Many consider obtaining a Ph.D. to be one of the most grueling and challenging educational tasks an individual could set out to stare down. However, Uma Nagendra managed to do something few Ph.D. students, or graduates can lay claim to. She won a contest called “Dance Your Ph.D.” and it is, almost precisely what it sounds like.
The contest has been around since 2007 and has been raising eyebrows, as well as curiosity for several years now. It has often been referred to as a “universal medium” which allows individuals who are not heavily trained or educated in the field to expand, and understand the knowledge that is being placed in front of them.
In simple terms, it takes complicated doctorate level research and makes it readily available for everyone to understand through dance, of various forms. It offers a different way to communicate and gives individuals an opportunity who studied the material, to expand their thoughts and knowledge onto an audience through a non-conventional medium.
The contest is supervised by John Bohannon and sponsored by Science magazine, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and HighWire Press. The winners are chosen by an expert panel of scientists and artists.
Entries for the contest are divided into four categories and winners of each category receives $500.
- Biology
- Physics
- Chemistry
- Social Science
This video was created for Gonzolabs “Dance Your Ph.D” 2011 Contest.
[vimeo 30299036 w=640 h=428]
Microstructure-Property relationships in Ti2448 components produced by Selective Laser Melting: A Love Story from Joel Miller on Vimeo.
References:
- http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2015/05/announcing-2015-dance-your-phd-contest
- http://gonzolabs.org/dance/
- http://libguides.library.curtin.edu.au/c.php?g=202425&p=1332887
- http://www.thehoopsnews.com/2014/11/04/1831/scientist-wins-award-dance-phd-contest/
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dance_Your_PhD
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