Science Talks Africa: Towards a Dialectics of an African Science Space

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anuforoh Prosper ◽  
Tyra-Kaddu Mulindwa ◽  
Barlow Najmah ◽  
Jonathan Kabiito ◽  
Augustine Diyoke ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nature Of Science ◽  
Science Communication ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Science And Technology ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Communication Platform ◽  
Critical Questions ◽  
Widespread Adoption ◽  
Ideological Differences ◽  
Global North

<p>In the last century, there has been a broadening in the scope of science in Africa; which, in turn, has seen a widespread adoption of new technologies by most African countries and causing an explosion in the number of local and international science actors. But that development, many have argued, has yet to translate into a commensurate improvement in the overall condition of life and living on the continent. And even less so on the science ecosystem — a fact that has been most tellingly revealed by the COVID-19 pandemic. This opens up critical questions on the nature of science and how it is communicated, especially in the context of the cultural and ideological differences, which exist between the Global North and Africa. Science Talks Africa as a science communication platform emerged mostly out of the need to engage science from that perspective, and also to address the need for both empirical and ideological spaces in which science actors moderate the dialectics of existing and emerging science and technology in the context of Africa.</p>

scholarly journals Citizens, Scientists, and Enablers: A Tripartite Model for Citizen Science Projects

Diversity ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (7) ◽  
pp. 309
Author(s):  
Rhian A. Salmon ◽  
Samuel Rammell ◽  
Myfanwy T. Emeny ◽  
Stephen Hartley
Keyword(s):  
Case Studies ◽  
Nature Of Science ◽  
Citizen Science ◽  
Public Engagement ◽  
Science Communication ◽  
Tripartite Model ◽  
Science Project ◽  
Science Projects ◽  
Emerging Issues ◽  
Citizen Science Project

In this paper, we focus on different roles in citizen science projects, and their respective relationships. We propose a tripartite model that recognises not only citizens and scientists, but also an important third role, which we call the ‘enabler’. In doing so, we acknowledge that additional expertise and skillsets are often present in citizen science projects, but are frequently overlooked in associated literature. We interrogate this model by applying it to three case studies and explore how the success and sustainability of a citizen science project requires all roles to be acknowledged and interacting appropriately. In this era of ‘wicked problems’, the nature of science and science communication has become more complex. In order to address critical emerging issues, a greater number of stakeholders are engaging in multi-party partnerships and research is becoming increasingly interdisciplinary. Within this context, explicitly acknowledging the role and motivations of everyone involved can provide a framework for enhanced project transparency, delivery, evaluation and impact. By adapting our understanding of citizen science to better recognise the complexity of the organisational systems within which they operate, we propose an opportunity to strengthen the collaborative delivery of both valuable scientific research and public engagement.

Novel interfaces in science communication: Comparing journalistic and social media uptake of articles published by The Conversation Africa

2021 ◽  
pp. 096366252110193
Author(s):  
Lars Guenther ◽  
Marina Joubert
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Science Communication ◽  
Social Issues ◽  
Science Journalism ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Public Science ◽  
Mainstream Media ◽  
Agenda Setter ◽  
Or Economics ◽  
Media Ecosystem

Science amplifier platforms such as The Conversation have gained popularity in a changing media ecosystem in which the traditional roles of journalists are eroded, and scientists are urged to engage with society. The Conversation constitutes a blend of scientific communication, public science communication and science journalism, and a convergence of the professional worlds of science and journalism. In this study, we investigated the nature and impact of the Africa-focussed edition of this platform, The Conversation Africa. We analysed articles published over a 5-year period since its launch in 2015 ( N = 5392). Contents from South Africa dominate the platform, but contributions from other African countries are increasing. Regarding the role of The Conversation Africa as an inter-media agenda setter, mainstream media more often republished stories related to politics or economics, while stories about social issues such as education, conservation and art were more often shared on social media.

scholarly journals Issues concerning the science communication ethics of science and technology museums

2021 ◽  
pp. 209660832110262
Author(s):  
Xiang Li ◽  
Xuan Liu ◽  
Huiping Chu
Keyword(s):  
Science Communication ◽  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Science And Technology ◽  
Scientific Culture ◽  
Communication Ethics ◽  
Ethics Of Science ◽  
Contemporary Science

