In this episode, we chat with PZ Myers - lead author of the blog Pharyngula (Pharyngula is hosted at Science Blogs - a project from Seed Magazine). Myers is a biologist and associate professor at the University of Minnesota, Morris.

Information at UM Morris

Vitae

on Nature Network

written by PZ Myers at Seed Magazine

Weblog Award Winner: Best Science Blog

Preview from the Show:

Myers: What you want to do with a blog - it's

such an informal medium - if you get all stuffy and treat it as something where

you are going to write a formal treatise everyday, I don't think you'll

get as much interest. So by keeping it personal, keeping it human, what I think

I've done is open up a little window into a science professor's life,

which is sometimes scary, but fun.

Basler: Do you think that this type of casual

communication [blogging] is something really important that the students are going

to need in the future, or was it just an experiment to try out because you were

blogging?

Myers: Oh it's both. I mean,

this is a brave new medium. I'm trying new things; I wanna

explore this and see what we can do with our students. But I also

think it's important for the future of science and science education -

that what we want is active, involved learners at every stage of the

game. And if this is a way that we can get people talking about

science, then that's a huge step - that's important.

Myers: My schedule's turning into a

frightening thing; it's getting so packed full of requests to talk, but

I try to indulge in as much as possible.

Bartel: So you're working on Darwin Day instead of enjoying it, is what you're saying?

Myers: Well, getting up in front of

an audience and talking about evolution and talking about science,

talking about philosophy in these ideas - that's not working is it?

Links:

Inner Fish by Neil Shubin

Reluctant Mr. Darwin by David Quammen