Take a group of curious, open-minded people, place them in an idyllic setting and let them brainstorm on various facets of science communication for a weekend. If you also supplement this with impeccable organization and lively, cool and interesting hosts, you have the recipe for ultimate success!
The 4th annual Science Communication Camp took place at the Brandeis-Bardin campus of the American Jewish University on November 2nd-4th. The warm welcome by the organizers at the registration desk, the settling in at the on-campus, cozy rooms and the campus tour set the tone for the weekend. The guests? Research scientists, scientists that do outreach via academia, freelance science writers, policy makers on health and other scientific issues, science museum personnel, people doing research for magazines like National Geographic, YouTubers, educators, you name it!
I was excited to attend because although I am a biologist working in a lab, right now, one of my goals is to get more women interested in science and show non-science people how exciting our work can be. What a diverse and interesting group of people with whom to exchange views!
The weekend included a series of workshops, along with outdoor activities and group sessions – all capped off by a campfire on the final night. During the very lively and witty workshop on science script-writing, Teagan Wall let us in on her world of TV script-writing and meticulously showed us how to break down a scenario. Collectively, we came up with an inspiring episode of Bill Nye Saves the World (Teagan has written for that show). We included a humorous discussion about conventional and unconventional batteries and also raised awareness about how many smartphone batteries are thrown away.
Rachel Ignotofsky, author and illustrator of the magnificent bestseller book Women in Science, 50 Fearless Pioneers Who Changed the World gave a passionate, vivid and fun introduction into the world of science illustration. As a biologist, I really liked Rachel’s illustrations of lab equipment.
In her keynote speech, Maryn McKennna, author of widely read books such as Superbug and Big Chicken, walked us through her fascinating career that got her from pure news journalism to science journalism, doing research all around the globe.
Entertainment wasn’t missing from the mix. UCLA earth scientists, wildlife preservation experts, and other scientists, invited us to delve into their world. The highlight for me was the unique opportunity to touch a fragment of an asteroid that was magnetic! The night magic continued while Magician Siegfried Tiebe presented amazing tricks with humor and lightness, like a pleasant breeze.
The campfire, s’mores and singing in a small group, accompanied by the melodies of a lovely guitar and the stargazing (for the few night owls), concluded the final night in an ideal way.
Saying goodbye had a bittersweet feeling, but I was filled with new ideas, gifted with a broader outlook and also had my suitcase filled with three new books that were kindly provided to us.
Congratulations to IQIM for sponsoring such a great event that allows people from the Caltech community to broaden their horizons and launch, or better define, their path in the science communication realm.
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