Japan Geoscience Union Meeting 2019

Presentation information

[J] Oral

O (Public ) » Public

[O-01] Exploring Buratamori - How to make science accessible

Sun. May 26, 2019 3:30 PM - 5:00 PM IC (2F)

convener:Kazutaka Mannen(Hot Springs Research Institute of Kanagawa Prefecture), Takayuki Ogata(Disaster Prevention Research Center for Island Regions, University of the Ryukyus), Chairperson:Kazutaka Mannen(Hot Springs Research Institute of Kanagawa Prefecture)

3:30 PM - 3:45 PM

[O01-06] The role of experiment in NHK's entertainment / educational program "Buratamori"

★Invited Papers

*Shintaro Hayashi1 (1.Akita University Graduate School of Education)

Keywords:"Buratamori", experiment, outreach

What is "Buratamori"?
"Buratamori" is an entertainment / educational program that has been broadcast from NHK(Nippon Hoso Kyokai;Japan Broadcasting Corporation) TV since 2008, and its viewer rating sometimes exceeds 15%. In the program, both Tamori and NHK 's beautiful female announcer are thinking about various questions while walking around various places and discovering various things. Also, the program progresses according to the question of the guiding person. Something related to geology and geography often appears in the question, and it exerts a great effect on outreach of earth science. I appeared as the main guide person of "# 81 Towada Lake and Oirase: Why did Towada Lake become a mysterious lake?".

Guide person's responsibility
The Guide person of "Buratamori" is responsible for the scientific accuracy of the program.In order to guarantee the accuracy of the program, the guidance person takes a lot of time to investigate. In the case of a speaker, I referred to more than 100 books and papers related to Towada Lake and Oirase gorge. In addition to this, the guiding person also attends work of the location and rehearsals, to ensure the accuracy of the program.

Experiment in "Buratamori"
In the program of "Buratamori", experiments are often used as a means of explanation. In the program of "# 81 Towada Lake and Oirase: Why did Towada Lake become a mysterious lake?", I explained how to make Lake Caldera using cocoa and condensed milk.
Requirements for experiment to be adopted in "Buratamori"?
Actually, there are many experiments which were not adopted in the program. One example is "water cooled fractured lava experiment". I suggested it twice in other programs of "Buratamori", but both were rejected.Probably the reason for rejecting "water-cooled fractured lava experiment" is 1) it is not visual, 2) the materials such as glass and water are not very impressive.

"Buratamori" and outreach
Outreach activities in the field of earth science are important in three points: 1) acquisition of research funding; 2: training of successors; 3: recognition by the general public (Kamada, 2004). For that reason, it is necessary for scientists to transmit the results obtained by earth science in an easy-to-understand manner.
There are two outreaching effects of "Buratamori" . Firstly, "Buratamori" has a high viewer rating and outreach to many citizens is possible. Secondly, educational effect on scientists is great. Scientists learn how to make the program easier from the director.
Becoming a guide person of "Buratamori" is to use a lot of energy and time. However, as there is a large outreach effect, researchers should respond positively.