Past events
We organize several events per year
Science, Fact Checking, and the News
With the birth of “alternative facts” and the recent surge of interest in fact-checking the news, the pressure is high for the media and communicators to get their stories straight. The Society of Professional Journalists Western Washington and the Northwest Science...
Marching for Science, Walking a Fine Line
Like journalists, scientists have generally shied away from taking public positions on matters of policy or issues outside the specifics of their own work. The growing politicization of science, potentially massive funding cuts, and the upcoming March for Science are...
“Life” with Mark Owen Martin at Sundance Cinema
Members and guests saw “Life” with Mark Owen Martin, associate professor of biology at the University of Puget Sound, on April 15 at Sundance Cinema. After the movie, we headed to Blue Moon Tavern to dissect the science. Starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Rebecca...
Calling BS: How to Filter the Fake and Translate the Truth — in the Age of Big Data
In an era of “fake news” and “alternative facts,” how well can you draw the line on what counts as truth? What role do science writers play in spreading or exposing spurious science? On March 14, UW professors Carl T. Bergstrom and Jevin West...
Narrative and International Reporting with Chris Solomon and Wudan Yan
On Feb. 8, members and guests dove into two aspects of the craft of storytelling—longform narrative and international reporting—with the 2016 winners of our career development awards, Chris Solomon and Wudan Yan. The Lab at Ada’s Technical Books hosted the...
Thanks for joining us for #nswaparty2017
This year’s can’t-miss event for science writers in the Pacific Northwest happened on Jan. 5 in Bellevue at one of the world’s biggest, most eclectic invention factories, Intellectual Ventures’ Global Good and Research Laboratory. As members...
NSWA sees ‘The Arrival’ with Richard Wright, UW linguistics chair
Yes, a Hollywood movie with a heroic linguist! Members and guests saw the “The Arrival” on Dec. 10 at Sundance Cinema Seattle. After the movie, we talked to Richard Wright, chair of of the linguistics department at University of Washington, at District...
Post-Town Hall Hangout with Eric Vance
Can the way we think change our health? Members and guests met with journalist Erik Vance to discuss his new book, Suggestible You: The Curious Science of Your Brain’s Ability to Deceive, Transform, and Heal, after his Nov. 21 talk at Town Hall Seattle....
Luke Timmerman: Entrepreneurial journalism and the world of self-publishing
Luke Timmerman spoke with members and guests on Nov. 9 about how he made the move into entrepreneurial journalism, and how he maintains his audience and model successfully. He also shared tips and advice on self-publishing a book. Almost two years ago local journalist...
Michelle Nijhuis: The Art of the Science Essay
Michelle Nijhuis discussed the art of the science essay for NSWA members and guests on Oct. 19 at Hugo House. In this evening lecture, Nijhuis talked about how to recognize essay ideas, how to report for the essay form, and how to organize your ideas before you write....
David Quammen at Town Hall
Yellowstone is America’s first, and arguably most iconic, national park. In his latest book, bestselling author David Quammen serves as tour guide to this national treasure, which is larger than both Rhode Island and Delaware combined. “Quammen illuminates the park’s...
Water Woes: Too little, too much, too dirty
Members and guests joined a panel on Sept. 14 for a lively discussion of issues surrounding water quality and quantity in the Pacific Northwest, and how agencies and citizens are responding to these changes. From drugs detected in Puget Sound salmon to increasing...
Explore Seattle’s historical shoreline with David B. Williams (second tour on Aug. 4)
Members and guests joined David B. Williams, freelance writer and former NSWA president, on Aug. 4 for a walking tour based on his most recent book, Too High and Too Steep: Reshaping Seattle’s Topography (University of Washington Press). This was the second tour...
Explore Seattle’s historical shoreline with David B. Williams (first tour on July 26)
Members and guests joined David B. Williams, freelance writer and former NSWA president, on July 26 for a walking tour based on his most recent book, Too High and Too http://www.laviagraes.com/viagra-drogas-la-rebaja Steep: Reshaping Seattle’s Topography (University...
Tipsy Science: The Art and Chemistry of Distilling—and Tasting—Fine Spirits
Members and guests learned about the nuanced chemistry that goes into a fine http://www.laviagraes.com/viagra-en-chile-precio vodka, a sherry-barrel gin, or a single-malt whiskey as we took a behind-the-scenes tour of Copperworks Distilling Company on June 10 led by...
Tour of the Allen Institute for Brain Science
Members and guests visited the Allen Institute for Brain Science on May 25 and met with researchers who manage key labs, toured the facility, and learned what the Allen Institute aims to accomplish with its big expansion in Seattle. Researchers explained how they’re...
