Be a Part of TWIS

So, among the changes taking place at This Week in Science is the realization that I can’t do everything myself. I would love to see TWIS grow, but I require help.

Looking at the responses from my post regarding the website and TWIS community from a couple of weeks back, I have realized that this is project overall is bigger than I am and bigger than I can conceivably achieve given the number of hours in a day.

First, TWIS requires funds to make things happen. So, I’m looking for an experienced new media advertising representative to help us find sponsors and advertisers.

I’m looking for someone with experience in advertising sales, specifically within the new media sector, with an interest if not a background in science. The position is contract based, and would be perfect for someone looking for a small side project.

Second, I’m looking for someone to help with project management and business development. There are so many things that I would love to do, but don’t have the time. I’d love to find someone passionate about TWIS and interested in helping it grow, who understands what TWIS is all about, and who wants to help whip things into shape. The person should have fantastic organizational skills, a love of science, creativity, great communication skills, and the ability to make things happen. I really need someone to be my right-hand in all things TWIS (kind of how Dane works with Leo at TWiT), which would make being a local San Francisco person highly beneficial.

The issue with this second position is that I have nothing to currently offer by way of pay. One possibility is that an applicant would be interested in working with me to find and apply for grants, which could then fund the position. An additional option is to get involved with the promise of future equity or future pay. Or, you could be independently wealthy, and not be concerned with this issue.

But, all this could be putting the cart before the horse. I’m just thinking out-loud, so that the idea can stop cycling in my head.

Please, send me a bio and/or resume and a statement of your interest if you are interested in talking about the details of either position (kirstenatthisweekinsciencedotcom). If you have any suggestions on how I can move forward with finding help, on people you think would be great for me to consider, or on how crazy I am, please, let me know.

The Science Comedian at Jasper Ridge

Brian Malow, the Science Comedian, waxes scientifically funny at a Bay Area COPUS science communication retreat at Jasper Ridge Nature Preserve in California.

This Week in Science Community Brainstorm

This Week in Science has been a labor of my love for ten years. I have enjoyed every one of them, and expect to enjoy many more.

The show has enabled me to meet so many people, and created a community of science minded folks who I hope to count as friends (even though we call them minions).

However, the community could be better. The show and our website are still run based on the old media ways of pushing content out when they should be created with a mind for the community who want to pull the information in. So, we are thinking about how to change our ways, to make even better science content that can contend with what the major publishers are pushing out, and how to foster the growth of a truly awesome science-y community.

It’s actually been a dream of mine for a long time to create a community-driven science media channel based on TWIS. We started to develop the idea with our TWIS-tributions; asking minions to record TWIS-y news stories for the show. But, it didn’t get the response I was hoping for, and so fell by the wayside.

Naomi Most (nthmost on Twitter) brought me back to the idea today (seriously, I think she is data mining my brain), and specifically peaked my re-contemplation with a couple of her comments:

“Ah, but w/ TWIStributions, the show always goes on regardless whether of ppl contribute… If you set up a system of continuous expectation of involvement w/ appropriate reward, superfans emerge.” 

And, this is a crucial point. The community needs ownership and investment for the entire endeavor to thrive. And, so far that is limited.

So, this is where I am. I want to create what Naomi termed an incubator for science reporting through TWIS. I want to rebuild the TWIS website to reflect the community and its many interests, and allow the growth of parallel scientific content in the form of blogs, audio, and video programming. I want to find the science reporting superstars among the minions, and have them call TWIS their home.

Is that too much to ask?

Interested in sponsoring the endeavor?

Have any ideas?

Famous Scientists Wanted

For the past few years I’ve been talking with friends about the fact that scientists should be treated like rockstars or sports heroes. Scientists do amazing work that affects every aspect of peoples’ lives. Why aren’t they compensated for the valuable contributions they make to society? Why isn’t science sold to the public? Where are the PR agents for science? Science needs PR, so that more kids will see science as a future career instead of looking up to the likes of the Jonas Brothers and Hannah Montana.

Why don’t kids look up to scientists? There really are no famous scientists to look up to.

