Public Engagement for Grad Students in Science and Engineering
At the University of Minnesota we are thinking about ways to incorporate discipline-specific public engagement examples into the training in the ethical conduct of research that we provide to all graduate students. In the science, math, and engineering areas, this blog has already discussed some case studies (March 7 and 16, April 3 and 4, June 21).
Because science and technology (and the mathematics that undergird them) so permeate modern society, it is not hard to generate examples worthy of discussion. There are some obvious examples of how science and society have interacted in very public ways, such as the Manhattan Project that led to the atomic bomb, and the Asilomar Conference that led to a self-imposed moratorium on recombinant DNA research until the dangers could be better assessed. From earlier days one has the attempts to reliably determine longitude (engagingly recounted in Dava Sobel's book of that name) so as to make the oceans safe for trading voyages, and Michael Faraday's work on electricity and magnetism. (I've seen two versions of what occurred when Prime Minister Gladstone visited Faraday's lab and asked what use his research might be. In one version, Faraday is reported to have replied "What use is a baby?" In the other version, "Someday you'll be able to tax it.")
These are all major things that have had profound influences on society. I think that they should be mentioned and explored, but that we should focus on examples of more immediate local significance, in which STEM grad students might participate directly. These could include
- Discussing patents and technology licensing by universities
- Developing internships and volunteering in science museums
- Arranging K-12 school visits to talk about science and engineering
- Mentoring younger college students from underrepresented groups
- Making contact with local industries through departmental seminars
- Developing engineering designs for people in need (e.g., water purification)
- Studying toxicology and environmental justice issues
- Developing nutritional awareness programs in poor communities
- Discussing legal and ethical issues in the biological and health sciences
- Discussing the economic and political ramifications of renewable energy sources
It's important to consider these and similar examples in the light of the definition of engagement adopted by the CIC Committee on Engagement and the parallel NASULGC/CECEPS:
Engagement is the partnership of university knowledge and resources with those of the public and private sectors to enrich scholarship, research, and creative activity; enhance curriculum, teaching and learning; prepare educated, engaged citizens; strengthen democratic values and civic responsibility; address critical societal issues; and contribute to the public good.
Most science and engineering projects are motivated at least in part by public and private concerns (e.g. when research is sponsored by NIH or private industry), and there is usually little question that they hold the potential to enrich research, enhance curriculum, and address critical societal issues. It's less clear - though a strong case can be made if we take the trouble to articulate the connections - that scientific research could contribute to the preparation of educated, engaged citizens; and that it strengthens democratic values and civic responsibility through its very practice (see Jacob Bronowski's Science and Human Values).
And, of course, definitions of "the public good" are often contentious these days. But such contentions provide rich opportunities to discuss public engagement in the context of the STEM disciplines with our graduate students.