Student science writers from around the world have created a set of 52 stories from the World Conference of Science Journalists 2017, spanning most of the meeting’s sessions and creating a valuable reference archive for journalists in the U.S. and abroad. The reports, along with bios of the authors, are online at the WCSJ2017 Student... Read More
By Amelia Jaycen SAN FRANCISCO—Saul Perlmutter, a Nobel Prize–winning astrophysicist and cosmologist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, has spent a lot of his time ascertaining how quickly the universe is expanding. But he is also concerned with some down-to-earth issues, like the state of human interactions. As he watched public discussions unfold in the last... Read More
By Carolyn M. Wilke SAN FRANCISCO—Is fact-checking the future of journalism? That question, at once disturbing for our society and promising for the increased role science journalists might play in combating fake news, drove a panel discussion among four experts on 30 October at the World Conference of Science Journalists 2017. The panelists, all experienced... Read More
SAN FRANCISCO—Science podcasts are more popular than ever. Producing them takes time, technical savvy, and a deep passion to engage listeners with material that is both informative and fun. How does one start a science podcast and build a dedicated audience? Those topics drew an enthusiastic crowd on 27 October at the World Conference of... Read More
By Liz Kimbrough SAN FRANCISCO—When South African student journalist Sibusiso Biyela sat down to write about the launch of the MeerKAT telescope in both English and Zulu, he thought it would be simple. The English version rolled out smoothly. But when he began to translate into Zulu, his native language, he found he would have... Read More
By Jennifer Lu SAN FRANCISCO—Indigenous voices are integral to science and science reporting. That’s why journalists should keep an open mind and be aware of political narratives when reporting on indigenous issues, four speakers said 28 October during a session at the World Conference of Science Journalists 2017. Key to keeping an open mind is... Read More
By Jia Naqvi SAN FRANCISCO—An apple a day keeps the doctor away—that is, if you can afford apples or if you have access to a place that provides or sells them. Myriad social, economic and demographic factors, all beyond the control of the individual, can affect how vulnerable we are to ill health or injury.... Read More
By Laura G. Shields SAN FRANCISCO—Collaborate, collaborate, collaborate. That’s one core piece of advice echoed by all speakers in a session about cross-border journalism on 28 October at the World Conference of Science Journalists 2017. “Science itself is really international, and science journalists should reflect this as much as they can,” said Helen Briggs, a... Read More
By Anna Katrina Hunter BERKELEY, California—The more places we look, the more microbes we find. These tiny organisms—bacteria, Archaea, protozoa and fungi, to name a few—are essentially everywhere. Using recent advances in gene sequencing, scientists can now sample microorganisms directly in their natural environments to reveal their identities, rapidly and without targeting any particular type... Read More
By Kelsey Harper SAN FRANCISCO—“There’s no sitting on the sidelines today,” announces German science journalist Kai Kupferschmidt as conference attendees shuffle into the room with matching looks of vague confusion. He herds them to the front of the room, where two groups of chairs face each other. The seats are separated by an aisle 3.96... Read More
Text and photos by Inés Gutiérrez SAN FRANCISCO—When I woke up on the cloudy morning of 30 October, I thought to myself, “Today I get to look inside X, the secretive innovation lab.” It was field trip day at the World Conference of Science Journalists 2017, and a group of us headed south toward the... Read More
