TRAINING FUTURE SCIENTISTS IN COMMUNICATING THE SIGNIFICANCE OF SCIENTIFIC OCEAN DRILLING

Scientific ocean drilling (SciOD) has led to marvelous discoveries of our planet, covering topics such as plate tectonics, evolution, limitations of life, Earth’s past climate, and impacts of natural hazards on society. While each sea-going expedition has made significant contributions, the accessibility of the resulting information to the general public is often lacking.

Effective science communication training is often excluded from university curricula. Consequently, valuable scientific knowledge remains inaccessible to those outside of academia, impeding its broader dissemination and impacts to society. Bridging this communication gap is imperative to ensure that scientific discoveries and their implications are accessible and comprehensible to the public, thereby fostering a well-informed and engaged society.

A pivotal step to resolving these issues is to integrate science communication training into academic programs. Binghamton University established a seminar course specifically designed for upper-level undergraduate and graduate students. The seminar, “Science Communication for SciOD”, provides an opportunity for students to acquire essential science communication skills through various means including readings, in-depth discussions, lectures from distinguished guests, and practical exercises in writing for the general public. Students were tasked with selecting two SciOD expeditions that were of interest to them, and summarizing the main scientific findings from each expedition in a way that would be easily understood by the general public. These write-ups showcasing the students' work were then published on the Time Scavengers website as their own pages, with student attribution. In addition, the text generated by the students, accompanied by relevant images and site information related to the expeditions, was uploaded to the freely accessible mobile phone app called Flyover Country. This app allows users to plug in their flight, hike, or road trip routes, enabling them to learn about geological features of interest along the route. By making this information readily available through the app, the scientific insights gained from SciOD expeditions are accessible during international flights and cruises and can be utilized as part of engaging classroom activities.