Overview
Scientists face a great challenge in the 21st century: How do you distinguish experts in a field and elevate their voices over the voices of people and organizations that may benefit from bending the truth or misrepresenting the facts? How do you identify those experts and what do you require as proof to qualify them as experts? What news outlets are trustworthy when you need facts free from opinion or spin?
Choose one of the topics below that interests you the most. You will respond to the questions listed below, using one paragraph for each question.
Topics to Choose:
- Nuclear power as an alternative "green" fuel
- Hydraulic fracturing and earthquakes in Oklahoma
- Genetically modified food (GMO) and how to feed 10 billion people
In your original post, answer the following:
- What information did you know about your topic before you did any research? How did you obtain your initial information?
- Select the link to the source provided and evaluate that source for bias, slant, or financial interest in the topic. Explain how you came to your conclusions regarding bias/slant/financial interest. (Download this page to help you with identifying bias. Check it out if you're unsure how to evaluate a source.) You are seeking to evaluate the person claiming to be an expert and offering information on the scientific topic. If that is the author, evaluate them, if it is someone being interviewed in a newspaper, evaluate them. Make it clear who you are evaluating.
- Do some primary research on the topic. Specifically seek out a scientific paper written by an expert on your topic which was published in a respected scientific journal like Science, The New England Journal of Medicine, or Ecology. Explain why this person is an objective expert on this topic, where they work, and what, if anything, they stand to gain from the publication you find. Link the paper/article written by this person in your post.