THE HANDS-ON GUIDE FOR SCIENCE COMMUNICATORS THE HANDS-ON GUIDE FOR SCIENCE COMMUNICATORS A STEP-BY-STEP APPROACH TO PUBLIC OUTREACH LARS LINDBERG CHRISTENSEN ILLUSTRATIONS BY MARTIN KORNMESSER Lars Lindberg Christensen ESA/ST-ECF NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope Garching 85748, Munich, Germany lars@eso.org Cover illustration: Science communication: Bringing the Universe to the attention of others and opening their eyes The illustration was modeled in 3D in Cinema 4D and post-processed in Photoshop by Martin Kornmesser Library of Congress Control Number: 2006932967 ISBN-10: 0-387-26324-1 ISBN-13: 978-0-387-26324-3 Printed on acid-free paper © 2007 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC All rights reserved This work may not be translated or copied in whole or in part without the written permission of the publisher (Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, 233 Spring Street, New York, NY 10013, USA), except for brief excerpts in connection with reviews or scholarly analysis Use in connection with any form of information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed is forbidden The use in this publication of trade names, trademarks, service marks, and similar terms, even if they are not identified as such, is not to be taken as an expression of opinion as to whether or not they are subject to proprietary rights springer.com For my father & mother (In Memoriam) FOREWORD FOREWORD Astronomy and fundamental research in physics are a priori of no practical use at all Work in these fields is carried out to reveal the beauty of nature, in the spirit of scientific endeavour, to satisfy human curiosity — and because it is great fun! There is no reason to be ashamed of that After many years a piece of fundamental research may find a practical application — but it’s not the main initial driver for it However, if the general public is to fund fundamental research, the taxpayer must get something back Communication is essential — not only because of some vague “obligation”, but for the long term benefit of people working in the areas of astronomy, spaceflight and physics So long as the general public is interested in these areas of research they will accept the need to pay for it Easy, right? Well, at least in theory Unfortunately, there are many players out there who obviously haven’t got the message Many institutions, agencies, observatories, laboratories and scientists believe that they communicate, but, actually, they don’t Some of the world’s leading observatories only publish a few print-ready pictures per year Some space agencies operate spacecraft that are virtually unknown to everyone except the most curious enthusiasts for years Unbelievable? No, just two examples of astronomical “communication” today On average, scientists and organisations in the US are doing much better in public outreach activities than their European counterparts Why? It is not only a matter of funding There is a completely different attitude to science communication in the US Most scientists, science organisations and funding agencies in the US have realised that active communication is critically important to keep the system running smoothly and effectively For those of you still neglecting science communication, there is a ready cure available: this book! Lars Lindberg Christensen presents a handbook with detailed instructions and examples for devising a proper communication strategy for your project or institute After the publication of this book there is no longer any reason for “We didn’t know”-type excuses If a single scientist or institution follows only ten percent of the advice given in this book, then communication prospects for their respective areas of science will be in much better shape than they are today Communicating endeavours in astronomy, spaceflight and physics is both so important and so easy: Great pictures, extreme numbers, issues that fascinate many people In my view, scientists who still consider their research, projects, instruments etc as private ‘toys’, should be excluded from public funding Astronomy and spaceflight are door-openers to the world of physics for many people They attract young people to professional careers in natural sciences or engineering Apollo created a whole generation of scientists and engineers If you communicate your science in a proper way, you could the same for the amazing big science projects of today It pays to communicate! A telescope or a detector unveils the secrets of the Universe This book unveils the Universe of communication, which — unfortunately — is still shrouded in mystery for many scientists Scientists, you need to read this book! Dirk H Lorenzen Hamburg, 14 April 2006 Senior science reporter for German Public Radio, Author of Mission: Mars vii PREFACE PREFACE This book springs from my own deep well of love for nature and the Universe to which we have been granted a temporary visitor’s visa Without curiosity we humans are poor Without the ability to pass on our own curiosity for, and knowledge about, the Universe around us, we will never be able to inspire and induce those short, but incredibly rewarding moments of awe in the minds of other people We live to learn We live to inspire Only the sky is the limit! This book offers hands-on advice concerning some of the most central topics of practical popular science communication I have often used examples from astronomy1 and physics, partly because astronomy and related disciplines have some natural advantages for communication (see section 1.3), and partly because such examples are easy to find, for instance on the web The book is divided into four parts The introductory chapters form Part I, Setting the Scene The actual production of communication products is covered in Part II, The Production Flow Some special topics in science communication are discussed in Part III, Selected Topics The final chapters contain conclusions, references, an index, web links and appendices (Part IV, Finishing Off) There is also a comprehensive glossary with definitions and explanations of the many terms and concepts used Glossary words are marked in bold in the index Many different aspects of practical science communication aimed at the public2 are covered in this book, some of general interest and some of a more specialised nature, but all, I feel, with an important role in science