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2
Introduction to Informal Learning
“Most people, most of the time, learn most of what they know outside the classroom.”
—George Tressel (quoted by David Ucko)
and research underlying the reports, the ways in which the
When most people think of learning about science, a
field of informal education is starting to use the reports, and
classroom or laboratory setting comes to mind, students
the relevance of informal education to chemistry.
being taught by teachers according to a set curriculum and
following a textbook. They picture a formal educational
environment. However, children and adults actually learn
Lifelong, Life-Wide, Life-Deep Learning
about science continuously, through a variety of ways and
Ellenbogen explained that one premise of the report is that
settings such as visiting museums, watching television, or
learning is lifelong, life wide, and life deep, encompassing
exploring outdoors, by what is called informal education. In
formal and informal education.3 Figure 2-2 illustrates this
this opening session of the workshop, three speakers offered
point, showing the significant percentage of time in a per-
introductory remarks about informal education and effective
son’s life that is spent in informal versus formal education.
communication of scientific content. Kirsten Ellenbogen
The blue area, referred to as the “sea of blue” throughout this
from the Science Museum of Minnesota provided an over-
workshop, represents the time spent in informal educational
view of informal education, David Ucko of the National
environments; the black area represents the time spent in
Science Foundation talked about the connection between
formal education.
chemistry and informal education, and filmmaker Stephen
Ellenbogen said that one exciting conclusion of the LSIE
Lyons discussed the changing role of video and films in
report was that many opportunities exist to fill the unused
communicating chemistry. In addition, the speakers specifi-
educational time and provide an interconnected network of
cally addressed the challenges and opportunities for com-
informal learning environments. “There is abundant evidence
municating chemistry content to public audiences in informal
of learning in everyday environments. . . . That includes set-
learning environments.
tings like museums, experiences like watching a television
show.”
SURROUNDED BY SCIENCE
Kirsten Ellenbogen started the morning off by immers-
Strands of Learning
ing the group in the volume from the National Research
Ellenbogen explained how the LSIE report emphasizes
Council (NRC) Learning Science in Informal Environments
six strands of learning (Box 2-1). She emphasized that the
(LSIE)1 and its companion volume Surrounded by Science
concept of calling the aspects of science learning “strands”
(Figure 2-1).2 Ellenbogen discussed the main conclusions
is not unique to this report; it has been used in some other
NRC reports. The strand concept reinforces the idea that
1Philip Bell, Bruce Lewenstein, Andrew W. Shouse, and Michael A.
Feder, Editors, Committee on Learning Science in Informal Environments,
3The
National Research Council. 2009. Learning Science in Informal Environ- LIFE Center (The Learning in Informal and Formal Environments
ments. Washington, DC: National Academies Press. Center), University of Washington, Stanford University, and SRI Interna-
2Marilyn Fenichel and Heidi A. Schweingruber, National Research tional. 2007. Learning in and out of school in diverse environments: Life-
Council. 2010. Surrounded by Science. Washington, DC: National Acad- long, life-wide, life-deep. Available online at http://depts.washington.edu/
emies Press. centerme/LEARNING%20LIFE%20REPORT.pdf.
4
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5
INTRODUCTION TO INFORMAL LEARNING
FIGURE 2-1 Cover images of recent National Research Council reports on informal education.
SOURCE: Philip Bell, Bruce Lewenstein, Andrew W. Shouse, and Michael A. Feder, Editors, Committee on Learning Science in Informal
Environments, National Research Council. 2009. Learning Science in Informal Environments. Washington, DC: National Academies Press;
Marilyn Fenichel and Heidi A. Schweingruber, National Research Council. 2010. Surrounded by Science. Washington, DC: National Acad-
emies Press.
FIGURE 2-2 Map of human learning, which shows that people spend the majority of their time from infancy to adulthood in informal
learning settings.
SOURCE: The LIFE Center (The Learning in Informal and Formal Environments Center), University of Washington, Stanford University, and
SRI International. 2007. Learning in and out of school in diverse environments: Life-long, life-wide, life-deep. Available online at depts.
washington.edu/centerme/LEARNING%20LIFE%20REPORT.pdf.
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6 CHEMISTRY IN PRIMETIME AND ONLINE
BOX 2-1 Strands of Science Learning
Learners in Informal Environments
Strand 1: Experience excitement, interest, and motivation to learn about phenomena in the natural and physical world.
Strand 2: Come to generate, understand, remember, and use concepts, explanations, arguments, models, and facts related to science.
Strand 3: Manipulate, test, explore, predict, question, observe, and make sense of the natural and physical world.
Strand 4: Reflect on science as a way of knowing; on processes, concepts, and institutions of science; and on their own process of
learning about phenomena.
Strand 5: Participate in scientific activities and learning practices with others, using scientific language and tools.
Strand 6: Think about themselves as science learners and develop an identity as someone who knows about, uses, and sometimes
contributes to science.
these aspects of learning are not individual elements that One issue in particular she mentioned is a lack of lon-
stand alone in informal education experiences. “These are gitudinal studies on informal learning—“of following a
literally strands or threads that are interwoven throughout learner through school experiences and home experiences
many of the experiences. . . . In many instances, it is almost and museum experiences and looking at those over time,
impossible to separate out one part of the experience from and the connections between conversations in the home and
another part of the experience, to identify which moment in how they related to conversations back in the museum.” It is
the learning experience relates to which aspect of the learn- still difficult to obtain the larger longitudinal view needed to
ing strand.” Learning is not just about content; it is also about connect an informal educational experience with the impact
the processes of science. it may have on how an individual uses science or pursues a
Another point made by Ellenbogen is that strands 2 career in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics
through 5 are also in the volume Taking Science to School, (STEM).
which focuses on K-8 learning in school environments. “This In addition, she said, “we know very little about the
was an important part of the LSIE report that was able to cumulative effects. People talk about informal learning
show good evidence that there is a strong overlap between experiences being these very particular moments in time
what happens in our formal learning environments and what [ to which] we as complex humans can attach various
happens in informal learning experiences,” she said. experiences throughout our life, drawing back many times
The difference between the two reports is the inclusion of on information or experiences from decades ago in a very
strand 1, excitement and motivation, and strand 6, identity meaningful way. David Anderson at the University of British
development, as part of informal education. “It is not to say Columbia in Vancouver has some great examples of this and
that [strands 1 and 6] don’t happen in school environments, interviews that he has done with people about their World’s
but they are such a critical and strong part of what happens Fair experience, decades and decades after they went to the
in informal learning experiences, we pulled them out into World’s Fair.”
their own strands.” Ellenbogen concluded by mentioning that there are a
Ellenbogen showed many examples of informal learning number of commissioned papers available, in addition to the
from her museum. She emphasized that she only provided a LSIE and Surrounded by Science reports, from the National
few examples, and there are thousands of research publica- Academies Board on Science Education.4
tions and evaluation reports referenced in the LSIE volume.
