“I aspire to translate complicated ideas in science into consumable stories,” says Katherine Lingenfelter, who writes for TV shows with science or science fiction themes, such as House and Westworld, respectively. “Television is a writer’s medium.” Writers research, develop, and pitch ideas for shows, then assemble and oversee teams of other writers to create the scripts. Writers may also have a final say on casting and set design.

Work overview.

Typically, once filming starts, four episodes are in progress at once: one being “broken” (ideas being developed), one being written, one being filmed, and one being video edited. Each will require your attention. The writers may gather in the writers’ room in the morning. In the afternoons, I go to production meetings, where I might discuss things such as wardrobe, go out on a location scout, or get feedback from network executives on a script draft. I might also go into the editing room to make adjustments. I spend the evening writing.

At the major networks, you work 10.5 months and then get a five-week

Writer Katherine Lingenfelter poses on location for the popular Westworld TV series (for mature audiences) in Fossil Point, Utah. Photo by Matt Belanger.

hiatus. If the show continues, and you’re asked back, you start up again. If not, you look for your next contract. Cable schedules are more varied.

I just finished working as a co-executive producer for HBO’s Westworld, which is about artificial intelligence. I researched topics such as consciousness, biology, and early evolution.

I recently sold a sci-fi pilot idea to the AMC network about a western taking place after climate change. Science fiction writers have the freedom to imagine scientific possibilities, but we also consult with the Science and Entertainment Exchange, a program of the National Academy of Sciences that connects us with scientists and engineers who vet our ideas. I’m also preparing to sell another idea, about cryptozoology, with an environmental bent. A tiny percentage of pitched shows make it all the way to airing on a network.

It’s thrilling to be on set, when 60 people are all focused on one goal,

Equipment trucks on location for the Westworld TV series. Photo by Katherine Lingenfelter.

and everyone plays their part. I also love the research. My least favorite part is the actual writing, which is a lonely endeavor, and I also don’t like it when a project fails.

Career highlights.

Our work can affect real people. A House episode I worked on accurately portrayed cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and may have inspired people to learn the technique.

Career path.

I wanted to follow in my anesthesiologist father’s footsteps and become a neurosurgeon, but I also adopted my older brother’s love of science fiction. In college, I started out in pre-medicine but switched to psychology. I joined my brother in Los Angeles to try to get into the entertainment industry. After working as an assistant, learning what I needed to know about the industry to become a writer, I eventually landed my first writing job.

Knowledge, skills, and training needed.

Writing competency is important, but a good TV writer needs the imagination to explore ideas and maintain unusual interests. Networks want diverse writers. Writers with varied life experiences are in high demand. Your characters will be more realistic if you’ve observed the world for a while.

Advice for students.

Write a lot about many different things. If you decide to become a TV writer, don’t let go until you do it. Move to Los Angeles or New York or at least submit your work every month. It may take years. Work for people you admire. Almost all my job offers have been based on relationships I developed, so be generous with your ideas and be someone other people like to work with.

Bonus Points
Lingenfelter’s education:
BA in psychology, University of Michigan

On the web:
www.johnaugust.com, www.imdb.com

Related occupations:
screenwriter, science writer, novelist, prop maker, production designer

Editor’s Note

This article was originally published in the January 2017 issue of The Science Teacher journal from the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA).

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the peer-reviewed journal just for high school teachers; to write for the journal, see our Author Guidelines, Call for Papers, and annotated sample manuscript; connect on the high school level science teaching list (members can sign up on the list server); or consider joining your peers at future NSTA conferences.

The lab can be an unsafe place. Under NSTA’s Duty of Care, however, the teacher is required to make labs safer (see Resources). One way of doing so is to follow the analysis, assessment, and action (AAA) method. The method requires teachers to perform a hazard analysis before each lab demonstration (Minister 2015), as mandated by Standard 45 of the National Fire Protection Agency, then conduct a hazard assessment, and take the best possible action.

