Hello Steemit ………

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I am a huge lover of the outdoors, the indoors .... and all doors infact (including the band). I have many other passions too but I guess I`ll focus on what brought me here. I recently got interested in cryptocurrency and shortly afterwards discovered Steemit. I instantly fell in love with the idea of a reward system for content and feel it could be a very powerful media for sharing ideas and thoughts. More on this in a bit …..

I have also recently been toying with the idea of doing some creative writing. I eventually took the plunge and wrote my first short story over the weekend. I think it is safe to say that I haven’t quite developed my “style” yet. BUT, if you don’t try, you can’t succeed. I decided to merge my two new interests in one here, and uploaded my short story as my first post. Its out there now whether I like it or not ….
And I may put more up in the future, who knows?

I have recently been recommended a small book called “The Elements of style”. I’m pretty sure this was a well-intended, thinly veiled insult! The book is a very valuable read for anybody starting out with scientific or creative writing. It was reading the book that prompted me to have a stab at creative writing, to try get some practice outside of research articles.

Communication with Feedback (and $$$)………

I feel the feedback system of Steemit has a lot of potential. There is obviously a huge flaw in the way science is disseminated to the masses, as there are still so many people highly confused over well-established facts, such as vaccines. Vaccines save lives, and if people are convinced not to use them, then lives will be lost PERIOD. It is not surprising that such beliefs are held by many. In everyday conversation with other scientists, I find that even they hold onto beliefs that are against the current scientific consensus. If scientists have a hard time weeding out fact from fiction from scientific and pseudoscientific claims, then what hope do the rest of us have?

(Just to be clear on this point, scientists are not confused with the facts of their own fields. The vast majority of environmental scientists agree that Climate Change is happening but a physicist reading about the health benefits of fermented foods could be excused for being misled, as nobody has time to read in-depth into all other fields)

For a layman, it is very confusing when two opposite stances on a topic, such as fluoridation of tap water, both claim to be backed by science. Is it safe? Is it dangerous? It can’t be both. How do we know which one is genuine? The argument usually goes back and forth. I am not an expert in the field, so I won’t dive into it.

Scientists need to bridge the gap between research and the community. Pseudoscience such as GOOP and Mr. Potato Avocado Wolfe are doing extraordinarily well. The reaction to these by much of the scientific media is usually quite strong. Do these cases not highlight the enormous failings of science that we still have so many people investing time and money into such garbage? These pseudoscientific beliefs present an OPPORTUNITY to improve the dialogue between science and the public.
Here on Steemit, we can turn the tides. Votes here mean money. If pseudoscience here gets up voted, we need to work harder. Both science and pseudoscience have huge followings on social media. They tend to be completely separate groups. The only crossover they ever have are in the comments section of posts, usually started by Trolls looking to start a war of words. People are rarely convinced in this way. So it is my intention, to try to communicate in a clearer way, providing evidence where it is needed, in the hope that we can get real science upvoted. I believe this will only happen if the message is communicated properly ...

...which is my challenge!!!

The Dawkins effect …..

I am a huge fan of Richard Dawkins writings on evolution. “The Ancestors Tale” is an amazing book, that anybody would get a lot out of reading. He is however, very aggressive in his opinions and has earned a very niche following of like minded people. I am not religious, but it is a personal experience and I don’t feel science has any business getting involved. For such a brilliant narrator, and clearly a very clever man, he has missed a huge opportunity to reach a much larger audience. Instead he has alienated a lot of people, and perhaps turned many off science in general, which is a shame. As he eloquently put it in the title of a book of his, nature is “The Greatest Show on Earth”. It would do Dick Dawkins and his agenda a lot more good to put the pen down for a moment and read a short story by a dude called Aesop, about a wager between the North Wind and the Sun.

So, why am I here

I hope that we can make Steemit an inclusive environment where people with specific knowledge can share it with the masses in a less technical way. As long as GOOP and Mr. Potato Head are getting likes, we are doing our job wrong. This is an opportunity to embrace our shortcomings and help prevent confusion.
Scientists need to listen to WHAT is being said by the public, and WHY they are saying it. I hope my methods of communication will evolve with this platform. I will endeavor to communicate science with the platform in a clear, non-aggressive way. If my posts are too technical, too unclear, uninformative, patronizing, strongly-worded or just plain wrong ….. then tell me. I am here to learn as much as anybody else. Use your votes wisely, and we can let STEEM POWER drive the CHANGE!!!

Hope I can make a contribution

Miilife