Oddly, I found myself presenting one of my SiOW classes at lab meeting this week. Odder still, none among the assembled PhD students, Post-docs, Senior Research Fellows and Faculty complained about being taught a class I designed for undergraduate non-scientists.
It was on what is NOT science. It is easier to recognize and understand science if you explore other ways of knowing. For thousands of years, people calling themselves physicians and doctors have embodied the very essence of NOT–science, working instead on the basis of personal experience, half-baked theory, anecdotes, and wisdom handed down from eminent people. Most physicians still do. Great stuff to teach to because it is easy to show that millions of people have been killed by their doctors’ scientific failings, even this century, in the US. Powerful stuff, easy to get across.
What I was not expecting is that I myself would learn something about science by talking about medical non-science. And that I would in turn talk to so many people about what I found out, including the lab group – and now the blogosphere.
Teaching can be important and very challenging. For researchers, it can also be a great way to shine a light on the world beyond our daily focus. Certainly, since Dean Larson taught the class astronomy last week, the view from my hot tub got a whole lot more interesting.