Rachel White

My job gives me the opportunity to learn about human interactions and how communication can help us better understand our world and each other. I am interested in communicating science in diverse ways, developing effective strategies to help programs run successfully, using plain language, and designing information products that are visually appealing and audience-appropriate. 

"Plain language" is communication your audience will understand the first time they read it. Obama signed the Plain Writing Act in 2010, requiring federal agencies to use clear prose in communication with the public. Communicating science using plain language keeps your readers from falling asleep or walking out, and it does not require dumbing research down. Einstein said, "Most of the fundamental ideas of science are essentially simple, and may, as a rule, be expressed in a language comprehensible to everyone."