Explaining to a scientifically-innocent audience?

["Hart, Geoff" <Geoff-H -at- MTL -dot- FERIC -dot- CA>]

Kim McGarghan reports: <<And I've heard it via Kurt Vonnegut, _Cat's
Cradle_, almost literally "Any scientist who cannot explain himself to an
8-year-old child is a charlatan.">>

_Pace_ Vonnegut and the others who have raised an important point,
Vonnegut's take on this is a crock of fecal material: it's an attempt to
coin a witty, quotable phrase without actually thinking about what he's
saying. First off, much science can't be explained adequately without
resorting to math, and trying to do so to someone who can't handle the math
is an exercise in futility. I'm not saying this as an elitist; despite my
science training, there's a huge body of science that I can understand only
superficially because I lack the math (or other scientific background)
necessary to understand. Second, each of us has different strengths, and
while Vonnegut is undoubtedly a skilled writer, I suspect he'd object
strongly to me turning the equation around and calling him a charlatan
because he can't explain writing to a scientist. The reason technical
communication exists as a profession is because some people simply lack the
skill to communicate well to non-experts, or don't have the time or desire
to develop this skill. It's not because we have a union and an effective
lobby effort in Washington and other capitals.

The point that many seemingly complex concepts can generally be explained in
simple terms remains valid, and it's the skill in creating that explanation
that makes us (and others) valuable as technical communicators--just as it's
the skill in research or theory that makes someone a good scientist. But for
every Steven Jay Gould who can both do cutting-edge research and write
comprehensibly about it, there are probably 100 other researchers who can't.
That inability by no means makes them charlatans, nor does it diminish their
value as scientists.

--Geoff Hart, FERIC, Pointe-Claire, Quebec
geoff-h -at- mtl -dot- feric -dot- ca

"Arthur C. Clarke had suggested that any sufficiently advanced technology
would be indistinguishable from magic--referring to a possible encounter
with an alien civilization--but if a science journalist had one
responsibility above all else, it was to keep Clarke's Law from applying to
human technology in human eyes."--Greg Egan, "Distress"

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Develop HTML-based Help with Macromedia Dreamweaver! (STC Discount.)
**NEW DATE/LOCATION!** January 16-17, 2001, New York, NY.
http://www.weisner.com/training/dreamweaver_help.htm or 800-646-9989.

Take XML and Tech Writing courses online!  Our instructor-led courses
(4-6 hrs/wk) give you "hands on" experience at your convenience. STC members
get 20% off!  http://www.online-learning.com/index.html.
---
You are currently subscribed to techwr-l as: archive -at- raycomm -dot- com
To unsubscribe send a blank email to leave-techwr-l-obscured -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com
Send administrative questions to ejray -at- raycomm -dot- com -dot-  Visit 
http://www.raycomm.com/techwhirl/ for more resources and info.