Beloit College > Chemistry > Nanochemistry

    Here are some important things to keep in mind when interacting the public:
  1. Ask questions. Get a sense for what your audience knows and what else they might have learned that day.
  2. Talk slowly.
  3. Talk about yourself. What do you like about the activity you're presenting?
  4. Sometimes it helps to just stop talking and let the audience interact with the material. Sometimes the material just speaks for itself.
  5. Always ask them if they have any questions.
  6. Have fun. And make sure the audience is having fun. This is your opportunity to help a person create a positive emotional connection with science. If someone walks away from your activity with only one fact in their head and a smile on their face, you have succeeded in outreach.

Matthew D. Stilwell, Ph.D.
Assistant Director
Interdisciplinary Education Group (IEG)
Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC)
University of Wisconsin-Madison