This paper reviews the acceleration of what is known as the ‘museumization’ process globally in the context of the New Museum Movement, and the particular mission of science and technology museums in representing scientific culture. It analyses the significance of science and technology museums in presenting critical concepts of contemporary science and technology, such as the controversies and uncertainties of science, as well as the diverse subjects that need to be involved in the process of representation, thereby underscoring the complexity of the ethical issues of science communication faced by science and technology museums.

scholarly journals HIV/AIDS research in Africa and the Middle East: participation and equity in North-South collaborations and relationships.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gregorio González-Alcaide ◽  
Marouane Menchi-Elanzi ◽  
Edy Nacarapa ◽  
José-Manuel Ramos-Rincón
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
Scientific Activity ◽  
Scientific Production ◽  
African Continent ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Research Attention ◽  
Global North ◽  
Aids Research ◽  
Public Health Epidemiology ◽  
Hiv Aids

Abstract Background HIV/AIDS has attracted considerable research attention since the 1980s. In the current context of globalization and the predominance of cooperative work, it is crucial to analyze the participation of the countries and regions where the infection is most prevalent, African continent being the hardest hit (67.5% of estimated cases). This study assesses the participation of African countries in publications on the topic, as well as the degree of equity or influence existing in North-South relations.Methods We identified all articles and reviews of HIV/AIDS indexed in the Web of Science Core Collection. We analyzed the scientific production, collaboration, and contributions from African and Middle Eastern countries to scientific activity in the region. The concept of leadership was used to determine the equity in research produced through international collaboration.Results A total of 68,808 documents published from 2010 to 2017 were analyzed. Researchers from North America and Europe participated in 82.14% of the global scientific production on HIV/AIDS, compared to just 21.61% from Africa and the Middle East. Furthermore, the research that did come out of these regions was concentrated in a small number of countries, led by South Africa (41% of the documents). Other features associated with HIV/AIDS research from Africa include the importance of international collaboration from the USA, the UK, and other European countries (75%-93% of the documents) and the limited leadership that is evident (30% to 36% of the documents). Finally, the research to which African countries contributed had a notably different disciplinary orientation, with a predominance of research on public health, epidemiology, and drug therapy.Conclusions It is essential to foster more balance in research output, avoid the concentration of resources that reproduces the global North-South model on the African continent, and focus the research agenda on local priorities. To accomplish this, the global North should strengthen the transfer of research skills and seek equity in cooperative ties, favoring the empowerment of African countries. These efforts should be concentrated in countries with low scientific activity and high incidence and prevalence of the disease. It is also essential to foster intraregional collaborations between African countries.

scholarly journals Studying behaviours and attitudes towards science and technology

Impact ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 (4) ◽  
pp. 27-29
Author(s):  
Naoko Kato-Nitta
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Capital ◽  
Social Stratification ◽  
Science Communication ◽  
Data Science ◽  
Social Scientist ◽  
Science And Technology ◽  
Public Understanding ◽  
Communication Model ◽  
Statistical Mathematics ◽  
Understanding Of Science

What makes research important is an important philosophical question that is a consideration for many researchers. Further important considerations are the public's perception of science and how an individual's perception of science and technology is shaped. These are some of the complex ideas that social scientist Dr Naoko Kato-Nitta, Department of Statistical Data Science, Institute of Statistical Mathematics, Japan, is exploring. She is working on a series of projects related to public perceptions and attitudes towards different scientific disciplines and fields. She hopes that answering such important questions will facilitate the creation of a science communication model for the public understanding of science. Kato-Nitta's research focuses on human behaviour and psychology and how it relates to issues at the interface of technology and society. A key question that she is seeking to answer from the standpoint of cultural capital is how the extent of the general public's participation in science communication can be determined. In the first research to connect social stratification theory and science communication research, Kato-Nitta divided the concept of Bourdieu's cultural capital into two sub-concepts: scientific and technical cultural capital and literary and artistic cultural capital. She went on to consider how these two types of cultural capital affect the exhibit-viewing behaviours of the general public.

scholarly journals Public Opinion in Africa

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey Conroy-Krutz
Keyword(s):  
Public Opinion ◽  
Political Development ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Political Competition ◽  
Political Campaigns ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Political Actors ◽  
For Profit ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Health And Economic Development

