Monday, 4 August 2025 4:00pm – 5:00pm

This seminar will be delivered in Lecture Theatre 4

Speaker: Professor Alice Motion

Host: Dr Cassandra Fleming

Title: Live From The Lab: Sharing Science Through Music and Sound

Abstract
Sound and music are powerful forces for human connection, emotional exploration, communication and artistic expression. Over the past five years, our interdisciplinary team has investigated some of the ways in which sound and music can be used in public contexts to build connection with, and understanding of, science.

This presentation will share some of our undertakings in creative forms of science communication through new musical compositions, sound design and embodied public performance. Together we will listen to music inspired by facilitated conversations between musicians and scientists including colleagues in the School of Chemistry (Live From The Lab); and acousmatic compositions designed to assist audiences to build their own mental models of scientific concepts (Sonaphor).

I will share insights from our research that support the demonstrated significance of arts-based approaches for science communication, explore the similarities in creative approaches of musicians and scientists and present creative and engaging new formats for science communication.

Bio
Alice Motion is Professor of Science and Culture at the School of Chemistry, University of Sydney where they lead the Science Communication, Outreach, Participation and Education (SCOPE) Research Group.  Alice’s research and practice explores science democratisation through open source drug discovery, citizen science, and exploring intersections between science and culture as creative methods for science communication. Alice was awarded the Australian Museum’s Eureka Prize for Promoting Public Understanding of Science in 2020. They have written a monthly column, Citizen Chem, for Chemistry World Magazine since 2019, are the creator of Live From The Lab, founder of the Breaking Good citizen science initiative and regularly produce and host creative science content for the public in live venues and across the media.