Informing the public about science can be difficult. Climate change is the most notorious example, but public debates about vaccines and evolution have also revealed a lack of understanding of how the public deals with science.
The old way of science communication was called a "deficit model". It's the idea that the public has a lack of understanding, so experts just have to provide them with more facts.
If we look at the example of climate change, it is now clear that a closer understanding of the subject does not lead one to believe more in man-made climate change.
However, scientists still prefer to focus on facts and describe science more accurately than to other communication strategies, such as:
The concept of framing assumes that the facts unfortunately do not speak for themselves.
However, there are some encouraging signs of a more skillful approach involving the public into science, which creates a sense of wonderment.
Festivals can help
The World Science Festival Brisbane this week is a great example of how science can make a difference that draws the public's attention.
The festival took place in the second year of 2016 and attracted around 120,000 people on five days in March. To put this into perspective, there were two major sporting events in Brisbane over the same period - a NRL game with the Broncos and an A-League game for the Roar - with a total of 51,122 participants.
The festival has obviously done something right to attract such a large audience.
How does it do it? The festival offers a solid portion of fine art and live theater as well as children's entertainment events. The goal is to connect to the already existing cultural identities of the people.
People want their identity to be confirmed and not questioned, and the festival offers them music, local culture, food events and the kind of activities they already like. This is partly achieved simply by hosting events that place entertainment first, science second.
Of course, the festival is not alone and there are many other examples of entertainment-oriented science communication. These range from better-performing science exhibits in museums to YouTube channels to webcomics.
If Hollywood does it right
The traditional media also play a role in understanding science better, though we are still waiting for ABC to replace Catalyst.
But film and television can help as long as they bring science to the point - or at least as close as it is known at the time of production.
This is something the science festival has tapped with screenings of several popular films, including the 2014 film Interstellar, which is certainly science fiction.
Interstellar director Christopher Nolan hired physicist Kip Thorne as scientific advisor. The scientific references of Thorne are impeccable. Among many other contributions to theoretical physics, he was one of the main scientists responsible for the project at LIGO, which discovered gravitational waves last year.
Thorne worked closely with Nolan to make sure that the science in the film was at least plausible according to current knowledge. He even wrote a book about the science of film.
Interstellar is a great example of how science communication can be packaged in a less direct way. It is scientifically sound and its action involves a catastrophic climate change that will take place on Earth in the near future.
The film has been seen by tens of millions of people, making it a potentially strong ally in efforts to raise public awareness of the risks of climate change.
Another film shown at the festival is the time travel directed by Terrence Malick. This is a wondrous exploration of nature, from the birth of the cosmos to the end of time.
The film, poetically narrated by Cate Blanchett, is partly documentary, partly spiritual meditation. It's obvious that it was not produced by old-school science communicators.
It is especially encouraging because it comes from a more socially conservative director. However, the film is still based on modern knowledge of cosmology and evolutionary theory.
It has the potential to appeal to new audiences at a level that traditional communication efforts can not.
Of course, science is not always right in Hollywood and there are many examples of how films are wrong.
Reforbes, in touch with tomorrow
What science can learn from entertainment
If scientists want to entertain an audience, they may need to learn more from the world of entertainment.
The founder of the World Science Festival is Brian Greene, a theoretical physicist and popular author. Among popular science writers, Greene is recognized almost everywhere as a master of teaching very difficult ideas in accessible writings.
This may come as no surprise when one learns that he is from a variety of variety artists and clearly has a theatrical edge. His efforts to combine science communication with entertainment are just one step towards a more sophisticated way of reaching the public.
Greene has not evaded the most difficult issues of modern physics, such as the strangest results of quantum measurement and its confusing interpretations. But his books are still mainly aimed at people who are already receptive to science.
His move to the cultural scene with the annual science festivals in Brisbane and New York thus signals an awareness of the greater problem of developing scientific evidence among other populations.
No comments:
Post a Comment