University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa research—ranging from Earth’s oceans to the Moon’s soils—has a new platform. Starting this semester, the School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (SOEST) is advancing its public outreach efforts, and providing some graduate students and postdoctoral researchers with first-hand experience in talking on a live streaming program.
In partnership with ThinkTech Hawaiʻi, the new 30-minute show, Science @ SOEST, is hosted by Pete Mouginis-Mark from the Hawaiʻi Institute of Geophysics and Planetology.
“ThinkTech Hawaiʻi is a not for-profit organization based here in Honolulu that hosts many topical shows of interest to our community,” said Mouginis-Mark. “The goal of this new series is to have SOEST junior scientists describe their research in a manner that is informative to the general public, as well as showcase many of the research efforts that are relevant to our state.”
Throughout the series, participants will practice several skills including preparation of the information that will be shared during the show, as well as “thinking on their feet.”
This semester the show is presented via Zoom and the format allows registered viewers to send in questions during the show using the Zoom chat function. The initial shows have focused on ocean color and regolith (soil) development on the Moon. Future shows will cover the breadth of research conducted within SOEST, including ocean engineering, renewable energy and atmospheric sciences.
“Our hope is that our early career scientists gain additional skills and confidence to share science and develop a plan to communicate clearly about technical information,” said Mouginis-Mark.
This effort is an example of UH Mānoa’s goal of Excellence in Research: Advancing the Research and Creative Work Enterprise (PDF) and Enhancing Student Success (PDF), two of four goals identified in the 2015–25 Strategic Plan (PDF), updated in December 2020.
For more information, see SOEST’s website.
–By Marcie Grabowski
