students suggests somewhere in secondary school, children decide whether they are “science-types”. Since this self-categorization might determine an individual’s receptivity towards new scientific information later in life, Prof. Shanahan offers us some options for engaging those who might otherwise discard science from their self-image.

Peer Review Radio Episode 20: Science Communication and the Future of Open Science

Adrian J. Ebsary

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