Communicating Science : Professional Contexts (OU Reader)

Communicating Science: Professional Contexts is a collection of articles dealing with the communication between scientists. The way in which science really works is at the core of this reader. The articles are divided into three sections: what science needs to be communicated; communication among scientists; how scientists communicate with other professionals. The first section describes the nature of science, what counts as scientific evidence, and scientists' views of the process of scientific discovery. The second section deals with the means of communication (journals, professional bodies, peer review, and new modes of communication such as the World Wide Web) adopted for the exchange of information between professional scientists. The final part includes case studies of situations where scientists communicate with other professionals, giving us a close and intimate understanding of how the professional life of scientists really works. Communicating Science will be an invaluable source-book.