Filter by keyword: Popularization of science and technology

Browse all Publications
  • Practice Insight

    Beliefs and Learning about Seismographs and Animals: A Recreational Activity in Mexico

    Addressing misconceptions about earthquakes is one of the main challenges in the public communication of seismology. The belief that animals can predict when an earthquake will occur is one of the most deeply rooted myths in society, not only in Mexico but worldwide. To address this issue, a workshop was conducted that included a playful demonstration of a seismograph and a hands-on recreational activity providing information about earthquakes and animals, as part of a science fair organized by the National School of Earth Sciences at the National Autonomous University of Mexico. Based on this experience, participants’ prior beliefs and the learning achieved through the workshop were analyzed.

    Volume 9 • Issue 1 • 2026

  • Article

    Science communication ecosystem in Morelos

    This article presents an exploratory study of the science communication ecosystem in the state of Morelos, Mexico. From a mixed methodological strategy, the main actors, means and practices through which scientific knowledge circulates in public space are identified. The analysis includes the review of newspapers, institutional media, as well as interviews with disseminators, journalists and communication managers. The findings make visible the characteristics of science communication, its limitations and the potential for articulation between different actors.

    Volume 9 • Issue 1 • 2026

  • Practice Insight

    Recreational science resources for addressing COVID-19.

    Providing access to reliable and accessible information in the face of novel or uncertain scenarios is one of the greatest challenges for public communication of science. This becomes especially sensitive in the field of health, where decisions can literally have life-or-death consequences. Encouraging the public to move beyond confirmation bias and question their beliefs in order to base their opinions on scientific consensus is a major challenge. This article analyzes the process of conceptualizing, designing, and testing recreational science workshops created to address issues related to the COVID-19 pandemic, a disease that between March 2020 and August 2022 caused 590 million infections and 6.4 million deaths worldwide. The activities were tested with 211 students aged 8 to 12 in a primary school in Zacatecas, Mexico. Questionnaires were sent to all participants, and 117 responses were obtained. The results point to a greater understanding of and interest in topics related to the novel coronavirus, as well as contagion prevention, vaccines, and the problems associated with self-medication.

    Volume 9 • Issue 1 • 2026

  • Practice Insight

    Science festival with beer: evaluation of the world’s austral most Pint of Science 2025 (Trelew, Chubut, Argentina)

    The global science festival Pint of Science has been organized since 2013 and is characterized by being an event where the scientific community communicates its research in a pleasant language to a non-specialized public in a decontracted environment, such as bars. In 2025, it was organized from May 19th to May 21st in 251 cities from 27 countries. Trelew city (Chubut, Argentina) witnessed its first Pint of Science in 2025, being the world’s australmost city where this event was held. With the objective of having a demographic sample of the public that attended the event and their opinions, we designed a survey that was distributed among the audience. One hundred and twenty-seven people explicitly authorized to use their responses in a publication. The responses were analyzed, and the results were compared with other published events of Pint of Science (Brazil and Thailand). From the comparison, some common demographic characteristics emerge (e.g., gender proportions and mean age). However, we should be cautious given the historical, social, and economic differences among the audiences of the different events. The public of PoS Trelew 2025 qualified the event as good and excellent. 

    Volume 9 • Issue 1 • 2026

  • Review

    19th RedPOP Congress “Living Science: Connecting minds and communities””

    The 19th Congress of the Latin American and Caribbean Network for the Popularisation of Science and Technology (RedPOP) ‘Living Science: Connecting Minds and Communities’ was held from 9 to 13 September in the city of Puebla, Mexico. The review describes a chronology of the most relevant activities carried out during the meeting between professionals, communicators and researchers in the field of science communication in Latin America. Translated with DeepL.com (free version)

    Volume 8 • Issue 02 • 2025

  • Article

    Science museums as spaces of non-formal education: the history of public visitation and social appropriation of the Prof. Mello Leitão Biology Museum

    This article examines the history of public visitation at the Prof. Mello Leitão Biology Museum (MBML) from 1949 to 2023, including an analysis of the objectives behind scheduled visits in 2022 and 2023. The methodology was based on bibliographic research, document analysis, and thematic categorization of visit purposes. Since its foundation, MBML has prioritized scientific research, but over the years, it has become an important space for education and culture. Its transition to federal management brought significant implications for public engagement. Among the main motivations for guided visits are: Biodiversity and Conservation (30%), History and Culture (26%), and Environmental Education (17%).

    Volume 8 • Issue 02 • 2025

  • Essay

    Dimensions of the Future: An Approach to Classifying and Communicating Technological Visions

    In recent decades, technological visions (TVs) have played a crucial role in shaping public expectations about the future. These projections, which seek to combine speculation with scientific rigor, generate narratives that both inform and shape society, while also guiding decision-making processes within transnational companies and governments [Baena, 2016]. In this essay, I propose a classification system to evaluate and analyze these visions, enabling a deeper understanding of their representations and objectives. The approach considers five interrelated qualities: Realization, Discourse, Mediality, Life Cycle, and Imaginary Magnitude.
    It is timely to reflect on the relevance of TVs within scientific communication in the Latin American context, where futuristic narratives often adopt an external and biased perspective towards diverse realities, limiting their local resonance. As a tool for disseminating scientific knowledge and technological advances, TVs may be useful for adapting such narratives to the specific needs and challenges of the region.

    Volume 8 • Issue 01 • 2025

  • Article

    Indicators of scientific literacy process in the field of environmental education: the case of "Viera y Clavijo" Botanical Garden

    This study presented how the exhibitions at Viera y Clavijo Botanical Garden (JBCVC), Gran Canaria, Spain, contribute to the scientific literacy of its visitors from the perspective Non-Formal Education. The presence of scientific literacy indicators at the JBCVC is evaluated using the tool developed by Marandino et al. [2018], which provides four indicators (scientific, social interface, institutional, and interaction). The results reveal that the exhibitions focus on attributes associated with the scientific indicator, with a limited presence of institutional, social, and aesthetic/affective indicators, and some recommendations are made for the environmental education process at the JBCVC.

    Volume 8 • Issue 01 • 2025

  • Article

    Does demystifying arthropods on Twitter work? The opinion of the followers of the #TrupeNaturalista.

    The “Trupe Naturalista” is a group of Brazilian science communicators that operates on the social network Twitter, creating content and interacting with the public. The present study aimed to investigate whether interaction with these communicators can alter the perception of followers about arthropods. To this end, followers answered an online questionnaire informing about their profile, interests, motivations, interactions, use of the platform and perceptions about these stigmatized animals. The results indicate that the contact with the science communicators was able to positively change the behavior of the respondents regarding arthropods, reducing their aversion, and increasing their interest in nature.

    Volume 8 • Issue 01 • 2025

  • Article

    Survey and characterization of initiatives that combine theatre and sciences in Argentina

    In recent years, numerous initiatives have emerged in Argentina where both scientists and artists combine science and theatre, either as a form of art and/or public science communication. In order to understand the current state of this field, a research was conducted involving an exhaustive search, a survey, and interviews. The goal was to identify what actions are being carried out in our country and who, how, and why these practices, which could be termed scientific theatre, are being developed, as well as to explore their histories, interests, and perceptions regarding this practice

    Volume 7 • Issue 02 • 2024

Total: 41 records