Ethics and Scientific Communication

Credits
6
Types
Compulsory
Requirements
This subject has not requirements , but it has got previous capacities
Department
FIB;CS
This course aims to cover two general competences any scientist should have: ethics in science and scientific communication. Both place scientific endeavours in the context of society. No science should be made without complete awareness of its ethical implications. Also, there is no progress in science as such unless scientific advances are effectively communicated within the science community and to society at large.
Students will learn the core concepts in both areas through interactive and task-riented lectures.

Teachers

Person in charge

  • Alfredo Vellido Alcacena (avellido@cs.upc.edu)
  • Itziar De Lecuona Ramírez (itziardelecuona@ub.edu)

Others

  • Fabiola Patricia Leyton Donoso (fabiolaleyton@ub.edu)

Weekly hours

Theory
2
Problems
2
Laboratory
0
Guided learning
0
Autonomous learning
6

Competences

Learning Outcomes

Knowledge

  • K6 - Recognize the ethical problems that arise from advances in the knowledge and in the application of biological concepts and their computational processing.

    • Skills

  • S5 - Disseminate information, ideas, problems and solutions from bioinformatics and computational biology to a general audience.
  • S6 - Identify and interpret relevant data, within the area of study, to make judgments that include social, scientific or ethical reflections.

    • Competences

  • C1 - Apply knowledge in an integrated way in work or vocation in a professional manner and adopt behaviors in accordance with an ethical and responsible professional practice, taking into account the human and fundamental rights of people and respecting the principles of universal accessibility.
  • C2 - Identify the complexity of the economic and social phenomena typical of the welfare society and relate welfare to globalization, sustainability and climate change in order to use technique, technology, economy and sustainability in a balanced and compatible way.
  • C3 - Communicate orally and in writing with others in the English language about learning, thinking and decision making outcomes.
  • C7 - Detect, from within the scope of the degree, inequalities based on sex and gender in society; integrate the different needs and preferences based on sex and gender in the design of solutions and problem solving.

    • Objectives

    1. Explaining the ethical relevance of scientific communication in relation to individuals, society, and the planet.
      Related competences: K6, S6, C2,
    2. Identifying and classifying key ethical problems in scientific communication, including misconduct, authorship disputes, citation practices, peer review failures, social responsibility, and AI-related risks
      Related competences: K6, S6, C7, C1,
    3. Analyzing the causes, consequences, and prevention of unethical practices in research and publication
      Related competences: K6, S6, C2,
    4. Applying principles and codes of research integrity to practical cases involving publication ethics, co-authorship, peer review, citation, and public communication of science.
      Related competences: K6, S6, C7, C1, C2, C3,
    5. Justifying ethical decisions using the European Code of Conduct for Research Integrity and the UPC Code of Integrity in Research
      Related competences: K6, S6, C7, C1, C2, C3,
    6. Learning approaches to scientific visualization
      Related competences: K6, S5, S6, C7, C1, C2,
    7. Understanding scientific communication as a narrative process in society
      Related competences: K6, S5, S6, C7, C1, C2, C3,
    8. Understanding the different communication strategies of different media.
      Related competences: K6, S5, S6, C7, C1, C2, C3,
    9. Exploration of the different internet resources related to scientific communication.
      Related competences: S5, S6,
    10. Learning AI resources to facilitate scientific communication as well as the trappings of their inadequate use.
      Related competences: K6, S5, C7, C1, C3,
    11. Learning the fundamentals of effective oral scientific communication
      Related competences: K6, S5, S6, C7, C1, C2, C3,
    12. Learning the structure and settings of a scientific paper
      Related competences: S5, S6, C3,

