10 Science Communication Ideas
It feels like we are in a a crisis of science education and understanding. From overreaction and scare stories about Ebola, to the spread of measles due to vaccination myths, it has become far too easy for the general public to become influenced by scare stories and fear-mongering.
Furthermore, it seems like every other day that I see stories and posts on Facebook with titles like “Why honey is the best antibiotic” or “The secret cure for cancer they don’t want you to know about”
In my mind, a lot of this comes down to the fact that as a society we, no longer seem to value science or scientists. There is something very wrong when ‘not being good at maths’ is considered a badge of honour, and non-scientific and discredited ideas are given so much weight and media-coverage, particularly when it comes to issues which affect society more broadly such as public health policy and climate change.
To that end, here is a list of ideas (some more realistic than others) for trying to reverse this trend with better education, communication and engagement. Many of these are aimed more at children because I think that is where we need to focus in order to make a real difference.
- A compelling basic science book for the general public which doesn’t
just educate but really engages people and gets them excited about
science. For me this would need to:
- Be written by a non-expert who has spoken to and interviewed enough scientists until they understand the ideas well enough to be able to explain them to someone else
- Include not just the ideas, but also personal stories about the people behind the ideas; my personal choice for the author would be Bill Bryson.
- Games and apps that explore specific concepts and help people to learn in a fun way. Some nice existing examples include Illsville and Earth Primer
- Immersive gaming – An immersive world that players need to explore and learn about in order to advance. For instance you might start with atoms and then once you have solved enough challenges, unlock further levels to move onto molecules or atomic power. The more you explore, the more you learn and the more you can unlock and advance.
- Virtual Lab – an online lab through which people can interact from afar in scientific experiments. Participants would be able to suggest and vote on experiments, and then review and interpret data in a collaborative, and probably guided/moderated fashion. This is rather like the idea of Quirky but for general science.
- Community science labs – staffed science labs which give disadvantaged children and those without access to proper resources the chance to use microscopes, telescopes and other instruments, as well as interact with young, passionate scientists.
- More films and TV programs about science and scientists. There has been a positive trend recently with The Imitation Game and The Theory of Everything, but there are still countless amazing and compelling stories which could be told: Marie Curie, The Double Helix, Darwin, Copernicus, Isaac Newton, Louis Pasteur etc.
- Cereal Box Science – collaborate with cereal manufacturers to put educational materials on the back of cereal boxes and scientific collectibles inside (could also apply to other types of food manufacturers).
- Cooking, Home Brewing and Mixology classes that teach adults both techniques as well as underlying science, ideally in the lab or kitchen. For theory this course is awesome, but nothing beats hands on practice and interaction.
- Engage the world’s leading advertising companies in science education campaigns. If Ogilvy can create awesome campaigns and commercials for consumer products, I’m sure they’d have some pretty cool ideas for science too. Maybe they could even be persuaded to do some ‘pro-bono’ work which could help them contribute towards their Corporate Social Responsibility goals.
- “Rock star scientists” - As long as children grow up and see sports players, actors, musicians and reality TV stars getting all of the fame, money and attention, then those are the 'occupations’ that they will see as most valued by society.Maybe we can fight back by with “rock star” scientist positions for the most talented young scientists, who would be put more in the spotlight to act as role models for young people, rather like what has happened in the UK with Brian Cox.I know this feels a bit like the dumbing down and even degradation of science, but honestly desperate times call for desperate measures, and right now I feel like we’re in pretty desperate times.