When I say famous, I mean easily identifiable to the general public; famous as in rockstar famous or even reality TV famous… the kind of famous where Joe Shmoe at the grocery store is interested in looking at pictures of you drinking a coffee in the most recent edition of Famous People (Because We Say They Are Famous and We Are The Media) Weekly.

There are scientists who are known for helping to popularize science, like Carl Sagan and Michio Kaku, or for being insulting to large groups of people, like Richard Dawkins and James Watson. But, if you were to ask a cross-section of people at at cocktail party to name their favorite scientist, the majority of them will probably name someone dead. Ask them to name their favorite actor, athlete, or musician and it is a completely different story.

However, within the past few months the grapevine has been abuzz with chatter addressing this issue of scientist popularity. Intel used the idea as the basis for a recent ad.

And, a group out of Southern California are even putting scientists and rockstars together (is this the transitive property of fame by association?).

Both of the above campaigns lack one major component… women. It’s true, women do science, too. And, they should get the recognition they deserve just like the men.

That said, it’s great to hear people talking about science’s public image. The concept of scientist as rock star is growing in the public consciousness. There needs to be a continued and consistent PR effort to maintain that growth. Scientists as a lot aren’t so great at self-promotion, but with help from the marketing and PR community scientists and science could be… the next big thing.

Are we listening?

The science is in,
but the people aren’t listening.
How do we get them to listen?
When they no longer hear the sounds of laughter,
the sounds of normal childhood,
through the walls of their homes.
How do we get them to listen?
When they are preoccupied,
looking for something, anything,
whatever took their little one from under their noses.
How do we get them to listen to us?
When they are the ones with stories
that they can tell each other,
that they can use to warn others of
the danger.
Have we really listened to them?

There is an amazing article this week in PLoS Biology by Liza Gross discussing the history of the Autism/Vaccination war. I highly recommend giving it a read.

 McCarthy emerged as a hero for some parents by telling her story. Personal stories resonate most with those who see trust in experts as a risk in itself—a possibility whenever people must grapple with science-based decisions that affect them, whether they’re asked to make sacrifices to help curb global warming or vaccinate their kids for public health. Researchers might consider taking a page out of the hero’s handbook by embracing the power of stories—that is, adding a bit of drama—to show that even though scientists can’t say just what causes autism or how to prevent it, the evidence tells us not to blame vaccines. As news of epidemics spreads along with newly unfettered infectious diseases, those clinging to doubt about vaccines may come to realize that several potentially deadly diseases are just a plane ride, or playground, away—and that vaccines really do save lives.

Michio Kaku on God

Dr. Michio Kaku dishes on spirituality, Einstein, and God in this latest installment of our interview. Distributed by Tubemogul.

KDVS Annual Fundraiser On Now

Hey everyone…

Every year, KDVS, the radio station that This Week in Science calls home has a fundraising drive. It’s that time of year again.

For the week, volunteers will be at the station answering phones, taking donations, and generally working their butts off to support the station. The goal is to raise $60,000.

That’s a small sum compared to so many other things in this world. It’s significantly less than most households in the San Francisco Bay Area make in a year.

In return for support, those who donate will receive gifts that have been specially chosen by people who work at the station. The music directors have put together amazing music packages, djs have crafted their own t-shirts and cds. Hundreds of hours of love and dedication have already gone into making this week something special with no expectation of gain in return other than to keep the station thriving.

That’s what is so special about KDVS. It is non-commercial, independent, free-form radio, and the people who work at the station truly love to be there.

So, show your support for the concept of KDVS, for the home of TWIS, for a station that continues to put science on the radio… donate.

Any amount is great, but we hope that people will be able to give $25 as students or $40 as community members.

TWIS is offering a limited number of the 2009 Science Music Compilation CDs as our special gift to people who donate at the student or community level in support of our show.

You can donate online here.

Oh, and PS… It’s tax-deductible.

Guy Kawasaki on Science

I’ve been thinking that science should pull from the expertise of other disciplines, like business, marketing, and PR in order to improve its public face. Science needs a new face, let’s find out how people view it and how to mold that image.