    Contents

    1. Bioethics and the Ethics of Scientific Communication
      Advances in science and technology raise major ethical questions when they intersect with individuals, society, and all of us who inhabit the planet. Ethics in scientific communication involves much more than simply avoiding fraud: it entails fostering a culture of integrity, transparency, responsible authorship, rigorous peer review, and respectful dialogue with society.
    2. Ethical Problems of Scientific communication
      Students will deal with ethical questions related to scientific communication. The range of topics range cover central questions of research ethics, publication ethics, co-authorship, scientific discourse, citation, peer review, social responsibility, and the use of AI. Reasons, consequences and prevention measures will be discussed.
    3. Principles and Codes of ethics
      Students will study and apply principles and codes of ethics to practical cases. Codes subject of study will be:
      - European Code of Conduct for Research Integrity https://allea.org/code-of-conduct/
      - UPC Code of Integrity in Research: https://govern.upc.edu/ca/consell-de-govern/consell-de-govern/sessio-03-2022-del-consell-de-govern/comissio-de-recerca/aprovacio-del-codi-dintegritat-en-la-recerca/aprovacio-del-codi-dintegritat-en-la-recerca/@@display-file/visiblefile/12.1.%20Codi%20d'integritat%20en%20la%20Recerca.pdf
    4. Foundations of Scientific Narrative
      An introduction to the concept of scientific communication and the social contract between the scientist and its audience. The scientist as a narrator.
    5. Visual communication and the visual scientist
      Fundamentals of data and information visualization. Visual communication in science. The scientific data journalist.
    6. Scientific writing
      The different levels of scientific writing. The structure of a scientific paper.
    7. Oral communication in science
      The importance of oral communication in science. Oral communication in conferences, seminars and lectures. The scientific debate. Communicating to a broader audience.
    8. Broadening the scope: scientific communication in media and the arts.
      Beyond scientific communication among peers. Scientific communication in media: radio, television, newspapers and magazines; divulgative science. Scientific communication and the arts: film and fiction.
    9. The scientific web: internet and scientific communication
      Internet and scientific communication: the web. Data and information repositiories, data curation, scientific databases, scientific code repositories, scientific social networks.
    10. The impact of AI in scientific communication
      The use of AI Large Language Models and its impact on information sources, knowledge management and human communication.

    Activities

    Activity Evaluation act


    Development of the topic "Foundations of Scientific Narrative", in the first week and a half of the course

    Development of the topic "Foundations of Scientific Narrative", in the first week and a half of the course, including practical activities
    Objectives: 7
    Contents:
    Theory
    3h
    Problems
    3h
    Laboratory
    0h
    Guided learning
    0h
    Autonomous learning
    6h

    Development of the topic "Scientific writing" in one week of the course

    Development of the topic "Scientific writing" in one week of the course, with practical activity
    Objectives: 12
    Contents:
    Theory
    2h
    Problems
    2h
    Laboratory
    0h
    Guided learning
    0h
    Autonomous learning
    4h

    Development of the topic "Visual communication and the visual scientist" in two weeks of the course

    Development of the topic "Visual communication and the visual scientist" in two weeks of the course, with practical activities
    Objectives: 6
    Contents:
    Theory
    4h
    Problems
    4h
    Laboratory
    0h
    Guided learning
    0h
    Autonomous learning
    12h

    Development of the topic "Broadening the scope: scientific communication in media and the arts" in a week and a half of the course

    Development of the topic "Broadening the scope: scientific communication in media and the arts" in a week and a half of the course, with practical activities
    Objectives: 8
    Contents:
    Theory
    3h
    Problems
    3h
    Laboratory
    0h
    Guided learning
    0h
    Autonomous learning
    6h

    Development of the topic "The scientific web: internet and scientific communication" in one week.