Analysis

The first step is to analyze the potential hazards. For example, there can be physical impact hazards (labware such as ring stand rod and meter sticks), chemical hazards (corrosives and toxins), and biological hazards (mold and bacteria). The hazards analysis is usually based on the teacher’s previous lab experiences, employer-required safety training, Safety Data Sheets and a Chemical Hygiene Plan from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA [see Resources]), and internet safety information.

Assessment

Next, assess the risks of potential hazards determined in step one, using the Safety Data Sheets:

• Section 2. Hazards Identification,
• Section 5. Fire-Fighting Measures,
• Section 6. Accidental Release Measures,
• Section 10. Stability and Reactivity, and
• Section 11. Toxicological Information.

Action

Determine the appropriate action based on the types of hazards and risks.
The top three actions to consider, based on the OSHA’s Hazard Prevention and Control (see Resources), include engineering controls, administrative controls, and personal protective equipment (PPE).

Section 8 of the Safety Data Sheet can help determine which PPE (safety glasses or goggles) and engineering controls work best. Also, read the labels on hazardous chemicals before working with them. In some cases where risks are too high, the demonstration or activity should be abandoned and replaced with a safer alternative.

Submit questions regarding safety in K–12 to Ken Roy at safesci@sbcglobal.net, or leave him a comment below. Follow Ken Roy on Twitter: @drroysafersci.

Reference

Minister, A. 2015. Unsafe science. NFPA Journal. www.nfpa.org/news-and-research/publications/nfpa-journal/2015/september-october-2015/features/unsafe-science.

Resources

NSTA’s Duty of Care—www.nsta.org/docs/DutyOfCare.pdf
Hazard Prevention and Control—www.osha.gov/shpguidelines/hazard-prevention.html
Safety Data Sheets—www.osha.gov/Publications/OSHA3514.html
Chemical Hygiene Plan—www.osha.gov/Publications/laboratory/OSHAfactsheet-laboratory-safety-chemical-hygiene-plan.pdf

NSTA resources and safety issue papers
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DCIs provide explanations for a variety of phenomena

Last month I talked about how disciplinary core ideas (DCIs) form a conceptual framework. Now, I’d like to explore the idea that DCIs provide explanations for a variety of phenomena. Phenomena are reoccurring events that occur in the world. That an object falls to the lower point is a phenomenon. This is an everyday occurrence. Phenomena do not need to be phenomenal but they could be.  Babies are born all the time. Birth is a phenomenon, but it is also phenomenal.

Disciplinary core ideas are central to the disciplines of science, provide explanations of phenomena, and are the building blocks for learning within and across disciplines (Stevens, Sutherland, & Krajcik, 2009). In many respects, DCIs are conceptual tools that empower learners to make sense of the world around them. As students use these conceptual tools, the ideas become more connected. While disciplinary core ideas are essential in explaining phenomena within a discipline, they are also essential in explaining phenomena across disciplines. Take for instance the idea of energy. Students can certainly use the idea of energy transfer to track the energy changes when various objects collide with one another. Yet, the concept of energy transfer is also critical in understanding photosynthesis and respiration. By focusing on a few powerful ideas, students learn the connections between ideas so that they can apply their understanding to explain situations that they have not yet encountered.  I often refer to this type of connected knowledge as integrated understanding (Fortus & Krajcik, 2011). Supporting students in developing integrated understanding is critical as it allows learners to solve real-world problems, make sense of phenomena, and learn more.  Perhaps the idea of learning more is one of most critical aspects—as we use the core ideas (along with practices and crosscutting concepts) the core ideas become richer and more connected. 

