Shifting our focus: communicating science to a new, nontechnical culture

The US Congress´s decision to close down the $11 billion Superconducting Supercollider is spreading anxiety throughout the scientific community. As funding for the nation´s research laboratories becomes increasingly scarce, technical communicators in these organizations must focus much of their communications efforts on a new culture: Congress and the public. We discuss how to characterize this new audience and the importance of evaluating communication products, and we highlight some strategies for interpreting science to nonscientists more effectively