SCIENCE & HEALTH
WRITING
Simple Rules
Understand the jargon
Scientific names and technical
terms (sometimes called jargon)
are necessary for scientists. It
enables them to speak more
accurately to one another about
things they have in common.
Use concrete words where
possible
People understand solid, concrete things
which they can feel, smell, see, touch,
taste or hear. Because much of science
is about ideas, where possible you
should explain the scientist's abstract
ideas in concrete words your ordinary
readers or listeners can understand.
Example:
Scientists in China have
invented a sewing thread
so strong that it could
take the weight of a fullygrown elephant.
Do not overload with
figures
Do not overload your stories
with large numbers or lots of
figures
Write brightly
Keep your words clear and
simple. Do not use too many
scientific terms and explain
them in simple words.
Pig farmers on New Ireland are
battling an insect plague which
has already killed more than 500
pigs on the island.
Farmers on New Ireland are
battling a plague of the new insect
species penetrens lugoles which is
related to the horse fly and has
devastated large herds of pigs in
The insect, which is related to
Africa and South East Asia and
the horse fly, has already
already killed 527 pigs on the
devastated herds in Africa and
island by laying eggs in their ears
South East Asia.
which eventually hatch into
maggots which burrow their way
The new species called penetrens into the animal's brain in search of
lugoles lays its eggs in pigs' ears. food.
When the eggs hatch, the
maggots burrow into the
animal's brain in search of food.
Do not sensationalise
To sensationalise means to
state something in such a
strong and extreme way that
it has an effect on people's
emotions
Give background details
Your job is to place all
developments in context.
Explain how we got to the
situation today.
they help your readers or
listeners to understand what
has happened and how
important (or disappointing) the
latest development is
You must understand the basic principles of
any scientific field before you can report in it;
you can get that understanding by:
Having a basic scientific education
Reading books and magazines about science
and technology
Taking an interest in scientific and
technological developments
Establishing good contacts with experts who
can help you with information
The perfect intro
newsworthy
-Anong nangyari?
short & simple (KISS)
-20 words or less
attract the reader
approriate style
When writing your intro
List the keypoints
-Is it new?
-Is it unusual?
-Is it interesting or significant?
-Is it about people?
At 2 a.m. yesterday morning, meteorologists at the Nadi Weather Centre
detected a cyclone developing rapidly near Nauru and moving quickly
south-west across the Pacific towards the Solomon Islands. They named
the cyclone "Victor". At 3 a.m., they contacted the Solomon Islands
government warning of the approach of Cyclone Victor. Government
officials immediately put emergency plans into operation. They warned all
shipping in the area of the cyclone's approach. They broadcast warnings on
the radio, and alerted the police, who in turn sent officers to warn the
people. By 10 a.m., winds in Honiara were blowing at more than 140
kilometres per hour. At about midday, the centre of the cyclone passed
directly over Honiara before tracking into the Coral Sea, where it blew itself
out. In Honiara, more than 20 houses were destroyed and a number of
other buildings sustained considerable structural damage. More than 100
people are now homeless. Six people were killed. Another 18 people have
been treated in hospital for minor injuries. Mopping-up operations have
started in Honiara. The emergency services are still awaiting news from
outlying districts but believe that Honiara has been the worst affected.
Police say that of the six people who died, three men drowned when their
car was blown off the road into a river, and two women and a man were
killed by flying debris.
When writing your intro
Put the keypoint in order of
importance
Choose the main key points as
your news angle for the intro
Dr Michael Kai is a scientist with the
Papua New Guinea Department of
Primary Industry. He has been working
for ten years on a project to breed larger
pigs. One of his pigs, an adult male, has
been weighed at 350 kgs. This is the
heaviest pig ever to have been bred in
Papua New Guinea. Mr Kai hopes to use
this animal to breed other very large pigs.
