What do you think about emotive language in science?

19/3/2015

Are foxes invasive feral vermin, or simply introduced? When shrub cover increases, should we describe the process as shrub encroachment, invasion, expansion or woody thickening? Does it make a difference if the shrub species is indigenous?

In a paper now available in Austral Ecology early view, we looked at associations between native mammal occurrence and Yarra Burgan Kunzea leptospermoides canopy cover in a eucalypt forest.

Our findings made us wonder how much terminology might influence decision-making, even by scientists. Read more at Bron’s blog or download the paper.

1 Comment

Elizabeth Ashman

19/3/2015 02:03:28 am

Good science means being careful not to instill human value statements (unless of course you're studying social sciences), especially emotionally evocative ones. This is science not journalism, the audience should be persuaded by the quality of the evidence and not the researchers emotional attachment to the subject matter.

Welcome to

Fire Ecology and

Biodiversity