General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out, “Scientific innovation and popularization of science are the two wings of innovation and development. The latter should be placed in an equally important position as the former.” This important remark has been taken as the guiding ideology and action guide for the high-quality development of popularization of science in China in the new era.
Over the years, the Chinese Academy of Sciences has taken popularization of science as its responsibility and mission, adhering to the “high-end, leading, distinctive and systematic” positioning, and taking popularization of science as an important way and channel to serve the country and repay the society. On October 29 to 31, hosted by the synthetic biology branch of the Chinese Society of Biotechnology, the SIAT, SIAT University (preparatory), the first “Creation: Synthetic Life and Intelligent Future” CAS Science Festival’s Synthetic Biology Themed Popularization of Science 2022 was held at the SIAT. Lasting three days, the event has attracted an audience of more than three million people online and offline, bringing a vivid and interesting feast of synthetic biology science to the people in Shenzhen and nationwide.
As one of the series activities of “CAS Science Festival of 2022”, the event allowed the public to have a close contact with cutting-edge scientific and technological achievements, have a face-to-face communication with scientists, while emphasizing the integration of science, culture and art, highlighting the characteristics of “Science Festival”, arousing the curiosity of the public, especially the teenagers, and serving the purpose of scientific education. The event was organized by the Synthetic Biology Institute of SIAT, the School of Synthetic Biology of SIAT University, Shenzhen Institute of Synthetic Biology and co-organized by Shenzhen Synthetic Biology Association and Shenzhen Industrial Innovation Center of Engineering Biology. All these organizations were actively involved in planning the event.
Unleashing the home court advantage to achieve an organic integration of scientific research and popularization of science
Synthetic biology is an emerging inter-discipline of life science. Through the integration of engineering science concept and life science principle and based on multidisciplinary enabling technology, it designs and creates new life systems or transforms natural life systems, revealing the law of life, and building a new generation of biotechnology system, which has been hailed as “a key to the understanding of life” and a disruptive technology to change the future.
This activity led the teachers and students and citizens to learn about the magic “key” of synthetic biology, and explore the colorful world of synthetic biology. It has launched a rich variety of vivid and interesting activities in different forms, including scientist lectures on different topics and hands-on experience class offline, with an aim to popularize the diverse knowledge of synthetic biology among the teenagers, promote the popularization of science and technology resources, and build a new education community sharing quality resources.
In the activity, Feng Juan, deputy director of the Popular Science Department of Guangdong Provincial Association for Science and Technology pointed out that Guangdong and Shenzhen attached great importance to the development of synthetic biology. In 2014, the SIAT took the initiative to deploy synthetic biology. Under the support of governmental departments, it has successively undertaken the construction of major carriers and platforms such as the Synthetic Biology Infrastructure of Shenzhen, Shenzhen Institute of Synthetic Biology, and Shenzhen Industrial Innovation Center of Engineering Biology, and actively promoted the launch of the first major synthetic biology R&D program co-implemented by ministry and city in China. She said that the special event of synthetic biology of the CAS Science Festival 2022 was one of the important measures taken by SIAT for the popularization of science.
Feng Juan
Feng Wei, Secretary of the Discipline Inspection Commission of SIAT and director of the preparatory office of SIAT University, said that SIAT not only took root in scientific research, but also attached great importance to the popularization of high-end science resources. In the future, it will continue to serve as a bridge to spread scientific knowledge, thoughts and spirit, and connect science with future life.
Feng Wei
Zhang Xian’en, director of Synthetic Biology Branch of Chinese Society of Biotechnology and honorary president of School of Synthetic Biology of SIAT University, shared the history of life science in the past 150 years and the trend of synthetic biology, taking the audience into the magnificent and magical world of life science. He said that synthetic biology was a typical cutting-edge interdisciplinary science for young people, and expected the students to embrace a new era of life science in the future.
Zhang Xian’en
Experts and scholars “absorbed in” popularization of science, building a lecture hall of synthetic biology
The event has invited 13 top experts and scholars from the field of synthetic biology at home and abroad, who have been actively involved as “ambassadors of popular science”. The event consisted of four themed lectures, namely “the origin of life”, “humankind and microorganisms”, “immunity and health” and “green and intelligent bio-manufacturing” and two themed activities, namely “the future of synthetic biology - biological automation” and “the future of synthetic biology - application”. The scientists took the audience into a “trip of creation” of synthetic biology from different perspectives. The event was presided over by researchers Zhou Jiahai and Wei Ping with the SIAT.
The three-day event was interesting with clear themes. Experts and scholars explained the profound knowledge of synthetic biology with many vivid cases, creating a popular science class of synthetic biology for the participants online and offline, and offering a feast of synthetic biology science for Shenzhen people at their doorstep. The recording of the event will be uploaded onto the platform of “iSynBio Talk”, a comprehensive education information website of synthetic biology, so that the audience can continue to feel the charm of synthetic biology in the “Popular Science Cloud Classroom”.
Carrying on the scientific spirit and ushering in the “intelligent future” of synthetic biology
As a cutting-edge inter-discipline that has developed rapidly in recent years, synthetic biology is developing quickly in the direction of practical application and industrialization, and has become an arena for the world’s powers in their scientific and technological development strategy. In the policy of “20 + 8” industries issued by Shenzhen this June, synthetic biology ranked first among the eight key industries to be developed in the future. The Synthetic Biology Institute will continue to promote the popularization of synthetic biology science, set up popular science bases at municipal and district levels and promote two major popular science platforms, so as to continuously enhance the public cognition of synthetic biology, popularize the knowledge of synthetic biology science, bring synthetic biology to the public, and facilitate the comprehensive development of synthetic biology in China.
“I can’t believe that DNA can be extended, and some diseases can be treated and cured by modifying the DNA.” Lin Jiaxi, a Junior 2 student from Hualang School, said after attending the lecture “The Origin of Life” that synthetic biology was profound and many contents of it were novel to him. It not only enriched his knowledge, but also aroused his curiosity in science. After returning to the class, he would study biology with higher enthusiasm. Cui Shuoqi, a Junior 3 student from the Experimental School of Bao’an High School Group, was interested in biology, especially the themed activity on microorganisms. After taking part in the activity, he realized that synthetic biology was a young subject and he still had a lot to explore about it. In the future, he would follow up and participate in more popular science activities of synthetic biology.
Wei Ping, a researcher with SIAT, said that synthetic biology was a new field of science closely related with all aspects of life, but the public and even some research institutes had only limited understanding of it. Therefore, it was quite necessary to organize scientific activities on synthetic biology.
The event has attracted wide attention from the media at all levels and people from all walks of life. On the first day of the event, it was covered by reporters from China News Service, the Voice of Greater Bay Area of Central National Radio, China Daily, China Youth Daily, China Network, Guangdong TV Station, and Shenzhen Satellite TV. Wonderful reports of photos and texts were also posted on several online media such as Guangming Daily, Southern Daily, Shenzhen Radio News 989, and Shenzhen News.
This was the first popular science activity of synthetic biology launched by SIAT. In the future, it will organize more permanent and continuous popular science activities, with an aim to draw attention from more teenagers, and guide the public into the world of synthetic biology through popularization of science. It will plant seeds of science in the hearts of teenagers and create a good social atmosphere of “enthusiasm in life, science and the country” so that the general public can perceive the charm of synthetic biology and the people’s scientific literacy can be fully improved.