At the same time, she noted that one of the interesting things
to come out of the study is there is still a great deal unknown,
despite the rich body of research and evaluation in informal
science education, She said there is a lot to be learned about
effectiveness of different media formats and how they lead 4For more information, see www7.nationalacademies.org/bose/BOSE_
to good decision making in people’s everyday life. Resources.html (accessed December 27, 2010).
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7
INTRODUCTION TO INFORMAL LEARNING
Questions & Answers Ellenbogen spoke of Robert Tai, at the University of
Virginia, who has explored the topic of scientists and their
Reflective Experiences formative experiences. She recommended that participants
see Tai’s paper titled “Eyeballs in the Fridge”5 in which Tai
A workshop participant asked if there is a way to design
discusses very distinct gender differences in what adults in
an “ah-ha” moment into the learning environment for chil-
STEM careers point to as a formative moment of “here is
dren or adults: “For many of us as professional scientists,
what I did as a teenager or youth that pushed me or encour-
this is the moment that we treasure, when something finally
aged me to get into this as a career.” The experiences for girls
clicks and you integrate a lot of observations.”
in particular were more about a moment in time that had a
Ellenbogen said that such moments are connected to the
particularly affective element to them.
reflective needs of the learning experience. She said there is
not much evidence in the literature of reflective experiences
Zero to Five
being integrated consistently into the design of learning
environments. However, museums are now incorporating
A question was asked about the type of learning that hap-
them into exhibits.
pens during zero to 5 years old (just a white spot on Figure
For example, the Science Museum of Minnesota is devel-
2-2). Ellenbogen explained that there is “a significant gap in
oping “tinkering spaces” or engineering labs “that give learn-
the science that we know about the development of children
ers real questions to grapple with, issues that we don’t exactly
at those ages, and what we do as a society to support learners
have clear answers on.” Ellenbogen said the exhibit is set up
. . . 90 percent of brain development occurs in those years
as a reflective experience that has focused rings of partici-
from birth to 5.” At the same time, “if you look at the way
pation. “On the outer ring it asks some very basic questions
we support citizens in our society, there is almost no sup-
and engages you in some exploration of phenomena, but as
port, or a negligible amount of support for educating zero to
you move in and go into an area that has to be facilitated by
5-year-olds in a way that works with what we know about
staff, there are actual fabrication tools that allow you to try
brain development in those years.” According to Ellenbogen,
to design and build something that responds to the question
formal schooling for kindergarten and up is typically made
or issue at hand.”
smaller or cuter or simpler for those under 5. Brain develop-
Ellenbogen stated that different media sources are also
ment research indicates this is not how to develop a good
trying to introduce this type of experience, such as in televi-
learning experience for a zero to 5-year-old. Ellenbogen
sion or radio segments where they ask questions designed to
suggested reading the “Everyday Science” chapter of the
cause a reflective conversation among the social group who
LSIE report for more information on education needs of zero
may be watching the video or listening to that radio show.
to 5-year-olds.
“It is something that is really underutilized in an informal
Jeannette Brown commented about early experiences in
learning experience.”
science. She mentioned that the Chemical Heritage Founda-
tion is collecting video oral histories of women in science,
Science Identity and Brown is also collecting oral histories of African-Amer-
ican women in science. Another resource for oral histories
Bill Carroll asked how children come to identify with
of African-American scientists is the Science Makers, 6
being a scientist. He mentioned how some kids seem to look
available on the History Makers website7 (based in Chicago).
at science and say, “I just don’t think I can do that.”
Ellenbogen mentioned the LSIE report has evidence and
Lifelong, Life-Wide, and Life-Deep Learning
commentary on this in a variety of chapters. “If you want to
look at the lifetime of the learner, it starts in the conversations
Ellenbogen was asked to clarify the distinction between
and research on adult-child interactions in homes, in family
lifelong, life-wide, and life-deep learning and how each
units, and the notion that very early on, conversations posi-
needs to be built into effective informal learning projects. She
tion science as something we do or something that we like.”
responded that lifelong learning is the most straightforward
There have been some insights from interviews with
concept; “from birth to death, you are a learner, and you go
well-known scientists about early formative experiences.
through experiences every day that shape the person you are
For example, many scientists recall being collectors in child-
and the way you live your life and the kind of decisions you
hood. However, collecting rocks or other items can be messy,
and it takes a lot of time, which is something that is encour-
5 A.V. Maltese, and R. H. Tai. 2010. Eyeballs in the fridge: Sources
aged in some homes but not in others. At the same time,
of early interest in science. International Journal of Science Education
there is little evidence of exactly how those early formative
32(5):669-685.
experiences link to a STEM career or developing an identity 6See www.thehistorymakers.com/biography/category_details.asp?sp=1
as someone who does science. She said that this is an area &category=scienceMakers.
for gathering better longitudinal data. 7 See www.thehistorymakers.com/.
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8 CHEMISTRY IN PRIMETIME AND ONLINE
make. The life-wide says you have to jump into that sea of them understand the ways to make decisions about science
blue and look at what the informal learning experiences are, in their everyday life.
so what is the width of experiences in addition to the length
of it. . . . Life-deep learning is something that is emphasized
Role Modeling
to help people look more in depth at the kind of world view,
the kind of values that shape what people believe. It is a very A participant asked whether there is research on the
underresearched area of learning.” importance of role models in learning, such as young college
The participant then asked, “How do you keep those three women or teenagers leading Girl Scout events, which seem
ideas in mind when you design something, a learning experi- to be very effective in engaging the younger children.
ence for the museum?” Ellenbogen said the Girl Scouts have good research on
Ellenbogen explained that museums sometimes do “front- this—some is cited in the LSIE report. “The interesting thing
end studies” to find out what the experiences and views of is that the modeling happens throughout the lifetime. . . . It
museum visitors are. She stated that “you will see in the is one of the most interesting areas that need to be studied
Learning Science and Informal Environments text that pre- across lifelong and life-wide learning. You have so many dif-
vious experiences are one of the most influential aspects of ferent kinds of people in your life who model science experi-
what people do and experience when they are in any sort ences. You have everything from the kinds of influences you
of designed environment. You can design all you want, and see modeled in television or other sorts of media environ-
everyone walks in with a lot of baggage and things that shape ments or in books. You also have modeling that happens in
the way they see and interpret and experience anything you the adult-child relationships. There is a significant amount
have designed. The same thing goes for when you look at of peer modeling that goes on.” Ellenbogen mentioned that
how multiple people view the same media program.” Dirk vom Lehn at King’s College, London, “has some really
As an example, Ellenbogen discussed how the Science great studies of looking at the modeling impact of strangers
in designed learning environments.”9
Museum of Minnesota duplicated a study called the “Six
Americas”8 that looked at national views on climate change.
