About DR Steve
Hi, I'm Dr Steve Wells, a physicist working at the University of Auckland, and a science communicator.
What do I do at the Uni? I hang out in a lab looking at liquids, drops, sticky things, and magnetic things. I teach condensed matter physics. And I take any opportunity to get science out there to whoever will listen!
Some of those opportunities: I made part of MacDiarmid's "Mighty Small, Mighty Bright" exhibit for museums around NZ, was a judge for two Auckland school science fair finals, a few years of private tutoring, and weekly lessons for gifted kids at Kadimah School. I started working with media in 2017, making props for Leave No Trace, an educational film for NZ Department of Conservation.
My first real science advising job came out of the blue: Luke Thornborough asked me to help out with Alone, a play he was writing for Auckland Fringe Festival 2020. Together we took the role of science advisor way beyond simple fact-checking! From major script development to showing cast members around my lab, discussing how scientists think, finding real science equipment for props, even attending a read-through to see if they were really acting like scientists.
The funny thing was this: Luke told me he never would have known where to look for an expert scientist, they just aren't there for the creative industries. Why not?! This should be available to everyone, so I'm putting myself out there for more science advising!
In an age of increasing misinformation, it's more important than ever that creative works show off some real science. I am here to make that possible.
