For a few weeks now, I’ve been cryptically hinting at some good news and I can finally reveal what it is: I’ve won one of the 2010 National Academies Communication Awards.
These awards are jointly presented by the National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and Institute of Medicine. They consist for four $20,000 prizes (seriously) for “creative, original works that address issues and advances in science, engineering and/or medicine for the general public”, in the categories of book; magazine/newspaper; broadcast; and online. I won the online category for this blog (press release here).
I’m incredibly honoured, rather blown away and very humbled. Past winners have included Carl Zimmer, Neil Shubin, Andy Revkin and Steven Johnson, and I assume competition is fierce.
I also regard this as a decent victory for science blogs as a medium. Over the last year, I seem to have been stuck in a strange Groundhog Day where I’m destined to recursively defend the idea that blogs can be a worthy avenue for science journalism and communication. The fact that blogs can win competitions like this will, I hope, do good things for the medium’s credibility.
So, thanks to the judges and congratulations to the other winners. I’ll be picking up the prize at the awards ceremony in Washington D.C. next Friday, which I’m especially looking forward to because my wife gets to join me. For all the support that she provides, it’s only fitting.
These, by the way, are the six pieces that I entered for the competition (yes, it includes the duck sex post. Next year’s goal is to get knighted for the one about masturbating squirrels).
- Electrical stimulation produces feelings of free will
- Groovy teeth, but was Sinornithosaurus a venomous dinosaur?
- What is the difference between the human genome and a pair of headphones?
- Ballistic penises and corkscrew vaginas – the sexual battles of ducks
- Marine worms release glowing “bombs” to fool predators
- Scientists tickle apes to reveal evolutionary origins of human laughter
October 14th, 2010 at 11:12 am
WOW! Congrats! This is fantastic news, and well deserved.
October 14th, 2010 at 11:23 am
YAY!!! This is so awesome!! They could not have chosen better.
October 14th, 2010 at 11:25 am
Congratulations, Ed, on an awesome award for a wonderful blog. Plus, now I can say that I know National Academies award winner.
October 14th, 2010 at 11:30 am
Congrats Ed! Very well deserved, indeed. And a nice paycheck to boot:)
October 14th, 2010 at 11:37 am
Congratulations! What a great honor.
October 14th, 2010 at 11:40 am
Congratulations. Incredibly well-deserved!
October 14th, 2010 at 11:43 am
Congrats!
October 14th, 2010 at 11:46 am
Incredibly awesome!!!!! Congratulations!!!!!
October 14th, 2010 at 11:48 am
Congratulations!
Well deserved award.
October 14th, 2010 at 11:49 am
Congrats, Ed! Hope to see you in, DC. You can buy me a beer.
October 14th, 2010 at 11:54 am
Congratulations – pity I’ll miss you, having escaped from DC!
October 14th, 2010 at 12:00 pm
Fantastic, Ed! Congratulations!
October 14th, 2010 at 12:01 pm
Woot!
October 14th, 2010 at 12:15 pm
Nice! Impressed, proud, not surprised.
October 14th, 2010 at 12:17 pm
Wow, that’s amazing! Congratulations!
October 14th, 2010 at 12:17 pm
Congrats! You’re one of my favorite science bloggers!
October 14th, 2010 at 12:28 pm
Well deserved, you have one of my favorite blogs!
~Rhaco
October 14th, 2010 at 12:50 pm
congrats!
October 14th, 2010 at 12:53 pm
I read only a small proportion of the scientific blogs on the web, so to be “scientifically” honest I should say that I am not sure whether you deserve this award… But to be even more honest, I am SURE you do
October 14th, 2010 at 12:59 pm
Alexis Madrigal had an idea simiilar to mine. Will there be a get-together with your readers, preferably in some venue suitable for dispelling any misconceptions you might have about the quality of American beer?
October 14th, 2010 at 1:24 pm
Well done mate!
October 14th, 2010 at 1:34 pm
Congrats Ed. Awesome. And quite a considerable amount of money in the bank
October 14th, 2010 at 1:52 pm
How wonderful is this? Congrats, Ed, I couldn’t think of a better recipient!
