On a Tuesday afternoon in mid-August, about 60 academics in Germany waited in front of their computer screens, ready to sate the curiosity of the public.

They were taking part in ¡°Book a Scientist¡±, an unusually direct method of science communication.

The concept is simple. Members of the public are allowed to book 20-minute slots to fire questions at academics about their research, on topics ranging from ¡°why do I X-ray bats?¡± to ¡°who can decide what I¡¯m allowed to say online?¡±

Compared with engaging the public on Twitter, through newspaper interviews, or via a blog, the reach of ¡°Book a Scientist¡± is very limited. At most, the researchers, all from institutions that form part of Germany¡¯s multidisciplinary Leibniz Association, can speak to a handful of people in the hour or two set aside for digital encounters with the public.

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But advocates argue that although narrow, ¡°Book a Scientist¡± is a very deep way of connecting with the public, even generating new research ideas.

¡°Our experience is that many people at our other public events do not really dare to ask their questions to our researchers when an audience is listening,¡± said Marlen Sommer, a team event manager at the association who helped manage the meetings.

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The idea was trialled physically in 2018 and 2019, but the pandemic has pushed it online ¨C potentially opening it up to a much bigger public.

Some members of the public just wanted practical advice. Charline Uhr, a research assistant?at the Leibniz Institute for Financial Research proffering advice on avoiding investment mistakes, was asked by several people for the ¡°best investment idea to become rich without any risks¡±.

However, she said, her interrogators all had well-prepared questions, and overall the interviews were a ¡°great opportunity to leave the ivory tower, to hear something about the fears and problems of people¡± outside finance and academia.

¡°If you try to evaluate this event by time spent versus people reached this is a bad deal,¡± she continued.

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But the format is ¡°far more inspiring than writing a post without knowing whether you are answering a question the ¡®real world¡¯ might have¡±, she pointed out.

The experience was a bit like ¡°like talking to friends about my research at lunch or dinner¡±, said Hannes Ullrich of the German Institute for Economic Research, who offered up his expertise on whether machine learning can improve medical care.

He ended up speaking to a fellow academic, tackling the same questions but in a different field; an employee of a firm for which his research is relevant; and a private citizen interested for personal reasons.

¡°Book a Scientist¡± functions rather like the open discussion that occurs between academics, policymakers and the general public on Twitter, he said.

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But, in common with other participants, he appreciated getting to know his questioners better. ¡°I actually got to see and talk to the interested people and also learned a little about their backgrounds and interests,¡± he added.

The association¡¯s website shows that although some academics were fully booked, still more had at least some unbooked slots. But for those who got a steady supply of conversation partners, the exercise was worth it ¨C and given the informal nature of the chats, required little time in preparation.

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¡°I would say that the time invested has definitely paid off,¡± said Lisa Spitzer, an expert on research transparency at the Leibniz Institute for Psychology Information, who also took part. ¡°You may not reach as many people at once as through other channels, but the impact you have is all the greater.¡±

david.matthews@timeshighereducation.com