What Scientists Can Learn from Artists on Transforming Public Understanding
Close your eyes and bring to mind a time when you heard music that moved you to tears. Very likely, this experience left a lasting impression; it changed something in you, opening the door to new possibilities or healing an old wound. What about the music allowed it to have this memorable, transportive effect?
Clearly, it’s not just about the notes or the performer’s flawless technique; it’s the heart and soul behind the music that creates a life-altering experience. Similarly, the most effective science communication is not merely a transfer of facts — it’s an emotional bridge that inspires understanding, action, and change.
Many scientists believe that presenting data alone is enough to influence policymakers or the public to make positive change. But without emotional resonance, data can feel as lifeless as a mere collection of notes on a page or paint blobs on a canvas. Emotional connection is the spark that turns notes into music, paint into art… and data into meaningful action.
Science as Creative Act: Connecting Head and Heart
For science to inspire action and feel relevant, it must connect with people emotionally. Here, scientists can learn from artists, who understand that the purpose of art is to bring us to life, to heal, to connect, and to reveal our interconnectedness.
The most moving art comes from a place of creative aliveness — a flow of creative energy I call “Soulforce.” Artists in touch with this energy infuse their work with purpose and vitality, creating something that resonates deeply with others.
Science communication, like art, must emerge from a similar place of creative aliveness to fulfill its purpose. But to do this, scientists must reconnect with the deeper purpose of science.
What’s the Purpose of Science?
Is science about amassing knowledge for knowledge’s sake? Are scientific papers merely about bolstering academic credentials or ensuring funding? Or is science about exploring the mysteries of existence, improving life, and enriching our understanding of interconnectedness? Your personal answer to this question, conscious or unconscious, influences your communication style.
When science is communicated from a worldview of separation — where the universe is seen as basically random and mechanical — it can feel sterile and inaccessible. This is the worldview that produces the impenetrable, unrelatable style of communication seen in many contemporary scientific journals. Can we be surprised that public trust in the institutions of science seems at an all-time low, given that this is how scientists communicate with the public?
The alternative is a worldview of “interbeing.” Interbeing is a term coined by Buddhist monk Thich Naht Hanh for the utter interrelatedness of all things. From the worldview of interbeing, the universe is a seamless whole, full of the purpose and meaning conventionally only assigned to humanity.
In the worldview of interbeing, science is a celebration of a living, interconnected universe. The scientific process is driven by curiosity, wonder, and the joy of discovery. And scientific communication likewise inspires awe, wonder, and curiosity. These are the very emotions that likely drew you to science in the first place, and are the key to effective, actionable science communication.
Science Communication as a Creative Act
Here’s how to bring the same aliveness found in great art to your own science communication.
Imagine science communication not as a presentation of facts but as a creative process akin to composing a symphony or painting a masterpiece. Great art stops us in our tracks and helps us see our place in something larger. Effective science communication can do the same.
The key is to connect with your Inner Audience Member — the part of you that responds emotionally to what you experience. Artists listen to this inner voice to guide their work, ensuring it resonates with others. Scientists can do this too, both in their research and how they communicate it.
An Exercise in Emotional Resonance
Try this experiment:
Read these two excerpts (examples to be added — e.g., from a dense scientific paper and from Carl Sagan). As you read, notice the felt experience of your emotional reactions.
See references for these excerpts below.
Example 1:
5-Fluorouracil (5-FU) chemotherapy is commonly used to shrink advanced gastric cancers before any attempt at their resection. The development of resistance to 5-FU treatment can therefore greatly impede patient prognosis. Examining cell lines and patient-derived organoids, Wang et al. found that low expression of NIT2 promoted the onset of 5-FU chemoresistance in gastric cancer by increasing oxidative phosphorylation through a mechanism independent of its nitrilase enzymatic function. Using metformin as an oxidative phosphorylation inhibitor increased the therapeutic efficacy of 5-FU in patient-derived xenografts with low NIT2, indicating a potential avenue for tackling chemoresistance in this setting.
Example 2:
The fate of individual human beings may not now be connected in a deep way with the rest of the universe, but the matter out of which each of us is made is intimately tied to processes that occurred in immense intervals of time and enormous distances in space away from us. Our Sun is a second- or third generation star. All of the rocky and metallic material we stand on, the iron in our blood, the calcium in our teeth, the carbon in our genes were produced billions of years ago in the interior of a red giant star. We are made of star-stuff.
Feel into your Inner Audience Member and ask yourself:
- Do you feel open or closed?
- Pleasant or unpleasant?
- Relaxed or tense?
Which excerpt is more memorable? Which are you more likely to share? Your reactions reflect your Inner Audience Member’s response. This exercise demonstrates how emotionally resonant communication draws people in and inspires them to engage deeply.
Practical Tips for Re-Enlivening Science Communication
- Reconnect with Wonder: Reflect on what drew you to science. Let that curiosity and excitement infuse your research and communication.
- Engage Your Inner Audience Member: When writing and speaking about your findings, ask yourself, “How does this feel to read, hear, or say?” Adjust until it feels alive and engaging.
- Balance Precision and Emotion: Technical language has its place but remember to frame your findings in ways that evoke curiosity and relevance.
- Aim for Transformation: Communicate not just to inform but to inspire awe and action in your audience.
A Shared Goal: Awe and Understanding
Science and art share a common purpose: to deepen our understanding of the world and our place within it. When scientists communicate from a place of creative aliveness, they fulfill this purpose. The joy, wonder, and awe that brought you to science can spark the same feelings in your audience, creating transformative experiences that resonate far beyond the data.
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References:
- Wang, Z., Di, Y., Wen, X., Liu, Y., Ye, L., Zhang, X., Qin, J., Wang, Y., Chu, H., & He, W., et al. (2024). NIT2 dampens BRD1 phase separation and restrains oxidative phosphorylation to enhance chemosensitivity in gastric cancer. Science Translational Medicine, 16(774), eado8333. https://doi.org/10.1126/scitranslmed.ado8333
- Sagan, C. (1973). Cosmic connection: An extraterrestrial perspective. Anchor Press. 149.