Funnily Serious: Using Comedy to Communicate Science
Scott, Andrew Neil
Cite this item:
Scott, A. N. (2012). Funnily Serious: Using Comedy to Communicate Science (Thesis, Master of Science Communication). University of Otago. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/10523/2296
Permanent link to OUR Archive version:
http://hdl.handle.net/10523/2296
Abstract:
The public perception of science and its practitioners is one of stoic seriousness or of laughable arcana. But science and humour have had a long (if marginalised) history together, from in-jokes and jocular critiques inside the scientific community, formal education and through to public communication of science in the media. The growth of the use of comedy in a scientific context is such that now scientific topics are often included in the repertoire of mainstream comedians.
The various uses of humour to communicate scientific ideas is examined, why it is employed, and its effectiveness assessed. The trends in the use of scientific humour are charted in academic papers, popular science writing, film and television documentaries and stand-up comedy. A categorisation of comedic approaches is made based upon the relative “dilutions” of science and comedy, and the merits and drawbacks of each approach to communication are compared and discussed. It is also argued that the recently growing presence of scientific topics in mainstream comedy may be an indicator of the public understanding of the topics in question.
This thesis shows how humour can have a successfully “humanising” effect upon science education, both formal and casual, in a wide variety of media. It argues for the effectiveness of a comedic approach to science in order to reach wider audiences. Finally, the use of comedy to communicate scientific concepts is examined in the creative component of the thesis, the documentary film Tangled Waters.
Date:
2012
Advisor:
Johnston, Ross
Degree Name:
Master of Science Communication
Degree Discipline:
Centre for Science Communication
Publisher:
University of Otago
Keywords:
Comedy; Science Communication; Sharks; Science; Education; Teaching; Pedagogy; Humour
Research Type:
Thesis
Languages:
English
Collections
- Centre for Science Communication [144]
- Thesis - Masters [3329]