The Six Americas study found that there is a wide range
INFORMAL CHEMISTRY
of knowledge and beliefs about climate change, ranging
David Ucko provided some background on the National
from enthusiastically supporting and accepting the science
of climate change to disbelief and rejection. In the middle Science Foundation (NSF) Division of Research and Learn-
there is “a disaffected category of, I just don’t care about ing (DRL), which focuses on improving learning and teach-
this science stuff.” ing across all ages and all settings, and funds research and
The museum found that few visitors who took the sur- development (R&D) grants at about $250 million a year.
vey were in the disaffected category, which was lower than DRL has four programs, including one focused on informal
the national average in the Six Americas study. It was an science education, and is the primary program within the
expected result though since museums typically attract the Directorate of Education and Human Resources at NSF that
science attentive. However, the museum was surprised to funds furthering public understanding of science and enhanc-
find that about 26 percent of visitors surveyed said they do ing public science literacy.
not believe in or accept the science of climate change, which Ucko reiterated the point made by Kirsten Ellenbogen—
was about the same as the national average. that formal education is critical, “but it only takes up a
Research on environmental education shows that values small portion of one’s life.” He provided a quote from one
affect a museum visitor’s ability to look at the scientific of his predecessors at NSF, George Tressel: “Most people,
information presented. The Science Museum of Minnesota most of the time, learn most of what they know outside the
is looking at how to shift from influencing to informing. classroom.”
Ellenbogen said many informal learning environments are Informal learning goes by many other names. Some
specifically designed to influence someone’s views or ideas people call it free-choice learning, experiential learning,
about science. The Science Museum of Minnesota is grap- or recreational learning. Ucko described informal learning
pling with the issue of how to inform people with the kind of as a pull phenomenon, as opposed to a push phenomenon,
science experiences and knowledge that they need and help because it is driven by the interests of the learner, at a par-
ticular time. “It is a voluntary activity,” he said.
Ucko illustrated the appeal of informal learning with a
quote from Frank Oppenheimer, the creator of the Explorato-
rium: “No one ever flunks a museum or a television program
8A. Leiserowitz, E. Maibach, C. Roser-Renoug, and N. Smith. 2010.
Global Warming’s Six Americas. Yale University and George Mason Uni-
versity. New Haven, CT: Yale Project on Climate Change. Available online
9For more information, see www.kcl.ac.uk/schools/sspp/mgmt/people/
at environment.yale.edu/climate/files/SixAmericasJune2010.pdf (accessed
November 5, 2010). academic/vomlehn/ (accessed November 5, 2010).
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INTRODUCTION TO INFORMAL LEARNING
FIGURE 2-3 Informal STEM landscape.
SOURCE: J.H. Falk, S. Randol, and L.D. Dierking. 2008. The Informal Science Education Landscape: A Preliminary Investigation. Washington,
D.C.: Center for Advancement of Informal Science Education. Available online at caise.insci.org/uploads/docs/2008_CAISE_Landscape_Study_
Report.pdf (accessed April 6, 2011).
or a library or a park.” Ucko spoke of the growth of the field to improve the field of informal science education. Ucko
of informal education, which began in the 1970s when the discussed some of these approaches to informal education
Association of Science and Technology Centers (ASTC) was within the context of chemistry in further detail.
created. ASTC was founded by 16 members in 1971, and
today there are 583 member organizations in 45 countries
Modes of Informal Education and Chemistry
around the world.
Ucko started in this field about 30 years ago at the Ucko talked in detail about different types of exhibits as a
Museum of Science and Industry, after teaching at Antioch mode of informal education. These include permanent exhib-
College. His first professional conference, an ASTC confer- its that stay at a science museum, typically for 5 to 10 years,
ence, had about 50 people in it. Today those conferences now and then are renewed and replaced; traveling exhibits that
have about 1,500 people, giving another sense of the growth stay at a museum for about 3 months and then are shipped
of the field in the last 30 years. to another museum for another 3 months; and mobile exhib-
its that travel the country in vans, buses, or other vehicles.
Ucko noted that chemistry is not highly represented in most
Landscape of Informal Education
exhibits. However, he was able to provide several examples
Ucko discussed the landscape of informal education, of NSF-funded exhibits. One example, “Chemistry of Life,”
illustrated by John Falk and others in Figure 2-3. It shows was an exhibit at the New York Hall of Science, which still
exists and is now called Marvelous Molecules.10
many of the communities and organizations that exist within
informal learning, across two dimensions: one promoting Ucko developed an exhibit at the Museum of Science and
STEM understanding and the other practicing informal Industry in Chicago in the mid-1980s, in collaboration with
education. Some groups do more of one than the other, and Bassam Shakhashiri and Rodney Shriner at the University of
Wisconsin,11 that was based on basic principles of chemistry
some sit right at the intersection where education is high
in both informal learning and STEM understanding. This
appears on the diagram in the corner at the left on the bottom
and consists of science museums, natural history museums, 1 0See w ww.nyhallsci.org/marvelousmolecules/index.html ( accessed
zoos, and aquariums. Over the years, NSF has funded all September 13, 2010).
11For more recent activities, see Shakhashiri’s “Science is Fun” website,
of these organizations and communities to varying degrees
www.scifun.org/ (accessed April 6, 2011).
