| Abstract: | Modern life requires individuals with little formal educational background in the sciences to make science and technology-based decisions, such as vaccinating one's children, consuming genetically modified food or buying a house near a nuclear power plant. The chief information sources for many such decisions are the media and the internet, that became the public's primary reference database concerning science and technology. New media increasingly shape public engagement with science. This talk address the international and national contexts of science communication, describes public understanding of science, engagement with science and participation in science, and stresses the importance of scientists' understanding of the public.
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