Hi everyone,
I've been going around North America this summer looking at science
centres and museums, trying to get a feel for how people on this side
of the pond do science communication. I've visited many places and
reviewed each one - for more information on Astrotour 2010 see my
website (www.davidault.co.uk) and blog (astrotour2010.blogspot.com).
With reference to the discussion, the best science communicators I
came across were at my first port of call, the Ontario Science Centre
in Toronto. These guys were all actors, singers and dancers that had
been recruited and trained in science, then let loose on the public.
They weren't science majors trained in how to present, but the other
way around. This, I think, is crucial to how we should be doing
science communication - it's easy to teach science to an adult, it's
more difficult to teach them how to engage with others.
Of course I'm not saying that scientists don't know how to talk to the
public, but I do think that when we need science communicators,
there's a lot of actors out there with scientific curiousity and
ingenuity that might be a good resource - especially as, like in the
Ontario Science Centre, they are beginning to create plays on
scientific themes, finding new ways to engage the public and being
very creative with new exhibits and interactives.
Just a thought, and greetings from Los Angeles! Back in the UK 3 weeks today!
David
--
David Ault
www.davidault.co.uk
Twitter: @astrotour2010
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