Feeding young minds with scientific truth a parent's duty

As father of a 5-year-old girl, I must be ready at any time to face her questions. How high are the stars in the sky? How many stars are there? Why can birds fly but I must take a plane?

Her enthusiasm reminds me of my childhood, when I was always curious to uncover the secrets of life, the stars and mechanics. My mother looked in one book after another to answer my questions. Today, I am fortunate to have the internet. I always pick up my smartphone to answer my daughter's questions.

But one cannot always rely on Google and Bing to quench a child's thirst for knowledge, especially when that knowledge is about specific professional sectors. There is so much information online that unless you know something yourself, you won't be able to distinguish what's reliable from what's not.

If you visit certain websites, they will even tell you that the Earth is flat! They are so sincere that I wonder whether they insist on the claim so that the government might pay for a trip to space for them one day, so as to persuade them.

Some other websites tell people not to wear masks during the COVID-19 pandemic, which is as absurd as it is fatal. But unless one has some scientific knowledge, no one is 100 percent safe from avoiding lies and disinformation.

That's why I attach great importance to the pop-science activities via various channels, namely books, WeChat articles, videos and micro blogs. By spreading science knowledge to the public, we are not only helping the next generation to grow in a healthy way and in a proper scientific atmosphere, but helping grown-ups to live in a healthier, happier way today.

I always prefer the pop-science books that are not so childish. The writer does not need to intentionally imitate children's language. Good language applies to everybody and good cartoons can help children understand. All the writer needs is to tell the story in a faithful way.

But one must write from a child's angle. One must know what children understand and explain deeper knowledge in a simple way. It would not be enough to tell them that the Sun consumes hydrogen atoms to give light. It is necessary to explain what hydrogen is and what an atom is. The parent, when reading the books, might need to prepare some descriptions or models in advance, so as to show their child how to divide a molecule into atoms. Popularizing science needs the efforts of both writers and parents, after all.

As a veteran reporter, I have injected that enthusiasm into my job for at least six years, popularizing science in various ways. I majored in information science－which is part of automatics－in university, which has granted me a good sense of science.

Having interviewed various experts in science, health, astronautics, computers and other sectors, I have written about all the related topics. My secret in presenting this information lies in telling the story to my daughter first. Once after she understands everything, I publish her understood version on our platforms.

I have found that among my readers are a high percentage of children and parents. Once, a parent added me to her WeChat contacts. After talking to her, I learned why she follows my account: she has a daughter too and has to answer many questions. After reading my pop science for months, she trusts me and insists on reading each of my publications.

I am fortunate to have such readers, but that trust is more of a responsibility than of an encouragement. The writer must honor his/her credit by providing correct information, and avoid misleading the readers.