Monya Baker

San Francisco

Senior Editor at Issues in Science and Technology

I edit @ISSUESinST, searching for idea on how science can strengthen society, and how society should guide science

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Articles

How Do You Solve a Problem Like Misinformation?

Feb 11, 2025 | issues.org | Monya Baker |Asheley R. Landrum |Kimberly Quach

Vaccines, oil spills, genetic engineering, and stem cells—anywhere there’s science, there’s also misinformation. It muddies our ability to make good decisions, ranging from far-reaching ones like creating policy to simple ones like what to buy at the grocery store. Misinformation also undermines trust in scientific institutions and across society. The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine tasked an expert committee with addressing misinformation.
Uncovering Hidden Bias in Clinical Research

Oct 22, 2024 | issues.org | Lisa A Bero |Monya Baker |Kimberly Quach

Check the end of any recent study, and there will be a list of study funders and disclosures about competing interests. It’s important to know about potential biases in research, but this kind of transparency was not always the norm. Understanding bias in research and helping policymakers use the most reliable evidence to guide their decisions is a science in itself.
A Road Map for a New Era in Biology and Medicine

Jul 9, 2024 | issues.org | Lydia Contreras |Monya Baker |Kimberly Quach

Most people are familiar with DNA, but its cousin, RNA, has become widely known only recently. In 2020, of course, RNA was in the news all the time: the COVID-19 virus is made of RNA, as are the vaccines to combat it. Technologies based on RNA could lead to innovations in biology, medicine, agriculture, and beyond, but researchers have only scratched the surface of understanding what RNA is capable of.
To Fix Health Misinformation, Think Beyond Fact Checking

May 7, 2024 | issues.org | Tina Purnat |Elisabeth Wilhelm |Monya Baker

When tackling the problem of misinformation, people often think first of content and its accuracy. But contering misinformation by fact-checking every erroneous or misleading claim traps organizations in an endless game of whack-a-mole. A more effective approach may be to start by considering connections and communities. That is particularly important for public health, where different people are vulnerable in different ways.
Episode 40: A Venture Capitalist for Better Science

Nov 28, 2023 | issues.org | Stuart Buck |Monya Baker |Jay Lloyd

Stuart Buck has referred to himself as a venture capitalist for making science more efficient, reliable, and accountable. As vice president at the policy-focused philanthropy Arnold Ventures, he directed funds toward fledgling enterprises that are now major forces shaping scientific norms and infrastructure, including the Center for Open Science and Retraction Watch.
Episode 36: Open Science: Moving From Possible to Expected to Required

Sep 26, 2023 | issues.org | Brian A. Nosek |Monya Baker |Jay Lloyd

A decade ago, University of Virginia psychology professor Brian Nosek cofounded an unusual nonprofit, the Center for Open Science. It’s been a cheerleader, enabler, and nagger to convince scientists that making their methods, data, and papers available to others makes for better science. The Center for Open Science has built tools to register analysis plans and hypotheses before data are collected.