October 14th, 2010 at 2:08 pm
I’ve never heard of this award but it’s most certainly well deserved! In my opinion, your blog is the best science blog around. Congratulations!
October 14th, 2010 at 3:00 pm
You totally deserve it! Keep up the excellent work.
October 14th, 2010 at 3:06 pm
I think this means Discover now has to pay you more than Zimmer and Plait, right!
Congrats!!
(…now excuse me while I go read about squirrels).
October 14th, 2010 at 4:10 pm
Congrats! If we want to have a beer with you will it have to be room temperature?
October 14th, 2010 at 5:27 pm
I’d almost forgotten about that ape tickling post… and the duck sex… good memories!
Congrats on the award, very well deserved.
October 14th, 2010 at 5:38 pm
You deserve it.
And, yes, you’ve shown that blogs can be a worthy avenue for science journalism and communication.
However, you should be cautious about using the term “blown away” in the same post that links to items on “glowing bombs,” “electrical stimulation,” “sexual battles of ducks” and “scientists tickle apes.”
October 14th, 2010 at 5:54 pm
Congratulations Ed — I don’t get to check out as many science blogs as I should, but it’s always fun and stimulating to read yours (I still shake my head in awe over those ducks — great conversation-stopping dinner subject!).
October 14th, 2010 at 7:07 pm
Awesome! Now I know why you were being all top-secret!
October 14th, 2010 at 9:24 pm
Wow, congrats!!! Been a longtime follower of your fantastic writing… congratulations on a well deserved award!!!
October 15th, 2010 at 12:24 am
Congrats!!
October 15th, 2010 at 1:40 am
Congratulations Ed, well merited.
October 15th, 2010 at 2:45 am
Well done!! Congrats
October 15th, 2010 at 3:28 am
Congrats!
October 15th, 2010 at 3:39 am
You go, Eddie!
October 15th, 2010 at 5:11 am
Huge congrats Ed, academy award winner. Awesome news, you are a proper ‘sleb now. We are awaiting beers on your return
x
October 15th, 2010 at 5:39 am
Congratulations Edmundo! Don’t forget to come back soon! ;o)
October 15th, 2010 at 9:36 am
That is so awesome! Congratulations!!
October 15th, 2010 at 12:56 pm
Way to go Ed!
October 15th, 2010 at 2:55 pm
Congratulations. But even more, congratulations on such amazingly good work.
October 15th, 2010 at 6:12 pm
Thanks for the congratulations everyone! I’ve been sitting on this news for a month now which is about long enough to get over the shock. For those who asked, I’m not in DC for that long and it’s sort of a hit-and-run job, collecting the award, seeing as much of the Smithsonian as I can, and then flying back. But we’ll see…
October 17th, 2010 at 12:17 am
Late to the show…sigh…but Excellent, Ed! Congratulations!! I’m still using the info from the duck sex post to awe and amaze various folks. Last time was just two weeks ago. That’s a post that just keeps on giving.
October 17th, 2010 at 12:45 am
Arr, a hearty congratulations! Have a mug o’ rum!
October 18th, 2010 at 10:38 am
I only have time to regularly read a handful of blogs, but you have been on my shortlist from the beginning. It’s great to see your exceptional talent recognized so publicly. Well-deserved congratulations!!!!
October 18th, 2010 at 10:54 pm
Congrats man, it’s well deserved. Your blog is proper bo.
October 21st, 2010 at 12:46 am
Duck sex rules!!!
(Just Kidding!)
You totally deserve it Ed. You are fantastic science writer. Keep up the great work!
October 21st, 2010 at 11:00 am
Congrats, Ed. If anyone deserves this level of recognition, it’s you.
October 25th, 2010 at 11:50 am
As a long-time reader, I also offer congratulations on this well-deserved award. It was an honor to meet you Friday night.
October 26th, 2010 at 6:39 pm
Congrats! Well deserved. I recently blogged a piece on why scientists in academia tend not to blog and why they should be advocates for their research and the patients who could be helped by it.
http://www.ipscell.com/
Paul
November 16th, 2010 at 4:56 am
Congrats!