For our third meeting of the year, we were really lucky to have Dr. Cat Warren, NC State Professor of English, join us to chat about her experience writing a number of popular science-inspired books, including the New York Times bestseller What the Dog Knows, about the fascinating scent-filled world that dogs inhabit, including that of the cadaver dogs that help law enforcement by sniffing out dead bodies.
But before Cat got started, we played a game– as is tradition. For this meeting we played “Telestrations,” the popular Taboo/Telephone crossover game where participants pass pads of paper around in a circle and must alternately draw or write down the image or word they are handed. By the time the original word/image is returned to its owner, it has been transformed into something totally different. This game was a fun opportunity to talk about the responsibility of science communicators to effectively communicate to the public. If they don’t, the original science being reported on can get misinterpreted beyond recognition! This game really drove that point home.
After the game, Cat chatted with the group about her experience approaching science communication from the unique perspective of someone trained as an English professor. She talked about her process of turning her shorter articles and general musing about dogs into a full-blown book, including how to craft a narrative through-line for a chapter book and how to get an agent. It was a great meeting and we were lucky to host such an eminent figure in science communication today as an invited guest at our club meeting.