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10 CHEMISTRY IN PRIMETIME AND ONLINE
when applied to everyday life. One example of the many their research grants to create public learning activities. One
interactive experiments at the exhibit is the electrolysis of example from an NSF Chemistry Division (CHE) funded
water, which “never failed to startle visitors across the hall research grant involved a hands-on activity based on flavo-
of the museum when the hydrogen that was formed ignited noid plant pigments. He also mentioned that within CHE,
with spark and created a lot of noise.” broader impacts are required as a review criterion, so many
One of the challenges Ucko spoke of in trying to pres- of the research grants have some kind of public activity
ent chemistry in an exhibit is conceptual. “It is hard to get associated with them as well.
people to go from the macro, from what they can see visibly, In addition to these kinds of publicly oriented activities,
to the micro.” Ucko thinks there are also perception issues; NSF has also tried to advance the field directly through pro-
chemistry and the word “chemical” are often equated with fessional development in a variety of ways, such as research
toxicity.12 There are also turf issues: “Things like forensics and working on infrastructure and capacity building.
may be of interest to people, but they may not associate it
with chemistry. Same with biochemistry; it might be more
Project Evaluation
linked with biology than with chemistry—and certainly
with nanotechnology there is a similar kind of thing going NSF evaluations of the programs it funds are a critical
on today.” There are also many technical aspects to creating part of the process. Ucko referenced Kirsten Ellenbogen’s
chemistry in these environments. “You need to prepare, you talk about front-end evaluation. This evaluation is done at the
need to get rid of waste, you need to have storage and dis- beginning of a project because of the need to understand who
posal and maintain things. You have got safety and liability the audience is, what its members are interested in, what they
issues, cost and training for the people that are involved in know already, and how to engage them in a particular subject.
doing this.” He said that while developing a project—when it is still
Although informal education is becoming increasingly relatively easy to make changes in the project design—it is
Internet based, he said that TV, radio, and giant-screen films important to do formative evaluation, which involves pilot
are still important means for reaching people. Two examples testing, creating prototypes, et cetera. After pilot testing,
of chemistry film projects that NSF has funded recently (both there is remedial evaluation, which looks at how all of
are discussed in detail by Steve Lyons later in this chapter) the components of an exhibition work together as a whole
are: and helps identify issues in the project that may need to be
altered. NSF requires a summative evaluation, which deter-
1. “Lives in Science,” in 1999, a grant to WBGH Boston mines whether the project has achieved the impact originally
for the NOVA program on Percy Julian, and intended. These summations must be posted to a website
2. The Mystery of Matter: Search for the Elements, in called Informalscience.org, which currently has about 200
2009. examples of summative evaluations for NSF-funded projects.
To help people learn more about these summative evalua-
Ucko said that grants for learning technologies (e.g., tions, NSF funded a workshop and published a report called
games) and digital and online media are the fastest-growing The Framework for Evaluating Impacts of Informal Science
Evaluation.13 NSF created categories to characterize the
piece of the NSF funding portfolio. “We now see aspects of
what we call cyber learning in almost every project that we impacts of informal education projects, including aware-
fund.” Other areas of informal learning include youth and ness, knowledge and understanding, engagement, attitude,
community programs, which allow time for more intensive and behavior skills.
personalized learning, unlike an exhibit or digital media set- Ucko also highlighted key aspects of the LSIE report and
ting. After-school programs are probably the most common, its importance to the education community, as listed below:
but there are also many other targeted kinds of programs.
Also mentioned by Ucko is citizen science, or public 1. Broaden the definition of learning. Typically learning
participation in science, where the public is involved in is defined as what happens at school. By adding items 1 and
making observations, collecting data, and even designing 6 (see Box 2-1) to the strands of learning, it “extended the
experiments in the real world. This idea started with public definition of learning beyond the cognitive, to talk about
participation in bird observations at the Cornell Laboratory interest and motivation and to talk about identity formation.”
of Ornithology in the 1990s. 2. Provide a foundation for future research. The LSIE
NSF funds Communicating Research to Public Audiences report is a synthesis of what has been done in research and
awards through the Informal Science Education Program. evaluation across informal learning, drawn from many sub-
This program allows principal investigators to use part of disciplines. By making this work known and by making rec-
12In this report, chemistry is defined as the science of composition, struc - 13 For more information, see c aise.insci.org/uploads/docs/Eval_
ture, and properties of substances (chemicals) and the changes they undergo. Framework.pdf (accessed November 10, 2010).
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INTRODUCTION TO INFORMAL LEARNING
ommendations, it provides a foundation for future research audience’s values, knowledge, and attitude when one tries to
and expansion of the data. engage the public.
3. Provide a guide for practitioners. It is a way for them 2. Create learning experiences that are engaging. Studies
to take what has been learned about the research in informal from Robert Tai and others show that many scientists knew
learning and apply it to their everyday work. they wanted to be scientists by ages 12 to 14, so it is impor-
tant to engage children early. However, Ucko cautioned that
Ucko described the Nanoscale Informal Science Educa- it is important that these efforts be done in ways that are not
tion (NISE) Network.14 Now in its fifth year, it is the largest overly promotion oriented.
project that NSF has funded in recent years and is a $20 3. Build on the research and practice. Ucko encouraged
million 5-year effort. It is led by the Museum of Science in participants to build on the NRC LSIE report and to think
Boston, and includes the Science Museum of Minnesota, about the lifelong learning ecology and the web of experi-
the Exploratorium in San Francisco, and many others. NISE ences that span settings and time. He believes creating a
brings together science museums around the country with network of people interested in informal learning about
nanoscience and technology researchers, to develop exhibit chemistry would help leverage the existing infrastructure and
elements, programs, public forums, and a variety of products resources.
designed to increase public awareness and understanding of 4. Research and evaluate efforts. Ucko believes that
nanoscience and technology. Everything is being developed continuing research and evaluation of projects related to
as open source materials, so they can be shared freely and informal learning are the only ways to add to the knowledge
to avoid duplication. base and continue support for informal education.
Another NSF effort to fund informal learning is the Center
for Advancement of Informal Science Education, CAISE.15
Questions and Answers
It is designed to serve the field overall and to help create a
community of practitioners across those different dimensions
Chemistry in Museums
of informal learning discussed earlier in the landscape study.
Ucko believes that these activities are helping the field of A participant noted that in addition to the list of museum
informal science education to reach greater recognition of chemistry exhibits that Ucko mentioned having, the Museum
its impact and public engagement, for example: of Natural History has one called Science in American Life
that is sponsored by the American Chemical Society. The
• Nature had an editorial recently called “Learning in exhibit also has a room of hands-on activities geared toward
the Wild” about the impact of informal science education. young kids.
