IIT Gandhinagar educates the ‘why’ and ‘how’ of Science Communication
For effective communication, content, channel and target audience are the three interdependent key elements.
This idea was presented in the first talk of the lecture-and-workshop series focused on science communication aimed for the students, faculty and staff at IIT Gandhinagar. These sessions are being taken by Dr. Vasco Matos Trigo, Science Journalist for more than 20 years, former Head of Communication and Multimedia Office, ISCTE-Instituto Universitário de Lisboa (Lisbon, Portugal) and scholar-in-residence presently at IITGN.
“The content of any message must be adapted to the communication channel you are using and to the target you want to reach. We should engage in Promotion and Dissemination of Science and Engineering to Society (PDSES). Citizenship and social responsibility are part of the answers, but economy has to do with it as well. Assuming that scientists need it, citizens need it and societies need it, I am trying to make the point that dialogue, not one-way communication, is an indispensable tool to build an efficient and sustainable PDSES,” he said.
The talk was held on 7th August 2019 and focused on the “Why?” and “How?” aspects of Science Communication. Dr. Vasco believes that science communication is for the common public in today’s world, considering that higher science literacy can contribute to strengthening citizenship and latest advancements in research and technology in the longer run.
Now-a-days, people are more eager for scientific knowledge and more prepared to criticize it. Scientists and engineers must be prepared to deliver correct, useful answers and, in parallel, to teach the public how to ask challenging questions. In this way, the world will reach two goals: increasing the level of scientific culture within our societies and fortifying the relation between academia and society, both of which are extremely crucial for inventions and innovations aimed for the betterment of people.
The lecture commenced with a brief introduction about “What?” is science communication and progressed in an interesting manner, towards the importance of professional elegance while communicating science to the general public. Dr. Vasco emphasized that since this type of communication is a bridge between science and society, there is a dire need for different professions to interact with one another. These mutual discussions will eventually lead to more effective and society-oriented research in all possible fields.
Although much less prevalent in those times, the art of science communication dates back to the ancient period when people like Plato, Aristotle and Euclid communicated their knowledge and study with people so as to spread awareness in masses about their work. Sidereus Nuncius, published by Galileo in New Latin is considered to be the first science communication book by many across the globe. The 19th century saw the constitution of the Royal Society of England with the purpose to establish dialogue between scientists and public. Through all these decades, the public understanding of science has been based on the deficit model. It has been a really long journey which started with the people’s deficit of knowledge (they were not able to understand science); in the second phase, it slowly progressed towards when they began grasping it but did not trust it (attitude deficit), and coming to the time when most researchers realized they are unable to explain their work to the general public — a researchers’ deficit. So, if both the public and the researchers have a deficit, the solution could well be the dialogue model, which is a more society-friendly one. In between all this, there is a co-existence of both the models and they form different layers of science communication.
“It all has to be mutual — society should perceive science and science should develop an understanding of society. It will lead to the benefit and success of all,” Dr. Vasco added further.
PDSES helps in raising the scientific culture, boosting careers and enhances partnerships and collaborations. In the present times, writing a short paragraph explaining one’s research to the layman has become an essential requirement for grant approval by many renowned funding agencies around the world. Whereas the traditional interaction methods broadly included opinion talks and scientific publications, the trending methods encompass various social media platforms and visual tools. Many online sites have numerous stories, drawings and video-illustrations explaining the most complex topics of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) in the easiest and most fascinating ways possible.
The three step rule of ‘target (who) — syllabus (what) — techniques (how)’ can undo the knots in any type of communication, be it written, graphic, verbal or non verbal. It is essential to know the target audience based on which one can decide on the type and amount of content (syllabus) to be covered and the tool aids to be used in the process. For example, kids and youngsters will require different syllabus and techniques to peak their interest as compared to researchers and scientists. Again, there is a difference in communicating with kids in comparison to teens!
The session concluded with the exchange of many interesting questions and answers between Dr. Trigo and the attendees. The next talk will focus on how to share research through media. A strong promoter of science for all, IIT Gandhinagar understands the need of communicating research with general public and this series in collaboration with Dr. Vasco Matos Trigo is an active effort to equip the entire IITGN family in this direction.
“Nothing in Science has any value to society if it is not communicated.” — Anne Roe, American clinical psychologist and creativity researcher
(This is the first article in the science communication series. The second one can be accessed here.)
