Insights
All Public Science is Headline Science
We scorn “headline science” because of what it says on its tin: The headline comes before the science. That’s just wrong, we think — but not just wrong: It’s venal, anti-science, and sometimes even fraudulent. Sometimes,
ChatGPT & Public Expertise: Just Get Started
ChatGPT from OpenAI debuted more than a month ago, and you’re probably already sick of it, and that’s just wrong, because it can really help what so many public experts struggle with: getting started with writing.
Your Overlooked Lists
I keep thinking about “Overlooked Problems,” a column written this spring by an occasional Substack writer about whom I know nothing except that they are a scientist doing research into organ generation and regeneration. The column
Cutting the Fat: The New Scientific Narrative of Obesity
US readers: Before heading into Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow, you might want to read science writer Julia Belluz’s new piece on what science has discovered doesn’t cause obesity. In a word: You. Just don’t expect Uncle Chester
The Lazy Drama of ‘The Polycrisis’
If you haven’t yet heard about “the global polycrisis,” it’s coming for you. “The global polycrisis” has caught fire in policy and pundit circles as a shorthand way of saying the world today is, not to
Flywheels, Forcing Functions & Painted Pictures
Doing good content consistently for non-specialists — that’s hard. But we make it much harder, because our support mechanisms suck so badly. By mechanisms, I’m not talking about annual objectives, or encouragement from your board or