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Dancing Cockatoos, Silent Sparks and the Future: Writing About Science for the Public

Marlene Zuk, PhD, Regents Professor of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, University of Minnesota

Website

Writing about science for the public is fun, and hard, and requires some skills you may not regularly use as a scientist.

Abstract

What’s good, bad and sometimes weird about writing for the general public? And how can people get started doing it? I will discuss some of the ideas—and misconceptions—about popular science writing.

Related links:

• Dancing Cockatoos and the Dead Man Test: How Behavior Evolves and Why It Matters, Marlene Zuk (2022)
• Why we do what we do: From regenerating sea slugs to self-medicating sheep, biologist Marlene Zuk probes the origins and evolution of behavior in a new book, Review by Rob Dunn, Science, 4 Aug 2022 (*NC State access link)

Speaker Bio

Dr. Marlene Zuk is a behavioral ecologist interested in the evolution of sexual signals, mate choice, and the role of parasites in host ecology, evolution and behavior. Most of her research is on insects, especially crickets. She is also interested in how people think about animal and human behavior, and has written several books for general audiences about animals and evolution. Dr. Zuk is a professor at the University of Minnesota, and before that was on the faculty at the University of California, Riverside.

GES Colloquium is jointly taught by Drs. Jen Baltzegar and Dawn Rodriguez-Ward, who you may contact with any class-specific questions. Colloquium will be held in-person in Poe 202, as well as live-streamed via Zoom. Please subscribe to the GES newsletter and Twitter for updates .