• Professional organizations such as the National Sci- Mark Cardillo mentioned that the Dreyfus Foundation has
ence Teachers Association have an informal science day as a seed program that supports museum exhibits in chemistry.
a part of their activities every year. He noted that many of the exhibits mentioned by Ucko and
• Private foundations such as the Noyce Foundation are others were initiated with a seed grant.
increasingly funding informal learning.
• There was recently a House subcommittee hearing on
NISE Network
Beyond the Classroom: Informal STEM Education.
• NSF recently held an Informal Science Education sum- Participant Dr. Rosenberg asked Ucko about the effective-
mit that brought together 450 people from across the field. ness of the NISE Network in incorporating chemistry.
Ucko believes it has been effective and has grown substan-
Ucko provided a few suggestions for how chemists tially. For example, almost 200 science museums around the
can take advantage of informal education resources and country have an event each year called Nano Days. The NISE
opportunities: Network creates effective kinds of learning experiences by
bringing museums together and linking them to researchers
1. Start with the learner, not with the contact. Start with and could be a useful model for other organizations.
Ellenbogen noted that there would be a report17 available
what is going to engage the learner; or the “hook.” He high-
lighted the work of Matt Nisbet at American University,16 September 30, 2010, that summarizes the chemistry experi-
who has written about framing, which takes into account the ences in NISE programs and exhibits.
14For more information, see www.nisenet.org (accessed September 13,
2010).
15For more information, see caise.insci.org (accessed November 10,
2010).
16For more information, see www.american.edu/soc/faculty/nisbet.cfm 17For more information, see the NISE Network Research and Evaluation
(accessed September 13, 2010). website at www.nisenet.org/catalog/eval (accessed November 11, 2010).
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12 CHEMISTRY IN PRIMETIME AND ONLINE
FIGURE 2-4 Dreyfus Foundation-funded energy exhibit at the Museum of Science, Boston.
SOURCE: 2010. Printed with permission, MJ Morse, Museum of Science, Boston.
NSF Broader Impacts or by surveying the intended audience before planning an
activity.
Another participant commented that NSF broader impacts
Mark Cardillo mentioned two new Dreyfus-funded chem-
grants seem like a good opportunity for collaboration among
istry exhibits, one at the Science Museum in Boston (Figure
chemists and informal science educators, because the recipi-
2-4)18 and one at the Museum of Science and Industry in
ents of these grants are chemical researchers, who “don’t
Chicago.19 The Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago
really know that much about how to reach out to the public.
in particular has developed a new and exciting multimillion-
Yet there is this whole population of people who do just that,
dollar Science Hall.
and they are not connected to each other.”
Ucko said NSF encourages chemistry principal investiga-
CHEMISTRY, THE NEGLECTED SCIENCE
tors (PIs) to collaborate with people from the informal sci -
ence education communities in advance. Unfortunately, he
Stephen Lyons explained that his interest in science com-
has heard that PIs will often ask for a letter of support from
munication stems from producing the program Forgotten
a museum or education expert the day before the proposal is
Genius (mentioned earlier by David Ucko), a 2-hour biog-
due to NSF, which does not lead to effective collaboration.
raphy of the African-American chemist Percy Julian (Figure
2-5), which aired on the PBS NOVA program 3 years ago.20
Opportunities for Chemistry in Informal Education He explained that “Julian’s scientific career involved a lot of
Ellenbogen asked Ucko to speak about the compelling
areas of chemistry that might benefit from or be well suited 18The exhibit is called “Fuel Your Future.” For more information, see the
to informal science education. Ucko warned against starting Museum of Science Boston website at www.mos.org/ (accessed November
11, 2010).
from chemistry and suggested instead planning an informal 19The exhibit is called “Create a Chemical Reaction.” It is part of the
education activity based on real-world topics that typically larger, recently opened Science Storms exhibit. See www.msichicago.org/
interest people, such as environment, food, or health, and whats-here/exhibits/science-storms/the-exhibit/atoms/create-a-chemical-
then address the chemical aspect. The topics can be identified reaction/ (accessed September 13, 2010).
20For more information, see the PBS Forgotten Genius website at www.
from front-end testing (as mentioned earlier by Ellenbogen)
pbs.org/wgbh/nova/julian/ (accessed September 10, 2010).
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13
INTRODUCTION TO INFORMAL LEARNING
pretty amazing chemistry, including his landmark synthesis
of a glaucoma drug called physostigmine, and his pioneering
work trying to make cortisone and other steroids available
to people at reasonable prices. On the strength of this work,
Julian was elected to the National Academy of Sciences. He
was the first black chemist elected to the Academies.”
Lyons described how he came away from the project with
two lessons about communicating chemistry topics. “Lesson
number one was that chemistry can make interesting televi-
sion.” As he began to look deeper into Julian’s work, he was
fascinated by the chemist’s ability to manipulate tiny bits of
matter, to work with atoms that he could not see or touch,
but was then able to rearrange them to make molecules
that could improve peoples’ lives. Lyons described this as
“almost magical,” and a very interesting topic for a televi-
sion documentary.
The second lesson was that chemistry was not being
covered on television. “I looked around and I discovered
that I essentially had the whole field to myself; no other
television producers were interested in making television
on chemistry.”
FIGURE 2-6 Marie Curie is one of the personalities to be featured
in the Lyons-Moreno film The Mystery of Matter: Search for the
Elements.
SOURCE: U.S. National Library of Medicine, History of Medicine
Division.
Chemistry Can Make Interesting Television
Lyons has found two things that make chemistry inter-
esting to people: making the program about people, and
showing why it matters. This was relatively easy in the
case of Forgotten Genius, because Julian’s life story was so
compelling: he had a lifelong battle against racism, worked
hard to become a chemist, and used chemistry to help people.
Lyons applied what he learned from Forgotten Genius
to his new video production titled The Mystery of Matter:
Search for the Elements. This is a 2-hour special focusing
on the human story behind the development of the Periodic
Table (Figure 2-6).21
Many people are familiar with the Periodic Table, because
it hangs in almost every chemistry class in the world. How-
ever, there is an incredible story that very few people know
behind the rows and columns of elements. There was a long
quest to discover the elements and to define and explain the
FIGURE 2-5 Chemist Percy Julian, winner of the Spingarn Medal hidden order among them. Lyons described this quest as
in 1947.
SOURCE: Percy L. Julian, Scurlock Studio Records, Archives Center,
National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution. 21For more information, see informalscience.org/project/show/1892.
