Floating Away In Space

The Public Science Communication seminar class today turned out to be more than a seminar aimed at honing our skills in science communication. The speaker, Peggy Whitson happens to be an astronaut at NASA, in addition to being a Rice alum. Endowed with sharp wit and a great sense of humor, it was hard not to be awed as she walked us through the plethora of research areas and activities that have been going on in the International Space Station (ISS) While many of us have frequented videos and interviews of famous astronauts, being in the same room with someone who has walked in space was surreal to me

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Space culture is a legacy, involving international collaboration. This brings me to one of the most interesting realizations that while progress in science is made when people who practice it achieve success, leaving behind a culture and a legacy that makes people think and pursue new frontiers is success of a different kind altogether- one that shape civilizations. One of the many objectives of the Public Science Communication Seminar course has been to make students aware of the many mediums through which science can be communicated. What Peggy Whitson communicated today, however was an experience that gave me a new perception towards science. I have heard numerous times that science is an evolving field, something that changes with time, as discoveries are made, as an hypothesis is established (or rejected) after years of hard work. But one cannot deny the challenges of being stuck miles away from the Earth, and confronted with an emergency that can be life threatening. While there are decisions to be made by astronauts in space based on the knowledge base of the ground crew, it indeed is like taking a leap of faith

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It was fascinating to hear about how different life is in space. The aspect of physically being in space is like a timed choreography in itself she recounted and coming from an astronaut who has been a part of four space walks, this resonates stronger than everything that she shared.

As she spoke about the struggles of life in zero gravity, it became evident that the success of a space mission depends not only on the frontiers that are achieved in space, but also the operation of the ground  crew

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What I took away from this seminar was how science communication is as much about being able to communicate successfully the struggles every scientist faces that lie buried under the numerous success stories that become popular. That collaborations and pushing oneself outside comfort zones is needed, if progress is to be made. I believe that talking science is never hard, setting the right stage for it, is.