Chris Edwards

sustechnewshub@sustech.edu.cn

During the summer vacation, professors across Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) and Lynn Library collaborated with Shenzhen Library to provide a set of child-centered science courses that proved to be hugely popular with local children. “Magic Nano Materials” and “Walking Into the Dinosaur World” were two courses that saw parents and children rushing to attend.

Associate professor Guo Chuanfei from the Department of Materials Science and Engineering taught the “Magic Nano Materials” class that teaches children about the smallest of materials. Children learned about seemingly magical physical phenomena, such as the way water drops roll off a lotus leaf and how the water strider can run across water.

The children also learned about how different industries are using nano materials in different ways, to improve our lives for the future, such as safer travel or better medical care.

Professor Liu Qingsong from the Department of Ocean Science and Engineering has long been spearheading the popularization of science for children. He taught a class titled “Walking Into the Dinosaur World,” giving children insight into the distant past. Liu’s course led the children through 150 million years of dinosaur evolution, which is compared to the few million years of human evolution. He also aimed to encourage young students to cherish the environment around them.

Parents provided a lot of positive feedback on both courses, specifically pointing out the themes, explanations, content and interactions between the professors and the children.

SUSTech professors launched their “Popularization of Science” lectures in 2016, with thousands of children coming to the campus over the years to hear over 60 lectures from faculty members across nearly every discipline.

The “Popularization of Science” lectures have become a key feature of SUSTech and continue to mature with the development of SUSTech. An undergraduate student society has also seen students get involved in these activities and children are getting into the laboratory to see science in action with their own eyes.

SUSTech has always taken care of its relationship with Shenzhen, and SUSTech president Chen Shiyi is a strong believer in maintaining high-level cultural communication between institutions of higher education and their host cities.