The following post was written jointly by Jenny Kliever and Kevin Mogk, both current SCOM students. Laurentian University hosts many guest speakers throughout the year, and Jenny and Kevin were eager to share their thoughts on a particularly interesting public lecture held in late 2014.
Jenny: Science communication is a
relatively new field, as science fields go, and until a fateful Google search brought
the Laurentian Science Communication program before my eyes a year ago, I was
unaware of its existence. Within five minutes of reading the website, I knew that
this program was for me.
Kevin: Much like Jenny, I was unaware of science communication as a topic of
study, even though my job entailed delivering science programs to school groups
and the public in my hometown’s science gallery. When I discovered the
Laurentian program, what drew me in was the opportunity to sharpen my skills
and bridge the gap between my lack of science training and my theatrical background.
J: So here Kevin and I are, science communication
students, marrying the exciting fields of science and society on a daily basis
– what a dream! Though it is hard to pick just one favourite aspect of the
program, something that stands out is the freedom to explore my own ideas
within the courses. For example, I come from a physics background and have had
the chance to explore communication within physics as much or as little as I like.
K: Not only do we get to explore personal interests through the program, but
the range of experiences of our classmates, teachers and guest lecturers also brings
a wealth of perspectives on science communications and the issues it faces.
Even between Jenny and I, we have had opportunities to explore how faith and
science are often seen in opposition. So when we had a chance to attend an
optional lecture by Dr. Denis Lamoureux about one of the more prevalent issues
facing science communication, we couldn’t help but take in his lecture on
“Beyond the ‘Evolution’ vs. ‘Creation’ Debate”.
J: Although SCOM students are always encouraged to
attend the many events outside of class, Kevin and I didn’t need to be told
twice about Dr. Lamoureux’s lecture. We showed up early, pens in hand, front
row and centre, minds and ears open. This is a topic I, as a scientist, find
extremely interesting. The talk focused on breaking the traditional view that
science and faith are a dichotomy; that is, one can only identify with one or
with the other and either believe in evolution or creation.
K: However, Dr. Lamoureux brought to light a spectrum of views ranging
from fundamental to atheistic and everything in between to highlight that there
are not just two camps to choose from. He also pointed out that it is not
uncommon to find people of faith who are in step with science, and scientists who
also practice their faith. It was a refreshing look at the issue and made me
wonder if there wasn’t a research question hidden somewhere in this long-held
oppositional view.
J: For the SCOM program’s major research project, we
are now both exploring research topics that touch on science and faith. We
would like to dig into this topic deeper and may even get the chance to spread
the idea of this spectrum within the scientific and faith communities a little
bit.
