1. How much can you say in one sentence?
A journey in science communication with Useful Science
ComSciCon-PNW April 12, 2019
Maryse Thomas
Director, Useful Science
PhD Candidate, McGill University

4. YES.

5. What is the goal of science communication?
To convince someone why something is useful.
E.g. To convince the NIH why stem cell research is useful.
To convince policymakers why local composting is useful.
To convince the public why vaccines are useful.

6. Useful Science as one attempt at sci-comm
Mission: To write accessible and accurate summaries of
scientific articles that are useful to everyday life.
Website Podcast Network of
contributors

8. Useful Science as one attempt at sci-comm

9. 5 years of Useful Science
65
contributors
>1000
summaries
22,000
subscribers
24
podcast
episodes
10,000
pageviews
per month

10. 1. Useful Science: From idea to reality
2. Reflections and room for improvement
3. How to build a sci-comm platform

11. 1. Useful Science: From idea to reality
2. Reflections and room for improvement
3. How to build a sci-comm platform

12. Jaan Altosaar,
Founder
B.Sc. McGill University 2013
PhD Candidate, Princeton University

13. Team of volunteer grad students and science enthusiasts

14. Usefulness
Accuracy
The “usefulness” curve in scientific reporting
Bad reporting,
sensationalized
headlines
Primary research
articles
Pop
science Press
releases
Sweet
spot

15. (Watch out for press releases)

17. Online climate in 2013

18. Useful Science built
2004 20182008 20162012
Interest in the search term “Life hacks”

19. Our goals
when
starting
Useful
Science
Help people improve their
lives through actionable
science summaries
Improve public perception
and understanding of
science
Be a reliable source of
scientific information that
is still fun to share

20. What would it look like if
every sentence on a
website was cited?

21. Web designer:
Cameron Spencer

24. 167 emails sent
Most with no reply!
But the replies we
did get mattered…
Email blast 4 days after launch, January 15, 2014

27. Host: Cameron Spencer
3 Rotating Science Hosts

28. Dragon’s Den Next Gen
Grants Coffee table book Ad space Merch
Web hosting: $25
Podcast hosting: $15
Domain hosting: $1
Email hosting: $5
=$46/month

30. 1. Useful Science: From idea to reality
2. Reflections and room for improvement
3. How to build a sci-comm platform

31. Fast-forward to 2019: The stakes feel higher

32. ROSES:
- Attractive and eye-catching
website design
- Intense email campaign following
the launch of the website
- Use of personal network to grow
- Peer review led to high-quality
content
- Gave grad students and budding
science communicators a
platform to gain experience
THORNS:
- Passive contributor model
with no hierarchy meant
there was no safety net for
drops in participation
- Not enough expertise or
specialists for certain
elements (website updates,
fundraising)
- Did not manage to build a
consistent revenue stream

33. Our goals
when
starting
Useful
Science
Help people improve their
lives through actionable
science summaries
Improve public perception
and understanding of
science
Be a reliable source of
scientific information that
is still fun to share
Did we
achieve
our goals?

34. Reader feedback
“Clearly written and has citations”
“Suggestions backed by research, and
references to primary literature”
“Short and sweet”
“Easily digestible tidbits”
“Short descriptions of actionable
science information”

35. Who are we reaching?
44%
male 56%
female
50%
0%
18-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65+
Age group
40%
30%
20%
10%

36. Who can benefit?

37. Detail Brevity
Drawbacks of short summaries

38. Beware the information deficit approach

39. Lecturing
Telling facts
Debunking
Painting science as
detached & objective
Ridicule
Pointing out what
someone needs to change
Asking questions
Storytelling
Explaining
Revealing the human and
emotional side of science
Empathy
Finding out what someone
wants to change

40. Storytelling for more effective science communication
Hillier, Kelly, & Klinger (2016)

41. Challenge
Convince someone you know to take a step towards
making a positive behavioral change in their life.
• Talk to someone in person and practice active
listening to find out what they are willing to change
• Provide them with a tool to help them start
• Let them know you’re there to help, and follow up

42. Challenge
Convince someone you know to take a step towards
making a positive behavioral change in their life.
• Talk to someone in person and practice active
listening to find out what they are willing to change
• Provide them with a tool to help them start
• Let them know you’re there to help, and follow up
Everyone in this audience should test their hearing
hello@usefulscience.org
HearWHO app

43. 1. Useful Science: From idea to reality
2. Reflections and room for improvement
3. How to build a sci-comm platform

44. 8 steps to building a sci-comm platform
1. Find an unmet need
2. Determine your audience
3. Choose a format and communication style
4. Set goals and include measures to evaluate them
5. Build a team
6. Engage with social media
7. Seek collaborations
8. Make real-world connections

45. 1. Find an unmet need
Usefulness
Accuracy
Sweet
spot
DIVERSITY
INCLUSIVITY
ACCESSIBILITY
INTERDISCIPLINARITY

46. 2. Determine your audience
Practice active listening and qualitative/motivational interviewing
Students Lay public Scientists Policymakers

47. 3. Choose a format and communication style
Written Audio Video
Data-driven Illustrated
What expertise will
you need?
And how can you use
storytelling in each?

48. Some brief podcast tips
• Get a good microphone!
• Be consistent
• Invest time in developing
relevant skills
Radiolab’s Story Board
Resources
Cast (free to try)
Simplecast (Hosting)

49. 4. Set goals and include measures to evaluate them
• # of people reached?
• # publications?
• $ raised?
• # of people trained?
*If your goal is to start a business or be profitable, look for advice
outside of academia: startup accelerators/incubators

50. 5. Build a team
Non-selective model:
Say yes to everyone
Selective model:
Employ a stringent
selection process
Journalism model:
Contributors pitch ideas
that can be accepted or
rejected
Number of
permanent
contributors
Time spent
Recruiting/
onboarding
Time spent
managing
Retention
rate

51. 5. Build a team – and show them your gratitude
• Offer opportunities for recognition
• Offer opportunities to develop new skills
• Letters of recommendation
• Ask for their feedback – and act on it

52. 6. Engage with
social media
#scicomm, #phdchat,
#PhDSupport, #AcademicTwitter,
#MarginSci, #FirstgenSTEM,
#WomenInSTEM
@iamscicomm, @realscientists,
@biotweeps

53. 7. Seek collaborations
University/InstitutionPersonal Network Sci-comm groups

54. 8. Make real-world connections
Attend or organize: Networking sessions, Community activities,
Workshops, Training sessions, Meetups, Conferences
You never know who is going to be in the audience!
Spell Your Science Workshop, McGill 2018 FORCE2018 Conference, Montreal

55. Free online tools
Project management
• Trello, Airtable
• Slack, Google Groups
Merchandise/Profits
• Threadless, Redbubble
• Patreon
Finding contributors
• SciComm Board, Idealist
Website
• Google Analytics & Search Console
• Wufoo (contact forms)
Social media and marketing
• Tweetdeck, Buffer, Mailchimp
• Canva (Design tool)
• Unsplash, Pexels, Pixabay (No-strings
attached stock photos)

56. Summary
• Useful Science was a mostly-sustainable model of science
communication in our experience.
• There is still lots of room for new models of ACCESSIBLE and
ACCURATE science to be tested out
• Talk to people in real life to understand what is most needed

57. Goal of science
communication
Convince someone why
something is useful.

58. Thank you! Reach out
hello@usefulscience.org
@maryseethomas
@usefulsci
Board: Maryse Thomas, Jaan Altosaar,
Ian Mahar Jaime Devine, Susan Rogers
Van Katwyk, Cameron Spencer