Professor Godwin K. S. Aflakpui, Rector of Wa Polytechnic on Tuesday observed that there are no fast track or short-cut approaches to instill the attributes of culture of science in the way of doing things.
He said the attributes of curiosity, information gathering, observation and analysis, experimentation, open-mindedness; perseverance and verification of hypothesis are crucial steps in undertaking scientific research work.
Prof Aflakpui made the observation in a keynote address at the Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences (GAAS) public event, which coincided with the induction of 13 new Ghana Young Academy (GhYA) members in Accra.
GhYA, affiliated to the Global Young Academy, is an off-shoot of GAAS, which intends to catalyse international research collaboration among global young scientists and build bridges to expand research for development.
It was on the general theme: “Enhancing Science Communication for Better Dissemination of Research Results,” and supported by the Royal Society and Pfizer African Academies Programme.
He said these characteristics could religiously be acquired through self-discipline, continuous tutoring, learning processes, practice and constant application “for us to get a hang of them.”
Prof Aflakpui said trail-blazers like Louis Pasteur, French chemist and microbiologist for his work on germ theory of fermentation and pasteurization; Constantin Fahlberg, Russian Chemist who discovered saccharin, an artificial sweetener in 1879, and especially Alexander Fleming, Howard Florey and Ernst Boris Chain, whose works won the Nobel Peace Prize in Medicine in 1945 for the discovery and mass production of penicillin were testaments of scientific attributes and breakthroughs, standing the test of time.
He noted that these brilliant works were anchored on patience, curiosity, simplicity, grace or accident, were exemplary feats young scientist could emulate to strengthen the building blocks for nation and global advancement and achievements.
Prof Aba Bentil Andam, Vice President of GAAS, who presided, said the platform of engaging young scientists would catapult academia into the lime-light and again contribute meaningfully to knowledge-base approaches in solving the myriads of problems confronting the nation.
She encouraged members of the GhYA to expand their scope and engage in aggressive member drive to cover all young scientists in the country and beyond.
Dr Augustine Ocloo, Chairman of GhYA said the overall objective of the body is to strengthen the collaboration between scientists and science organisations nationally and around the globe to work on scientific and regional issues as well as increase the visibility of young scientists to their global peers as well as the general scientific community.
Currently, there are about 30 GYAs established globally, to maximise its impact through links with National Young Academies (NYAs) around the world including Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, Sweden, Nigeria, South Africa, Sudan, Egypt, Uganda and Zimbabwe with many more countries currently in the process of creating young academies.
Mr Maximus Ametorgoh, Technology activist and Digital Marketing Strategist and Managing Director of PopOut said scientists could rely on the public value in their research to communicate their findings effectively through the new media.
He said they must begin to develop more apps to distill scientific findings in simple easy- to-read language, devoid of jargons and clichés in appreciation of human and public value of research findings.
Mr Kweku Rockson, Head of Department, Department of Public Relations Management, Faculty of Communication and IT, University of Professional Studies, Accra, said science information need to be user-friendly with scientists distinguishing between knowledge podium and media platforms as they engage the media to communicate their findings.
Mr Yaw Boadu-Ayeboafoh, Director, Newspapers, Graphic Communications Group Limited said for effective communication, clarity, grammatical complexities, verbosity and unfamiliar words must be avoided with opinions never represented as fact.
