UABDivulg@. Bringing science to everyone

Since the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona’s scientific communication website (www.uab.es/uabdivulga/eng) went online in May 2003, its aim has been to disclose research from the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona to the public at large through the words of the researchers themselves. Over 200 researchers have now explained their work in a language accessible to all. From differential calculus to the latest breakthroughs in medicine, from analysis of armed conflicts to software development for biotechnology companies, and from analysis of the media to the effects of climate change, the website has published information on a multitude of topics covering the plethora of research areas covered at the University.

UABdivulg@ has also published in-depth interviews with important figures from the world of science. These include the Nobel Prize for Physics winner Claude Cohen-Tannoudji, the oncologist Manuel Perucho, the science historian Spencer R. Weart and the microbiologist Daniel Y C Fung. In the near future, the website will include a series of NEO video clips produced by the UAB in which scientific information will be disclosed.

The electronic journal, which can be read in English, Spanish and Catalan, was presented before the 8th International Conference on Public Communication of Science and Technology last June and the 2nd Ibero-American Conference on University Communication in Granada last March.

According to the editors of UABDivulg@, “the huge volume of scientific production at the UAB make this kind of publication very useful for communicating the scientific advances made and for guaranteeing its continuation”. In 2003, the UAB published 1805 scientific articles referenced by the Institute for Scientific Information, 325 doctoral theses and 473 research conventions. Only a very small fraction of all this scientific production – the results that will have most impact on society – is made available to the public through communication sent to the press. “This is why the University believed it would be helpful to create a new channel of information between scientists and the rest of society,” explain the creators of the website. “This will fill the void between communication written for the media and communication written for the scientific community.”

The website targets a general audience interested in science, university students, secondary school pupils, scientists interested in other disciplines, journalists and business people interested in innovation.