communication, although, admittedly, not all are relevant for every communication office One obvious omission from the book is the entire field of formal education Formal education is an odd and unapproachable creature Although many of the same communication products are used in both informal (free-choice learning) and formal education as in communication to adults (outreach), material for formal education has to be tailored very specifically to the age group in question and to fit into the curriculum Curricula change relatively often and are also subject to significant geographic and national variations that make the task of generalising difficult Other books treat education in great detail, such as, for instance, Ortiz-Gil & Martínez (2005) and references therein The book also only touches peripherally on the creative process involved in producing good science communication Talent and an eye for delicate and aesthetic expression cannot be learnt from a guide such as this The focus in this text is much more on the mechanical part of the production, not on that spark of creative genius that brings a communication alive The material in this book is aimed at full-time science communicators working in communication offices in scientific institutions (the public information officers, abbreviated PIOs), scientists, decision-makers, journalists, teachers, science amateurs and others with an interest in science communication The term astronomy is broadly used here for “everything that has to with space”, ie space science, human spaceflight, Earth observation and related disciplines Public science communication is a subset of the wider topic of general science communication that also involves intra-scientist communication This book deals exclusively with communication aimed at the general public, ie “popular communication” In the following, the word popular or public will be omitted ix Despite the fact that a great many people know something about communication — it is after all an innate human ability — this overview of the more practical aspects of (popular) science communication is appropriate as science communication spans so many different disciplines that no one person can be an expert in them all (the author included) A full appreciation of how to make science communication effective is not easily acquired and it is hoped that new science communicators especially may find this book helpful and inspirational Naturally, reading this book alone will not make a good communicator Good science communication requires a lot of hard work, practice, dedication and talent Just as the good scientist investigates the laws of nature, or finds an innovative way to send a spacecraft to Mars, so the good science communicator must evaluate how best to communicate scientific results to the target groups within the given framework of his/her organisation A wealth of inspiration for this book has been found in excellent resources such as: • • • • • • • • Mitton (2001); Finley (2002); Madsen & West (2000); NASW (2003); Maran (2000); “The golden volume”, aka Astronomy Communication edited by Heck and Madsen (2003); Mahoney (2005-II); Robson & Christensen (2005) I recommend the reader to consult these sources for more ideas and information I have most certainly overlooked other excellent references, and I would appreciate emails indicating this I have also tried to be as conscientious as possible with respect to quoting references to other works, but have surely made some inadvertent errors, and would warmly welcome corrections on this point This book draws heavily on personal experience, acquired at the European Space Agency’s Hubble Space Telescope office in Munich, Germany It presents some of the background and the motivation behind the choices made there daily to find the most efficient way of presenting the work of the many talented European Hubble scientists The author in no way pretends to be an expert in all areas, but rather a jack-of-all-trades, with some knowledge of every branch of science communication As all science communicators handle the practical aspects of their work in different ways, this book can no more than present just one view of how to it For completeness I would like to mention two other books with similar titles as this Guide, but with rather different, and perhaps complementary, content: Stocklmayer et al (2001) and Laszlo (2006) Smaller parts of the material here have appeared in earlier incarnations in Christensen (2005), Christensen (2003) and Nielsen et al (2006) Lars Lindberg Christensen (lars@eso.org) Munich, 31 December 2005 x ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Many excellent individuals have inspired me over the years People without whom this book would either not have existed or not have been the same First of all I would like to thank those whom I consider to be the Virtual Dream Team of Science Communication for inspiration and help Late at night, after a beer or two, I contemplate gathering this team together one day to make a dream come true: My closest colleague and accomplice, graphical designer Martin Kornmesser (Germany), for an always inspiring collaboration Anne Rhodes (UK/Germany), the most efficient and talented proof reader and editor I know Robert Hill (UK), Michael J D Linden-Vørnle (Denmark) and Robert Hurt (USA), the sharpest, craziest discussion partners in existence and source of the most incredible inspiration My Advanced Development Team, Lars Holm Nielsen, Kaspar K Nielsen and Teis Johansen (all from Denmark), top class hard developers who have always given absolute loyalty in excess and thousands and thousands of lines of excellent code in exchange for beer, pizza, and cola Manolis Zoulias (Greece), the hardest worker and incredibly kind at heart A good portion of this book came into existence in Manolis’s residences in Athens and in Milos, sitting under the bougainvillea in the foothills overlooking the sunset over the bay I would also like to thank Bob Fosbury (UK/Germany), my mentor and boss, for granting me access to the powerhouse of science and communication in Munich I am grateful to Piero Benvenuti (Italy), the former head of the Space Telescope-European Coordinating Facility, for paving the way for ESA/Hubble and for inspiring me to always focus on the ball Ray Villard (USA) and Cheryl Gundy (USA) took an awful lot of time out for me in 1999, and passed on much of their experience and