Professor Seth Stein Talks About Hollywood Science for BBC Science in Action
October 28, 2017
Professor Seth Stein was interviewed about the GSA poster Amir Salaree, Reece Elling, Michael Wysession, and he presented: “Unintentional comedy errors in movies and educational material as a teaching tool”.
BBC World Service Science in Action: Hollywood Science (Listen from 14:40 to 20:38)
"In the quest for a good storyline and lots of action, Hollywood doesn't always get its science right. The science of geophysics can get mangled in the plot. In the 1997 blockbuster 'Volcano', Tommy Lee Jones fights to save residents from volcanic lava flowing through the streets of LA, however the city is located neither near a hot spot nor a subduction zone which would be needed for a volcano to emerge. But rather than worrying about this and getting angry and shouting at the screen, top geophysicist Seth Stein, at Northwestern University, says that pointing out scientific errors can be a great place to engage students in the subject and help inject the healthy skepticism needed to be a good scientist."