Science: From Publishing to Communication

Neuroscientist and Science Communicator Shruti Muralidhar talks to host Pavan Srinath about science publishing, and how science communication can be transformed in India, on Episode 145 of The Pragati Podcast.

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6200+ pre-prints have been published on the biology and medicine of COVID-19, as of early July, 2020. How are preprints disrupting the traditional scientific publishing cycle? How far have open access and open research come in making research accessible to all? Where does the role of science communication begin, and how can SciComm be transformed in India? Shruti Muralidhar and host Pavan Srinath explore these questions as the world faces its biggest crisis yet in the 21st century.

Announcement: The Pragati Podcast will now be releasing new episodes every Thursday morning, India time. The Pragati Podcast is also now available in a new rich and interactive format that goes beyond the audio, and enables listeners to explore contextual links, take polls, and more. Listen to this episode on the IVM Podcasts Android App, Adori iOS App, or listen in on your browser for the full experience.

Dr. Shruti Muralidhar (@polybiotique) is a neuroscientist and science communicator. By day, Shruti works on learning and memory as a postdoctoral researcher at the Picower Institute for Learning and Memory at MIT. She is a founding member of IndSciComm along with Abhishek Chari, and IndSciComm is a collective formed to improve scientific awareness in India and help Indian researchers interact with the public. Learn more at https://indscicomm.blog/.

Read Shruti’s policy memo outlining urgent points of action to improve science communication in India: https://indscicomm.blog/2020/07/12/scicomm-policy-memo-for-stip-2020/

Further reading & listening:

• Pragati Podcast #89: Science Journalism in India, with Vasudevan Mukunth and Nandita Jayaraj
• Is the staggeringly profitable business of scientific publishing bad for science? Stephen Buranyi in The Guardian, June 27, 2017.
• Risk Communication during COVID-19, Siddharth Kankaria and Shruti Muralidhar in The Wire Science, April 17, 2020.

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