Popular science
Popular science, sometimes called literature of science, is interpretation of science intended for a general audience. While science journalism focuses on recent scientific developments, popular science is broad-ranging, often written by scientists as well as journalists, and is presented in many formats, which can include books, television documentaries, magazine articles and web pages.
Role
Popular science is a bridge between scientific literature as a professional medium of scientific research, and the realms of popular political and cultural discourse. The goal of the genre is often to capture the methods and accuracy of science, while making the language more accessible. Many science-related controversies are discussed in popular science books and publications, such as the long-running debates over biological determinism and the biological components of intelligence, stirred by popular books such as The Mismeasure of Man and The Bell Curve.[1]
The purpose of scientific literature is to inform and persuade peers as to the validity of observations and conclusions and the forensic efficacy of methods. Popular science attempts to inform and convince scientific outsiders (sometimes along with scientists in other fields) of the significance of data and conclusions and to celebrate the results through epideictic rhetoric. Statements in scientific literature are often qualified and tentative, emphasizing that new observations and results are consistent with and similar to established knowledge wherein qualified scientists are assumed to recognize the relevance. By contrast, popular science emphasizes uniqueness and generality, taking a tone of factual authority absent from the scientific literature. Comparisons between original scientific reports and derivative science journalism and popular science typically reveal at least some level of distortion and oversimplification which can often be quite dramatic, even with politically neutral scientific topics.[2]
Popular science literature can be written by non-scientists who may have a limited understanding of the subject they are interpreting and it can be difficult for non-experts to identify misleading popular science, which may also blur the boundaries between formal science and pseudoscience.
Common threads
Some common traits of popular science productions include:
- Bridging the is-ought gap
- Entertainment value or personal relevance to the audience
- Emphasis on uniqueness and radicalness
- Exploring ideas overlooked by specialists or falling outside of established disciplines
- Generalized, simplified science concepts
- Presented for an audience with little or no science background, hence explaining general concepts more thoroughly
- Synthesis of new ideas that cross multiple fields and offer new applications in other academic specialties
- Use of metaphors and analogies to explain difficult and/or abstract scientific concepts
- Very limited mathematical formulas or complicating details
Notable popularizers of science
In alphabetical order by last name:
- John Acorn, naturalist and broadcaster known as the "Nature Nut"
- Amir Aczel, author and mathematician
- Natalie Angier, science journalist and writer
- Isaac Asimov, author and biochemist
- Peter Atkins, physical chemist and author
- David Attenborough, broadcaster and naturalist
- Johnny Ball, broadcaster and math popularizer
- John D. Barrow, mathematician, theoretical physicist, cosmologist and author
- David Bellamy, broadcaster, author, and botanist
- Bob Berman, astronomer
- Howard Bloom, author
- David Bodanis, author
- Daniel J. Boorstin, author and Librarian of Congress
- Jacob Bronowski, mathematician, biologist, author and pioneering science broadcaster
- Bill Bryson, author
- James Burke, BBC science historian best known for the series Connections
- Nigel Calder, broadcaster and journalist
- Fritjof Capra, physicist and author
- Brian Clegg, author
- Jack Cohen, reproductive biologist
- Brian Cox, broadcaster, musician and physicist
- Paul Davies, physicist, author and broadcaster
- Richard Dawkins, evolutionary biologist and author
- Daniel Dennett, philosopher and cognitive scientist
- Jared Diamond, evolutionary biologist, physiologist, biogeographer and author
- Sir Arthur Eddington, astrophysicist
- Peter Fairley, journalist and broadcaster
- Michael Faraday, scientist and lecturer
- Richard Feynman, physicist and author
- Brian J. Ford, biologist, lecturer and author
- George Gamow, physicist and cosmologist
- Martin Gardner, mathematician and author
- James Gleick, author and journalist
- Ben Goldacre, GP
- Stephen Jay Gould, paleontologist, evolutionary biologist and science historian
- Brian Greene, physicist
- John Gribbin, astronomer and author
- Heinz Haber, physicist and author
- Thomas Hager, author and science journalist
- J. B. S. Haldane, biologist and author
- Bas Haring, philosopher and author
- Stephen Hawking, theoretical physicist and author
- Don Herbert, a.k.a. Mr. Wizard, broadcaster
- Christopher Hitchens, author, journalist and essayist
