A van of Population Biology students traveled to UC Berkeley March 20th 2017 for a science communication workshop “Story Strategies for Science Communication: Tips from Pixar” hosted by the University of California Museum of Paleontology and Berkeley graduate student Sara Elshafie. We had a great time learning about the art of storytelling from Pixar (see https://www.khanacademy.org/partner-content/pixar/storytelling) and how to apply these strategies to make better papers, scientific presentations, and public talks. One tip we learned for drawing an audience into the excitement of our research is to think about the ‘what if..’ behind our scientific questions … What if you need to eat but have no hands (like a fish)? What if you only have 4 hours to become a father before you die (like Strepsiptera)? What if we can see organisms evolve in our lifetimes? What if, in order to save something we value, we have to change it (e.g. assisted migration, evolutionary rescue)? Thank you to Vicky Morgan for organizing and Professor Rick Grosberg for driving us!

By: Erin Calfee