knowledge gained from the Hubble communication efforts in the USA Thanks to Richard Hook (UK/Germany) for inspirational image processing I am honoured to have been working with you all I would also like to thank the following for good discussions and for delivering interesting input: Kirsten Haagensen (Denmark), Steve Maran (USA), Doug Isbell (USA), Michael Cramer Andersen (Denmark), Monica G Salomone (Spain), Sune Nordentoft Lauritsen (Denmark), Megan Watzke (USA), Brooke A Paige (USA), Laura Miles (AlphaGalileo, UK), Anna Roth (Germany, Hungary), Birgit Mager (Germany), Jay Pasachoff (USA), Dirk H Lorenzen (Germany) and Robert Roy Britt (space.com, USA) I am also grateful to Karin Nordström Andersen (Denmark) for her support in the early phase of this work I am deeply indebted to several students and interns: Discussions with, and inputs from, Anna-Lynn Wegener (Germany, intern at ESO) were valuable for section 5.1.1 and section 14.1 Lars Holm Nielsen (Denmark) delivered valuable input for section 14.5 Chapter 21 was written with substantial input from a study group from Roskilde University Centre (Denmark): Lars Holm Nielsen, Nanna Torpe Jørgensen, Kim Jantzen and Sanne Bjerg They conducted part of their studies at ESA/Hubble Chapter 20 was written with substantial inputs from Sylvie Wieland (Germany, intern at ESA/Hubble) Raquel Yumi Shida (Brazil) did a great job typesetting the book Finally a warm thank-you to my editor Harry Blom (the Netherlands/USA) at Springer for believing in this idea and to André Heck (France) for opening the door xi CONTENTS CONTENTS Foreword vii Preface ix Acknowledgements xi PART I Setting the scene 1 Science communication 1.1 About science communication 1.2 Geographic differences .5 1.3 Case study: Astronomy as inspiration The communication process 2.1 The linear model 2.2 The communication actors 2.3 The “contracts” between the actors 11 2.4 Potential areas of conflict 13 2.5 Direct communication between scientists and the public/press 15 The communication office 17 3.1 Science communication strategy 17 3.2 The types of communication 20 3.3 Budget 20 3.4 Staffing 20 3.5 Flexibility and freedom 23 3.6 Strategic advice for everyday 24 PART II The production 27 Overview of the production chain 29 4.1 Market research 31 4.2 Planning 31 4.3 Written communication 32 4.4 Visual communication 32 4.5 Scientific and political validation 32 4.6 Technical production 33 4.7 Distribution 33 4.8 Promotion 33 4.9 Evaluation/Archiving 34 Target groups 35 5.1 Target groups reached directly 35 5.2 Mediator target groups 38 5.3 Television 40 5.4 Radio 41 5.5 Newspapers 41 5.6 The journalist 42 Product types 45 6.1 Press releases 46 6.2 Video News Releases 46 6.3 Brochures 47 6.4 The importance of webpages 47 Written communication 49 7.1 Writing for different audiences 49 xiii GLOSSARY Planetaria are often combined with largeformat cinemas Planning — Preparatory phase where the product production is defined Often a feasibility analysis (formal or informal) has to be carried out to clarify the details of the production: the right choice of medium, how the product fits into the communication strategy and the line of other products and whether the product can be used strategically to solve other needs in the long term Podcasts — Type of audio product available On Demand on the web for convenient listening or viewing offline on an iPod or a similar device Podcasts usually contain a smaller magazine-style theme oriented piece of mixed speak and music Press clippings — Clippings from newspapers or magazines where a given communication product is mentioned Press conferences — Meeting called by an education and public outreach office between scientists and media Usually only held at the announcement of an important scientific result, or if there is a major institutional event, for instance if a Nobel price is awarded to an employee Press officer — Part of the staff in an education and public outreach office Handles media contacts, press lists etc Press packs — Handed to journalists at events such as press conferences A press pack typically contains a press release, glossy prints, background material and more Popular book authors — Target group that uses communication products in a long-lasting and intense way Since much consideration goes into the production of a book it is a privilege to have the products of an EPO office included in a book Press releases — A press release is one of the main tools used by a communication office to promote scientific advances One of the most important products as it is directed towards media Poster — Exclusive presentations of impressive images or illustrations available with limited text Often used to brand an organisation or to advertise events Press release visibility scale — Scale describing the different levels of communication efforts that a science communicator may use to emphasise the importance of a scientific finding to try to convince the media to run the story Postproduction — Stage of a project (most often film or video) during which footage or stills are edited and assembled and effects, graphics, titles and sound are added Postscript — Standard vector graphics format, abbreviated PS, file extension ps or eps Has numerous sub-standards and can be difficult to transport across platforms and operating systems Is very efficient for vector data, but ineffective for bitmap data Preprints — The first publication of a scientific paper is usually a preprint This may even appear before the refereeing process has finished Preprints are almost exclusively electronic today Preproduction — The planning phase of a project This phase is usually completed prior to the production itself Principle of a Thousand Ways — The principle that any communication product can be produced in a thousand different ways No one will ever be able to prove which is the best suited for a given target group, or for the collective ensemble of target groups Production chain — Chain of events in a production flow Each link of the chain (for instance the technical production or distribution) is a potential single point failure Production flow — Sequence of events in the production chain from product planning to evaluation Products — Means, vehicles, services or methods used by an organisation to communicate and interact with its customers Can be virtual or physical 255 THE HANDS-ON GUIDE FOR SCIENCE COMMUNICATORS Progressive