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Science Magazine Podcast
Bats surf storm fronts, and public perception of preprints
Jan 9, 2025
Jeff Brainard, Associate News Editor at Science, discusses the public's mixed understanding of preprints, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic. He highlights the need for skepticism in media narratives around these studies. Edward Hurme, a postdoctoral fellow at the Max Planck Institute, shares insights on tracking bat migrations using innovative tagging technology. He details the challenges of monitoring these nocturnal creatures as they traverse long distances and reveals fascinating data about their flight patterns and the impact of environmental changes.
33:34
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Quick takeaways
- The public's misunderstanding of preprints necessitates improved media communication, as many struggle to grasp their significance and reliability.
- Recent advancements in tagging technology have enhanced our understanding of bat migration, revealing how environmental factors influence their migratory patterns.
Deep dives
Public Perception and Coverage of Preprints
The discussion centers on how the public perceives preprint publications and the role of media in reporting them, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic. Preprints, which are manuscripts that have not undergone peer review, saw increased scrutiny as their importance grew in disseminating urgent scientific findings. Journalists grappled with how to report these findings, balancing the need for timely information with concerns about their reliability. Research indicated that many readers struggle to understand what a preprint is, with only about a third of survey respondents correctly defining the term, leading to calls for better context and disclaimers in news reporting.
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