On May 28, the sub-forum on using hard science popularization to promote the transformation of research achievements, under “2023 Zhongguancun Forum”, was held in Haidian Park.

At the forum, under the guidance of CAST Technology Communication Center, Beijing Association of Science and Technology and ZGC Development Group, Beijing ZGC Sci-tech Service Co., Ltd. (referred to as “ZGC Sci-tech Service”), Beijing ZGC International Exhibition Operation Management Co., Ltd. (“ZGC International Exhibition”), Beijing Guokr Interative Science and Technology Media Co., Ltd. (“Guokr”) jointly launched the “ZGC Hard Science Popularization Platform” to facilitate the dissemination of cutting-edge and innovative technologies to the public.

The Easy Spread of “Hard Science Popularization”

At the forum, five scientists gave the first lecture of “ZGC Hard Science Popularization Platform”, explaining cutting-edge technologies to the general public.

How to make an exquisite Mars rover? Jia yang, a researcher at the China Academy of Space Technology and Deputy Chief Designer of the “Tianwen 1 Mars rover”, revealed the design concept and processes behind the “Zhurong rover”, and guided the audience to contemplate upon the reasons for and significance of human exploration on Mars.

Could Schrodinger’s Cat hear gravitational waves? Centering on the unique phenomena of the quantum realm, Professor Yin Zhangqi, from the Quantum Technology Research Center of the Physics School of Beijing Institute of Technology, discussed the fasinating intersection between the quantum and macro worlds.

Wang Zhonglin, foreign Academician of the CAS and Director and Chief Scientist of CAS Beijing Institute of Nanoenergy and Systems, and Zhang Shuangnan, Director of CAS Key Laboratory of Particle Astrophysics and Researcher of CAS High Energy Physics Institute and Chief Scientist of the astronomical satellite “Insight”, and Su Meng, Executive Director of the Space Science Laboratory of the University of Hong Kong and Founder and CEO of Origin Space, guided the public into the world of science and delved into the vast expanse of the universe.

"Scientists Speech" is a crucial approach to disseminating scientific knowledge on the “ZGC Hard Science Popularization Platform”. It primarily involves inviting leading scientists and industry experts in key technological fields to share stories about the frontier of science and technology, impart scientific knowledge, and explain the mystery cutting-edge technology to the public.

According to reports, “ZGC Hard Science Popularization Platform” will also adopt various forms of science popularization, such as short videos, museums, laboratories, and a "science cube" (a carrier of popularizing science) and so on, to intuitively explain the latest development in core technologies to the public, transforming complex technical concepts into an accessible cultural experience.

Going forward, the platform will produce a series of short videos to popularize science, using live-action footage, 2D and 3D animation, and other visual mediums to visualize the technological concepts, aiming to reduce barriers to public understanding by visually illustrating the principles and significance of science and technology.

The Popular Science Museum will go into the campus, science park, commercial complex, urban science and technology festival and other scenes, offering the audience a multi-level and immersive viewing experience and showcasing the awe-inspiring charm of science and technology.

The Popular Science Laboratory will link various cutting-edge technology laboratories and generic technology R&D platforms. On the one hand, science popularization content will be produced with the support of professional teams. On the other hand, it is open to the public to visit, experience and study, so they can get close to the real scientific research experiment and personally experience the forefront work in the field of cutting-edge technology.

The “Science Cube” is an immersive multimedia art installation created by the “ZGC Hard Science Popularization Platform”, which combines science and art to visually display  popular scientific content. 

As one of the first initiators and operators of the “ZGC Hard Science Popularization Platform”, ZGC Sci-tech Service will launch a column called “Hard Science Popularization Service” on the ZGC Easy Innovation Platform, serving more science popularization entities and the public.

“Hard Technologies” Behind the “Hard Science Popularization”

Scientific innovation and science popularization are the two wings of innovation-based development. Scientific innovation is the premise of scientific popularization, while scientific popularization can foster innovation culture, cultivate innovative talents, promote the transformation of innovation achievements, and become the starting point of a new round of scientific and technological innovation.

Only when cutting-edge sci-tech innovation achievements are understood by investors, entrepreneurs and the public, can they be better transformed and implemented to boost high-quality economic and social development and improve people's life.  This is also the original intention of launching the "ZGC Hard Science Popularization Platform".

As Ji Xiaohua, founder and CEO of Guokr, said, different from daily science popularization, “hard” science popularization serves key and core technologies, i.e. focusing on the cutting-edge science and technology. 

“Hard” science popularization is both a means and an end goal. In order to achieve the goal f an innovation-oriented country and self-reliance in high-level science and technology, we need to ensure that diversified entities in the scientific innovation chain have endogenous driving forces. Within this proposition, hard science popularization has the potential to become a super connector that links the entire world of sci-tech innovation together.

“ZGC Development Group is in a naturally good position to launch the ‘ZGC Hard Science Popularization Platform’. We also take science popularization as our social responsibility. And we will attract more hard science popularization service agencies to join us in the future,” said Zhang Jinhui, Deputy General Manager of ZGC Development Group.

It is understood that ZGC Development Group has long been developing Zhongguancun, with close ties to many research institutions, enterprises and service platforms specializing in key and core technologies.

The Group focuses on “hard technologies” in the sectors of big information, big health, big environmental protection and big intelligent manufacturing. It continuously innovates its service model to improve its full-cycle, butler-style, one-stop professional service system. Over time, it has formed an integrated service system that contains more than 200 sci-tech service products across 20 categories, and established an innovation ecosystem that pools high-end talents, R&D institutions, innovative enterprises, investment institutions, professional service platforms and other elements. The reserve of these “hard technologies” provides a continuous stream of fresh content for “hard science popularization”.

ZGC Hard Science Popularization Platform will become an important starting point for the Group to serve ‘hard technologies” and integrate industry, academia and research in the future.