Science + stand-up comedy = Science Riot
As a science communication enthusiast, I am a huge supporter of initiatives that require academics to come out of their natural habitats and comfort zones while also promoting research. Science Riot and their stand-up comedy events are an excellent example of such efforts.
Science Riot is a nonprofit program that trains scientists to become more engaging speakers and performers through comedy writing. At the end of the training, scientists try their hands at writing jokes and giving short performances on stage. Although the process sounds simple, preparing such a performance takes weeks of hard work as participating researchers are not professional comedians.
I found out about the event through the network of Northern Illinois University that took part in the program. It happened last Friday at the Field Museum in Chicago, an amazing venue filled with great artifacts from history and science, including dinosaurs. Aside from NIU researchers, scientists from Argonne National Laboratory and the Shedd Aquarium took the stage that evening.
It was an evening full of laughter and a fantastic way to celebrate the city’s full reopening. Still, given the pandemic, there were also Zoom performances. I learned about such diverse topics as conch reproduction, machine learning, the complexities of spam email, second language acquisition in adult, how your workplace might be killing you directly and indirectly, what is the best way to heat a home with nuclear warhead material, how stressors affect cardiovascular health in children, and how science fiction works inspire scientists today. Learning felt effortless.
It was a nice diverse crowd, with performers of all ages and research experience. They frequently got stuck and had to pause to look over the material, which was perfectly fine because they weren't professionals, but always cheered by the storm of applause as it happened. Despite their inexperience with stand-up, I have to admit that they were all, as predominantly teachers, very good performers.
Science could use some distance and humor more often. This is how you make complex ideas more accessible to a wide range of audiences. More importantly, scientists are people, too, and they deserve some slack. Making fun of their nerdiness or overqualifications does just that. The welcoming crowd of fellow nerds that gathered to see the event is the best audience a novice may want. This made me want to perform, too and I hope to bring Science Riot to my organization one day.
