Search by tag «popular science» 81 results
Telegram For Geeks: Channels for Those Fond of Science
Telegram has long become one of the major information sources that provides its users with all kinds of news. What was once a typical messenger turned into a whole media universe with all the corresponding niches: it has channels on economy, politics, feminism, human rights, sex, education, music, fashion, movies and just everything modern media is about. We've decided to take a closer look at what it can offer in terms of Science.
23.08.2017
"In English, Please": De-Jargonizer Helps Make Science Accessible
Israeli scientists have developed software that can analyze a scientific article’s level of comprehensibility. The algorithm, named De-Jargonizer, separates words into three categories according to their frequency of use and, using a simple formula, determines how accessible the text will be to a wider audience. Having tested their software on articles from PLOS ONE, the scientists learned that the abstracts of some articles can consist of rare scientific terms by up to 27 percent. Developers hope that their program will help adapt texts to be more accessible to a majority of people.
21.08.2017
Cool Science: Why Science Communication Matters
Science communication is new to Russia, both as a concept and as a career field. Yet in just a few years a community of experts on the matter has formed here, and they are ready to start making science accessible to the larger society. Why does it matter? What are the main difficulties of this task? How can you innovate science communication? These are some of the questions that were asked at the launch of the new “Formula for Science PR 3.0” handbook – a collection of practices and expert opinions. The Moscow event was organized by Russian Venture Company’s Communication Lab, ITMO University and Association for Communication in Education and Science (AKSON)
09.08.2017
Starcon 2017: From Space Travel to 3D Printing
The largest Russian festival of science fiction, fantasy, film and science is going to be held for the 18th time on July 28 to 30. Over three days, the guests can visit booths and shops, take part in quests and attend lectures. ITMO University has set up its own booth in the Science section. Visitors will be able to repair a spaceship, become a space captain, learn to control light or use a 3D-printer.
28.07.2017
Second Day of Geek Picnic: Evolution, Rats and Superstition
How do humans fare in isolation, why do some believe in the supernatural or even see faces on the surface of Mars? Why does one need to understand the theory of relativity and what is a neurotheatre? The Geek Picnic festival has come to an end. Thousands of guests had the opportunity to attend dozens of venues, hear stories and news from the fields of science, gaming and technology and meet famous scientists and science writers, program their own chameleon-lamp and build a custom rocket. Read on to find out more about the things one could see, hear, taste and touch on the festival’s closing day.
26.06.2017
Campus Festival: How to Learn About Science at a Bar
How to discover a platinum field, why scientists can’t replicate more than half of their experiments and what is hidden behind the petroglyphs of North Europe and the treasures of the Hermitage? Last Friday, seven bars of St. Petersburg turned into an educational space for just one night. All in all, 12 lectures were given throughout the city. Vladimir Borisov, postgraduate student at ITMO University’s Department of Photonics and Optical Information Technologies, explained the construction of a laser and the concepts of holographic memory and supercontinuum, while Varvara Lymar, research fellow at ITMO University’s Institute of Design and Urban Studies, gave her thoughts on what could be done with St. Petersburg’s industrial areas. ITMO.NEWS paid a visit to the young scientists’ lectures and found out what a scientific gathering at a bar looks like and why this format is becoming ever more popular.
29.05.2017
“Edible Science” Course: How to Cook a Modernist Dish and Learn About All Colors of Potato
The first series of interactive lectures “Edible Science” has ended at ITMO University. It was launched this February at the School of Biotechnology and Cryogenic Systems by the International Research Centre “Biotechnologies of the Third Millennium”. For 2.5 months, the course’s participants, under the guidance of chef and head of Umami project Ilya Litvyak, learned to approach food preparation in a scientific manner. At the final meeting the participants received certificates of completion and spoke to us about the lectures and what they learned at the laboratory.
05.05.2017
Gutenberg's Lounge: Why Stonehenge is an Observatory, How Satellites Stay on the Orbit and Where One Starts His Way to Mars
Humankind has always reached out to the stars, to the endless space above. And those are not just words: since ancient times, people were set on researching celestial bodies, using them to track time and create calendars. In several thousands of years, humans launched the first artificial satellite, flew to space and set foot on the Moon's surface. As of now, we can well aspire to building a new home on some other planet. On the Space Exploration day, optical engineers and science writers gathered at Gutenberg's Lounge to speak about humanity’s long history of conquering space.
14.04.2017
Popularizing Science: Director Dmitry Zagilevsky on Shooting Popular Science Films in Russia
In Russia, a director who can shoot a true-to-life, proper science popular films is something rare. There are few documentarians who cover the work of scientists in Russia, as well. At the same time, people have become more interested in science, and open lectures by different scientists gather large audiences. Director Dmitry Zavigelsky shared on what popular science films should be like, why one sees fringe scientists on TV more often than true ones, and when sci-pop becomes something bad. His film "Waiting for Waves and Particles" will be shown at the Relevant Science Film Festival at ITMO University on December, 6th.
05.12.2016
Gutenberg’s Lounge — Machines and Intuition
Sometimes you are totally sure about something, but you just can't explain why. That is what intuition is. So, is it possible to teach intuition to a machine? And is there any point to it? Ivan Ivanchei, a research associate from Saint Petersburg State University, shared on this subject during the recent session of the Gutenberg's Lounge sci-pop project.
17.11.2016