Science in the News

Science News
InScight. Daily news stories from the world of scientific research. Very similar to ScienceNow, but with different stories and a discussion forum on topical science issues, e.g. should we clone humans? Two stories/weekday. Sponsored by Academic Press and Science Magazine.

HMS Beagle. The online magazine of BioMedNet contains a science research news section with a dozen or so headlines per day in the areas of Biological Science, Medical/Health, and Biotech/Pharmaceutical. Each news item consists of 3-5 sentences describing a particular journal article, with links to the article's abstract or full text. A related section is sorted by journal and contains similar synopses of key articles in specific issues of biomedical journals. Additional Beagle features include reviews of science-related web sites, book reviews, and the Cutting Edge forum, which presents debates on controversial science topics by invited experts. Registration for site access is required.

New Scientist Planet Science. The online offering of New Scientist magazine, which is devoted to providing news about "science and technology and their impact on the world and the way we live." The news section of the site features a list of about thirty of the week's top science news stories, and provides a story for the majority of these. The others can be found in the print version of New Scientist. Organization and navigation at this site has improved in recent months.

Nature Science Update. Weekly news and features on the latest developments in scientific research. Geared to the general reader. Four stories/week. Sponsored by Nature magazine. News about science policy is also available at the Nature site but requires registration.

EurekAlert. (Press Releases.) "Your global gateway to science and medical news." Read the latest press releases from journals and institutions in the fields of science, medicine, and technology. Embargoed press releases are posted here and new entries are made each weekday. Of interest to journalists, scientists, as well as the public. This is the granddaddy of the press release sites, is very easy to use, and has over 200 contributing institutions. Posts about twenty press releases per weekday. Sponsored by the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Science Daily. (Press Releases.) This online science magazine features daily news stories from the research world, all geared to the general public. Over 70 research organizations from around the world, including universities, contribute their press releases to this site. A little bit like EurekAlert (see above), but designed more for the public than for the journalist. Separate news sections are available for the life, physical, and social sciences. Easy to navigate and has the flashiest interface of the three press release sites reviewed here.

Newswise. (Press Releases.) Browse the latest press releases in science, medicine, and business from 200 "top institutions", including universities, research organizations, associations, and companies. Newswise is billed as "an online community for reporters and media relations professionals who specialize in knowledge based information, particularly Science, Medical and/or Business research news." But anyone interested in science news will find this site useful. Includes embargoed releases available only to the press. Unlike EurekAlert, news releases lack useful links back to the parent institution.

UniSci. News stories from all areas of science. Some are verbatim press releases but others are compilations and reworkings by the site's editors. Archived stories for the past week are browsable, but older stories are not, although they can be accessed by a search. UniSci has the advantage over the press release sites of not being solely dependent on the limited sets of organizations that send them their press releases. You get the science news of the day, not the science news of institutions with active public information offices. Site organization and navigation could be improved.

SciCentral. A combination science news site and science internet index.

Connected. Technology and science section of the Electronic Telegraph (UK). Each weekly issue contains about 20 news stories and feature articles from all areas of science. Contains an easy-to-use browsable archive, as well as a standard search function.

CNN. A large site with daily stories on the world's headlines as well as several science-related pages: Health, Earth, and Sci-Tech.Visit CNN's Health page for stories related to health and medical research. Check out the Earth page for stories about the environment and ecology. And go on over to Sci-Tech news for stories relating to the computer and space industries. Each site has 10-20 well-written and accessible news stories that include related links.

Why Files. Electronic exploration of the science behind the news. Goal is "to provide convenient and free access to accurate, readable information about scientific events that touch almost everyone." Eminently readable and fun too, Why Files will be of interest to the public, scientists, teachers, students,and curious individuals of any persuasion. Two features/month. Sponsored by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute for Science Education.

ScienceNow. Daily science news stories. Of interest to both scientists and the general public. Very informative, up-to-date, accurate, and well-written. Past stories are archived and searchable. Three-four stories/weekday. Sponsored by Science Magazine. Unfortunately, this site can be accessed only by paying a subscription fee (a big thumbs down). Stories of similar quality and focus can be accessed for free at InScight. (see above).

Medical and Health News
Science News Update. Medical and Health news stories culled from the Journal of the American Medical Association and the Archives journals (e.g. Archives of Internal Medicine) are presented clearly and updated weekly.

Reuters Health eLine. Daily health-related news stories geared to the public and available free of charge. A parallel service aimed at medical professionals, REUTERS Medical News, also provides daily news, but will charge for access beginning October, 1997.

CNN-HEALTH. News stories from the worlds of health and medical research. Well-written and pitched at the general public.

Bodywise. A monthly webzine for the health-conscious everyman, featuring a news sections with ten or so short summaries of current health and fitness news. This site has a definite pop feel to it, but some health-related research is covered and is reported in an accurate and highly accessible way . Other sections provide feature articles, book reviews, and health/fitness-related web-site reviews. Inaugural issue was in October, 1997.

Medscape News. The news site for Medscape contains daily medical news stories from Reuters and other sources. Target audiences include health professionals and consumers.

American Medical News. The online version of the weekly news publication of the American Medical Association. Contains weekly news stories from the world of medicine. Interesting and accessible to both health professionals and the public.

Biotechnology News

If you have any news sites you would like to see on this page, please send your suggestions to mallison@geocities.com.

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This page was last updated February 4, 1999.

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