Hope Jahren at Town Hall
What’s it like being a woman in the field of science? Award-winning scientist Hope Jahren’s Lab Girl is an examination of this question, but it’s also so much more. In conversation with The Stranger‘s Sydney Brownstone on April 13 at Town Hall Seattle, she shared...
Uncertainty and the Zika Virus: What do scientists know and how can we report on it responsibly?
The Zika virus has been around since the 1950s, but it’s only in the last year that mosquito-borne disease has been making global headlines. Zika has been linked with microcephaly (unusually under-sized heads and damaged brains), Guillain-Barré disease, and...
Tackling the science of concussions and the future of football
Under the spotlight of Super Bowl 50, and the release of the Hollywood film Concussion, concerns over brain trauma in football have become hard to ignore. Members and guests joined us on Feb. 17 for “Tackling the science of concussions and the future of...
Thanks for attending #nswaparty2016
Members and guests mingled with other science writers, toured research labs and welcomed our new board at NSWA’s annual party on Jan. 28 at Seattle Children’s Research Institute (SCRI). SCRI opened it’s brand new Discovery Portal for viewing by NSWA and...
Ethics in science journalism
Ethics in science journalism A panel of science writers joined us on Nov. 11 at University House for a discussion on the ethical boundaries of combining journalistic and non-journalistic work. In today’s media landscape, science writing comes from a variety of...
NSWA chats with George Musser about ‘Spooky Action’
NSWA members and guests were invited to meet, chat, and share drinks with science writer and author George Musser following his Nov. 3 talk at Town Hall Seattle on “The ‘Spooky Action’ Shaping Physics.” Musser, a contributing editor at...
NSWA chats with Ariel Waldman about citizen science and hacking the space program
NSWA members and guests joined Ariel Waldman on Oct. 28 to discuss citizen science and hacking the space program. The chat followed her talk at Ada’s Technical Books. Waldman worked at NASA, founded Spacehack.org, and now organizes events to advocate for...
NSWA sees ‘The Martian’ with scientists from UW Astrobiology
Members and guests enjoyed a 3D showing of “The Martian” on Oct. 14 at Cinerama. Afterward, the following scientists from the UW Astrobiology program joined us next door at Cantina Lena to chat about the movie: Stephen Wood, a planetary scientist at the UW who...
You’ve got the book contract, now what?
Seattle authors Steve Olson and Bonnie Rochman spoke to NSWA members and guests on Sept. 16 about how to tackle the writing, editing and polishing of a manuscript once you have a deal with a publisher. Olson is the author of several trade books, including “Mapping...
Chat about earthquakes and Pluto with Sandi Doughton and Alan Boyle
Sandi Doughton and Alan Boyle talked earthquakes and Pluto with members and guests on Aug. 12 NSWA’s own Sandi Doughton (The Seattle Times, author of “Full Rip 9.0: The Next Big Earthquake in the Pacific Northwest”) and Alan Boyle (formerly of NBC...
Second ‘Stories in Stone’ walking tour with David Williams on Aug. 6
The July “Stories in Stone” walking tour with geology writer David Williams was a big hit. David provided a second tour on Aug. 6, for those who missed...
‘Stories in Stone’ walking tour with David Williams
NSWA members and guests enjoyed a “Stories in Stone” walking tour of downtown Seattle on July 15 with David Williams, former NSWA president, naturalist and writer. Most people do not think of looking for geology from the sidewalks of Seattle, but for the...
“Genetic Me” US film premiere
NSWA was proud to host the U.S. premiere of “Genetic Me,” a documentary from Danish science writer Lone Frank, on June 10 at Group Health Research Institute (GHRI). “Genetic Me” is a humorous and very human gateway into the rising science of...
NSWA members special outing to MOHAI on Free First Thursday
Members and guests met on May 7 at one of our new, bi-monthly science nights out at this special visit to the Museum of History and Industry. We arranged a special overview for NSWA members with Tara McCauley, Education and Programs Manager at the museum,...
Writing Globally, with Mark Harris
Mark Harris, freelance technology and science writer, spoke to NSWA members and guests about writing for international audiences on April 8 at University House. Harris writes regularly for The Economist, The Guardian and London’s Sunday Times. He also writes for IEEE...
George Divoky discusses ‘Forty Years of a Melting Arctic’
Members and guests enjoyed a free talk on March 24 at Town Hall by Join NSWA at Town Hall by Seattle biologist George Divoky, who discussed his wildlife research in the Arctic and what he’s learned about climate change. Interested in events like this? Check out our...
How to make your audience fall in love with your blog
Geraldine DeRuiter, the Everywhereist, described her journey as a blogger, from just a few hits a day to world domination (or something like that) for NSWA members and guests at our monthly meeting on Feb. 18 at University House. View her presentation. Like any...