video — Method for displaying video where each frame is shown in sequence In contrast to interlaced video Promotion — The process of interacting with the media to encourage the use of a product Often happens at a personal level Proof reader — Part of the staff in a communication office Handles the nitty-gritty of correcting language, grammar Can have an additional editorial role and work actively on the communication aspects of a product Public affairs office — See education and public outreach office Public information officer (PIO) — Person who works in an education and public outreach office Often only the science communicator and/or head are called PIOs Public observatory — Observatory, usually relatively small, open to the public Guides operate the equipment and explain what the audience is looking at Public talks — Talks that are open to a wider audience The level is low and often incorporates significant audiovisual content Public understanding of science — Very broad concept, usually adopted to describe the interface between science and the public in its widest sense Pulling — Action whereby the customer, or end-user, plays the active role in the distribution process and retrieves the product him – or herself In contrast to Pushing Purchase — Acquisition of a product Need not involve pecuniary exchange (especially not in science communication) Pushing — In contrast to pulling The action whereby the distributor (for instance the EPO office) of a product actively pushes it to the receiver (for instance the end-user) Q Quote — Verbatim citation from a person For instance when an interviewee is cited ad verbatim R Radio — The second of the large electronic media Relies heavily on written material Ratings — Measurements of the number of viewers/listeners for a given television or radio station Ratings are important in measuring the impact of a product Real world — In contrast to the perfect world Receiver — The recipient of information, for instance a communication message Region codes — Technical code that is added to a DVD to restrict its distribution to certain areas Regions are designated a region code comprising a number between and Region codes enable distribution companies to acquire the rights for the distribution of a commercial DVD in a smaller area, so saving costs Render farm — Set of physically connected computers (for instance clients in a network) rendering the same job or jobs Requires some server software to distribute a job’s individual components (for instance frames) to the different clients, and to keep track of the progress of the work Rendering — The process of generating an image from a model, by means of a software program In 3D modelling it is the process where the viewpoint of a virtual spectator (a camera) viewing a modelled scene with a certain texture under certain lighting is mathematically calculated with a certain quality Requests — Can be both external (from the public or the media) and internal (from your own institution) Research — Preparatory work enabling a 256 GLOSSARY science communicator to communicate a new result Resolution See image resolution Resonance — Another word for impact of, or success with, a given product Usually implies “resonance with the press” Science magazines — Specialised trade magazine dealing exclusively with scientific topics Often have very impressive visual presentation with high emphasis on images Science outreach — See science communication Rewrite — Result of working a text over thoroughly and writing large and essential fractions anew The editing work that takes place when a text has been written often involves rewriting some — possibly substantial – parts of the text This can significantly improve the quality of the text Science popularisation — See science communication RGB — Abbreviation for red, green, blue; the colours used in displays and input devices that use the additive colour model Science writing — Communication of science via the written word S Satellite uplink — Main distribution method for video material, especially for Video News Releases, sending the video signal to a satellite for distribution Science attentiveness — The willingness of a given individual to absorb scientific information A science attentive person is sometimes defined as a person who expresses a high level of interest in science, feels well informed about science and reads newspapers or magazines frequently Science attentive people are more interested in science than “interested people” Science communication — Exchange of scientific information, often in a simplified, or popular, form Science communicator — Person who communicates science as his or her profession Science journalist —Journalist specialising in writing about science In contrast to general journalists Science literacy — Having a certain understanding of scientific terms, principles and ideas Science PR office — See education and public outreach office Science PR — See science communication Scientific awareness – See Public Understanding of Science Scientific marketing — See science communication Scientific method — Method used by most scientists Is often described as scheme of steps: Define the question Gather information An iterative loop consisting of: Form a scientific hypothesis Devise an experiment to test the hypothesis Analyse the result Interpret the result and its implication for redefining the hypothesis Back to Publish the result Scientific papers — Scientists publish results achieved by applying the scientific method in scientific papers that are usually published in peer reviewed journals or in conference proceedings The single most important communication tool for scientists in the scientific process Scientific process — The method by which science progresses This process works in incremental advances rather than in great leaps of profound insight and through fumbling trial-and-error The scientific process relies heavily on the peer reviewing system 257 THE HANDS-ON GUIDE FOR SCIENCE COMMUNICATORS Scientist — Person who applies the scientific method to gain insight into the deeper underlying mechanisms of nature Sexiness — Trivialisation to add appeal for the end-user (usually the general public) to a given product Simplification — Necessary step taken in science communication to reduce the complexity and amount of information of a scientific result Single-stringed product — In contrast to