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Dr. Roger Highfield's competition guide The following is intended as guidance.
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GENERAL POINTS
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Above all else, your article should be suitable for publication in The Daily Telegraph's weekly science page and be around 700 words in length. Articles over 800 words will be disqualified.
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Your article should discuss science in an entertaining, informative and original way while being clear, concise and accessible to the non-specialist newspaper reader.
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Journalistic methods will
be favoured, such as seeking an interview with a scientist, (in person,
or by e-mail or phone) rather than simply rewriting his or her published
research. Evaluate each source of information in terms of its relevance,
worth and veracity. Take particular care when it comes to information
available on the Internet.
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If you feel diagrams or illustrations
would be helpful, include them or a description in your entry. It
doesn't matter how sketchy they are.
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Scientific jargon should
either be avoided or explained so that the ideas are crystal clear
to a general reader.
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| Make sure you keep a copy
of your entry for yourself.
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Feel free to draw on other
published articles for inspiration but don't copy them wholesale.
When there is a glut of information on your subject, you should do
more to provide the context of the development you are describing,
for instance the ethical debate surrounding a new development in genetics.
Include your list of sources, from web pages to magazines, in a bibliography.
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| There is no limit to the
number of entries per person. However, it is much better to focus
all your efforts on one.
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| The Internet is an important
tool but should be used with care. The temptation to plagiarise material
is great. Resist it! Moreover, much of the information should not
be accepted at face value. It is best to use the web for preliminary
research for your article, then mop up outstanding questions by approaching
an authority in the field. Thanks to the Internet it is easier than
ever to contact scientists around the planet by e-mail.
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16-19 Age Group Entrants
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| You are asked to write about any scientific
discovery that appeals to you. For example, you could find out about
a project being pursued in a local research laboratory or hospital,
or draw on recent issues of scientific publications such as New Scientist
and Nature.
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| Whatever you choose, you must provide
some insight into how you researched the article, listing the people
you interviewed or the sources (web page, journal, newspaper, and
so on).
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20-28 Age Group Entrants
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| If you are engaged in your
own research, you do not necessarily have to write about it: entrants
may write about any recent scientific discovery or research.
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| Researchers may wish to write in human terms about their method, rather than pure science, to convey the frustrations and rewards of scientific experimentation. | |
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If you do describe your own
research, it does not matter if it is complete or not - ideas in progress
can be just as fascinating to the reader. (We don't demand your specific
results: we have no intention of scooping your eventual paper in a
scientific journal).
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Entrants not engaged in original
research are expected to demonstrate journalistic skills at a higher
standard.
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Professional journalists
must identify themselves as such.
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