4 tips for excellent science communication

Scientists and other people from different branches of science do incredible work in their fields every day. But, most often, their achievements fail to reach the general audience.

The biggest reason for this is the technical nature of their work and achievement. However, since the audience doesn't hold the same technical knowledge as people from a science background, it becomes difficult for them to understand the information conveyed to them.

Effective science communication refers to conveying scientific information and achievements in a manner that becomes easier for the general public to understand. It majorly involves breaking down complex scientific terms into simpler general terms.

Four tips to help you have excellent science communication are

1. Speak first things first: It is already a difficult task to keep your audience engaged throughout your speech, and it becomes further complicated when your audience isn't well versed in the field that you are speaking about. Therefore, begin with important things that you want your audience to understand. Convey the most important piece of information while you have the complete attention of your audience.
2. Know your audience: A different set of audiences will expect different things from the speech that you make. Not everyone would be interested in knowing how you reached the conclusion of your research or how you made that discovery. An investor would be interested in knowing that how your research can provide them with returns. At the same time, a media person would be interested in knowing the aspect of the research that directly impacts the general public. If you know your audience, you'll know what to serve them.
3. Avoid abbreviations: Your audience hasn't been through the same books as you have. CRT or CFC might not ring a bell in their mind as it does in yours. Therefore refrain from using these abbreviations. Even if you choose to explain it once to your audience, its repetitive use can make your audience disinterested. But that also doesn't mean that you will go on and explain even the most common ones like DNA, LED, etc. To see what works, test your speech on someone from your family.
4. Use visual examples: Our mind thinks in images, not words. If your speaking words can paint a picture for your audience, it wouldn't be hard for them to understand what you want to convey. It will help engage your audience and create an impact on them because words might not stay with them, but images will.

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