Forest ThreatNet
Message from the Director: Questions from All Over are Key to Discovery
One characteristic shared by all scientists is that they enjoy answering questions. More often than not, the questions they answer come from themselves or other scientists. The best questions are those that haven’t been answered before—or at least the answer is unknown to the scientist.
The really special occasions, however, are when the questions come from those outside the scientific community. This often occurs in informal, personal interactions with friends and family, but it can also occur in special events designed to create or foster interactions between scientists and others. I like to believe that these events benefit both scientists and the practitioners, students, or interested publics that attend. An added benefit is that such occasions allow the scientists to look at their work from a different angle, and even to discover things that they hadn’t considered prior to being asked.
In the highlights that follow, we recap several recent events involving Eastern Threat Center staff members that fit the category of scientists talking with non-scientists; we also celebrate the anniversary of a new experiment in communicating science to landowners and managers.
From all of us, thanks for asking.
- Danny C. Lee
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