Category Archives: science

Poetry of Science

Posted on February 9, 2012 by Cynthia (Istá Thó Thó) Coleman Emery

When my kids were little we loved the irreverent storybooks by Jon Scieszka, particularly the Stinky Cheese Man. So I was delighted to discover at Powells, the best-bookstore-ever, that Scieszka and Lane Smith penned a book called Science Verse. The … Continue reading →

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Get over your Self

Posted on February 7, 2012 by Cynthia (Istá Thó Thó) Coleman Emery

What if there is no self? How would we approach life, discourse and communication if we were able to put our Self in abeyance? On hold? I listened to a talk recently about how selves–our egos, I guess–get in the … Continue reading →

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Groupthink

Posted on February 2, 2012 by Cynthia (Istá Thó Thó) Coleman Emery

When I do a mini-lecture on Groupthink I unpack the case study from the Cuban Missile crisis. Social psychologist Irving Janis coined the term Groupthink in 1972 to describe what happens when a leader is surrounded by folks who agree … Continue reading →

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New Book on American Indians & Popular Culture

Posted on January 31, 2012 by Cynthia (Istá Thó Thó) Coleman Emery

Our new book on American Indians and popular culture arrives in February, right on the heels of ruminations about how politics and science are fused. Because my work examines how Native American cultural values are treated in mediated discourse within … Continue reading →

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Can We Engage Indians in Science?

Posted on January 30, 2012 by Cynthia (Istá Thó Thó) Coleman Emery

Recently I was asked to give a talk at a conference for serious science writers and bloggers who wondered what it would take to engage more American Indians in science communication. In traditional native circles, science isn’t separated from other … Continue reading →

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The Science Conversation Bubble

Posted on January 23, 2012 by Cynthia (Istá Thó Thó) Coleman Emery

Over the last few days I’ve been floating in a bubble of conversations about science with some 350 writers, bloggers, teachers and scientists from the US and abroad. We gathered under North Carolina storm clouds to talk about science. What … Continue reading →

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Emotion, Cognition and Indigenous Ways-of-Knowing

Posted on January 17, 2012 by Cynthia (Istá Thó Thó) Coleman Emery

In daily discourse we distinguish between the heart and the mind, emotion and cognition. And as a former journalist and professor of journalism we learned to separate feelings from facts, and to view the world though an unjaundiced, distant and … Continue reading →

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I am a Rock

Posted on January 16, 2012 by Cynthia (Istá Thó Thó) Coleman Emery

In my field we think about the role of self-esteem and self-efficacy when it comes to behavior. How we think about whether we’re equipped to accomplish a task influences if we attempt something new. In the wake of New Year … Continue reading →

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Should Science be Censored?

Posted on January 12, 2012 by Cynthia (Istá Thó Thó) Coleman Emery

Few issues are more likely to raise gooseflesh than censorship—a concern shared by scientists and journalists alike. But when is it appropriate to withhold information? Who gets to decide what information is sequestered and from whom? A recent struggle has … Continue reading →

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Separating Facts from Values

Posted on January 10, 2012 by Cynthia (Istá Thó Thó) Coleman Emery

One critic charges that Western Science separates facts from values. The provenance of science is to define the facts, while “politicians and moralists” are left to define values. Problem is, according to Bruno Latour, you cannot distinguish facts from values, … Continue reading →

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