I was at a dinner recently and the conversation turned to social media.  Some of the parents around the table, almost all of them scientists, were lamenting the great life distraction of social media in its hydra-headed form – Twitter, Facebook, or any of the endless variety of virtual rabbit holes down which one can disappear these days.

I asked them whether any of them would consider using Twitter or another type of social media as a part of their own work.

To put it politely, there was not much enthusiasm for social media as a means of scientific exchange, for a variety of reasons.

First and foremost, the question was: Why bother? Communication, interaction, information dissemination via email, telephone, publication and conferences all work just fine these days without adding new forms to the mix.

Another issue was the unchecked free broadcast of anyone pitching a project or theory without the benefit of peer review or verification right alongside trusted institutions and publications. Then there was the issue that had started the whole conversation, the waste-of-time factor.

A recent study, The role of Twitter in the life cycle of a scientific publication, published in the journal Ideas in Ecology and Evolution, discusses some of these issues as well as others when it comes to the exchange and broadcast of scientific work via Twitter.

David Shiffman, one of the study co-authors who was recently named one of the top biologists to follow on Twitter (@WhySharksMatter) by the Huffington Post, was quoted in an article as saying, “Social media, which allows information to be shared instantly around the world, gives internet-savvy scientists the ability to drastically accelerate the pace of scientific communication and collaboration.”

It’s no secret that a lot of what happens on social networks is the virtual equivalent of chatter and noise. After all, that’s the purpose for which they were invented.

But I’ve observed Twitter discussions develop on everything from rare bird counting to phylogenetic trees to new reptile tracking technology. As a means of promoting science as a part of daily life, social media can play a key role in attracting people who might otherwise never read the Science section of their online news source.

Although the study sample was small – 116 marine scientists – my feeling is that as young scientists who grew up with social media enter the research community, this kind of exchange will become increasingly natural. And in a period of information overload, it might even be a way to make sure that good work doesn’t get lost in the flood.

More:

Ideas in Ecology and Evolution study – The role of Twitter in the life cycle of a scientific publication by E.S. Darling, D. Shiffman, I.M. Cȏté, and J.A. Drew

The A to Z of Social Media for Academia – An initiative to encourage academics to share information about the latest platforms for use by academics in their professional lives. This is more about tools which can used to create or curate content, rather than a list of resources for use in academia. It is hosted by Prof. Andy Miah, Chair of Ethics and Emerging Technologies and Director of the Creative Futures Institute at the University of the West of Scotland.