multi-stringed products Slate — Text slide used in video production to convey factual information such as names, affiliations, clip information etc Sound bite — Self-consistent, short messages of approximately 10 seconds Spin — Public communication that only emphasises the positive side of an often politically sensitive topic Storyboard — Descriptive document for a video that outlines its content and flow Contains narrative text, images that show the visual content, shot descriptions etc Subtractive colour model — Colour model in which colours are produced by combining various percentages of the subtractive primaries, cyan, magenta, and yellow Success metrics — Measurements quantifying the performance, or impact, of a given product Super-VHS — Also known as S-VHS a much improved version of VHS Supers — Graphics or text superposed on top of footage T Target groups — The different sets of recipients of communication products Tax-payers — See general public 258 Teachers — See educators Technical autonomy — The ability to make quick, independent decisions of a technical nature Technical brochures — Brochures directed towards the scientific and technical communities Technical production — Part of the production chain involving technical equipment: printing, production of graphical material, web etc Television — One of the most powerful media, giving quick access to news about world events, and allowing topics to be described very quickly on screen by means of animations, illustrative footage, sound bytes from experts etc This medium serves or “pushes” information towards the (inactive) user Thumbnail — Term for a small image, for instance 100 pixels A thumbnail loads very quickly, and gives a good overview of the visuals in a product or a production Thumbnails are used in image archives, in video editing software, on the web etc TIFF — The standard true-colour (16 million colours) publication bitmap format Is often compressed non-destructively with LempelZiv-Welch (LZW) compression Timecode — Generally refers to the industry standard of SMTPE timecode that is formatted as four numbers separated by colons (e.g., 21:52:31:20) The numbers represent hours, minutes, seconds, and frames and are added to video to enable precise editing There are two basic techniques used to record SMPTE timecode on videotape, longitudinal timecode (LTC) and vertical interval timecode (VITC) Transmitter — The sender of information, for instance a communication message, to an observer (a receiver) True-colour — Also called 24-bit colour The term is used for digital display systems that can display so many colours (16 million) that images look natural Digital displays GLOSSARY use the RGB colour space to display colour and each of the three components R, G and B have 8-bits of colour information (256 colours) 256 x 256 x 256 gives 16 million portant part of science communication VNR — See Video News Release TV — See television Vodcasts — Analogous to a podcast but with visual (video) content V Voice-over — Narration added over other material (for instance video footage) Validation — Procedure whereby the scientific and political correctness of a product are investigated by experts and it is approved for publication Vector graphics — One of two general groups of “image” formats Uses simple and short coordinate and vector descriptions to characterise geometric shapes like lines, circles, letters etc This format is less suited for pixel-based artwork In contrast to bitmaps VHS — Abbreviation for Video Home System A consumer video system that was very popular in the 1980s and 1990s Video editing — Selecting and arranging of video clips Usually performed on a nonlinear video editing system Video News Release (VNR) — Press release in video form designed for use on broadcast television — as a news item or feature story A VNR translates the printed word into the sound and pictures television newsrooms need A Video News Release usually consists of an A-roll and a B-roll Viewers — The target group for television The impact of television is counted in terms of the number of viewers as estimated by television ratings Virtual services — In contrast to physical services Virtual studio — A virtual, computer-generated indoor or outdoor setting where the main element, typically the anchor person, is placed This setting is often of an exotic nature that would be difficult to construct physically in a studio W Web news sites — Most of the large printed and electronic media supplement their main activities with news websites Examples are CNN online and BBCi These sites can react almost instantly to news events and are therefore “checked” briefly by many “normal people” who crave instant access to news The importance of this medium will grow in the coming years Web statistics — Statistics that describe the use (and thereby popularity) of a website Is usually measured in quantities such as hits, users and download volume Webpages — Combinations of text, images, video and other audiovisual elements made accessible via the Internet Webpages are viewed with a web browser Weekly magazines — Colourful magazines with long lead time (weeks or even months) Examples are Newsweek, Time, Stern etc They usually have a large circulation Wire services — Outlets and distribution partners for news stories The largest wire services are AP (Associated Press, American), UPI (United Press International, American), AFP (Agence France-Presse, French), and Reuters (British) They can have a very large influence on the impact of a story Writing — The production of written communication Written communication — Textual communication The backbone of most communication products Visual communication — Communication via images, illustrations and video A very im- 259 INDEX INDEX Symbols 24-bit 228 2D animations 94, 136 3D animations 33, 86, 136 3D workstation 94 8-bit 236, 237 80/20 principle See Pareto’s principle A A-roll 131 above the fold 42 accident 155 acknowledgement 67 active language 62 additive colour model 89 address database 95 address lists 99 administrative privileges 93 Adobe After Effects 136, 152 Encore 151, 152 Photoshop 89, 152 Premiere 138, 152 ADS See Astrophysical Data Systems advanced technology 33 advertising 33, 178, 185 aesthetics ix AFP See Agence France-Presse afterglow 142 Agence France-Presse 38 airtime 41 alpha channel 140 AlphaGalileo 61, 100, 104 amateur communities 39 American Astronomical