Description:

Even at the Masters level science education is usually a process of rediscovering the wheel. Which means science education is usually devoid of real science. And yet there is nothing special about science, much less those who do it.

For several years now we have been blurring the boundary between the lab, studio and public spaces by performing real research on bumblebees in the public, which has stimulated tremendous interest in children and adults in understand the brain.

In the project Blackawton Bees (in collaboration with Head Teach Dave Strudwick and tech Tina Wadwellyn) we again have performed truly novel experiments on bumblebees at a primary school in Devon. Except this time we have completely removed all boundaries: The experiments were not devised by the ‘scientist’, but by twenty five 8-year-old children. The children devised the questions; they reasoned an answer; they designed the experiments; and they did all the data analysis. They are now writing up their findings, which they will submit for publication.

Image... a peer-reviewed scientific paper published in a top journal reporting a truly unique finding in which all 25 authors are 8 year olds... or younger... STAY TUNED!


When we sought funding for this project, there were two responses:

1. Wouldn’t work!

2. Not good enough benefit to cost.

We didn’t get the funding. These types of responses reflect typical fears of risk and ambiguity that constrain creativity to think within the walls of a small pigeon’s house.

Visuals from experiment

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Click on image for slideshow.