The expectation to communicate In 2019, the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research called for a cultural shift toward communicating science (Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung, 2019). The former Federal Minister of Education and Research, Anja Karliczek, urged scientists to communicate their research continuously and classified communication as a central task for universities and research organizations (Karliczek, 2020). The Covid-19 pandemic highlighted the fact that scientists who communicate with the public face not only enthusiasm, but also hostility, especially from a ..read more

What actually happens to science when it opens up? From your perspective as a science researcher, can you describe why this perspective is important? I believe that science takes place in a social environment and certain images of science emerge or have emerged, which are questioned in many respects in a digital and now increasingly open context or are subject to tensions. In this respect, it makes sense, especially in the context of crises and challenges to question how the image of science changes in such situations. Scientists are now interacting more intensively with the public and scienc ..read more

Science communication is often considered equal with public relations or media coverage. However, the phenomenon is significantly more complex, and its most important aspects are not given enough attention. For instance, science includes how science can not only communicate but also interact with societal groups, and the potential impacts this can have on the perception of research in the public eye. Dr. Volker Meyer-Guckel, Chair of the Donors’ Association, explained in an interview with “Elephant in the Lab” why our understanding is outdated and how effective science communication can be ac ..read more

So, Niels Mede, tell us: who are you? And what do you do?  I am a post-doctoral communication researcher in the Department of Communication and Media Research at the University of Zurich, and until recently, I was a visiting research fellow at the Oxford Internet Institute. My research centers around science communication, with a focus on public attitudes toward science and communication about science on social media and beyond. A particular focus of my research are critical, sceptical and populist resentments against science, scientists, expertise and scientific methods and how these ma ..read more

Why are women underrepresented in China’s most distinguished academic committees? From the election data of these academic committees over a decade, Bao and Huang revealed that fewer women entered the recruitments of these committees, and social connections disproportionately influence male candidates’ success compared to their female counterparts. This revelation calls for an urgent reevaluation of recruitment practices. China had a long history of male preferences and stereotypes against women, especially intellectually. There is also a lack of reforms in the science sector to enhance gende ..read more

Academic research enjoys a high level of trust among the society in Germany, not least because of its autonomy that is granted by the constitution. At the same time, the public expects research to leave its “ivory tower” and take on a more active role in addressing complex societal challenges such as the Covid-19 pandemic or climate change. Engaging in public debates and political decision-making constitutes a conflict of interests for researchers: How far can they go and when is their scientific autonomy threatened? Elephant in the Lab talked to Prof. Dr. Peter Weingart – a prominent mind in ..read more

The question of how researchers engage in public communication or political decision-making processes has gained unprecedented attention during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many scientists experienced hostile attitudes when going public. Threats and science hostility are no new phenomena, but gain more importance as science is increasingly embedded in public debates. Elephant in the Lab talked to Julia Wandt and Matthias Fejes, who both work in the field of science communication and are involved in the set-up of Scicomm-Support, a support structure to protect researchers in cases of hostility. Juli ..read more

What’s the matter? Keeping track of the latest articles published in the leading journals in one’s field of expertise can be challenging. But even if it is impossible to know literally every newly published paper in a field, having an overview of its recent, most prominent research agendas might be both inspiring and helpful to contribute to discussions with fellow scholars or students.  To find recently published work, some scholars choose to skim through the websites of their favorite journals every now and then. Of course, this approach ensures that you have an overview of the latest ..read more

On Friday, March 17, The German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) published a reform proposal that promises to improve working conditions in research. This was followed by a massive wave of criticism and protest from scientists across status groups and disciplines. In this interview with Teresa Völker, Kristin Eichhorn, co-initiator of #IchbinHanna, a campaign for fair working conditions in research, assesses the reform proposal and explains how working conditions in research can be improved. Could you give us a brief summary for our international audience? What is the Wissens ..read more

To what extent are research findings and theories transferable and generalizable beyond the contexts they were designed from and for? This is a main question that we, researchers, constantly think about and find it hard to answer. Schwandt (1997, p. 57) describes generalization as a “general statement or proposition made by drawing an inference from observation of the particular”. Mennatullah Hendawy In this article, I will share my experience of how I sought to achieve generalization in my dissertation in the field of engineering at the Technical University of Berlin. My thesis was on the to ..read more