650 words 3 hrs

Assignment #3: Writing for the public (7% of mark): Most of the writing that students in university science do follows a style and rules that are consistent with the scientific literature—regimented, concise and technical. Even in non-sciences, the writing of scholarship is formal and reference- based. However, it is important to be able to communicate scientific or scholarly discoveries in a less intimidating and technical manner. In this assignment, you are required to choose a recent paper from a scientific journal from a selection of four papers that are posted on Moodle. These papers deal with specific issues in conservation biology:

• Choice 1 (Brandt et al 2019): is ecotourism good for biodiversity? An evaluation of the impact of ecotourism on forest loss/recovery in different countries.

• Choice 2 (Hare et al 2019): is captive breeding a good way to save endangered species? An assessment of whether captively-bred animals (lizards) have the traits they need for survival in the wild.

• Choice 3 (Harris et al 2019): why are insect populations declining? An investigation into the role of climate change.

• Choice 4 (Price et al 2019): are the impacts of overharvesting being underestimated? Using DNA from 100-year-old fish scales to reconstruct historical changes in salmon populations.

You are required to reduce the paper to its essence, including the research area or context of which it is a part, into a magazine style piece that your magazine editor requires to fit a space 625 to 675 words, without exception. (Aim for 650 words; your mark will be 0% if fewer than 625 words or more than 675 words). It has to be a non-illustrated piece. The writing must catch the reader’s attention immediately, and it must set up the context almost as fast. The writing should be precise, but not burdened by any jargon. Imagine that you are writing for well-informed adults, but who are not formally trained in environmental science. Use “magazine rules”. It is not an essay, so referencing is NOT part of this exercise and your writing should be such that the reader is led through your article. Do not provide statistics! Use a catchy title. There are several publications that do this kind of scientific journalism. For examples, you may wish to browse a recent edition of one or more or the following:

• American Scientist • Discover

• Natural History • Bioscience • Scientific American • National Geographic • Smithsonian

Your article is due on Thursday, February 13th, 2020. You will be submitting it through Turnitin.com (instructions will follow).