This document is the final evaluation report for the project, which focuses both on formative evaluation of the collaborative+interdisciplinary presentation creation process and summative evaluation of audience learning outcomes.
In a unique collaboration between PBS NewsHour and Indij Public Media (the parent company of ICT, formerly known as Indian Country Today), this project will put the perspectives and the reporting of Indigenous communities front and center through their co-creation of digital and broadcast segments.
Through the T523: Formative Evaluation for Educational Product Development course, our team conducted a semester-long formative evaluation for the Museum of Science, Boston (MoS) Gaia Exhibit. The Gaia Exhibit (Gaia) is a new, temporary art installation located in the MoS’s Blue Wing exhibition hall. Gaia that strives to inspire appreciation for the earth and climate change awareness. The exhibit displays imagery of the Earth’s surface on a twenty feet diameter, three-dimensional globe. Additional exhibit elements include projected questions on the floor to prompt reflection and exhibit-
Nothing generates excitement like sound! From the iconic guitar riffs in Led Zeppelin’s famous song “Stairway to Heaven” to birds energetically singing (way too early in the morning) outside my bedroom window, nonscientists can relate to acoustics. Many of us entered the field because we love music, a passion evident at the jam sessions that accompany many meetings of the Acoustical Society of America (ASA). Science communication enables us to share that enthusiasm with nontechnical audiences.
The goal of this article is to introduce fundamental ideas in science communication and resources
The last three decades have seen extensive reflection concerning how science communication should be modelled and understood. In this essay we propose the value of a cultural approach to science communication — one that frames it primarily as a process of meaning-making. We outline the conceptual basis for this view of culture, drawing on cultural theory to suggest that it is valuable to see science communication as one aspect of (popular) culture, as storytelling or narrative, as ritual, and as collective meaning-making. We then explore four possible ways that a cultural approach might
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Sarah DaviesMegan HalpernMaja HorstDavid KirbyBruce Lewenstein
Development of a prototype of an immersive game set in 17th-century London that explores the relationship between science, culture, and history.
The Chemical Heritage Foundation (CHF) is developing Age of Alchemy, a game exploring alchemy’s “Golden Age” in Europe during the 1600s. In this era, alchemy was not a fool’s quest for riches and eternal life: it provided economic opportunity, invited curiosity, and examined relationships between humankind and the natural world. Alchemy formed our current ideas about experimental scientific practices and paved the way for modern chemistry. It also impacted period literature, visual art, and music and continues to excite public imagination. Age of Alchemy draws on CHF’s collections of alchemical art and rare books to produce a visually rich and historically accurate experience, awakening empathy for past individuals who used experimental work to navigate society. During this prototyping phase, we will work with playtesters and our advisory team of experts to shape key game mechanics and assess levels of audience engagement and the successful communication of our humanities themes.
Production of an immersive website exploring the history, culture, and archaeology of the Giza plateau.
The Giza Project at Harvard University plans to build the full-scale version of its forthcoming public website, Digital Giza. Using the tools of the future to study the past, this free online resource will integrate diverse primary documentation from over 100 years of international archaeological research in Egypt with a scientifically-informed 3D immersive computer model of the whole Giza Plateau, including the pyramids, temples, settlements, and surrounding cemeteries. Through various “digital archaeology experiences,” visitors to the site will engage with new forms of interpretation and story-telling based on Giza materials digitally embedded and clearly contextualized in their original spatial settings. The Giza Project’s ultimate deliverable will be a powerful new online education and research tool for the world community at all levels of expertise: an interactive website and virtual environment encouraging exploration into Egyptological, historical, and broader humanities themes.
Human-induced global change has triggered the sixth major extinction event on earth with profound consequences for humans and other species. A scientifically literate public is necessary to find and implement approaches to prevent or slow species loss. Creating science-inspired art can increase public understanding of the current anthropogenic biodiversity crisis and help people connect emotionally to difficult concepts. In spite of the pressure to avoid advocacy and emotion, there is a rich history of scientists who make art, as well as art–science collaborations resulting in provocative work
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TEAM MEMBERS:
Jennifer HarrowerJennifer ParkerMartha Merson
The Science Behind Pixar (SBP) exhibition was the product of a collaborative effort among the Museum of Science, Boston (MOS), Pixar Animation Studios, and the Science Museum Exhibit Collaborative (SMEC). The 13,000 square foot exhibition presented the science, math, and computer science behind Pixar Animation Studios’ animated films and innovation. Before entering SBP, visitors watched a five-minute film that oriented them to the exhibition and discussed its main messages. Visitors then interacted with screen-based and physical interactive exhibits, as well as the technical pipeline of the
This is a book review of "Cosmos and the Rhetoric of Popular Science" by K. Shroeder Sorensen. Shroeder Sorensen analyses in depth the close relationship of the TV-series Cosmos [1980] with the popular culture, in its broadest sense, at the time of its release. The novel application of Fantasy-Theme analysis to the rhetorical vision of the series reveals how it is the product of a very careful and successful design. The book also compares the original series with its 2014 reboot Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey [2014].
This project will create a new educational tool for river awareness in the United States through a mobile device application called Raindrop. Raindrop traces the flow of water from the user's home location to a downstream watershed location. Raindrop is part of a larger installation named FLOW (Can You See the River?), which joins the cognitive power of science with the affective power of the arts by creating virtual and physical spaces for river awareness in the White River watershed in Indianapolis, IN. In addition to the flow path, Raindrop functionality includes watershed context and physical marker mapping, flow path water quality indicators, utilization of NOAA weather feeds and alerts, weather and climate comparisons, storm event size implications, and guidance on watershed restoration actions. Artist-designed physical markers are strategically located in the watershed to direct the virtual user to physical areas of interest.