How can we effectively engage a wider audience in the realms of science, biology, or synthetic biology? We firmly believe that the key lies in implementing stratification strategies and providing tailored educational plans to cater to individuals with diverse academic backgrounds. In order to accomplish this objective, we divide our educational activities into three levels: targeting elementary students, college students, and the general public.
In addition, we focus on feedback from those involved, reflecting on how we can improve the activity in the future. We believe that this experience is valuable not only for future iGEM teams but also for our lives.
For elementary students
Teaching in rural villages
Process：In order to provide education for children living in remote areas, we devised an engaging topic aimed at fostering their interest in biology. Through collaboration with the UCAS Volunteer Association in July, we designed a science education curriculum themed “Bioluminescence in the Natural World”, which was subsequently presented to students attending North Street Primary School in Pujiang, Sichuan. This course primarily focused on the concept of fluorescent proteins while concurrently establishing connections with our NOX project's fluorescence display principle.
Our team members are teaching in the rural area.
Achievement: Children acquired knowledge about the various bioluminescent organisms found in nature, comprehended the reasons behind their luminescence, and developed a fundamental understanding of fluorescent proteins and the underlying principles of bioluminescence.
Their feedback: Both the children and the local teacher loved our class. They actively participated by asking relevant questions.
Our reflection: We realized from their question that they were unfamiliar with the concept of "fluorescent proteins" because they didn't have a clear understanding of what "proteins" are. Therefore, next time we should start by explaining the basic knowledge to them.
Attachment: This is our teaching material, anyone who seek for reference can download.
For general public
- Public Science Day held by CAS
- Understanding the DNA Helix: We used a DNA model to introduce the basic molecule of life, DNA, to the public. We also designed some simple questions related to DNA to provide a better understanding of its functions.
- Plasmid Puzzle: We cut out different functional segments of a simple plasmid and introduced their functions to the participants. We then guided them to reassemble the segments back into their original positions, using this method to help the public understand the operating principles of plasmids.
- Ecological Bottle DIY: We provided glass bottles, soil, moss, and small decorative items, allowing the public to freely DIY ecological bottles. Through this activity, we aimed to raise awareness among them about ecological conservation and sustainable development.
- Popular science booklets
- SynBio Hourstory collaboration
Process： The Public Science Day is a large-scale science popularization event organized by the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) and aimed at the entire Chinese population. On weekend in May each year, citizens are free to enter various research institutes of the CAS and the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (UCAS), attend science popularization lectures, and engage in scientific activities. This year, as representatives of UCAS-China, we were responsible for popularizing biology and synthetic biology-related content to the public. Considering the diverse educational backgrounds of the general public, we designed three activities with varying levels of difficulty:
Our team members are introducing DNA helix to the public
Playing plasmid puzzle
DIY ecological bottle
Achievement: Hundreds of people came to our booth to participate in the activities, and the 90 glass bottles we prepared were quickly taken. The entire event lasted for the morning, and we were delighted to see parents bringing their children to learn about DNA with us. Additionally, there were often groups of people gathered around the plasmid area, engaging in discussions about synthetic biology with us.
Their feedback: We popularized biological knowledge to the public, and our team received a lot of attention. We had enthusiastic participants who proactively asked for our team's social media accounts to stay updated on future activities.
People gathering around our booth and discussing
Our reflection: This event had an incident that left a deep impression on us. During the plasmid puzzle activity, an elderly grandmother persistently repeated, "Genetic modification is bad." We explained to her multiple times the vision and principles of synthetic biology, as well as our considerations regarding gene safety. However, we were unable to change her mind. This made us realize that the public's understanding of genetic editing is still at a superficial level, and in the future, we should focus on safety as a theme in our science popularization efforts.
Process：During the preparation for the Public Open Day, in order to enable the public to "take knowledge home," we created two popular science booklets: "Exploring Synthetic Biology" and "The Secrets of Neurotransmitters." We wrote the content and drew the illustrations for these two booklets ourselves, resulting in two 8-page popular science booklets. We combined them with "The Secrets of Fluorescent Proteins - Do You Know GFP?" produced by UCAS-China in 2021 and printed them together. We distributed these booklets to participants in various activities and shared them on our team's social media platforms for online dissemination. Additionally, we created English versions to facilitate wider circulation.
Booklets we designed (the left one was made by UCAS-China 2021)
Their feedback: The exquisite popular science booklets not only received positive feedback during interactions with the public but also garnered admiration from other iGEM teams during our exchanges with them.
Our reflection: During the production process, we realized that it would be challenging to complete the entire history of synthetic biology in popular science materials solely with our own efforts. Therefore, we conceived the idea of collaborating with other iGEM teams to create a comprehensive series of historical popular science illustrated booklets. This idea took shape, and we initiated the collaborative project called the SynBio Hourglass series (refer to point 4).
Attachment：We attach the Chinese version of “The Secrets of Neurotransmitters” and the English version of “Exploring Synthetic Biology” here, anyone who seek for reference can download.