Projects to measure public opinion in Africa have increased considerably in the last two decades. Earlier data-collection efforts focused on health and economic development, with limited attempts to gauge public opinion before the late 1990s. Possibilities expanded as a wave of political liberalizations swept the continent after the Cold War, and as government limitations on speech freedoms and survey research loosened. Knowledge about public opinion remains uneven, however; more surveys are conducted in wealthier, more stable, and more democratic countries. Various actors are leading these efforts. Academic and research organizations have been at the forefront, with Afrobarometer, which has conducted surveys in about two-thirds of African countries since 1999, the most prominent. The majority of studies are conducted by for-profit companies, media houses, and political campaigns, and many results are never publicly released. The growth in surveys of public opinion in Africa has had important ramifications across a number of realms. Academics have developed and tested new theories on how Africans respond to and shape their political and economic systems, and some long-standing theories have been challenged with newly available empirical evidence. Candidates and parties attempt to measure public opinion as they develop mobilizational and persuasive campaign strategies. Election observers have used survey data collected before and after voting to assess whether official results comport with citizens’ preferences. And international and domestic policymakers have increasingly used public opinion data from Africa to determine economic and political development priorities, and to assess the effectiveness of various programs. However, there is evidence that the survey enterprise in Africa is becoming increasingly politicized, with some officials attempting to block the release of potentially embarrassing results, or preventing surveys from being conducted altogether, and other political actors attacking survey organizations when they do not like what the data show. As organizations conducting public opinion surveys in Africa modify their strategies in the face of new technologies and changing political contexts, the ever-increasing availability of data on what Africans think about how their countries are and should be governed continues to fundamentally change academic understanding, policymaking, and actual political competition.

Research and Network Opportunities in the Field of Science Communication

2021 ◽  
pp. 180-194
Author(s):  
Rabia Tas
Keyword(s):  
Science Communication ◽  
Science And Technology ◽  
Target Groups ◽  
International Networks ◽  
Research Activities ◽  
Audience Interaction ◽  
Fast Development ◽  
Technological Developments ◽  
Software And Hardware ◽  
The Right

Science and technology have been developing at a great pace. There are numerous breakthrough innovations and groundbreaking improvements in almost every aspect of life. Undoubtedly, another field experiencing such a fast development is communication. Communication has been following and adapting related technological developments not only in terms of software and hardware but also in terms of targeting the right audience and creating the audience interaction. While developments in science and technology feed communication, communication disseminates the outcomes of innovative studies to the defined target groups. Science communication becomes a part of this mutual relation. This study is focused on research funds, opportunities, and international networks in the field of science communication. Within this context, challenges in research activities and expected impact of research outcomes will be examined in terms of science communication. Also, the role and importance of networks in science communication will be examined in line with research funds and support provided for this field.

Psychiatric epidemiology: Looking to the future

2020 ◽  
pp. 425-432
Author(s):  
Jayati Das-Munshi ◽  
Tamsin Ford ◽  
Matthew Hotopf ◽  
Martin Prince ◽  
Robert Stewart
Keyword(s):  
Science Communication ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Open Science ◽  
Psychiatric Epidemiology ◽  
Biological Data ◽  
Gps Tracking ◽  
The Future ◽  
The Impact

In this final chapter to the second edition of Practical Psychiatric Epidemiology, developments in psychiatric epidemiology since the first edition are summarized and the editors offer a view on where the future may lie. The themes summarized in this chapter include those related to large-scale datasets or ‘big data’, new technologies and science communication (including data generated through GPS tracking systems and the impact of social media), expanding biological data and biobanks, as well as the impact of globalization, migration, and culture on understanding psychiatric epidemiological principles. The last part of this chapter raises the important issue of open science initiatives. The chapter concludes with a brief discussion on the constancy and ongoing evolution of psychiatric epidemiology.

The Australian Science Centre Movement 1980–2000: Part 1—Questacon, the National Science and Technology Centre

2015 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 122 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chris Bryant ◽  
Mike Gore ◽  
Sue Stocklmayer
Keyword(s):  
Driving Force ◽  
Science Communication ◽  
Public Attitudes ◽  
Science And Technology ◽  
Human Face ◽  
Hands On ◽  
Science Centre ◽  
National Science ◽  
National University ◽  
Australian Science

Part 1: Scholarly concerns over science communication and in particular public attitudes towards and engagement with science have continued for almost half a century, but the establishment of a ‘hands-on' science centre in Canberra in 1980 put practice ahead of theory and led to the building of Questacon—the National Science and Technology Centre in 1988. The driving force behind this development was Australian National University physicist Dr Mike Gore. Funding came from the Australian and Japanese Governments—the latter a bicentennial gift—and a team of ‘explainers' at the centre helped visitors to appreciate that this science centre was not a museum but a place where science had a human face.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document