Not Another Science Blog

"What can I add to the discussion that hasn't already been said?"

That was the big question in my head just before I started this whole project of creating a science blog, and very quickly I concluded: Maybe nothing.

So why am I doing it? Why should anyone care and, more importantly, read what I have to say about science? 

Logo of "The Lab Coat Pocket"

For me, the most appealing point was the exercise of improving my writing skills. The more you read and write, the better you'll get in the end. As a scientist, writing is as much a part of the job as being in the lab doing experiments. Besides the fairly easy bit of writing standard operating procedures (SOPs) more generally called protocols, which are basically glorified baking recipes, we also need to publish our research in scientific journals. And this is where good writing comes in. A well-written research paper is more than just a few Excel spreadsheets and a bit of text on the side. It also tries to tell a story, to describe a discovery from beginning to end. The most enjoyable papers are the ones that take you on a journey, where you follow the great minds who did the research for years, and see how one discovery leads to a new question that is answered in the next paragraph. 

I never thought of myself as a strong writer, sure I wrote my thesis at university and edited a few things in the years that followed. But as my PhD progresses, the need to publish and eventually my dissertation looms on the horizon. So just becoming a better writer is worth it.

Another aspect that drove me to continue was the motivation to learn how to communicate with a wider audience. Although many of the people I work with don't see science communication as a worthwhile pursuit, I believe that breaking out of the ivory tower is a skill that every scientist should develop to some extent. After all, as scientists we don't just serve an elite group, we serve the general public. For example, I work in stroke research, a disease that is the second leading cause of death (1). So I feel an obligation to learn how to communicate with non-experts about what this is all about and how it might affect the average person. In recent years, we, the scientific community, have seen a worrying, ever-growing distrust towards evidence-based research, with people flocking to "alternative facts" because they often offer simple, clear explanations of complex issues without having to read hundreds of pages of complex (and often hidden behind a paywall) publications. This alone should be motivation enough for any scientist to counter with the same tools. Distilling your research into something that is easy to understand and communicating openly and honestly with the public will help to rebuild trust in science.

The last thing that tipped the scales for me to start this blog was definitely the value it holds. Originally I thought I just wanted a place to write, of which there are plenty, but as the plans grew, and partly due to Christie Wilcox's excellent book on science blogging (2), I realised the potential for something more. This could be a thing for more than one person, so why not open up the space for others who want to get into blogging without having their own blog? With a shared goal of writing their own science story. At the time of writing, I can't say whether this boat will float or sink within the next year, but the chances are that it will at least go somewhere. Building a small (or large) community of readers and writers, and honing important soft skills along the way. At the end of the day, it comes down to one word: experimentation, and isn't that what science is all about?

If you want to know more about the idea behind this blog, have a look at our About Us page.

(1) Feigin VL, Brainin M, Norrving B, et al. World Stroke Organization (WSO): Global Stroke Fact Sheet 2022. International Journal of Stroke. 2022;17(1):18-29. doi:10.1177/17474930211065917 (2) “Science blogging: the essential guide” by Christie Wilcox; Yale University Press, New Haven, 2016, ISBN: 9780300197556