Why scientists are infiltrating music festivals

Researchers are busting out of basement labs and stuffy hotel ballrooms and infiltrating the playgrounds where today's creative minds gather

A music festival.
(Image credit: JacquesKloppers/iStock)

Sheena Cruickshank stood in front of a crowd of millennials in flower crowns and harem pants. As she paced the stage, trying to explain the intricacies of the microbiome to the audience, guitars and drum kits warmed up behind her, forcing her to raise her voice to be heard. The immunology professor wasn't speaking in her usual venue at the University of Manchester, after all. She was at a music festival, and later that day, The Flaming Lips were taking the stage.

As researchers seek new audiences for their findings, they're busting out of basement laboratories and stuffy hotel ballrooms and infiltrating the playgrounds where today's curious, creative minds gather: music festivals.

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Jesse Klein

Jesse Klein is a science and outdoor writer based in San Francisco, California. Her work has appeared in the New Scientist, Climbing Magazine, The Debrief, and the 7x7. Her work can be found online here.