Beth's Proposal

TITLE
From the Laboratory to the Mainstream: Understanding the Importance of Public Support in the Advancement of Basic Research

ABSTRACT
The general consensus regarding science seems to be that it is some mysterious, untranslatable entity – a body of knowledge inaccessible to the general public and meant only for the select few whose brains are wired in just the right way for boring, complex gibber jabber. This stigmatization makes science a subject that most shy away from, and not for lack of ability or intelligence but because of the perception that something that requires the understanding of complex mathematical equations or mechanisms is inherently too difficult for the average person or too boring to be of any interest to anyone but a nerd. However, science is in fact very accessible to the lay person, and nearly every person has at least a cursory understanding of basic scientific principles that he or she uses on a daily basis, whether or not he or she realizes it. For instance, when you heat up leftovers in the microwave, you unconsciously add water, because without the extra water, the food will dry out and harden. While one may not know that mechanistically, a microwave operates by exciting the electrons in water molecules to allow for a phase change from liquid to gas that releases heat and warms up the food, there is at least a basic understanding of what’s going on (as water evaporates, food heats up), if only of because experience.

Addressing this barrier between the scientific community and the general public will be a central theme in my project. The majority of the population looks at science with the belief that it is for researchers to worry about, but this is far from true, because without the support of the general public and the government, science cannot advance. It is inherently important that the public take an active interest in basic scientific research and support the endeavors of researchers, because advancements in the basic sciences directly influences advancements in the applied sciences that lead to technologies that make our lives easier. To elucidate my point, I will be using my own research as an example: in all reality, my work with cell death in the bacterium Escherichia coli has little application to the general public, but it is an important project nonetheless, as what we learn about this cellular mechanism will aid in the development of better treatments for diseases that have a basis in cell death, or lack there of (e.g. cancer).

The format of this project will be a documentary database that describes the various aspects of research involved in the current project, and explores the importance of public interest and involvement in the advancement of basic scientific research.

METHODOLOGY
The specific aim of this project is to show the importance of public interest and involvement in the advancement of basic scientific research. The most important element of this project will involve a large quantity of laboratory work to generate data on the current research project, as it will be the basis for which the advocacy of basic research will be derived. (This research is focused on explicating the mechanism underlying cell death / cell survival in E. coli due to gene pairs that are situated at various locations along the bacterium’s genome.) As this research project is still in its early stages, and science is immensely unpredictable, the project probably will not be complete by next May. However, enough data will have been generated to begin an exploration of the importance of scientific research to the general public, and to explain why it is so important for people to care about basic research.

MEDIA PRESENTATION & JUSTIFICATION
Science is an inherently experiential subject – research is an active process that requires both knowledge of the subject and the ability to carry out various experiments. This is why students of science, regardless of whether they are studying biology, chemistry, or physics, attend laboratories in addition to attending lectures. Because the aim of this project is to persuade the public to take a more active interest in and support the endeavors of research institutions, and to show how important basic research is, the audience should be actively exposed to science and the research process. It is impossible to set up a movable laboratory exhibit that would allow audiences to conduct their own experiments to discover the importance of supporting basic research. However, a database documentary that would allow the audience to explore various facets of the scientific process and the inherent connection between the public, the government, and research institutions is a feasible and appropriate format.