The popular appliance of science

Scientists are being encouraged to take to the stage in a bid to inspire the next generation, Li Yingxue reports.

The stand-up comedian warmed up the audience at the A33 Theater in Beijing. It was a humorous precursor to the serious business of science that was to follow.

The audience was there to hear the advice, tales and stories proffered by members of the I'm a Scientist show.

The scientists talked, one after another, about their fields, sharing their own experiences.

They discussed the latest scientific achievements in a down-to-earth and entertaining way during the nonprofit show, created in a bid to popularize the sciences.

The subjects of their talks centered on the notion that "your health is not just protected by your doctor".

You could say this was the very epitome of healthy entertainment.

The first on stage at the Oct 19 show was Ruan Guangfeng, a nutritionist and head of the Information Technology Department at the China Food Information Center.

He shared stories of family dinners and where rumors and tall tales about food were a regular point of discussion.

Huan Shitong, to use show business parlance, was the next act.

A doctor-turned senior project officer, Huan focuses on tackling the scourge of tuberculosis at the Beijing office of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

He explained his work, attempting to disarm the TB "bomb" for 2 billion people in the world.

Huan specialized in treating the disease for five years and noticed that each year, as well as returning patients, there were a growing number of new patients seeking treatment.

So, he joined the foundation hoping that, besides helping treat TB patients, he could also find time to work on how to reduce its occurrence.

"What we are fighting is an invisible enemy," Huan says.

He felt it was important to get into the science behind the occurrence and the workings of the disease and help prevent it, rather than just treat it.