Characteristics of science journalism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Characteristics of science journalism - Essay Example For example, the goal of one east coast company is to capture the market for human infant formula by trying to produce transgenic cattle whose milk contains an important protein found in human breast milk. While pharmaceutical companies are exploring transgenic technology for commercial purposes, animal science researchers at U.C., Davis, are focused on developing the technology to advance the dairy industry. Specifically, we are investigating whether foreign genes inserted into dairy cattle can change the manufacturing or nutritional properties of milk. We have succeeded in demonstration with transgenic mice that foreign genes can be expressed by the mammary gland to modify milk components. However, we have met the same obstacles as industrial scientists in trying to produce similar results in transgenic cattle. It appears that what we need is a significant breakthrough to improve the efficiency and reduce the cost of aiming transgenic cattle. Cloning by nuclear transfer is another method of genetic engineering still in experimental stages. Despite all the media reports, the purpose behind experiments leading to the creation of "Dolly", the sheep made famous through cloning, was not to make multiple copies of a single animal. Rather, researchers were interested in finding cell types that could be used to generate a normal animal after transfer of a cell's nucleus into a recently ovulated egg, a process known as nuclear transfer. The ultimate goal of this cloning research is to produce animals from cells that have been genetically modified in the laboratory, or in other words, to produce transgenic animals from transgenic cells. The advantage of this approach is that cultured... Science journalism tends to be mostly practiced by the people who majored in humanities rather than in science. We can also concede that when science writing is done by people with actual science background, it offer it because the writers would really prefer to be doing science rather than journalism. People want things to be in simple and plain English. But this demand is unrealistic because science writing is dumbed down as much as it can. the one major fact behind this is that language is built upon the hierarchy of concepts, scientific or technical concepts correspond to specialized technical terms, terms of art, and the like(the jargon).Human attitudes are turned with the use of language in the articles. The more simple and correct is the language the more are the readers attracted. When we look at the metaphor in science we can say that it is very interesting to read of the increasing interest that is being generated around metaphors in science. It actually impossible in terms of formulating any easy understanding of the natural world without metaphors in some way or another. in the biological world, metaphors have a further complication in that they frequently become teleologies as well. a teleology is nothing but an explanation that accords purpose to some attribute. So, the eye is designed to be some sort of video camera; the immune system is designed to defend the body against foreign organisms; hair is designed to insulate the body; feathers are designed to help a bird fly.