Science on air: a journey through early science programmes in US radio

“Science on the air” is an enjoyable and extremely well researched account of the origins of science programming in north American radio. From 1923 to the mid-50s, LaFollette takes us in a journey through the life and programs of many scientists, journalists and storytellers who chosed radio as a medium for science communication. A journey who allow the reader to visit many success, but also many incomprehension and missed opportunities, mainly by scientific institutions, who often failed to understand the potential of radio as a tool for science communication. It is a fully enjoyable journey, that leave the reader with an appetite to know how the US situation relates to other wonderful experiences around the world in the same years, and how those pioneer experiences influenced today's landscape

The role of science centres and museums in the dialogue between science and society

In a meta-analysis carried out in 2002, the two main associations of science centres and museums (ASTC, mainly US-centered, and ECSITE, mainly European) gathered all studies analysing the impact of science centres and museums on their local communities1. Four types of impact were identified: personal, social, political and economical. It was noticed that the vast majority of studies concentrated on the personal impact (that is, learning outcome, visitor satisfaction, etc.), while the latter three were largely neglected. The very fact of pointing this out, and many recent experiences - some of which are included in this commentary - show that there is now a shift of attention

Science on air: the role of radio in science communication

The international symposium âScience on air: the role of radio in science communicationâ was held inTrieste on 1 and 2 October, 2004. To our knowledge, it is the first conference ever specifically held on science on radio, and it is certainly the first time science radio journalists, researchers, and mediaexperts from 16 different countries met to discuss their journalistic practice and the role of radio in science communication.The main results are presented in this article

Ensayo crítico del libro de Paola Govoni Un pubblico per la scienza. La divulgazione scientifica nell¿Italia in formazione

El autor hace una valoración de esta significativa obra sobre la comunicación de la ciencia desde la perspectiva profesional. A lo largo de su análisis, da las razones por las cuales considera la lectura de este libro indispensable para los profesionales del periodismo científico

Conversations between scientists and the public in radio phone-ins: an experimental approach to analyse public perception of science

“Il ciclotrone” is the weekly science programme of “Radio Popolare - Popolare Network”, the most important independent news radio network in Italy, based in Milan. During the last 12 years, once or twice a month listeners have been able to directly ask questions to the guest scientists in the studios, or to express their point of view on some controversial scientific issue. Among mass-media, the radio has several characteristics which tend to enhance the sense of friendliness and belonging - essential to any true communication. Phone-ins at Radio Popolare are not filtered; regular and occasional listeners are used to communicate with or through the radio, and in doing so they contribute to the sense of spontaneity which characterise the programmes. During “Il ciclotrone”, very often the ''anchor'' tends to disappear, and phone-ins become a lively conversation between the scientists and the public (whose members seldom agree with each other). In this presentation, phone-ins on science - over the years they involved internationally famous scientists (such as Lewontin, Damasio, Amaldi, Rotblat, Di Chiara, …), and less well-known but reputed Italian researchers - are analysed in terms of their capabilities of providing a tool to understand public perception of science. Moreover, the authors believe that science journalism shouldn't only inform or educate the public on the work of scientists, but also inform or educate the scientists on how their work is perceived. Indeed, scientists seldom have a chance to hear the criticism (positive or negative) of a large, unselected audience and to have a first-hand grasp of public feelings concerning their work

Listening and empowering: crossing the social inclusion and the science in society agendas

This book collects a series of papers originally published in JCOM, the Journal of Science Communication or presented at the PCST 2014 conference They are all related to the project “SiS Catalyst — Children as change agents for science in society”, funded within the framework of the FP7 Mobilisation and Mutual Learning actions. Some of these papers are more focused on case studies, others are more theoretical, but all of them relate to the main objective of the SiS Catalyst project: to cross science in society and social inclusion agendas, focusing on science communication activities that involve children. The collection of papers has been organised into three parts. The first is devoted to the importance of listening to young people in science communication activities. The second part delves deeper into the issue of social inclusion in science in society activities involving direct contact with audiences. The final part indicates some training and activity options that promote the value of child participation and social inclusion in science communication

Da Mosè al cassonetto: l’abbandono dei neonati

The paper was intended as short review of historical and current behaviours of abandonment of infants and children. The analysis was developed through a long journey that starts from the dawn of civilization to this day. Social customs, legal rules, they application and their breach through the centuries are described. The purpose was to know how and why this phenomenon is unfortunately still present. A survey was conducted classifying stories reported by the main Italian daily newspaper. The study examined a period of 15 years (1995-2010). Data showed that this crime is still today undoubtedly closely related to social and economic conditions, especially in high populated regionsl testo vuole essere una lettura storica e attuale del comportamento di abbandono dei neonati e dei bambini. L’indagine si sviluppa attraverso un lungo viaggio che parte dall’alba della civiltà fino ai giorni nostri. Gli autori guardano attraverso i secoli: seguono le usanze, le norme giuridiche, la loro applicazione e la violazione delle stesse. Lo scopo è di conoscere come e perché, a partire dall’antichità, questo fenomeno è purtroppo ancora attuale. A tale fine presentano una ricerca che classifica i fatti di cronaca ripresi dal principale giornale quotidiano italiano. Lo studio prende in esame il periodo di 15 anni, e precisamente dal 1 gennaio 1995 al 31 dicembre 2010. Nelle conclusioni si capisce come questo reato, perché oggi è considerato tale, è senza dubbio in stretta relazione con il riflesso delle condizioni sociali ed economiche. Dai dati statistici resta ancora di attualità soprattutto nelle regioni ad alta intensità di popolazione, dove le condizioni economiche sono il più delle volte sfavorevoli