Don't Be Such a Scientist
Talking Substance in an Age of Style
Randy Olson

Island Press
August 28, 2009 / ISBN 978-1597265638
Business & Investing Communications
Amazon

Reviewed by Beth E. McKenzie

I am a Nuclear Safety Engineer. My job is to read regulations, procedures and job hazards reviews, talk to the people who perform and plan work, and bring all of that information together in order to create work instructions with clear and achievable steps. The key is to balance safety precautions with the process required to perform the task; you NEVER want to put anybody at risk, but you don't want cost- or time- or effort-prohibitive requirements either. There is more to it than the concern that the boss won't like it; if you make something too bothersome to operate then at some point a worker will choose not to use it. Crucial to this effort is being able to communicate at all levels of the industrial ladder: The Bosses, the Regulator, the Worker, the Purchasing Clerk and the Scientist have different ways of looking at the same task, different concerns and need to hone in on different things to say, "Topeka!"*

So how do you get all of these different people to pay attention to your idea, research or safety documentation? Randy Olsen tells us that it is the style we employ that will make or break our intentions. Phrases like "effort-prohibitive requirements" are awkward when compared to "make it easy to use". He also says make it familiar and personal at a gut level. Where I work any job that is more than 4 feet off of the ground requires fall protection, which is primarily wearing a harness attached to a fancy bungee cord that is tied to a stable structural member. Instead of signs that say "WEAR FALL PROTECTION" or quote OSHA regulations, we have one near the harnesses that sends a vivid message, "You came into this world tied off, you can work that way too." Finally he says not to sacrifice communicating for accuracy, which is why the "Eureka" reference is in a footnote instead of part of the text.

I don't think this book really teaches you the how-to of this important subject. If you are a scientist or engineer then you probably think like one, not like a filmmaker, and you will probably have to be taught how to change the shape of that box. Remember that Mr. Olsen had to have abuse professionally administrated to make him quit thinking so much. This is one of the reasons that his story is both entertaining and enlightening.

* Yes, I know, Archimedes, "Eureka!" - but-
Kelly Bundy: Topeka! I have found it!
Peggy: I don't think you mean "Topeka."
Kelly: Oh yeah. Urethra! I have found it! -
Married With Children, 05.06, Episode 86, Kelly Bounces Back