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14 CHEMISTRY IN PRIMETIME AND ONLINE
Chemistry, the Neglected Science
one of the great adventures in the history of science, filled
with fascinating characters. For example, there was Dmitri
Lyons elaborated on the second lesson he drew from the
Mendeleev, a Russian chemistry professor whose struggle
Julian project: little chemistry is highlighted on television.
to organize a textbook led him to devise the Periodic Table
By reviewing the previous 12 years of NOVA programs, he
in 1869; Joseph Priestley, who discovered oxygen; Marie
found that the most popular category was “history mystery.”
Curie, a Polish graduate student who launched the science of
In this category, the producer uses science to explore a his-
radioactivity and used it as a tool for finding new elements;
torical mystery, such as the Kennedy assassination. However,
Harry Moseley, a young Englishman who used the new tool
only one film out of the 190 broadcasts focused specifically
of X rays to redefine the very nature of elements, only to
on chemistry, which is lower than all other areas of science.
die at age 27 in World War I; and Glenn Seaborg, whose
He noted, however, that the data he collected are a few
discovery of plutonium played a key role in ending World
years old, so they do not reflect the most recent programs
War II and who went on to pioneer the creation of elements
in the NOVA schedule. For example, there have been a few
beyond uranium in the Periodic Table.
short pieces about chemistry on NOVA’s summertime maga-
In producing Search for the Elements, the production team
zine program, Science Now, but no full-length films since
plans to use many of the same techniques as in the Julian
Forgotten Genius. Also, he did not take into account bits of
film. Actors play the key characters, delivering lines drawn
chemistry in many other films, such as those on molecular
from the scientists’ own writings, historians, biographers,
biology, global warming, and forensics. Some people might
chemists, and writers who helped tell the story, and there will
also quarrel with his categorizations, such as two science
be dramatic reenactments of key discoveries with period lab
programs near the bottom of his list on artificial diamonds
equipment. However, instead of focusing on one scientist as
and the samurai sword, which he categorized as material sci-
was done in the Julian film, Search for the Elements will be
ence. Both concern the structure of matter. However, “if you
an ensemble drama about the collective effort to understand
put them in the chemistry column, chemistry jumps right up
the nature of matter, about a series of individual discoveries
over math and botany.”
that gradually built a foundation of knowledge.
Lyons reviewed the programs through NOVA’s 36-year
The program will also show how modern scientists con-
history and only found 6 programs out of a total of approxi-
tinue to build on that foundation, conducting new chemical
mately 690 that were clearly and primarily about chemistry:
research that may affect peoples’ lives in profound ways. For
example, the film will highlight the work of Massachusetts
• Forgotten Genius (2007)
Institute of Technology (MIT) chemist Daniel Nocera. For
• Race to Catch a Buckyball (1995)
years, Nocera has been searching for an element that could
• Hidden Power of Plants (1987)
serve as a catalyst to speed up the splitting of water into
• Plague on Our Children (1979)
oxygen and hydrogen, which could then be used as a clean-
• A Pill for the People (1977)
burning fuel. Even though the Periodic Table was invented
• Linus Pauling: Crusading Scientist (1977)
more than a century ago by Mendeleev, it has led to modern
chemical research that may one day help the world’s energy
However, he said NOVA is not alone. If other programs,
problems. Thus, the film relates chemistry to renewable
for example, on the Discovery Channel could be searched,
energy, a topic that resonates with many people.
“I’m sure we would find the same pattern there. In fact,
Lyons noted that his production team received a critical
there is even less chemistry on other networks than there is
NSF planning grant to help this project last year and has
on PBS.”
also received support from the Dreyfus Foundation, the Haas
Similar results were found when he reviewed other popu-
Trusts, and the Chemical Heritage Foundation. At the time of
lar media, such as books, newspapers, and magazines. There
the workshop, NSF was considering his proposal for produc-
are recent popular books on chemistry, such as Oliver Sacks’
tion funds. The funding has since been received, and Lyons
Uncle Tungsten,22 Philip Ball’s H2O,23 and John Emsley’s
hopes to produce the film in time for broadcast on PBS late
Molecules of Murder.24 Lyons noted that compared to many
in 2011 during the International Year of Chemistry.
other sciences, these writers and books are rare.
In addition to the television program, the project will
Lyons cautioned that his investigation was not a system-
include an extensive outreach program involving the St.
atic survey of how chemistry is covered by the media. He
Louis Science Center and its Yes Teens program. The Ameri-
can Chemical Society has pledged to make Search for the
Elements the focus of National Chemistry Week, and a spe- 22 O.W. Sacks. 2001. Uncle Tungsten: Memories of a Chemical Boyhood.
cial teacher’s edition DVD of the program will be produced New York: Alfred A. Knopf.
with many extra features to help teachers use the human 23P. Ball. 1999 H O: A Biography of Water. London: Weidenfeld &
2
stories behind chemistry to educate their students. Nicolson Ltd.
24J. Emsley. 2008. Molecules of Murder: Criminal Molecules and Classic
Cases. London: Royal Society of Chemistry.
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15
INTRODUCTION TO INFORMAL LEARNING
wanted to get a quick sense of chemistry’s media profile 50%
by looking at limited samples of a few key representatives Television
45% I nternet
of the various media. Lyons believes it would be useful if Magazines
40%
somebody could do a more thorough study than this. “Still, Newspapers
Radio
35%
the pattern seems clear. Given the huge number of chemists Other
30%
in the world, the amount of science they do, and the enor-
25%
mous impact it has on our lives, the lack of attention from
20%
the mainstream media is extraordinary. That is why I call
15%
chemistry a neglected science.”
Lyons said he is puzzled by writers’ and TV producers’ 10%
avoidance of chemistry. One common explanation is that 5%
chemists do not communicate information about their fields 0%
Ages 18-29 Ages 30-49 Ages 50+
effectively. However it is clear from the Julian film that there
are many articulate chemists. Lyons also suggested that many FIGURE 2-7 Media sources used by American (home broadband
people are discouraged by their high school chemistry expe- Internet users) to obtain most of their science news and information,
riences. “There is some truth in this, because badly taught grouped by age. The y axis is the percentage of those surveyed.
chemistry has left a lot of people—writers and TV producers SOURCE: John Horrigan. 2006. The Internet as a Resource for
included—with a lasting aversion to chemistry.” News and Information about Science. Washington, DC: Pew Inter-
net & American Life Project. Available online at www.pewinternet.
