You have an incredible tool: the ability to ask a question. But how effectively do you use it?
Many of us have probably had the experience of wanting to ask a question in class but not doing so in fear of looking “slow” or bothersome. But the best way to understand a complex idea is by asking questions, because in asking questions, we get answers. This is an essential quality to scientists and people who are scientifically literate.
Being scientifically literate is not about how much scientific information you can recite. Rather, it is more about your ability to ask questions that will allow you to better understand the natural world. After all, science is about making discoveries, and to do this, one must have a pioneering spirit. One great example of this is last year’s Nobel Prize winners in Physics, Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov, who won the award for their work in analyzing graphene, a purely two-dimensional layer of carbon atoms that is stronger than steel. Graphene was extremely expensive to create and so acquiring a sample to study its properties was difficult. But Geim and Novoselov figured out a way to easily acquire some. Their solution: sticky tape. Using ordinary scotch tape, and a slab of graphite (pencil lead, which is made of carbon atoms) they peeled layers of carbon off the graphite with the tape until they had only a single sheet of graphene. They discovered this ingenious method during one of their Friday night experiments, where they test out random experimental methods regardless of whether they would successfully work or not. At some point one of them must have asked the question whether such a method was possible. Surely enough, it was and it won them the Nobel Prize.
Now you may be wondering why science literacy is important. For one thing, it empowers you to grasp an understanding of the natural world without requiring you to formally study it. The more questions you ask about the world, the more you will get to understand it, provided someone will be able to answer your questions. It also protects you against others who may try to exploit your scientific ignorance. For example, people may try to sell you bands that they claim will give you extra strength and energy. If you’re scientifically literate, your instinct will be to ask questions such as “What is the band made of? How do they increase my energy? What are the side-effects?” By the end of your questioning, the seller would either have been exposed to be a charlatan based on his answers or you would have made a more informed decision about buying the product by understanding it. The investigative skills you develop from being scientifically literate can be applied across many fields and can enrich your thoughtfulness. It will improve your ability to gather information and make informed judgments based on that information.
The major reason I wanted to blog for QC was because I believed the student body may have benefited by having a voice from the scientific community. For a nation to remain on the frontiers of innovation and discovery, it must have citizens who understand the value in science and who will be active enough to voice their support for it. My hope is to help guide you through a new way of thinking, to provide you an additional set of lens to look at the world. While there may be many things we do not understand this semester, I believe we will find the answers if we ask the right questions.
Watch Neil deGrasse Tyson, popular Astrophysicist, for his engaging and comical description of what science literacy is. He is one of the most fun speakers to listen to:
