2) Summary
The four speakers, whose careers and ages varied widely, spoke enthusiastically about current science and technology issues and the role of science journalism, presenting a diversity of viewpoints. Approximately 150 participants, including members of the general public, attended the seminar. Laughing and clapping at times as they listened to the presentations, the participants enjoyed 3 hours of intellectual stimulation.
The seminar was broadcast live by the Science Channel on CS, which has an audience of approximately 9 million viewers throughout Japan. For this reason each speaker was asked to keep to their presentation time of 40 minutes, and it was regrettable that we had no extra time for questions or discussion. The speakers occasionally spoke quickly to keep within their time limits, but the highly skilled simultaneous interpreters were able to translate the presentations without a hitch. Mr. Akio Etori was a polished moderator, and his expertise enabled the 3-hour seminar to conclude successfully, on schedule. Mr. Kenji Makino, President of the Japanese Association of Science and Technology Journalists, made the seminar's opening remarks, saying that he would be happy if members of the audience gain some new understanding of today's society and the field of science and technology. To a great extent, this hope was, I believe, realized.
Although some of their dynamic excitement is regrettably lost on paper, I have briefly summarized the seminar presentations below.
Mr. Sena talked about "a new relationship between fiction and science." Despite his use of numerous technical terms, Mr. Sena's novels have attracted many readers. More than half of his readers think his fiction is "difficult to understand," but about 80% find it "interesting." Mr. Sena is confident of his formula for writing "difficult but interesting" fiction. He is critical of science and scientists today that have rejected the fiction genre, and points out that "stories are effective in helping readers enjoy science." Stories can also help researchers escape from the deadlocks and labyrinths of their academic specialties. Mr. Sena has a grand dream of pursuing the essence of science through his entertainment medium, fusing together the fascinating aspects of fiction and science, and thus rescuing modern science.
Mr. Hadorn talked about "Science and Society - learning from history," starting with the story of Gutenberg's invention of printing. The first daily newspaper and the first journalists appeared during the 17th Century; the first science magazine also appeared around this time. Since then, the number of print media readers has increased in correspondence with the development of democracy. Some science magazines established in the 19th Century, such as Scientific American and Nature, are still active today. The media must present new issues in addition to reporting news. Mr. Hadorn believes that the language of modern science has been babylonized, and that it is light-years away from the language of the general public. Commenting that "translating" scientific language is becoming increasingly difficult, he suggested that journalists must be the eyes and ears of the general public, and the mouth of scientists.
Mr. Anderson's presentation was based on his "optimistic view" that "the media can empower the general public." Referring to public survey results, he described various limits imposed on journalism, such as levels of interest, intelligence, and trust of members of the general public. The British Government, for example, had not recognized the danger of BSE, and this caused distrust within the general population. The public has power as consumers and can strongly influence society by boycotting certain products. Scientists, however, are too busy trying to keep up with the latest information and have no time to initiate communication with the general public. Mr. Anderson asked that scientists communicate more openly, emphasizing that there was no need for them to give out finely detailed information. Mr. Anderson concluded his presentation with an appeal to scientists: "The main point is, what is science? It may be necessary to present science to people, but the most important thing is to give them a thorough grounding in how to think about issues."
In her presentation, Dr. Yonezawa first of all introduced some of the greatest physics achievements of the 20th Century, which have enabled clarification of the universe's beginning and end. Can human wisdom keep up with science's remarkable progress? Dr. Yonezawa then listed some of the characteristics of modern science and technology: accelerated advances, finely specialized fields, pursuit of profits, increased human desire, and increased positive and negative influences. The 20th Century was "the Century of War." People had wanted the 21st Century to be "the Century of Comfort and Peace," but at its very beginning, we are suddenly faced with terrorism and retaliation. The situation is unpredictable and frightening. Scientists are becoming increasingly specialized and are incapable of conveying the latest scientific information to people. In conclusion, Dr. Yonezawa encouraged science journalists, saying, "The role of science journalists is more significant than it has ever been in any other age. Keep up the good work!"
At the beginning of the 21st Century, more than 6 billion people live on the Earth, and about 10 million scientists and researchers carrying out their work. In between, there are about 10,000 science journalists. All of these people are living their everyday human lives. Individual humans live for less than 100 years, but humankind has come from far in the past, and will continue far into the future. The seminar was encouraging and made us reconsider the role to be played by a handful of science journalists in the service of humankind and the future.