Another factor often cited is that chemistry is hard to
org (accessed December 28, 2010).
visualize, because it occurs at the molecular level. This is
a handicap for filmmakers, but it has not stopped producers
from making films about the Big Bang, black holes, super-
Lyons spent the rest of his talk discussing two things that
strings, and many other equally invisible things in physics.
he thinks can have an even greater impact on improving
Lyons thinks the main reason chemistry has been neglected
chemistry communications: (1) exploiting the Internet and
by popular media relates to the types of problems studied by
(2) capitalizing on chemistry’s financial resources.
chemists. From the media’s point of view, science is only as
He explained how the sources for news and science infor-
interesting as the questions it asks, such as: What is the origin
mation have changed over the past 10 years. For example,
of the universe? What accounts for the rise and fall of ancient
the Pew Research Center on the People and the Press found
civilizations? Can we keep the planet from overheating?
that television continues to be the main source of news for
What can we learn about ourselves from studying animal
Americans.25 However, the percentage of those who obtain
behavior? Can we find cures for AIDS or cancer? These are
news from television, newspapers, and radio has declined,
some of the questions pursued by scientists in cosmology,
while the proportion obtaining news from the Internet has
archeology, ecology, biology, and medicine—big captivating
grown dramatically, passing all other sources except for local
questions of interest to everyone. These questions make good
TV. This trend is also seen in the media sources Americans
subjects for books, articles, and TV programs.
use to get news and information about science in particular.
Lyons thinks chemists have not been good about articulat-
The Pew Research Center also found that 40 million, or 20
ing those big questions. Many chemists seem to be focused
percent, of Americans now rely on the Internet as their pri-
on fairly narrow technical questions, not the kinds of big
mary source for science news. Only television ranks higher
questions that captivate a television audience or excite a
at 41 percent.
science writer. When they do have a discovery that might
Lyons said this trend is even more pronounced among
be of great public interest, many chemists are not very good
young people with broadband access, as shown in Figure 2-7.
at letting the world know about it. Biologists and physicists
Among those ages 18 to 29, 44 percent said they accessed
may not be any more articulate than chemists, but they are
most of their science information from the Internet, surpass-
more practiced when it comes to public relations and pro-
ing television, and far outstripping all the other sources.
moting their work.
When asked which news source they go to first for science
Lyons said that chemists are probably not going to change
information, 76 percent of high-speed-connection users in
the nature of their research just to get more media attention,
this age group said they turn to the Internet. All other sources
nor should they. However, if they are doing research that is
combined totaled only 17 percent.
potentially of interest to people outside their field, they can
frame it in terms broad enough to appeal to the public. They
could work with their institutions’ news offices to reach out
25 John Horrigan. 2006. The Internet as a Resource for News and Informa-
to the media, as well as put in time working with writers and
tion about Science. Washington, DC: Pew Internet & American Life Project.
TV producers to make the stories as accurate and interesting Available online at www.pewinternet.org/~/media//Files/Reports/2006/
as possible. PIP_Exploratorium_Science.pdf. (accessed December 28, 2010).
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16 CHEMISTRY IN PRIMETIME AND ONLINE
Coke and Mentos geyser (ultrasonic soda fountain) video,27
Lyons said, “Clearly if the chemistry community’s goal
is to communicate more effectively with young people, the shown in Figure 2-8, which at the time of this workshop
Internet must be part of the strategy.” One potentially pow- had 9 million viewers. He said his effort was not bad for a
erful tool for exploiting the Internet is video. For example, little video launched into cyberspace with no real publicity,
s ince its founding 5 years ago, YouTube has come to but a series of chemistry videos with a regular home on the
dominate the market with its eclectic mix of mostly amateur Internet where people knew to look for them would probably
videos and clips from movies, TV shows, and music videos. do much better.
However, the last 2 years has seen the emergence of another Based on teacher response to the first video he made,
subtler trend, a growing number of high-quality videos cre- Lyons thinks such videos could be widely used in class-
ated specifically for the Internet. In 2008, the New York Times rooms. He said chemistry teachers are hungry for video
reported that more and more office workers are using their sources, particularly those that show chemistry at work
lunch hours to watch short videos over the Internet, “video today.
snacking.” In producing this online chemistry video, Lyon’s approach
He noted that the explosion of Internet video is a tremen- was to treat it like a television magazine piece, yet keep the
dous opportunity for the science community. It offers a new budget as low as possible. However, he said there are many
channel for delivering scientific research news directly to the other potential ways to produce chemistry videos for the web,
public without the barriers imposed by the broadcast media. although there are no standards or rules. Internet video is still
There have been a few small steps in this direction, simple new, so nobody knows the best approach.
video podcasts by journals such as Nature and isolated videos Lyons encouraged the chemistry community to embrace
produced by museums and others. However, he said video video and experiment with it to see what works best. He said
producers and the scientific community have barely begun the Internet offers a way to bypass media gatekeepers and get
to tap the promise of this new medium. the content out to audiences that would like to see it. In the
Lyons described his effort of 2 years ago, with support process, chemistry can be a real leader, showing scientists
from the Dreyfus Foundation, in which his company pro- in other fields how they can use this new medium to reach
duced a short online video on the water-splitting catalyst young people in creative ways.
discovered by Dan Nocera at MIT. Because Nocera told him Lyons finished his talk by highlighting chemistry’s unique
about the catalyst soon after its discovery, Lyons’ company position among the sciences. It is the foundation of a large
was able to produce the video and have it ready to stream just and profitable industry, which sets it apart from other fields
a few days after Nocera’s paper was published in Science. of science. He speculated that if the chemistry community
They posted it on Blip.TV,26 a service that offers free video chose to, it could pool its resources to create a fund to bring
distribution on the web. about greater coverage of chemistry, what he referred to as
The viewership for the video started small but grew rap- the “Chemistry in Media Fund.” For example, if 10 donors
idly after being noted by the Chemical Engineering News gave $250,000 a year, it would provide an annual fund of
blog master. Following that reaction, Wired Science gave it $2.5 million, which could be used to support chemistry
a positive review as well. This public exposure seems to be communications in all media sources. He said, “The result
the reason viewership increased twentyfold overnight. All of would profoundly change the landscape, giving chemistry a
this Internet traffic moved the water-splitting catalyst video much higher profile in the popular media than it has now.”