If you think of a discipline in which you have the most expertise, you can imagine the disciplinary core ideas for that area as they form the network of understanding that allow you to explain phenomena. Close your eyes and think of an important phenomenon in your field. What ideas and what connections among those ideas do you see that explain that phenomenon? The ideas that you see and connections among them are likely core ideas.  For example, individuals who have a background in chemistry might think of reacting various substances to form a new substance with different properties (phenomena) and ideas related to the particle nature of matter and energy (DCIs) to make sense of it. Individuals with backgrounds in physics might think of why a person gets a shock after walking on a rug and then touching a metal door knob (phenomena) and use ideas related to electrical interactions (DCIs) to makes sense of the experience; those with backgrounds in biology might think of the diversity of life that exists on earth (phenomena) and ideas related to natural selection (DCIs) to explain them. Individuals with a background in earth science might envision how earth structures are formed (phenomena) and ideas related to plate tectonics (DCIs) to help explain those structures.

Core ideas are powerful because they are central to the disciplines of science, provide explanations of phenomena, and are the building blocks for learning new ideas both within a discipline and across disciplines (Stevens, Sutherland, & Krajcik, 2009). For example, electrical interactions (PS2) that occur at the molecular level can explain a variety of phenomena. One phenomenon the DCI helps explain is why water boils at the high temperature of 100^O C, yet carbon dioxide boils at – 56 ^O C.  Interestingly, carbon dioxide is a much more massive molecule (44 g/mole) than water (18 gram/mole). What causes water to stick together so much more than CO2? Based on its mass, one might suspect that water should boil at a much lower temperature than carbon dioxide. Using the ideas from the DCI can explain this rather strange case. Because of the strong electrical interactions that exist between water molecules and the relative weak electrical interactions that exist among carbon dioxide molecules, water boils at a much higher temperature. The strong electrical interactions that form among water molecules help to explain other diverse phenomena such as why so much energy is given off in a hurricane (i.e., gaseous water condensing to liquid water) and why proteins fold together the way they do. Explaining a diversity of phenomena is what makes DCIs so powerful.

Let’s take a look at another powerful DCI; gene and environmental interactions. Often students believe that genes alone determine our physical characteristics. While it is true that our genes help determine who we are, the environment also plays an important role. For example, an individual might be prone to type 2 diabetes, but diet and exercise can certainly control the onset of this disease. Bottom line—the environment can do a lot to shape who and what we become. In Disciplinary Core Ideas:  Reshaping Teaching and Learning (Duncan, Krajcik and Ravit, 2016) various chapters expand on the meaning of the disciplinary core ideas and their components.

In the next blog, I’ll explore how DCI’s develop over time.

I would love to hear your ideas, questions, and feedback on this blog. Tweet me at @krajcikjoe or email krajcik@msu.edu.  If you want to learn more about the disciplinary core ideas take a look at our new book just published by NSTA Press; Disciplinary Core Ideas:  Reshaping Teaching and Learning, edited by myself as well as Ravit Duncan, and Ann Rivet.

_____________________________________________________

Joe Krajcik

Editor’s note: This blog is the second in a series of three by Joe Krajcik that explore the NGSS disciplinary core ideas. Click here to read the third and final installment in the series.

Joe Krajcik (Krajcik@msu.edu) is a professor of science education at Michigan State University and director of the Institute for Collaborative Research for Education, Assessment, and Teaching Environments for Science, Technology and Engineering and Mathematics (CREATE for STEM). He served as Design Team Lead for both the Framework and the NGSS.

References

Duncan, R., Krajcik, J., Ravit, A. Editors (authorship is alphabetical) (2016).  Disciplinary Core Ideas:  Reshaping Teaching and Learning.  Arlington, VA: National Science Teachers Association Press.

Fortus, D. & Krajcik, J. (2011). Curriculum Coherence and Learning Progressions. Fraser, B. J., Tobin, K. G., & McRobbie, C. J. (Eds). The International Handbook of Research in Science Education (second edition). Dordrecht: Springer.

Stevens, S., Sutherland, L., & Krajcik, J.S., (2009). The Big Ideas of Nanoscale Science and Engineering. Arlington, VA: National Science Teachers Association Press.

 

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