Randy Olson's "Don't Be SUCH a Scientist," Chapter 1: Don't Be So Cerebral

This chapter is all about how not to be a dork.

The importance of communicating science

First of all, you have to know that scientists must connect with their audiences. He goes through examples of Gregor Mendel, now know as the father of genetics, and Alexander Fleming, the discoverer of penicillin, and how they only published in obscure journals and never received any attention. But their discoveries could have not only changed the world but saved lives. Scientists may not like to think they have to communicate well, but really, it's all of communicating those great discoveries.

And communicating means have substance but using style.

And we all like style.

The Four Organs Theory of connecting with a mass audience

Olson uses what he calls the "four organs theory" in the first half of the book to show how scientists' typical communication style falls flat for lay audiences:

• The head: the cerebral part of reason and analysis
• The heart: home of sentiment, passion, and emotion
• The gut: where humor and instinct rule
• The lower organs: the opposite of logic, where thinking doesn't even play a role

It's an interesting analysis of communication because his point here is that scientists tend to stay in the cerebral realm, but that isn't where most effective mainstream communicators stay. The first chapter is "Don't Be so Cerebral," and he means it. Get out of being purely logical and try using emotion and instinct.

As a side note, Olson generally steers clear of the lower organs. He leaves that to pure Hollywood and advises scientists to stay away from trying to be sexy. It doesn't really work, and when it fails, it can fail spectacularly. And possibly hilariously.

Because Olson has been to film school, most of his anecdotes come from his experiences there including one repulsive but supposedly brilliant acting teacher who appears to have used shame and humiliation rather tactically. But his stories are always fun to read and his metaphors are easily brilliant.

For example, when contemplating his own feelings about scientists, he is sure to say that he isn't telling people not to be scientists:

Well, I spent six wonderful years at Harvard University completing my doctorate, and I'll take the intellectuals any day. But still, it would be nice if they could just take a little bit of the edge off their more extreme characteristics. It's like asking football players not to wear their cleats in the house. You're not asking them not to be football players, only to use their specific skills in the right place.

Using all of the organs

Olson wants scientists to use more of their heart and gut, to use their intuition and not to remain solely in the head:

They provide extra vitality, sparks of energy, and organic element--in general, they create the essence of what is meant by the word "human." 

It's good advice.