Education

We want to bring science to European citizens

TU Delft students have developed and launched the Knowledge Explosion Network (KEN), an internet site where laypersons can ask university students and researchers questions about science.

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“The idea for the Knowledge Explosion Network was born during a barbecue on the roof of a student flat,” says co-founder Kay Cesar. “By the end of the barbecue, twelve students were interested in answering questions.”

Today, KEN has ninety experts on hand to answer any science-related question. Visitors to KEN’s website, such as grade school students, their parents or amateur science enthusiasts, write their questions on an online form; and KEN’s science experts % university students, researchers % respond within a day or two.

One recent question came from a secondary school student writing a report about athletes. “She wanted to know how to determine the human body’s centre of gravity. For an Industrial Design student like me, that’s very easy to answer,” says Wouter van de Hoog, the website’s designer. “After I answered her question and directed her to relevant websites, she sent a very nice e-mail, thanking me for helping. It’s nice to help and to be appreciated for your effort and knowledge.”

KEN’s ultimate ambition is to become a primary European knowledge database, comprised of a multi-disciplinary team of experts from all over Europe. “Because English is our working language, people won’t know when their questions are answered by a Russian nuclear physicist,” Cesar says, adding that KEN is always looking for more experts who’d like to share their knowledge with others.

Cesar’s and Van de Hoog’s inspiration is the award-winning Mad Scientist Network, of Washington University (St. Louis, USA), where, in the past five years, eight hundred experts have answered some 25,000 questions. Cesar: “It’d be great if our initiative achieves that level of success in Europe.”

Cesar doesn’t expect to earn money with KEN: “Our motives are purely idealistic. We won’t be going to the stock market and we plan to limit the number of ads on our site. Our dream is to bridge the gap between the scientist and layperson.”

KEN’s internet address is: http:www.theken.org

TU Delft students have developed and launched the Knowledge Explosion Network (KEN), an internet site where laypersons can ask university students and researchers questions about science.

“The idea for the Knowledge Explosion Network was born during a barbecue on the roof of a student flat,” says co-founder Kay Cesar. “By the end of the barbecue, twelve students were interested in answering questions.”

Today, KEN has ninety experts on hand to answer any science-related question. Visitors to KEN’s website, such as grade school students, their parents or amateur science enthusiasts, write their questions on an online form; and KEN’s science experts % university students, researchers % respond within a day or two.

One recent question came from a secondary school student writing a report about athletes. “She wanted to know how to determine the human body’s centre of gravity. For an Industrial Design student like me, that’s very easy to answer,” says Wouter van de Hoog, the website’s designer. “After I answered her question and directed her to relevant websites, she sent a very nice e-mail, thanking me for helping. It’s nice to help and to be appreciated for your effort and knowledge.”

KEN’s ultimate ambition is to become a primary European knowledge database, comprised of a multi-disciplinary team of experts from all over Europe. “Because English is our working language, people won’t know when their questions are answered by a Russian nuclear physicist,” Cesar says, adding that KEN is always looking for more experts who’d like to share their knowledge with others.

Cesar’s and Van de Hoog’s inspiration is the award-winning Mad Scientist Network, of Washington University (St. Louis, USA), where, in the past five years, eight hundred experts have answered some 25,000 questions. Cesar: “It’d be great if our initiative achieves that level of success in Europe.”

Cesar doesn’t expect to earn money with KEN: “Our motives are purely idealistic. We won’t be going to the stock market and we plan to limit the number of ads on our site. Our dream is to bridge the gap between the scientist and layperson.”

KEN’s internet address is: http:www.theken.org

Editor Redactie

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