Without context or comparison , numbers can feel meaningless to patients.
We offer 3 types of comparisons that might be helpful.
1. Compare with a plausible alternative option
2. Compare action with no action
3. Compare a patient's risk with that of others
jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
Ever wonder how Motel 6 and Motel 8 acquired their names? Was it numerology? A favorite number? They liked some similar name? Nope, they originally charged $6 in 1962 and $8.88 in 1974. #numeracy www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5lL...
Around the world, people rate their personal vulnerability to climate change as lower than it is for other people, including their neighbors.
Climate change risk for thee but not for me!
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Many thanks to cofounder @asinclair.bsky.social & the entire SCIMaP team (scienceimpacts.org) for collaborative work to confront federal cuts to science and medical research; together, our effort was recognized as a 2025 Public Health Hero in @thenation.com.
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www.thenation.com/article/soci...
Humans are bad at big numbers. Which makes it easier for billionaires (and trillionaires) to get away with hoarding wealth. Because most people just can't comprehend how much money that is.
So, I appreciate this WaPo effort to help people visualize what ridiculous amounts of wealth really mean.
A woman from the FDA’s Center for Devices & Radiological Health explains how her entire department was gutted
That means there’s no staff to alert you if your pacemaker is recalled
If an implantable device in your body is toxic or broken
This could have catastrophic health impacts & cost lives
Super interesting test of single blind vs double blind review.
@angiefagerlin.bsky.social
Amidst a government shutdown in which the White House has proposed slashing federal support of science by billions of dollars, our #SCIMaP team continues to assess the impact of research cuts on communities nationwide.
Learn more about our efforts: scienceimpacts.org
With more to come...
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How we communicate risk statistics can matter as much as what we communicate.
I was lucky enough to share this conversation with @hal-hershfield.bsky.social and Mark Meredith, founder of Meredith Wealth Planning.
Check it out: www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKHa...
#numeracy #risk
Best consideration deadline, Friday Oct 10:
#SCIMaP (scienceimacts.org) seeks to hire a Research Communications and Media Outreach Specialist at U-Maryland to facilitate public engagement related to federal investment in science and health research.
umd.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/UMCP/j...
T. Joseph Mattingly estimates that the 2025 measles outbreak in Texas will cost $90M. Measles is expensive. It's also preventable. Vaccination increases productivity & reduces costs.
Vaccination is healthy for people & the economy.
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
New job 🚨:
Our #SCIMaP (scienceimpacts.org) team is searching for a Research Communications and Media Outreach Specialist to facilitate public engagement related to federal investment in science and health research.
Application review starts Oct 10:
umd.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/UMCP/j...
NSF invests in science, technology, and education in all 50 states. Cutting it this much will cause substantial losses to communities around the US
“What we’re seeing is an unprecedented attempt to silence disfavored speech by the government,” said Brendan Nyhan, a political scientist at Dartmouth College. “Donald Trump is trying to dictate what Americans can say.” https://to.pbs.org/46AYg7U
Title: Examining the interplay of risk and affect over time
Paper: www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
First 50 copies are free here: www.tandfonline.com/eprint/ARGXV...
Kudos to Dan Chapman for leading the paper! @uoregon.bsky.social
🚨 New in J of Risk Research
💡 Neg affect-risk perc correlated in 6 waves Yr1 COVID consistent w affect heuristic
💡 Affect preceded risk perc btw waves
💡But paths of risk perc to affect were stronger
💡Why? Waves were 2–22 wk apart and strength of affect-risk relation stronger w less time for thinking
It’s hard to make good decisions if you don’t understand numbers.
This numeracy shapes the quality of our daily lives in ways we might not realize.
Many thanks to the American Psychological Association's award-winning podcast: at.apa.org/qz2
#numeracy #math #numbers #decisionmaking #psychology
The White House FY26 budget proposal slashes NIH funding of medical research and will lead to economic and job losses in community nationwide. Our (updated) #SCIMaP analysis now includes state-level scorecards
Go to scienceimpacts.org/fy26
Click on any state (or House District) to learn more.
Longer posts soon on recent exec orders that threaten the vitality of America's research capacity, but wanted to step back and highlight the release of in-depth analyses that directly confront the economic impacts of administration decisions building on viz at scienceimpacts.org
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📣 New preprint from the SCIMaP team!
Across three studies, we show that communicating the economic impact of NIH funding cuts—especially with interactive quizzes and maps—decreases approval and motivates action to oppose the cuts, across the political spectrum. 🧵 1/8
osf.io/preprints/ps...
As Trump and his allies in Congress try to gut public funding for PBS, watch this 1971 clip of Rev. Jesse Jackson and the kids of Sesame Street.
This is why we need public broadcasting.
Um, that's not science
We just went to Dishoom but didn't get to play. Now I want to go back!
Experiencing extreme weather events alone isn't enough to drive support for climate policies. People need to believe these events are actually linked to climate change. This is why effective climate communication is so important. Another valuable contribution from the TISP consortium! 👏
Great advice from @americanredcross.bsky.social about what to look for and what to do when temperatures and humidity get high. www.redcross.org/get-help/how... h/t @maibached.bsky.social
Vaccination schedules on the CDC website have already started changing under RFK Jr. So we published a guide to the evidence-based vaccine recommendations in place *before* all 17 members of the advisory panel were abruptly dismissed by the new admin. www.scientificamerican.com/article/see-... 🧪
The #SCIMaP team announces a major update: an analysis of the economic impacts of the White House's NIH FY26 budget.
Bottom-line, we estimate $46B in total economic loss, 202K lost jobs, and impacts in communities nationwide.
Interactive map and shareable report:
scienceimpacts.org/fy26
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Major update to #SCIMaP visualization of impacts of cuts to federally supported health research. Map now includes information on future economic losses (impact of proposed reduction of NIH IDC to 15%) and current economic losses (impact of terminated NIH grants).
scienceimpacts.org
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/202...
Joint w/@asinclair.bsky.social and the #SCIMaP team: brief correspondence in @nathumbehav.nature.com on the impact of NIH indirect cost cuts on the economy and employment, impacts that will only worsen given similar proposals for NSF/DOE + overall science proposal.
rdcu.be/eo3Hp