    Development of the topic "The scientific web: internet and scientific communication" in one week, including practical activities
    Objectives: 9
    Contents:
    Theory
    2h
    Problems
    2h
    Laboratory
    0h
    Guided learning
    0h
    Autonomous learning
    4h

    Development of the topic "The impact of AI in scientific communication" in one week and a half

    Development of the topic "The impact of AI in scientific communication" in one week and a half, including practical activities
    Objectives: 10
    Contents:
    Theory
    3h
    Problems
    3h
    Laboratory
    0h
    Guided learning
    0h
    Autonomous learning
    6h

    Development of the topic "Oral communication in science" in one week of the course

    Development of the topic "Oral communication in science" in one week of the course, including practical activities
    Objectives: 11
    Contents:
    Theory
    3h
    Problems
    3h
    Laboratory
    0h
    Guided learning
    0h
    Autonomous learning
    6h

    Oral presentation of a proposed task

    Oral presentation of a proposed task
    Objectives: 7 6 11
    Contents:
    Theory
    0h
    Problems
    0h
    Laboratory
    0h
    Guided learning
    0h
    Autonomous learning
    16h

    Development of the topic "Bioethics and the Ethics of Scientific Communication"

    Development of the topic "Bioethics and the Ethics of Scientific Communication" in one week of the course, including practical activities
    Objectives: 1 2
    Theory
    4h
    Problems
    4h
    Laboratory
    0h
    Guided learning
    0h
    Autonomous learning
    10h

    Development of the topic "Ethical problems of Scientific Communication"

    Development of the topic "Ethical problems of Scientific Communication" in one week of the course, including practical activities
    Objectives: 3
    Theory
    4h
    Problems
    4h
    Laboratory
    0h
    Guided learning
    0h
    Autonomous learning
    10h

    Development of the topic "Principles and Codes of Ethics"

    Development of the topic "Principles and Codes of Ethics" in one week of the course, including practical activities
    Objectives: 4 5
    Theory
    2h
    Problems
    2h
    Laboratory
    0h
    Guided learning
    0h
    Autonomous learning
    10h

    Teaching methodology

    The course is taught online and in English, through a combination of synchronous and asynchronous classes.
    In synchronous classes, theoretical lectures will be combined with applied practical exercises and assignments to be completed individually and in groups, based on the theoretical content. Asynchronous classes may include theory videos, as well as practical assignments to be completed within predetermined deadlines.
    This approach will promote:
    - the implementation of a continuous assessment model for the course.
    - guided and independent work by students.
    In the Ethics activities, the emphasis will be put on the reflection and report of practical cases.

    Evaluation methodology

    The course will be assessed continuously, without theoretical exams, using practical assignments:
    50% of the grade comes from individual assignments and projects,
    50% of the grade comes from group assignments and projects.

    The reevaluation grade (for students who fail the subject) will be determined by an oral exam.

    Bibliography

    Basic

    • Writing Science - Schimel, Joshua , Oxford University Press, 2011. ISBN: 978-0-19-976023-7
    • Escape from the Ivory Tower - Baron, Nancy, Island Press, 2010. ISBN: 978-1-59726-663-5
    • How to write and Publish a Scientific Paper - Gastel, Barbara and Day, Robert A., Greenwood, 2022. ISBN: 978-1-4408-7882-4
    • Fundamentals of Data Visualization - Wilke, Clau O., O'Reilly, 2019. ISBN: 978-1-492-03108-6
    • Document sobre els aspectes ètics del diàleg entre ciència i societat - CASADO, María i PUIGDOMÉNECH ROSELL, Pedro, Edicions de la Universitat de Barcelona, 2018. ISBN: 978-84-9168-116-8
      https://hdl.handle.net/2445/122804
    • Ten simple rules for scientists engaging in science communication - Borowiec, Brittney G, Plos Computational Biology,
      https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1011251
    • Declaració sobre integritat científica en recerca i innovació responsable - CASADO, María, et al, Edicions de la Universitat de Barcelona, 2016. ISBN: 9788447540334
      https://hdl.handle.net/2445/103268
    • La integridad científica en las instituciones de educación superior en el siglo XXI. - de Lecuona, Itziar, Dilemata, 31.
      https://www.dilemata.net/revista/index.php/dilemata/article/view/412000332

    Complementary

    Web links

    Previous capacities

    No previous requirement but those of the Bioinformatics degree.