2000 Santa Fe Science-Writing Workshop




Saturday, June 24

3 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Registration at Plaza Resolana. Pick up room key and registration packet at front desk.

5:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Wine and cheese reception at Plaza Resolana. Meet the students and instructors.

6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m."Are We Alone?" A film by Timothy Ferris.

7:30 p.m. Explore the Plaza; forage for dinner.


Sunday, June 25

7:30 a.m. to 8:15 a.m. Breakfast at Plaza Resolana.

8:30 a.m. Meet in front of Plaza Resolana for ride to Santa Fe Institute.

9 a.m. to 10:15 a.m. John Noble Wilford. "The Art and Craft of Science Writing." Wilford will deconstruct a recently published science story, showing how it was assembled and reviewing the rules of the game (which are sometimes made to be broken).

Coffee break.

10:30 a.m. to 12 noon. Charles Stevens, a neuroscientist at the Salk Institute, will talk about how synapses send signals in the brain. Question-and-answer session will follow.

12:15 p.m. to 1:15 p.m. Box lunch on portal of Santa Fe Institute. Students will meet for the first time with their instructors.

1:30 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. Doyne Farmer of the Santa Fe Institute and one of the founders of Prediction Company will talk about how ideas in physics are being used to try and predict financial markets. (Some people call this phynance.) Question-and-answer session will follow.

3:15 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Students will meet again on the portal with their instructors to discuss the morning's sessions and the mechanics of turning the talks into good stories. (Beginning students will use the press conference as the basis for their writing assignments -- a good, strong introduction and an outline -- which will be critiqued in individual sessions beginning Thursday morning. Advanced students will bring other material to be critiqued. See FAQ for details.)

4:45 p.m. Return to Plaza Resolana.

Everyone will have the rest of the day to work on their assignments or wander around the Plaza.


Monday, June 26

7:30 a.m. to 8:15 a.m. Breakfast at Plaza Resolana.

8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. "Times vs. Times." Using an overhead projector, the instructors will compare how the two Timeses -- Los Angeles and New York -- took very different approaches to a recent story about the discovery of a new state of matter. One buried it while the other put it on page one.

10:45 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. George Johnson. "The Story of a Story." George Johnson, winner of the AAAS Science Journalism Award for 1999 (large newspaper category), will give a blow-by-blow account of the researching and writing of one of his stories for the New York Times.

12 noon to 1:15 p.m. Lunch at Plaza Resolana.

1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. John Noble Wilford. "Writing about Bones, Stones and Stars." Pulitzer-prize-winning science writer John Noble Wilford talks about his career covering everything from archeology to cosmology for the New York Times.

2:45 to 5:45. Workshop session. Students will break into groups and meet with their assigned instructor.

6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. Public readings of works-in-progress by the instructors. Collected Works bookstore will sell copies of the authors' books.

8 p.m. Explore the Plaza; forage for dinner.


Tuesday, June 27

7:30 a.m. to 8:15 a.m. Breakfast at Plaza Resolana.

8:30 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. K.C. Cole. "How to Succeed in Science Writing: Lie, Cheat, Steal." Los Angeles Times science writer K.C. Cole gives her irreverent version of the rules of this sometimes confusing profession. Abstract

10:30 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. Joe Palca. The NPR reporter who introduced the world to self-proclaimed human cloning expert Richard Seed will discuss how to tackle a sensational news story in a balanced and non-sensational way.

12 noon to 1:15 p.m. Lunch at Plaza Resolana.

1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. . Workshop session. Meet with your instructor.

3 p.m. Meet in front of Plaza Resolana for field trip to Tsankawi ruins. Bring sunscreen, hat, water, and (depending on the forecast) rain gear.

4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Explore the ruins.

6:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. Dinner at Rancho de Chimayo in the mountain village of Chimayo, N.M.

8:45 p.m. Return to Plaza Resolana.


Wednesday, June 28

7:30 a.m. to 8:15 a.m. Breakfast at Plaza Resolana.

8:30 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. Meet for the final time with your group and sign up for a 30-minute individual consultation and writing critique, beginning at 9.

9:00 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. Consultations begin.

9:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. Tim Appenzeller."What Science Editors Want."

12 noon to 1:15 p.m. Lunch at Plaza Resolana.

1:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. Christine Soares, et. al. "Writing Science for the Web."

3:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. Linda Feferman will discuss the making of Timothy Ferris's film "Are We Alone?"

1:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. Individual consultations continue. Relax and prepare for the evening's big event.

5:30 p.m. Meet in front of Plaza Resolana for a ride to the barbecue.

6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Barbecue at Sandra Blakeslee's house.


Thursday, June 29

7:30 a.m. to 8:15 a.m. Breakfast at Plaza Resolana. Please check out before attending final session. Luggage can be left at the front desk.

9:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Closing discussion and farewell.