Society 69, 71, 72, 99 amplifying outlets 95 analogies 67, 163, 198 analytic working methods 158 angle 38, 51 animation 131 annual report 45 AP See Associated Press approval procedures 70, 160 approval process 10 archiving 34, 103, 108 data 109 electronic materials 108, 109 look and feel of 109 metadata 109 physical archives of data 110 physical materials 108 virtual archives of data 110 Ariane 501 155 artefact 83, 144 artist’s impressions 86 ASinH See Inverse Hyperbolic Sine Associated Press 38 AstroKiosk 113 Astronomía magazine 38 astronomy Astronomy Magazine 39 Astrophysical Data Systems 50 AthenaWeb 100 audio AC-3 format 148 audio editing 138 autonomy 175 availability 158 B B-roll 131 babies scientists’ 170 bandwidth 141, 143 battle to be heard 6, 95 BBC 55 web 39 benchmarking strategy 31 Betacam 141, 143, 145 Digital 142 SP 142, 144 big questions bitmaps 92 blacklist 69 blindness 25 blogging 15 bluescreening 140 books See products:books boosting of a result 197 boycotts 155 brainstorming 51 branding 178 broadcast quality 141 broadcast television 131 broad communication 49 brochures 47 bubble chamber 84 budget 20 burn in 237 C camcorder 136 Cassini 155 caveats 52, 75, 198 CD-ROMs 45 CERN 5, 84 261 THE HANDS-ON GUIDE FOR SCIENCE COMMUNICATORS chat-rooms 15 checklist 160 chicken and egg problem 135 CIE Chromaticity Diagram 91 Cinema 4D 94, 151 Circus of Physics 46 citation rates 36 clichés 52, 56 Clinton, Bill 97 CMS See Content Management System CMYK 88 CMYK printing 90 CNN 205 co-release 165 cocaine 54 codec 144 code of conduct 201, 207 Cold fusion 194 colour 88 calibration See colour management conversion 88 depth 228 management 91, 94 spaces 88 colourimeter 91 commercial players 193 Communicating Astronomy with the Public 2003 207 communication 3–15 communication-niche 5, 205 communication office See education and public outreach office communication products See products; See products communication strategy 31 communicators 95 competition 35, 41, 96 competition for funding 195 compositing 138, 139 compression 143, 144, 147, 149, 234, 242 compromise 158 Computer-To-Plate 77 conflicts 11, 32, 169 confusion 156 consistency 52 consumers 35, 49, 95, 214 contacts 62, 68 Content Management Systems 129 content provider 17, 213 contractors 23 control 170 controversy 64 copywriting 49 Corbis 191 corporate visual identity 22, 88 Cost-Per-Click 186 country desks 175 262 CPC See Cost-Per-Click crap 55 detection 10 creativity ix, 25 credibility 158, 193 balance 169 problems 49 credibility panel discussion 193 credibility problems 193 crisis communication 155 measures 156 secret recipes 157 crisis team 159 criticism 23 crosslinking 64 CTP See Computer-To-Plate cube root 237 curriculum ix customers 31 modus operandi 31 needs 31 operational time scales 31 D Dallas Morning News newspaper 43 darlings kill 52 data 83 database 99 field 99 record 99 data flood 112 deadlines 42, 50, 162, 171 decision-makers 35, 36, 99 deliverables 17, 213 dialogue 35 problem-oriented 35 Dickens, Charles 57 direct communication 35 direct mailing 33, 95 Discover Magazine 39 disgraceful ladies 54 distribution 29, 33, 95, 178 direct mailing 95 emailing lists 95 external lists 99 lists 160 press conferences 95 pull 95 push 95 third-party partners 95 video portals 95 web 95 distribution lists 95 INDEX DLT tape 149 Dreamweaver 119, 127 DVD 45 replication 149 dynamic range 236 E e-Commerce 177, 179 security 184 Terms & Conditions 184 editing 53 editor 23, 53 editorial board 10, 32 external 199 internal 199 education 20 formal ix, 45 informal ix, 45 educational material 22, 39, 45, 113, 150 formal 39 informal 39 education and public outreach office 7, 17, 45, 71, 103, 107, 119, 177, 213 educators 39 edutainment 40 electronic journal articles 65 electronic preprints embargo 62, 63, 69 embargoed press releases 69 embargo system 200 emergency room 160 end-consumers 35 end-target 35 end-users 33, 35 ending 51 entertainment industry 193 EPO office See education and public outreach office equations 52 ESA See European Space Agency ESA/Hubble xi, 124, 179, 193, 205 ESO See European Southern Observatory EurekAlert 100, 104 European Southern Observatory 5, 32, 175 European Space Agency 77, 150, 175, 203 evaluation 31, 34, 103, 158 qualitative 103 quantitative 103 Excel 127 exclusives 46 exhibitions 45 expert communicator 32 external communication 156 Exxon Valdez 155 F face-to-face dialogue 15 factsheet 49, 69, 70 fairness 58 fast computers 93 feedback loop 173 Fermilab 121 field 142 Filemaker Pro 99 Financial crises 155 fire-fighting 24, 213 first-hand impressions 25 five “c”s 157, 215 five “w”s 41 Fleischmann, Martin 194 flexibility 23, 24, 129, 213 flicker 142 footage 131 Fosbury, Bob 150 four-colour printing 90 frame rate 142 free-choice learning See education, informal freedom 23, 213 front page priority matrix 126 funding fundraising 47, 189 G gamut 90 gatekeepers 65 general journalists 42 general public 32, 35, 161 Getty images 191 GIF 92 global marketplace 177 glossy print 36, 45 goals 31 gold card effect 191 golden questions 50, 61 Google 50, 111 AdWords 185 Images 112 News 50, 104, 105 News cluster 104 News index 104 grammar check 54 Guardian newspaper 54 guidelines 65 H H.264 144 habits 31 Hammett, Dashiel 57 263 THE HANDS-ON GUIDE FOR SCIENCE COMMUNICATORS HD DVD 149 headline 66 Herschel 77 Himes, Chester 57 hotline 160 Hubble x, 32, 82, 124, 150, 179, 203 Hubble — 15 Years of Discovery 150 Hubble Shop 180 Hubble Space Telescope See Hubble human interest 64 hype 195 hype-threshold 49, 197 I I/O rate 150 IAU See International Astronomical Union IAU Communicating Astronomy with the Public Working Group 207 illustrations 81, 214 image 32, 45, 81, 83, 89, 92, 111, 112, 125, 191, 203, 204, 227–243 image credit 68 image production pipeline 86 image resolution 203 images 81, 165, 214 See also bitmaps impact 33 estimation 103 statistics 22 implications 64 importance 64 in-depth science programmes 40, 131 inaccurate science reporting 196 industry 36 information management 22, 107 information office See education and public outreach office Ingelfinger rule 10, 200 inspiration-factor Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias 124 interlaced video 142 internal communication 157 internal obstacles 96 International Astronomical Union 207 Internet 47 interpersonal relationships 31 interviewees 58 interviews 31, 58, 171 inverse hyperbolic sine 237 inverted pyramid 62 