2015 NSWA Annual Event
More than 100 members and guests celebrated 2014, learned about brain-related technologies and enjoyed food at our annual event on Jan. 15 at the Center for Sensorimotor Neural Engineering. Check out the photos! Thanks to Mary Guiden, 2015 NSWA president, for her...
A Freelancer’s Life: Tales from the Trenches
NSWA members and guests joined the following panel of science writers at our monthly meeting on Dec. 10 to discuss freelancing. Ashley Braun works full time as a writer and editor at NOAA’s Office of Response and Restoration in Seattle. But since 2011, she’s been a...
Ebola in the News
The Ebola outbreak in Africa has been dominating media coverage. Closer to home, NSWA gathered experts to talk about the outbreak from both medical and journalism points of view at our monthly meeting on Nov. 12 at University House. John Lynch, an infectious disease...
Writing Local Stories: From City Magazines to National Publications
We all know that Seattle — and the Pacific Northwest in general — is the best place in the world to live. But what makes a story in our little corner of the country worthy of coverage in a big-name publication? And how do you craft these stories...
Success stories in science blogging
What makes a good blog post, and what sorts of content make readers click? Alan Boyle and Mary Guiden shared their success stories with NSWA members and guests at our monthly meeting on Sept. 10 at University House. Alan Boyle ( @b0yle ), science editor at NBC News...
NSWA Summer Party
As many of you know, we like to take a bit of a summer break from meetings. This year we decided to go into summer with a bang. We are had a no-host (that means you have to pony up the cash for food and drinks) party at Naked City Brewery on June...
Creating Interpretive Signage for Museums, Science Centers, Parks and Zoos (Yes, and Aquariums and Botanical Gardens, Too)
A panel of experts discussed the joys and sorrows of creating text for signs, kiosks and other interpretive materials at the monthly meeting on May 14 at University House. Our panelists (listed below) shared their collective knowledge about planning, writing, editing...
Big data: Delving deeper into the latest scientific buzzword
Has “big data” always existed, or has something changed in recent years to bring this catchphrase to the surface? What research is being conducted using big data, what repositories are available or being built, and what stories should science writers...
ScienceOnline 2014 Recap: Burnout, Underserved Audiences and more…
Registration for the annual ScienceOnline “unconference” fills up within minutes and North Carolina is such a schlep from the Pacific NW. At our monthly meeting on March 12 at University House, NSWA members and guests heard highlights from NSWAians who...
Communicating with Younger Audiences
Are poop jokes over-used? Does the word “DNA” need to be defined? Is particle physics just too hard to explain? These are the kinds of questions that come up when writing about science for kids. Panelists Emily Krieger, Beth Geiger, Eric Chudler and David...
2014 NSWA Holiday Party
A hundred NSWA members, guests and friends met Jan. 9 at the Institute for Systems Biology in Seattle to eat, drink and get creative with our science-themed photobooth. Networking ensued. Catching up with old friends flourished. And mentoring abounded as those...
Ocean Acidification and the Media
Eric Swenson, communications and outreach director for the Global Ocean Health Program, discussed media coverage of ocean acidification with NSWA members and guests on Dec. 11 at University House. The program opened with a short scientific explanation of...
Alternative Funding Streams: How to Navigate the New World of Financing Science Writing
Rigorous, independent reporting is an essential public service. But how do we pay for it in the wake of dwindling budgets at traditional news outlets? Sara McCaslin and Robert McClure, two journalists who have raised money for in-depth reporting projects, shared their...
Come meet the scientists next door – Oct. 29 tour of the USGS Western Fisheries Research Center
Perched on a hill near Magnuson Park sits a small US Geological Survey (USGS) research facility that plays a big role globally in the development of aquatic science. USGS’s Western Fisheries Research Center provides a professional home to many international...
The Science of Scientific Fraud: What Writers Need to Know
Ferric Fang, MD, discussed how fraudulent research gets into prestigious journals at our monthly event on Sept. 11 at University House. Dr. Fang, a UW microbiologist, shared data on research misconduct and let science writers know what precautions to take. Fang is at...
The Science Writers' Handbook: How freelance science writers stay solvent, stay sane, and tell stories that matter
Members and guests heard four co-authors of talk about how the project came together and what they learned in the process at the monthly NSWA meeting on June 12 at University House. Virginia Gewin ( @VirginiaGewin ) covers environmental issues—from food security to...
Self-Publishing for Science Writers
Thom Kephart with Amazon’s self-publishing arms CreateSpace and Kindle Direct Publishing provided an overview of the publishing market, how science writers can utilize self-publishing, and a review of the software tools to make your work available to millions of...