The Secrets of Neurotransmitters
Process：To disseminate knowledge more widely, we directed our focus towards the Internet. Recognizing the challenges of independently executing a series of public education stories, our UCAS-China team launched collaborative "SynBio Hourstory" project with seven other team.
SynBio Hourstory poster (created by WHU-China)
SynBio Hourstory is a public outreach event focused on the history of synthetic biology. It is jointly initiated by eight iGEM teams from different universities, including UCAS-China, LZU-China, BNU-China, HainanU-China, OUC-China, WHU-China, GXU-China and Tianjin. The primary goal of SynBio Hourstory is to use a simple but visually appealing cartoon format to educate the general public about significant developments in synthetic biology.
SynBio Hourstory main characters (created by UCAS-China)
The cartoon features two main characters: Gemi and Coli. Gemi is a young human boy with fluffy green hair, who enjoys wearing green gear-shaped hairpins. Gemi symbolizes the curiosity of humanity and embodies the spirit of iGEM. Coli, the other main character, appears as a simple E. coli bacterium, but possesses extensive knowledge in biology. Coli serves as Gemi's guide into the realms of microbiology and synthetic biology.
The content of the cartoon series spans eight episodes, each associated with a specific milestone in the history of biology and synthetic biology:
Episodes
| Episode | Team | Topic |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | WHU-China | 1953 – Announcement of the DNA double helix structure |
| 2 | OUC-China | 1957 - Establishment of the Central Dogma of Molecular Biology |
| 3 | LZU-China | 1965 - Artificial synthesis of bovine insulin |
| 4 | HainanU-China | 1970s - Discovery of plasmids |
| 5 | UCAS-China | 1990s - Human Genome Project |
| 6 | GXU-China | 2002 - Artificial synthesis of the poliovirus genome |
| 7 | BNU-China | 2003 - Engineering the precursor pathway of artemisinin |
| 8 | Tianjin | 2017 - Artificial synthesis of a yeast chromosome |
Achievement: We published the eight episodes successfully. To our great joy, reading quantity of the series added up to above one thousand!
Their feedback: To enhance comprehension, we have incorporated a "do-you-learn" section behind the cartoon, featuring three straightforward multiple-choice questions pertaining to each episode. Moreover, we have leveraged platforms like Quora or Zhihu (a Chinese equivalent of Quora) to elicit diverse perspectives by posting relevant inquiries. This dual approach serves as an insightful means for us to assess the extent of knowledge acquisition facilitated through our narratives.
Our reflection: In our initial proposal, we had planned to translate the entire series of stories into English. However, due to time constraints, we were unable to complete the task satisfactorily. Moving forward, it is crucial for us to consider cross-country collaboration and actively seek feedback from a global audience in order to enhance our progress.
Attachment: We attached our episode “the history of Human Genome Project” here, you can find other episodes in other teams’ wiki pages.
For college students
- Microbial painting
- iGEM training courses
Process: As a long-standing annual event, we organized the 2023 microbial painting activity at the start of the new academic term. On September 24th, students from all disciplines were invited to our biological laboratory to unleash their creativity by creating paintings using microorganisms. Our team members provided guidance on laboratory safety regulations and explained how microorganisms thrive in nutrient mediums. All the bacteria we used were obtained from CGMCC (China General Microbiological Culture Collection Center) that pose minimal threat to humans and the environment.
Microbial painting activity
Achievement: Here are their wonderful paintings.
Participants' completed microbiology artwork
Their feedback: We distributed a questionnaire to the participants following the activity, seeking their thoughts and feelings. To our delight, all of them shared positive comments and conveyed their gratitude, which truly warmed our hearts.
Our reflection: In the feedback questionnaire, one student mentioned he wished elementary and middle school students could also participate. Of course, the process and safety level are quite suitable for them, why don't we extend this fascinating course to elementary students to cultivate their interest in biology? In China, most of middle school don’t have a biology laboratory. Maybe we can invite them to visit our lab the next year.
Process: How can we inherit the previous UCAS-China team experience and quickly start iGEM? We have designed a series of iGEM introductory lessons, including experiments, software, hardware, modeling, and front-end sections. These lessons are open to all students in our school; anyone interested in any lesson can attend. In particular, we focus on how to integrate synthetic biology with the lessons as an iGEM foundation.
During the training courses
Achievement: We successfully conducted several iGEM lessons, such as a winter camp, which gained popularity on our campus. Freshmen, in particular, showed great enthusiasm for these lessons.
Their feedback: We were delighted to have over one hundred students enroll in our courses, with numerous inquiries and expressions of gratitude that we received.
After reflecting on the entire training courses, our team's main disappointment is that we didn't standardize those lessons and only focused on what we deemed important for iGEM. Moving forward, our plan for next year is to clearly outline the courses and preserve their videos so that we can share them with a wider audience beyond just our campus.
