Communicating Science through Comics: A Method

Jan Friesen, John T. Van Stan and Skander Elleuche
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Jan Friesen: Arab-German Young Academy of Sciences and Humanities (AGYA), Working group “Energy, Water and Environment”, at the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities (BBAW), Jägerstr. 22-23, 10117 Berlin, Germany
John T. Van Stan: Geology and Geography, Georgia Southern University, 68 Georgia Ave, Statesboro, GA 31401, USA
Skander Elleuche: Arab-German Young Academy of Sciences and Humanities (AGYA), Working group “Energy, Water and Environment”, at the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities (BBAW), Jägerstr. 22-23, 10117 Berlin, Germany

Publications, 2018, vol. 6, issue 3, 1-10

Abstract: Scientists are trained to tell stories, scientific stories. Training is also needed to comprehend and contextualize these highly nuanced and technical stories because they are designed to explicitly convey scientific results, delineate their limitations, and describe a reproducible “plot” so that any thorough reenactment can achieve a similar conclusion. Although a carefully constructed scientific story may be crystal clear to other scientists in the same discipline, they are often inaccessible to broader audiences. This is problematic as scientists are increasingly expected to communicate their work to broader audiences that range from specialists in other disciplines to the general public. In fact, science communication is of increasing importance to acquire funding and generate effective outreach, as well as introduce, and sometimes even justify, research to society. This paper suggests a simple and flexible framework to translate a complex scientific publication into a broadly-accessible comic format. Examples are given for embedding scientific details into an easy-to-understand storyline. A background story is developed and panels are generated that convey scientific information via plain language coupled with recurring comic elements to maximize comprehension and memorability. This methodology is an attempt to alleviate the inherent limitations of interdisciplinary and public comprehension that result from standard scientific publication and dissemination practices. We also hope that this methodology will help colleagues enter into the field of science comics.

Keywords: academic publishing; comics; popular science; science communication; sequential art (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: A2 D83 L82 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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