Ateneo - UPO

General aspects of scientific practice. Models and predictions. The role of the uncertainty. The communication of results. Physics and physicists on the media and in public debate. Some major scientific issues and their communication: climate change, energy, etc.

1) Papers provided by the lecturer.
2) Eric Swanson, "Science and Society. Understanding scientific methodology, energy, climate and sustainability", Springer 2016

Obiettivo del corso è sviluppare le soft skills necessarie per argomentare e divulgare le idee scientifiche in contesti diversi e attraverso differenti canali di comunicazione. Pertanto, obiettivo formativo è acquisire le conoscenze necessarie in ambito educativo e comunicativo sui temi della comunicazione scientifica

None

In class lectures, seminars and debates on specific topics with the participation of the students.

The slides of the lectures will be made available on DIR.

Students with physical disabilities, Learning Disabilities or Special Education Needs can request
specific services and tools via the Staff Sviluppo e Coordinamento Carriere e Servizi alle Studentesse
e agli Studenti, consulting the University webpage: https://www.uniupo.it/en/services/services-
students-physical-or-learning-disabilities
Students with disabilities, learning disabilities or special education needs, once they have contacted
the University Staff, can refer to the tutor in charge of the course to define the examination
modalities, concerning academic aspects.

Students will be required to write a brief text (10,000-15,000 characters) on a freely chosen topic covered by the course (a list will be provided by the lecturer). The text will be evaluated according to four criteria: clearness, consistency, critical analysis, documentation. The minimum passing grade corresponds to sufficiently satisfiying at least two of these criteria; the top grade corresponds to fully satisfying all four criteria.

Scientific attitude and practice. The role of uncertainty. Models and predictions. The error in science. Great discoveries and daily research. Communication of results. Peer review and open access: the arXiv experience. Pseudodiscoveries and pathological science. Physics and physicists on the front page (Marconi, Einstein, Fermi, Oppenheimer). The problem of climate change: scientific data and denialism. The nuclear energy debate.

- Knowledge and understanding: acquiring the basic elements of the scientific attitude and the various aspects of public understanding of science. Awareness of uncertainty in scientific results. Modeling skills.
- Applying knowledge and understanding: being able to critically analyze the public debate on scientific issues of significant social impact.
- Communication skills: being able to present a scientific topic of broad interest in a popular way, with particular attention to physics.