Along those lines, I asked businessman / marketing expert, Guy Kawasaki, a few questions. His answers are below:

1) What is science to you?

Science is cutting through the bull shiitake to find out how the world truly works.

2) As a businessman and entrepreneur, does science influence your actions? If so, how?

I would make the case that the computer and Internet exists because of science. Thus, science is the basis upon which all tech businesses are based. In particular, I love social sciences like psychology and sociology.

3) What aspects of science do you find most interesting or relevant?

I’m a pragmatist: anything that can improve marketing, sales, and evangelism and anything that can help engineers develop great products.

4) In your Twitter feed you make a point of linking to science stories on a regular basis, and you’ve included science round-ups in your blog. Which stories catch your attention and why?

Here’s what I do: I go to http://science.alltop.com/ and http://psychlogy.alltop.com/ and look for stories that people will retweet. That is, stories that are so compelling that people cannot resist spreading them.

A few day ago, for example, there was a story about how masturbation can help with allergies. Perhaps not the example you wanted to hear, but it was very popular. In general, tweets about science are very popular.

5) How well does the science section in your website, Alltop.com, perform compared to, say, tech or health? Is it popular, or is it niche?

Alas, it’s smaller than Tech, but I would not have 97,000 followers on Twitter without it, and Alltop would not be what it is without my Twitter following, so Science.alltop is very strategic for us.

6) How do you view the current state of science media in the US? What is good, and what could be improved?

I am not qualified to judge. I think it’s good, but I really don’t have any expertise to effectively answer this question.

7) How do you view the current state of science education? What is  good, and what could be improved?

I’m not afraid of answering questions, but I just don’t know. Your readers should appreciate a marketing person who knows what he doesn’t know. I would be a hypocrite to say how much I like to find the truth and then go spouting off about topics that I don’t comprehend.

8 ) Do you have any PR or marketing advice for science?

This I know. Scientists should be thinking “push” as in pushing out the value and wonder of science. Waiting for the inherent wonderfulness to “pull’ people in is a risky proposition. Therefore, science needs science evangelists who “spread the good news” to the people. Contrary to the field of dreams theory, good stuff is still “sold,” not “bought.”

The immediate challenge is that in a recession, there’s not much patience for science that is years from appearing as a product or service. Everyone is thinking about a six to twelve month time-to-market strategy. This is unfortunate, but a fact of life these days.

However, I predict that thirty years from now, we’ll look back on the first twenty years of this century and say, “Wow, who would have thought that science could fix so many fundamental problems like energy, pollution, and health so fast.”

If science could get us off oil, its marketing and PR would rock for quite a while. This would be a bigger deal than getting a man on the moon, and that was a very big deal for science.

Guy Kawasaki is a founding partner and entrepreneur-in-residence at Garage Technology Ventures. He is also the co-founder of Alltop.com, an “online magazine rack” of popular topics on the web.  Previously, he was an Apple Fellow at Apple Computer, Inc. Guy is the author of nine books including Reality Check, The Art of the Start, Rules for Revolutionaries, How to Drive Your Competition Crazy, Selling the Dream, and The Macintosh Way. He has a BA from Stanford University and an MBA from UCLA as well as an honorary doctorate from Babson College.

Should Newspapers Be Non-Profit?

This article in ZDNet suggests that it might not be such a bad idea. Says Mr. Diaz,

“What we’re not doing is sitting in on city council meetings on the lookout for changes to the zoning ordinances or hikes to property taxes. We’re not investigating environmental impacts from the new airport expansion or looking into motives of a developer who’s suddenly hanging around city hall regularly. That’s local stuff that should be covered at the local level and offered to local citizens. I imagine there are probably potential donors in cities and regions that would be willing to invest in local “journalism,” instead of “newspapers.””

Newspapers could subsist on donations rather than advertising. It’s an interesting idea, and there are some groups delving into the idea of donation based journalism.

However, the political biases of some newspapers are so obvious, it is hard to imagine them as non-profits. I can’t help but equate this idea to allowing churches to have non-profit status and promote political agendas.

Oh, wait. We already do that.

Twitter Word Association

This is what people on Twitter think when they hear the word ‘science’: