Credible but unapproachable

At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, scientists were seen as credible but unapproachable, according to 3M's State of Science Index (SoSI 2022).
 
So now what?  
 
Let me tell you a story. At the end of his life, my dad decided to not have vascular surgery. 
He had a chronic illness that had developed beyond the possibility of cure. That surgery could have limited pain. He worked in healthcare, he knew the consequences.

His doctors were incredulous.
 
A lot of this has to do with misunderstanding. 
My personal experience on how doctors and scientists are perceived is with confusion and fear. 😕 😨
 
Science relies upon information that is accurate and complete. 
While most doctors try to present information in an easily understood language, this does not evoke reactions in most people. 💜 
 
Going to the hospital is scary. 🏥 
Staying home is safe.🏡
Doctors were offering the best options. So, how could he decide between complicated options and doing nothing?  

This is the question I most get asked:
 
If it was you, what would you choose?
 
Answer with a story. Tell the scared person in front of you something about yourself. 
Make it relatable to their situation. 
 
Was my dad really doing nothing, or trying to enjoy the time he had left? 
Maybe petting his spoiled cat was all the comfort he needed. 🐈
 
Do stories lie? No, they align with the way we think.
They engage our emotions, and motivate us to question our worldview.
 
I'd want to know. Make informed decisions. 
Clearly weigh my options. 
And then sob like a child, for life is not fair. 😰😩
 
To my dad. Because I'm only human.
 
At the Edinburgh Natural History Museum.


 

Comments

Post a Comment

Leave a comment!

London Book Fair 2024: challenges for publishers

Image
I went to London with a purpose. It’s always good to meet collaborators and friends, but I had other goals with my visit. You see, it’s never good when the decisions that impact us are arrived at without our input. I wanted to bring awareness of my new peer review standards project to those in the publishing industry that can benefit from them. I'm comfortable researching and reviewing, even editing and managing the peer review process, but hearing editors and publishers speak of the big picture issue was an eye-opener. Change is ever present The publishing industry fancies itself as having evolved to explore the heritage and lived experience of minorities, by more frequently placing a spotlight on hidden and undervalued communities. Jonathan Karp, who spoke on the current model of employee ownership that underpins his role as CEO at Simon & Schuster , perfectly exemplified this—with profits now being reinvested in the company, there’s a new collaborative
Read more

How to spot fake reviewers: a beginner's guide

Image
For those unfamiliar with or new to academic publishing, peer review manipulation is hard to spot. This is mainly because most peer review reports are still confidential documents that stay buried deep in academic journal's editorial offices. As long as this continues to be the default, recognising good and bad peer reviews is difficult enough... now we have to worry about fake peer review as well?! 😒 Well, yes. Yes, we do. The peer review process in academic publishing is unlike any other. The style and content of a manuscript are criticized, as are the thought processes that birthed it. Everything from word choice to significance of the research focus is under scrutiny. In traditional peer review formats, reviewers recommend that manuscripts be accepted or rejected. This much power may make some less scrupulous people guiddy... or yearning to rig the system. The refereeing work that is supposed to be one of the garantors of research integrity is itself highly susceptible to ma
Read more

London Book Fair 2024: OA and AI

Image
In a survey on the trends of academic publishing conducted in 2023, reflecting on the need to reformulate the current business model was front of mind. The need to optimize operational efficiencies may stem from the increased adoption of open access (OA) policies. For those not in the know, OA is a practice that enables research outputs to be distributed online, free of access charges or other barriers, including the ability for copy or reuse, by applying an open license for copyright. The mandates  advocated by the Holdren Memo in the US, the Nelson Memo in the UK, and Plan S for the EU consolidated the view that unrestricted access to research publications is part of an integral right for transparency—we want to view the outcomes of taxpayer-funded research. However, many publishers follow a gold OA model and charge an article processing charge (APC), which is typically paid through institutional or grant funding. This means that readers don't pay, because t
Read more