Scientists Suck at Stories
Why the fate of the World Depends on Not Sucking
Dear michael saminsky,
I admit that is an overly dramatic headline. In fact it’s the exact type of exaggeration that scientists hate, but I bet it got your attention.
As our world today becomes more and more dependent on science, fewer and fewer people understand the physics, chemistry, and biology that literally power the modern world. Most people don’t understand that the energy that heats their home, fuels their car, and powers their lights all come from burning Carbon. Most people don’t understand that the alcohol we drink is made from yeast and sugar. Most people don’t want to understand these things either, and I blame scientists.
Many scientists would even prefer the general public not understand what they are doing, and so they work hard to explain things in technical, specialized language designed to intimidate people and make them feel dumb. This approach leads people to be ignorant of the science that enables them to live a modern life.
This ignorance leads people to distrust science in general (insert climate change, GMOs, or Vaccines examples here), even though the proof is literally all around them:
- The heated air we breathe made possible thanks to the science of thermodynamics and the chemistry of respiration
- The buildings we live and work in thanks to the physics of gravity and materials processing to produce steel and concrete.
- The clean water we drink thanks to the biology of bacteria and the chemistry of purification and sanitation
I believe if scientists spent more time telling the stories of how our understanding of the Universe impacts your daily routine, then people would have more respect and interest for the field. I also believe that getting more people interested in science is the only way to mobilize people to solve the problems facing humanity. Clean Energy? Science! Clean Drinking Water? Science! Healthier Humans? Science!
Getting people interested starts with stories, not equations.
Let’s try to do our part!
Love,
Sam
