Head and Heart

Have you ever wondered what persuaded you to buy a particular product? Maybe it was those new pair of earphones you bought last week even though you have various pairs lying around your home. Did you buy it because the sales assistant was cute? Probably not. Chances are, they presented an excellent sales pitch to you. Perhaps, they even made an appeal to your head and heart. But what exactly do we mean by "your head and heart"?

An appeal to the head is done through the presentation of knowledge and logic. This may come in the form of facts, statistics and graphs. On the other hand, an appeal to the heart made through an emotional connection. Storytelling and a call to action are often used.

Now, going back to our cute sales assistant. Maybe they started off by informing you of the features and benefits of these earphones. Portable, noise-cancelling, stylish. Yet that was insufficient in convincing you to make the purchase. Thus, they moved on to sharing why you personally needed the product. These earphones would revolutionise your life and provide you with the perfect auditory experience. Whether it be during study, travel or workouts, these portable gadgets would provide amazing sound clarity and were ergonomically perfect. Bam, you were hooked.

In the same way, we should always consider how we can appeal to the heads and hearts of individuals. Why should people believe you and why should they care? If we can answer these two questions for anyone (whether it be in a presentation or day-to-day conversation), then we’ve paved the way for them to come on board with us and take up our point of contention or call to action.

Some excellent strategies to be used are:

HEAD

• Use statistics, graphs, figures

• Structure your presentation in an ordered manner e.g. Cause-Effect-Solution

• Features and benefits

HEART 

• Use personal, individualistic stories

• Mention people and show faces - humanise the issue

• Utilise emotive language

• Explain the consequences of not agreeing with what you have to say

Remember, the aforementioned tips are only a starting point. You are the creator of your own presentation. How will you appeal to your diverse audience?

Audilia Sujana

Why does science communication matter?

Talking – a mastery of humanity. Communication, however, is an art, one that must be tailored to engage the audience. The words themselves need to be understood, and not only by colleagues but by outsiders and the general public.

Communication is an essential part of everyday life as a scientist. They must connect with a variety of audiences, by writing papers and proposals, presenting talks, and educating others both within and outside of the science community. Science has been around for thousands of years, and one would have thought that with such experience in communication, scientists would have the art down pat. No such luck. Whilst there has been an improvement in the past decades, a gap remains between the science community and the general public.

Science is exciting and thrilling, providing the opportunity to experiment and research. We are seeing ever more ambitious and pioneering studies being conducted globally, and into space. However, this rapid growth has led to increasing outflow of information and a change in the way scientific information is valued.  The media frequently controls this, giving priority to the speed of information dissemination to the public, rather than focusing on the reliability and quality of the source. “Frightful risk” and “new miracle cure” have become common headlines in our local and national papers despite the uncertain reliability of information sourced from a single study.

Uncertainty is inevitable in science, and scientists understand that their research often provides a mere snapshot of reality, and that cognitive bias may play a role in their interpretation of results. However, those who are uninformed about the uncertain nature of science may react to findings with unwarranted alarm or misguided hope. Others see findings and dismiss them, no longer trusting a scientific community which seems to regularly publish unhelpful and conflicting claims. The media regularly inflates these issues.

Effective science communication can remedy this problem by providing stronger evidence for claims and a link to the relevance of the research within society. Effective communication focuses on conveying a message clearly, simply and succinctly. The audience relies on engagement by the writer or presenter, prompting them to question the relevance of the information being offered.

Outstanding communication can capture the mind and imagination. It stimulates meaningful conversation and debate, granting science greater importance within society. Science festivals and television shows have already allowed this to occur, bringing popular science and research into the public domain. The uncomfortable awareness that I cannot set foot in the wild without David Attenborough’s soothing voice playing in my ear convinces me of this!

Scientists have a deep understanding of certain subjects. They are experts, but in order to communicate effectively they must be driven by the words of Albert Einstein:

“If you can’t explain it simply, you don't understand it well enough.”

Scientists must know their audience and adapt their words accordingly to present the essential messages – why does it matter? Why is this research important?

Science must be made accessible to the public. In turn this will create a stronger union between scientific and public values. Effective communication has the potential to escalate the impact of science in multiple spheres.

Amelia Pearson - Let's Torque Content Manager