In his new book, If I Understood You, Would I Have This Look on My Face? (Random House 2017), Mr. Alda examines the gap between scientific knowledge and popular understanding of scientific ideas. Mr. Alda believes that many of the public’s fears and misconceptions come from poor communication of ideas.
The inspiration for the book came from an experience Mr. Alda had right before a dental surgery, where an irritable dentist refused to define a procedure he was about to perform that ended up having unexpected consequences. He believes the confusion could have been avoided if the dentist was more comfortable communicating his ideas in plain language.
Mr. Alda has also tackled this issue with the creation of the Alda-Kavli Learning Center for Science Communication at SUNY-Stony Brook, which seeks to equip scientific professionals with improved communication skills.
More Articles on Leadership:
Senate needs simple majority vote to pass House-approved AHCA
Trump to keep Dr. Francis Collins as NIH director
Study: Few college students graduate as better critical thinkers
At Becker's 4th Annual CEO + CFO Roundtable, taking place November 2–5 in Chicago, more than 1,500 hospital and health system executives tackle decisions that determine whether organizations thrive or merely survive: protecting margins under cost pressure, choosing where to grow, renegotiating payer relationships, stabilizing the workforce and proving real ROI on technology. This is where leaders work through them together, face-to-face. Apply for complimentary registration now.