- Roald Hoffmann, chemist
- Douglas Hofstadter, computer scientist, cognitive scientist and author
- Jamie Hyneman, special effects artist and television personality (MythBusters)
- Jay Ingram, broadcaster and author (Daily Planet)
- Steve Irwin, wildlife expert, conservationist and television personality (The Crocodile Hunter)
- Steve Jones, evolutionary biologist and author
- Horace Freeland Judson, historian of molecular biology and author
- Olivia Judson, evolutionary biologist, broadcaster and author
- Michio Kaku, theoretical physicist and author
- Lawrence Krauss, physicist and author
- Robert Krulwich, broadcaster
- Karl Kruszelnicki, a.k.a. Dr Karl, broadcaster
- Richard Leakey, Kenyan paleoanthropologist and conservationist
- Roger Lewin, British anthropologist
- Richard Lewontin, evolutionary biologist, geneticist and author
- Chris Lintott, astrophysicist
- Robert A. J. Matthews, physicist, mathematician, computer scientist and journalist
- Bob McDonald, CBC journalist and host of Quirks and Quarks
- Fulvio Melia, physicist, astrophysicist and author
- Julius Sumner Miller, physicist and broadcaster
- Sir Patrick Moore, amateur astronomer and broadcaster
- Desmond Morris, zoologist, ethologist and author
- PZ Myers, professor and author of the science blog Pharyngula[3]
- Jayant Narlikar, cosmologist and author
- Bill Nye, broadcaster and mechanical engineer, known as the "Science Guy"
- Tor Nørretranders, author
- Robert Olby, author and historian of science
- John Allen Paulos, mathematician and author
- Rajagopal Kamath,Researcher and author
- Fred Pearce, journalist at New Scientist
- Yakov I. Perelman, author
- Steven Pinker, experimental psychologist, cognitive scientist and author
- Phil Plait, astronomer and skeptic who runs the website BadAstronomy.com
- Robert Pollack, biologist and author
- Christopher Potter, publisher, philosopher and author
- Magnus Pyke, author
- V. S. Ramachandran, neuroscientist, cognitive scientist and author
- Matt Ridley, zoologist, journalist and author
- Steven Rose, biologist, neurobiologist, broadcaster and author
- Oliver Sacks, neurologist and author
- Carl Sagan, astrobiologist, astronomer, broadcaster and author; co-writer and host of Cosmos: A Personal Voyage
- Kirsten Sanford, neurophysiologist and broadcaster
- Adam Savage, special effects artist and television personality (MythBusters)
- Seth Shostak, astronomer, broadcaster and author; host of Are We Alone? science radio program
- Simon Singh, physicist, mathematician and author
- Ian Stewart, mathematician and author
- David Suzuki, broadcaster, geneticist and environmental activist
- Colin Tudge, biologist and author
- Neil deGrasse Tyson, astrophysicist and author
- Kevin Warwick, biomedical scientist, roboticist and author
- Doron Weber, Sloan Foundation program director
- Michael White, musician and science writer
- Robert Winston, scientist and broadcaster
- Lewis Wolpert, developmental biologist, author and broadcaster
- Carl Zimmer, science writer and author of the science blog The Loom[4]
Some sources of popular science
- Are We Alone? - Seth Shostak science radio program
- Ask A Biologist - audio podcast program and the Ask A Biologist Web site
- The Best American Science and Nature Writing - Book series
- The Best American Science Writing - Book series
- BBC Focus - Magazine
- BBC Horizon - TV series
- Cosmos Magazine - Australian magazine
- Daily Planet - Canadian television series
- Discover - Magazine
- Discovery Channel - Cable/satellite television channel
- Explorations in Science - Michio Kaku radio program
- Exploratorium - Museum in San Francisco
- Frontiers of Science - Comic strip
- HowStuffWorks - Website
- Medicine Magazine - Medical and health articles for a general audience
- Mr Science Show - Radio show and podcast from China Radio International
- MythBusters – American TV series that seeks to confirm or debunk science-related stories, urban legends, viral videos, etc.
- National Geographic Channel (UK)
- New Scientist - Magazine
- Nova - Television show on PBS
- OMNI - Magazine (defunct)
- Popular Science - Magazine
- PopSci.com - Website
- Popular Science - Website on books and authors
- Popular Science Historic Film Series - Film shorts
- Quirks & Quarks - Canadian radio show and podcast on CBC Radio
- Reasoned Cognition - Web comic
- Science Fantastic - Michio Kaku radio program
- Science 80 - Magazine (defunct)
- Science Friday - US radio show on NPR
- Scientific American - Magazine
- Science News - Magazine
- Seed - Magazine
- Smithsonian - Magazine published by the Smithsonian Institution
- This Week in Science - US radio show and podcast
See also
- Kalinga Prize
- List of popular science books on evolution
- Public awareness of science
- Science by press conference
- Science outreach
- TED (conference)
Notes and references
Further reading
- McRae, Murdo William (editor). The Literature of Science: Perspectives on Popular Scientific Writing. The University of Georgia Press: Athens, 1993. ISBN 0-8203-1506-0