onto the front page at Blip, where still more people viewed it. With science journalism in peril, people have begun to
After 5 days it was one of the most viewed videos on the site. explore new business models that would allow it to survive
This experience illustrates one of the main attractions of in a different form. One example Lyons gave is the organiza-
tion Pro Publica,28 which pursues public interest investiga-
Internet videos—the ease with which they can be dissemi-
nated, Lyons said. This video can now be viewed on many tive journalism and is supported by a group of philanthropic
websites, including at the Chemical Heritage Foundation, the organizations including the MacArthur Foundation. Another
example is a service called Kaiser Health News,29 launched
Dreyfus Foundation, MIT, NSF, and others. Understandably,
he said viewer traffic for the video decreased after the initial by the Kaiser Family Foundation. Run by a former National
excitement over the catalyst discovery, yet 9 months later, Cancer Institute science editor, it provides impartial coverage
people were still watching. Lyons estimated that the video of health care issues. As the old advertising- and subscrip-
has now been seen by 20,000 to 30,000 people. He noted
however that this is trivial compared to chemistry-related 27See www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKoB0MHVBvM; 12,657,015 as of
videos that have gone “viral,” such as the well known Diet November 11, 2010; also featured by Time Online at www.time.com/time/
specials/packages/article/0,28804,1974961_1974925_1973107,00.html .
28For more information, see www.propublica.org/ (accessed December
28, 2010).
29For more information, see www.kaiserhealthnews.org/ (accessed De-
26See www.blip.tv/file/1144655/ (accessed December 28, 2010). cember 28, 2010).
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17
INTRODUCTION TO INFORMAL LEARNING
FIGURE 2-8 YouTube favorite, the “Diet Coke + Mentos” geyser. Mentos candies are dropped in bottles of diet coke soda, causing a rapid-
foaming chemical reaction that shoots into the air like a geyser or fountain. Video available at www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKoB0MHVBvM
SOURCE: Diet Coke and Mentos Fountain. Photo courtesy of EepyBird.com.
tion-based business model crumbles, people in the media are public understanding of, and appreciation for, the field than
looking for new means of support. Philanthropy is emerging all the image advertising the chemistry industry now invests
as a strong contender. In this new climate, Lyons thinks the in, and at a small fraction of the costs.
media would be receptive to support from the chemistry and Lyons said he has spent a lot of time talking with chemists
media fund, as long as the funds are used to support solid over the last few years, and his sense is that chemists feel
impartial science journalism. neglected by the press. They feel most people do not under-
Lyons said that this is a good opportunity for the chem- stand or appreciate what they do. They have a story to tell,
istry community, because it may be the best way to improve just as other scientists do, but for some reason their story is
public understanding of chemistry and enhance appreciation not getting out there, and this bothers them. From his per-
of the chemical enterprise. He said, “Today many Americans spective as an outside observer, this seems like an important
come out of school with both a poor understanding of basic problem and one the chemistry community needs to confront,
chemical concepts and a negative attitude toward chemistry. understand, and address. He thought the workshop might be
The only way the chemistry community can turn this around, an important step in that direction.
short of an overhaul of chemistry education, which is a sub-
ject for another day, is to tap the one remaining conduit for
Questions and Answers
science learning, informal education.”
In the first year alone, the chemistry and media fund might Jeannette Brown thanked Steve Lyons for the Percy Julian
support a mixture of chemical communications. Over time, film, which she noted “is the only film that shows African-
by supporting a wide array of informal science education American chemists.” She mentioned that the ACS Committee
initiatives, Lyons thinks the fund would do more to enhance on Minority Affairs and the Women Chemists Committee
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18 CHEMISTRY IN PRIMETIME AND ONLINE
are now working hard to start another film about Dr. Marie of individual people. Gradually, it will help people to see
Daly, who was the first African-American woman to get a chemists in a different way. He said people generally have
Ph.D. in chemistry. Brown further commented about the need no idea what chemists actually do in their work, so it would
that exists for more materials about other underrepresented be useful to provide stories of their lives as a series of videos
minorities, such as Hispanic and Native American chemists, on a television program or an online series of videos. His
and how useful it would be to have those materials available video about Dan Nocera is a good example of showing the
on the Internet. story of a chemist, how Nocera set out working for 20 years
Steve Lyons responded that one of the most reward- to address the energy problem. A series of those kinds of
ing things about the Julian project was having the chance, examples would help people to see chemistry in a new and
with the support of the Dreyfus Foundation, to go out and more positive way.
interview 60 people who knew Julian. Lyons and his team Mark Griep from the University of Nebraska asked about
gathered information about Julian’s life and his scientific the use of chemical symbols and formulas in communicating
career that would have otherwise been lost, making it a very chemistry to the public, such as the structure of physostig-
rewarding experience. mine in the Percy Julian film.
Lyons also agreed with Brown that her Daly project Ucko responded that in a museum, visitors come from
would be ideal for the Internet, because more and more many different backgrounds. They range from people who
teachers are looking online for educational materials. He know nothing about chemistry and would never recognize a
said if she could help produce a series of short videos chemical symbol at all, to others who are Ph.D. chemists, so
about African-American women in chemistry and African- there need to be varying degrees of content that support the
Americans in other fields of science as well, they would experience. He suggested that chemical symbols not be the
be widely used. He cautioned that videos should be kept starting point for engaging the public. He said the symbol
short though, because that is what most Internet users have is often secondary to what the work of the chemist is really
grown accustomed to. about, so it can be there at some point in the exhibit for
those that would understand what it is or those who want
to learn more.
OPEN DISCUSSION 1
Lyons added that it is different in television. In the Percy
David Ucko commented about NSF funding. He encour- Julian documentary, the use of letter symbols for chemicals
aged those with good ideas to bring them to NSF. He said, was avoided entirely. There was not a single frame in the
“We can only fund things that we get proposals for. So I entire film that showed a chemical formula. Instead of using
would encourage folks to develop proposals for informal symbols, they used a simple ball and stick illustration to
science education in chemistry.” help people understand the chemicals. An explanation was
Bill Carroll commented that one of the difficulties in provided for the basic steroid structure of physostigmine and
chemistry is counterbalancing the negative images. For how it could be modified by adding and subtracting pieces on
example, he said, “If you cure someone it is medicine, if you the end of the structure. It was a very important concept in
poison someone, it is chemistry. It is almost as though you understanding Julian’s work, and it was also simple enough
have to undo that first.” for people to grasp. He explained how even if the audience
Lyons agreed and said the best way he sees to address did not understand the details, they could get the idea that the
the problem from the point of view of the media is to con- properties of molecule could be changed by adding different
tinually show how chemistry is used through the stories pieces in different places.
