Learning to Engage the Public About Emerging Sciences.

by Liang Hao, PhD

Science and I go WAY back.

I specifically recall a weekend at the age of ten when I got so excited to visit the archaeological sites around Mount Mangdang, located east of my hometown of Shangqiu, an ancient city with rich history in China. I was fascinated in particular by how archeologists solved the riddles of the past. To this day, I find it truly amazing that they uncovered the mysteries surrounding a 2100-year-old excavation. They were able to decode a jade stamp they had found at the site, ultimately proving their hypothesis to the owner of a fabulously wealthy mausoleum. Those moments in my childhood had an immense effect in sparking my first love for science. And here are I am, twenty years later, researching new therapies for pancreatic cancer at one of the top institutions in the world! 

Throughout my education and scientific training, I have tried to make a diligent effort to participate in science outreach events to help democratize some aspects of emerging sciences. In graduate school, highlights were volunteering at the HHMI "Ask a Scientist" program and the annual National Institute for STEM Education (NISE) network NanoDays in the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago to engage kids about science. When I first started my postdoctoral training, it was a little more difficult to find time to do outreach, particularly because the postdoctoral phase is typically a phase in our training when we are expected to begin delivering on ambitious research agendas. It didn't take a lot of time until I figured out that I was missing on something essential to my formation as a scientist: connecting with the public. I was fortunate to have a very supportive PI and was accepted to be part of the inaugural class of Convergence Scholars Program (CSP) at the Marble Cancer. As part of CSP, I attended the 2018 AAAS Annual Meeting and volunteered at the Family Science Days. As a Science Storyteller, I explained to kids and their family my ongoing research efforts through conversation and... storytelling!

When it comes to storytelling, a picture is worth a thousand words. I would say that very much applies to science! This past year, my research on pancreatic cancer therapeutics at the Bhatia Lab was featured in the Koch Institute’s Image Awards where I was invited to describe my research to a broad audience. Additionally, the image was selected by the Cambridge Science Festival (run by the MIT Museum) and I had the privilege to speak at the "Meet the Artists" night during the festival. These have all been amazing opportunities for me to learn more about engaging the public on emerging sciences.

Now, my experiences have culminated in a great new job. I am currently an Associate in the TechAtlas division of RA Capital Management, where I create competitive landscapes of drugs and medical devices. This position combines basically all of the interests that I explored through CSP. With the help of this program, I can (finally!) say that this career decision felt easy.