iPod 46 J jargon 52, 62, 163 Joe Sixpack 35 264 Journalism 55 journalist 7, 15, 22, 42, 62, 99, 161, 162, 163, 164 errors 164 sensationalism 164 journalists 65 JPEG 92 JWST See James Webb Space Telescope K keying 140 KISS 67 knowledge management See information management L language barrier 173 large format printers 93 laser printers 93 layering information 49 layout 77 laypeople See general public lead 51, 67 lead time 39 level of communication efforts 197 limitations 164 linear editing 139 linear model 7, 11 contracts 11 line art See vector graphics line of products 31 link checking 120 live televised press conference 98 local interest 64 logarithm 237 logo 22 long-term benefits 24 Los Alamos National Laboratory 65 M major science 64 management process 159 marketing 33, 178 muscle 178 market place 193 global 178 market research 31 market segments 178 Mars 122 meteorite 97, 194 Mars Odyssey 122 Themis 122 Marvel Comics 57 matte 140 INDEX meanings 56 media 38 control 162 not blame the 158 media advisory 141 media alert 141 media contact 161 media relations office See education and public outreach office media teleconference 98 mediators 32, 33, 35, 36, 38, 95, 173 See also target groups media training 159, 161, 191 media training training 191 media writing workshops 15 medium 39 merchandise 46 metadata 125 metaphors 56, 163 micromanagement 175 misconceptions 37 mission 17, 213 mission statement 61 mistakes 25 mistrust 13 MJPEG 144 monitoring 103 monologue 35 Moses 56, 57 motivations 31 Mount Stromlo Observatory 155 MP3 59 MPEG 125 MPEG-1 144 MPEG-2 144, 146, 148 MPEG-4 144 multimedia 112 multipliers 33, 38, 214 museums 39 music channels 35 mystery 64 N narrow communication 49 NASA 96, 124, 194, 203 national barriers 173 national partners 152 national press offices 175 National Radio Astronomy Observatory 71 natural disasters 155 natural sciences Nature magazine 39, 64, 69, 98 network rendering 94 news agencies See wire services criteria 63 worthiness See news criteria newsletters 22, 45 newspapers 38, 41 international 42 local 42 national 42 news releases 66 newsroom 131 newsworthiness See news criteria non-linear video editing 139, 145 notes for editors 62 NRAO See National Radio Astronomy Observatory NTSC 142, 147 O objectives 17, 213 objectivity 11, 215 obligation 4, 213 Office for Public Outreach 32, 205 office hours 24 offset printing 77 off the record 164 OIPV See video on demand old news 65, 198 On Demand 77 One Movie 101 on the record 164, 166 opacity 139 open house events 15, 46, 179 operating systems 93 OPO See Office for Public Outreach opportunities 25 optimisation 29 Orwell, George 56 outreach office 45, 71, 103, 120 over-saturate 237 over-simplification 36, 49 Over IP Video See video on demand overstatements 194 P packaging PAL 142, 147 Pareto’s principle 24 particle physics 86 Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council partnership agreements 178 PAS See public appreciation of science PDF files 77 peer-reviewed journal 61, 63 peer review 9, 200 peer reviewing 200 265 THE HANDS-ON GUIDE FOR SCIENCE COMMUNICATORS people in the street 35 perfection 24, 213 perfect world 17, 49, 213 Perl 127 Perrier crisis 155 personal angle 58 personal contact 65 photo releases 66, 96, 98 photos 86 Photoshop 239 curves 230, 237 levels 230, 237 physical services 45 physics PIO See public information officer PIO-journalist interaction 194 pixel 92 planetaria 39 planning 31, 157 PoD See Print on Demand podcasts 46 political problems 199 pomposity 55 popular book authors 39 popular brochures 45 populations 35 portfolio 45 posterize 237 posters 46 postproduction 138 Postscript 92 PPARC See Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council PR 47 practical production 20 prepress See layout preprints electronic 65 presentations 171 expectations 167 positive thinking 167 practise 167 preparation 167 questions 168 slides 168 speed 168 venue 168 visuals 168 preproduction 133, 146, 151 press clippings 103 press conferences 45, 98, 171 format 171 live televised 97 press officer 22 press pack 45, 97 press releases 35, 36, 45, 46, 61, 98, 165, 193 266 code of conduct 201, 207 key message 61 level of communication efforts 197 omission of references 197, 199 portals 95, 104 recommendations for 201 timing 197, 198 unjust comparisons 197, 199 visibility scale 96, 171, 197 wording 197, 198 press release visibility scale 96 pressure 195 Principal Investigator 61, 70 Principle of Thousand Ways 169 print-ready files 77 printers 93 printing 89 Print on Demand 77 procedures 160 procurement 188 production timeline 69 production chain 15, 29, 33, 95 production flow 29, 103 product portfolio 179 products 45, 173 annual reports 36, 45 books 45 brochures 36 CD-ROMs 45 DVDs 45 educational material 45 exclusives 46 exhibitions 45 glossy prints 36 merchandise 46 podcasts 46 popular brochures 45 posters 46 press conferences See press conferences press packs See press packs press releases See press releases public talks 46 technical brochures 45 Video News Releases See Video News Releases vodcasts 46 webpages See webpages profit 177, 178 progressive video 149 promotion 33 proofing 77 proof reader 23, 54 proximity See local interest public 37 public affairs office See education and public outreach office INDEX public appeal 10 public appreciation of science public demonstrations 155 public information officer ix, 4, 7, 15, 17, 22, 162, 165, 193, 201, 213 public observatories 39 public perception of science 193 public talks 46 public understanding of science pulling 36 purchase 31 PUS See public understanding of science pushing 40, 131 Q qualifiers 198 quality 32 compromise 24 inferior 24 quotes 31, 59, 67 R R-Ps See Real People radio 38, 41 rapid prototyping 25 RAS See Royal Astronomical Society ratings 40 rational arguments 158 Real People 35 real world 17, 49, 213 receiver record 64 recorders 59 recruitment Redshift 113 reference URL 63 region codes 147 relationship with the media 173 relaxed writing 51 release type 66 remote sensing 86 render farm 94 rendering 94 repository 45 reputation 63 requests 22, 24, 99 research 50 resolution 205, 243 resonance 65 resources 49 limited 31 money 31 time 25, 31 respect 31 result driven 31 Return-On-Investment 190 Reuters 38 rewrites 53 RGB 88 Rice-Davies, Mandy 58 rock bands 35 Royal Astronomical Society 5, 99, 220 Royal Society 161 rumours 155 S Sagan, Carl 194 sale 95 satellite uplink 140 scaled peak level 