Spring 2007

From the Chair

Stempra AGM

Interview with Fiona Fox

How to network

Eurochat

Stempra media training day

Crystal ball gazing

Stempra newsletter

What does the year ahead hold for science communication? Claire Bithell asks around.

Jim Giles, News and Features Writer, Nature:
2007 will see the next tranche of climate reports from the IPCC. These set the agenda for future political discussions. Since the future of the Kyoto Protocol is currently under negotiation, the reports will be hugely important.

Bob Ward, Ex-Head of Communications at the Royal Society and Director, Global Science Networks, Risk Management Solutions Ltd:
"The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is due to publish its Fourth Assessment Report next year, in three sections. The summary of the science section is due to be published at a press conference in Paris on 1 February. The second section on impacts and adaptation is due to be published at the end of May in the UK. The third section on mitigation will be published later in the year. Publication of the report could prove controversial, particularly in the United States where lobby groups are lining up to discredit it by targeting the findings on the link between climate change and hurricane activity in the North Atlantic."

Fred Kavalier, British Society For Human Genetics:
Progress in genetics in 2007 and beyond will come from the ability to combine high-throughput genome analysis with sophisticated computational and epidemiological data. So we will begin to discover which "normal" genetic variations are associated with common diseases, such as heart disease, diabetes, asthma, etc. This is going to be academically interesting, but not very useful in day-to-day clinical practice. Also look out for cancer treatments that are designed according to the specific genetic make-up of tumours. Progress in designing drugs targeted at the specific genetic make-up of individuals will be painfully slow.

Barbara Davies, Communications Director, RDS: Understanding Animal Research in Medicine:
In 2007 we will consolidate and build on the increasing confidence of scientists to speak out about use of animals in medical research. The threat from animal rights extremists is diminishing, although merely speaking out on research was never a high-risk activity. RDS will be doing more to help academic scientists communicate their research. In animal science, we expect to see further progress in exciting areas such as stem cell research and gene therapy. We have recently seen advances that promise a cure for blindness, repair of spinal cord injury and treatment for muscular dystrophy – none of which would be possible without research using rodents.

Owen Gaffney, Editor at NERC:
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change fourth assessment due out February 2007. The third assessment was the basis for the Kyoto Protocol. It came out in 2001. Since then the science has moved at a tremendous pace so this assessment is very important - not least because it is the scientific consensus of opinion on this issue.

Claire Bithell
Science Media Centre
CBithell@ri.ac.uk

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