you will find and critically read a piece of popular neuroscience journalism alongside the scientific article it reports on. You will describe the area of cognitive neuroscience the primary research article describes as well as the original research findings and analyze how experimental research is transformed into news.
Part I
Find a popular press article online or in a newspaper or magazine (not a blog) about a neurophysiology experiment that uses fMRI or another imaging technique to illuminate some aspect of human behavior or experience (emotions, violence, intelligence, irrationality, attention, etc). Then read the scientific research publication it references.
In about 500 words describe the area of cognitive neuroscience that the paper is centered on giving an introductory overview of the topic and what is currently know about that area of neuroscience. This will set the scene for the research article that you have chosen to describe and review the popular press article.
Part II
In 500 words give a short overview of the original research paper and its findings. Briefly describe the research premise and main findings. Discuss the conclusions of the paper made by the authors and in your own words discuss the implications of this paper. Is the data presented in this article robust? Does the paper represent a major breakthrough in this area of research, are the conclusions convincing? What are the limitations of the research and its findings? How robust a technology is fMRI and what are its limitations? How is fMRI used in cognitive neuroscience, is it a good choice of technique to use? What studies could follow this one to support the reported findings? Does this paper significantly increase our understanding of a cognitive neuroscience topic?
Part III
Now in the next 500 words review the popular press presentation of the research. The following questions should guide your analysis: What claims of significance and implication are made in the scientific publication, and how are these recast as they move into the public domain? What popular cultural assumptions and attitudes are embedded in the original presentation of scientific research, and which are added or amplified in its popular retelling? What hopes, fears, and speculations get voiced in the popularization of the research? What limitations of the experimental setup and qualifications on the results are excluded/overlooked? How does the presentation enhance or distort the research presented in the scientific publication?
Total word count about 1300-1600 words
Note: If you feel that there is not enough material to analyze in the news item you have chosen, or if you want to focus on how one particular point in a study gets picked up and presented in the media, you may look at a set of popular articles based on one scientific article. Alternatively, you may choose to analyze one news story that reports on a small set of scientific articles. If you go this route, remember that the purpose of this assignment is to be as specific as possible in your reading and analysis, so don’t take on additional items at the expense of close and careful analysis.