239 scaling 239 science 3, applied attentiveness 37 basic centres 39 funding 173 good 165 incremental advances 65, 164 trial-and-error 164 science communication 3–6 attitude 174 centralised 174 commercial 177 commercial moral code 177 community 207, 215 conferences 207 courses 191 culture 174 decentralised 174 lobbying 207 models resource sharing 207 strategy 103 science communication actor journalist 11 PIO 10 scientist science communicator 22 science day 15 science journalists 42 science literacy 37 Science magazine 39, 64, 69, 97 science magazines 39 Science News 39 science outreach See science communication Science Photo Library 191 science popularisation See science communication science PR See science communication 267 THE HANDS-ON GUIDE FOR SCIENCE COMMUNICATORS science writing 49 scientific accuracy 32 marketing See science communication scientific awareness scientifically literate 173 Scientific American 39 scientific awareness 4, 18, 95, 173 scientific caveats 163 scientific correctness 32, 49 scientific journal scientific marketing See science communication scientific method 3, 4, 9, 36, 42, 166, 168, 199 scientific papers 4, 9, 67, 69, 98, 198, 200, 204 scientific process 164, 201 scientific progress scientific visualisation 83 scientist 13, 31, 35 added value 165 availability 165 checklists for the 161 direct contact 15 independent 171 public presentations 167 public talks 15 scientist-communicator conflict 13, 32, 196 scientist-journalist interaction 198 scientist-PIO-journalist interaction 200 screen mode 89 search functions 120 Secure Sockets Layer 184 self-importance 55 self-indulgence 52 self-publishing 117 seven “c”s of successful communication 65 sexiness 64 Shelley 57 shipping costs 180 calculations 180 shotlist 133, 134 Simplicity 124, 127 simplification 49, 198 simplify 52 single-point failures 25 six golden questions 214 skill triangle 21, 25 Sky & Telescope 71, 73, 75 slant 51 slate 132 slides, 35 mm 168 SMART testing 31 sound bites 4, 163 268 space science Space Science Education Resource Directory 109 Spacetelescope.org 124 Space Telescope — European Coordinating Facility 205 Space Telescope Science Institute 32, 205 speculation 164 spellchecker 54 spin 195 square root 237 SSL See Secure Sockets Layer ST-ECF See Space Telescope — European Coordinating Facility staff, education and public outreach office contractor 23 coordinator 21 editor 23 head 21 journalist 22 science communicator 22 staffing 20 Stanley Pons 194 Starry Night 113 storyboard 133, 134 strategic problem solving 24, 213 street credibility 56 stretch function 238 STScI See Space Telescope Science Institute subheadings 51 subtitles 148, 151 subtractive colour model 90 success 31, 103 success metrics 103, 214 Super-VHS 142 superlatives 57, 198 supers 139, 140, 144 supply and demand 177 supporting materials 49 synopsis 51 T talk catalogue 15 targeted products 36 target groups 31, 35, 49, 214 amateur communities 39 categorisation 35 decision-makers 36 educators 39 general public, tax-payers 35 influencers 36 journalists 42 media 38 museums 39 newspapers 38 INDEX opinion-makers 36 planetaria 39 popular book authors 39 public observatories 39 radio 38, 41 science centres 39 science magazines 39 scientists 36 segmentation 35 television 38 web news sites 39 weekly magazines 39 wire services 38 targeting fine-tuning 35 tax-payers 35 teachers See educators technical autonomy 23, 33, 93, 213 technical brochures 45 technical production 33, 77 technological accidents 155 technology telephone chains 160 television 40, 131 viewers 40 television programme producers 40 templates 119 testing 25 the Herald Tribune newspaper 42 the New York Times newspaper 42 thesaurus 54 the Sky 113 the Times newspaper 42 the Washington Post newspaper 42 thumbnail 121, 134 TIFF 92 timecode 134 time pressure 156 time zones 24 timing 62, 64 ToDo list 25 topical news 61 track changes 54 trade publications 39 translation 174 transmitter transparency 158 true-colour 143 trust 31 truth 58 TV 40 two-way communication 35 U understanding 95 United Press International 38 Uniview 111 UPI See United Press International USA Today 75 US Congress 194, 198 user survey 126 V validation 49 political 32 scientific 32 vector graphics 92 VHS 142, 144 video audio 134 editing equipment 94 editing system 94 field 142 footage 136 interlaced 142 portals 100 postproduction 133 preproduction 133 production 131, 132, 133, 134 video editing 94, 138, 144 Video News Releases 41, 45, 46, 131 importance of 46 video on demand 101 video portals 100 viewer 40 Virtual Observatory 111 Virtual Repository 111 virtual services 45 virtual studio 141 visibility 96, 178, 197 visibility scale, press release 96 vision 17, 213 visual communication 4, 32 visual design 81, 214 VNR See Video News Releases VO See Virtual Observatory VoD See video on demand vodcasts 46 voice-over 132 vortals See video portals W web 50, 111 archives 129 Content Management Systems 119 data 127 database 119 design 121 domain 118 download traffic 106, 107 269 THE HANDS-ON GUIDE FOR SCIENCE COMMUNICATORS efficiency 127 experts 118 front-end 127 frontpage 119, 125 funding sources 119 hits 106 keywords 118 links 118 look and feel 127 maintenance 120 metadata 127 needs 127 negative effects 51 nested templates 128 overview 127 performance 129 positive effects 50 searchability 127 simplicity 119 simplify 118 static 119 stickiness 107 stories 98 transparency 118 trust issue 117 updating 118 user-friendly 124 visibility 119 visitors 106, 107 visual appeal 127 web news sites 39 webpage 45, 47, 117–130 institutional 35, 36 web server log 107 websites 117 web statistics 105 weekly magazines 39 Wikipedia 50, 117 win-win 152, 178 wire services 38, 42 word processing 54 workflow control 120 World Wide Web See web writing 49 written communication 4, 49 WYSINWYG 233 WYSIWYG 233 270 .. .THE HANDS-ON GUIDE FOR SCIENCE COMMUNICATORS THE HANDS-ON GUIDE FOR SCIENCE COMMUNICATORS A STEP-BY-STEP APPROACH TO PUBLIC OUTREACH LARS LINDBERG CHRISTENSEN ILLUSTRATIONS BY MARTIN KORNMESSER... 29 THE HANDS-ON GUIDE FOR SCIENCE COMMUNICATORS Phase Action Planning Read the scientific paper if available Propose the release to the internal scientists or editorial board Make a web bookmark... game In summary, astronomy can lead the way for other natural sciences and be a frontrunner in science communication Astronomy has a natural ability to fascinate and enthral, and can open young