Books and Scientific Research Publications

Many of my friends don't enjoy reading unless necessary. They'd prefer spending time watching a film adaptation, if available, or resorting to other activities instead. I constantly hear "I don't have time to read" or "It's too boring." Personally, reading has been a very rewarding solitary experience. I follow at least a dozen book-based blogs on tumblr and can spend hours at bookstores. I read while I eat. I read when I wait for a tardy friend. I read when a meeting starts late. I read when I have awkward hour-long gaps between classes. There are small time slots sporadically laid out in my schedule that give me the option to delve in a chapter here and there, and I love it. This is just some motivation for non-readers who can befriend beautiful words from a raconteur and potentially have a life-changing experience from giving yourself a chance to interact with the text.

(Side note: I started a phase of binge reading 12 days before the end of my final exams this fall quarter and read three books total by the time my exams ended. Sometimes I really wonder where I find all the time to read so much, but it really is my primary method of de-stressing in such a pressuring few weeks.)

Words are truly phenomena all on their own. I stumbled upon this while browsing tumblr the other day:

That's pretty mind-blowing.

However, there is one writing format that I find difficult to enjoy, and also sheds light on why the science community seems so disconnected from the general public. In my mineralogy and structural geology courses, I spent a good amount of time dissecting articles from scientific journals. I came to two very contrasting conclusions:

• I have a much higher appreciation for the work that goes into scientific research. The procedures and in-depth studies take an advanced level of expertise and dedication to reach a sound understanding from the hypothesis. 
• Scientific journal publications are extremely difficult to comprehend. Even as a student who is interested in the geosciences, I found myself very distanced from the text.

Reading these research publications made me feel the vital need for more science communication and interactive methods to bring about more comprehension for the seemingly chimerical scientific research.

There are many science writers who are brilliant at their craft; Michael Pollan and Kristin Ohlson are some of my favorites. However, their work simply cannot be compared with research journal publications. The nature of the works is far too different. The target audience for each is also different, which can qualify the contrasting styles. However, Pollan and Ohlson are not firsthand science researchers. They are the ones who do their fair share of interviewing and comprehend the latest understandings in science research and experimentation and publish coherently structured and beautiful books for the public to read. We need more Pollans and Ohlsons.

I am absolutely in favor of reading no matter the book genre or medium of reading (kindle, paperback, or hardcover? Everyone has their own preference), but I am realizing the general sway away from reading about science. A couple months ago, I told my roommate that I actually enjoy writing; my roommate, who is an engineering student, blatantly told me that the furthest I will get with anything science-writing related is publishing research articles. Is this the mindset that accompanies science? This perspective must change.