TikTok may not be the first source that comes to mind when you want to learn about electrolysis carbon capture using renewable energy. But he has nearly a million followers on Tiktoker like @nasjaq and they disagree. Similarly, @DrKate is an epidemiologist who explained coronavirus-related topics to over 100,000 followers last year. One-minute videos, often containing accelerated speech and trendy musical hits, are a new gateway to the world of technology.
among the latest stars science communication Twins Malik and Miles George, both MIT students. Launched in early 2021, their channel has gone viral with a mix of humor, challenges, insight into the everyday lives of engineers and researchers, and inclusion of Black people in STEM degrees. They started with the first general channel, and soon he had over 200,000 followers, as reported on the MIT news page. But they wanted to do something more focused on science and communication, so they decided to open up their current channel.
@Maricand Miles
Reply to @_maria_ms_5 Perfect music sync!! ️ This is the better result 😁 #satisfaction #science #experiment #satisfaction
♬ Aesthetic – Xilo
Community development
One example of their videos is explaining the hydrophobicity of pepper or the surfactant nature of soap. That said, I am also passionate about live events where I interact with all kinds of people, from high school students to college students. Events of this type often resolve questions and facilitate discussion among participants. Additionally, some high school teachers have reached out to them to suggest live events with their students. Malik and Miles claim the platform will allow them to promote diversity in his STEM career through their example, always in a casual and friendly tone.
@ladyscience
##stitch with @ladyscience Nothing is more perfect than something sculpted by evolution 💕 ##tucientifica ##aprendecontiktok ##cienciaentiktok
♬ Original song – Lady Science
Trending in Spanish-speaking countries
Of course, this phenomenon is not limited to the English-speaking world. In countries such as Chile and Mexico, STEM communicators are doing similar work. Each channel has its own style and subject matter, but it’s worth keeping an eye on someone like @MirandaLunaUrano, a Mexican who dreams of becoming an astronaut and covers issues related to space exploration. Another science communicator on TikTok is @Terepanique, this time from Chile, who usually talks about science and astronomy, explaining phenomena like solar eclipses and galaxy collisions. In Spain, one of his pioneers is @LadyScience, which has around half a million followers. Her channel isn’t strictly scientific, but she combines playful videos with others to refute hoaxes and explain phenomena such as ferromagnetism.
science podcast
As with YouTube, the world of podcasts is more integrated in terms of scientific communication. Talking about them would have to write an article in itself. Some of them are hosted by prominent professionals such as his Neil deGrasse Tyson, who produced hundreds of episodes of the StarTalk program.However, I cannot finish this article without mentioning “blue marble” (The Blue Marble), a podcast recently launched by sister site Sustainability for All. This space will explore the role of new technologies in improving the sustainability of the planet and concepts such as the carbon cycle and the use of renewable energy. Podcasts, TikTok videos, blogs, there are more channels and platforms than ever before to reach out to the tech world.
sauce: MIT, Business Insider
