Written Communication Jul 2003

Lone Geniuses in Popular Science

Davida Charney The University of Texas at Austin

Abstract

Popular accounts of scientific discoveries diverge from scholarly accounts, stripping off hedges and promoting short-term social consequences. This case study illustrates how the “horse-race” framing of popular accounts devalues the collective sharing, challenging, and extending of scientific work. In her best-selling Longitude , Dava Sobel (1996) depicts John Harrison's 18th-century invention of a marine chronometer, a ground-breaking precision instrument that eventually allowed sailors to calculate their longitude at sea, as an unequal race with Harrison as beleaguered hero. Sobel represents the demands of the Board of Longitude to test and replicate the chronometer as the obstructionist machinations of an academic elite. Her framing underreports the feasibility of the chronometer and its astronomical rival, the lunar distance method, which each satisfied different criteria. That readers accept Sobel's framing is indicated by an analysis of 187 reviews posted on Amazon.com, suggesting that popular representation of science fuels cynicism in popular and academic forums.

Journal
Written Communication
Published
2003-07-01
DOI
10.1177/0741088303257505
Open Access
Closed
Topics
qualitative research race and writing multilingual writers

Citation Context

Cited by in this index (8)

  1. Pflugfelder (2022)
    Evidence Engines: Common Rhetorical Features of Fraudulent Academic Articles
    Written Communication
  2. Cramer et al. (2014)
    Examining Readers’ Evaluations of Objectivity and Bias in News Discourse
    Written Communication
  3. Ross (2013)
    Common Topics and Commonplaces of Environmental Rhetoric
    Written Communication
  4. Graube et al. (2010)
    Coverage of Team Science by Public Information Officers: Content Analysis of Pr…
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  5. Ross (2008)
    Dam Visuals: The Changing Visual Argument for the Glen Canyon Dam
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
Show all 8 →
  1. MacDonald (2005)
    The Language of Journalism in Treatments of Hormone Replacement News
    Written Communication
  2. Charney (2004)
    Introduction
    Written Communication
  3. Paul (2004)
    Spreading Chaos
    Written Communication

Cites in this index (5)

  1. Paul et al. (2001)
    Moving beyond the Moment
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  2. FAHNESTOCK (1998)
    Accommodating Science
    Written Communication
  3. KAUFER et al. (1989)
    Novelty in Academic Writing
    Written Communication
  4. Rowan (1989)
    Moving beyond the <i>What</i> to the <i>Why</i>: Differences in Professional an…
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  5. MYERS (1985)
    The Social Construction of Two Biologists' Proposals
    Written Communication
Also cites 11 works outside this index ↓
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CrossRef global citation count: 24 View in citation network →

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