Session H2: Invited Session: Novel and Proven Methods of Communicating Science to the Public

Creating Catalytic Collaborations between Theater Artists, Scientists, and Research Institutions

Catalyst Collaborative@MIT (CC@MIT) is a collaboration between MIT and Underground Railway Theater (URT), a company with 30 years experience creating theater through interdisciplinary inquiry and engaging community. CC@MIT is dedicated to creating and presenting plays that deepen public understanding about science, while simultaneously providing artistic and emotional experiences not available in other forms of dialogue about science. CC@MIT engages audiences in thinking about themes in science of social and ethical concern; provides insight into the culture of science and the impact of that culture on society; and examines the human condition through the lens of science that intersects our lives and the lives of scientists. Original productions range from Einstein's Dreams to From Orchids to Octopi -- an evolutionary love story; classics re-framed include The Life of Galileo and Breaking the Code (about Alan Turing). CC@MIT commissions playwrights and scientists to create plays; engages audiences with scientists; performs at MIT and a professional venue near the campus; collaborates with the Cambridge Science Festival and MIT Museum; engages MIT students, as well as youth and children. Artistic Director Debra Wise will address how the collaboration developed, what opportunities are provided by collaborations between theaters and scientific research institutions, and lessons learned of value to the field.   

Drawing at the Speed of Talk: doodling complex discussions in real-time to create animated ``Conversation Portraits''

What does your research look like as a drawing? Imagine the guy who delivered your pizza understanding the latest paper you delivered. Flash Rosenberg will describe how she ``live-draws'' discussions between prominent authors and scientists to create lucid animations. She will offer strategies for how to translate the impenetrable into the understandable, convert equations into sensations, and enable everyone to appreciate issues in physics as relevant, intriguing fun. View sample ``Conversation Portraits'' at http://vimeo.com/flashrosenberg/videos   

Celebrating 24 years of Public Outreach of Science and Engineering in Portland Oregon

There have been several core strategies in our highly successful 24-year Science, Technology and Society outreach program. However, the strategy for each season is also dynamic, requiring innovation and novel coalitions. As Bob Dylan put it so succinctly, ``He not busy being born is busy dying.'' Public outreach programs - as the Chautauquas of the past - should be positioned in the cultural milieu along with the opera, symphony and theatre. Support for the enterprise needs to be a broad and diverse coalition, based ideally on the creative formation of win-win relationship. You want people to see your success as their success: ``Together we can enhance the intellectual environment in ways that none of us could do alone.'' Being multi-disciplinary presents challenges but has considerable advantages. For instance, enlightened managers of established organizations recognize the value of exposing their employees to a diversity of problem solving approaches. Instead of inviting speakers for one large lecture we now invite them to be Resident Scholars for two-three days and develop a range of additional smaller public engagements. Science and engineering topics must be relevant - placed in the broader Science, Technology and Society framework. We avoid ``gee-whiz'' in favor of what stimulates reflection on who we are, where we came from, and our role in the universe. I will briefly review how we have survived and thrived and, finally, what I see as future trends and opportunities.