Last I mentioned the Voice of Young Science (a UK-based effort supported by the Sense about Science charitable trust) was in an Aug. 9, 2012 posting about their ‘public speaking tips’ initiative. A Feb 16, 2013 news item on Nanowerk features a new programme from the Voice of Young Science, Ask for Evidence USA (programme launch page), Note: A link has been removed,
Postdocs and graduate students from all fields of research and science outreach are joining together to launch a campaign to get people questioning the claims they see in newspapers, on TV, in adverts and from policy makers.
We hear all kinds of claims about what is good for our health, bad for the environment, how to avoid cancer, how to improve education, cut crime, cure disease or improve food. Some are based on reliable evidence and scientific rigor. Many are not. How can we tell the difference?
The Voice of Young Science (VoYS) USA network will work alongside members of the public to ask for the evidence.
They are launching the Ask for Evidence campaign after a one day Boot Camp, hosted by MIT [Massachusetts Institute of Technology] Museum in Boston MA. With the launch coming on the eve of Valentine’s Day, some of the early career researchers have already had a quick look at the evidence behind aphrodisiac claims about oysters, rhino horn and more, and produced an alternative Valentine’s greeting. The network is setting its sights on encouraging people to ask about science and evidence in discussions about everything from changing weather patterns to ‘superfoods’, vaccinations, alternative medicine and radiation.
It looks like an interesting programme but a little over elaborate for my taste. For example, there’s a second Ask for Evidence page, (the campaign page itself).
In principle, this business of asking for evidence seems like a good idea and the group has kindly provided hints on how to ask for it. Oddly, they don’t provide any suggestions for how to evaluate the evidence when it’s provided. Also, the interest is focused on health and medicine issues, seemingly to the exclusion of other topics.
Whether or not this particular initiative gains traction is less important than the effort and the passion that have driven it. Success can be measured in many ways. It’s good to see these signs of interest in outreach from ‘young scientists’ and I wish them the best with this and, no doubt, future efforts.