Science is more than beakers and chemistry sets
February 11, 2025Curious about the guests we feature on the We Are ETH podcast? We have summarized the three personal questions that our host Susan Kish asks each guest at the end of the episode.
What did Grace want to be when she was growing up?
I wanted to be a scientist, specifically a medical scientist and a professional swimmer. I just loved being in the water. I don’t even think I really had a stroke. I think I tried out all the strokes.
That dream was abandoned quite quickly!
What was Grace’s favourite place in Zurich?
I lived near the University of Zurich campus, the Irchel campus.
During COVID, when we were able to go out, every single day, rain, shine or snow I went out in the forests above Zurich. I used to run and walk on the mountain biking trails rather than the actual trails because I could be engulfed by the trees. A lot of mountain bikers got mad at me!
That was one of my favorite places to explore, because even though I was in the city, I felt that I wasn’t, especially during the times when we couldn’t travel.
So that’s probably one of my favorite places.
What is Grace reading right now?
When I was a child my father would read me books or make up stories about different realms, and I like a lot of different literature.
One of my all time favorite books is called Stargirl, by Jerry Spinelli. I’ve read it multiple times and I can’t wait to share that with my daughter!
Right now, I’m reading The Lost City of the Monkey God which is a very interesting take on the idea of using space research, like LIDAR systems, to understand anthropological sites.
What is fascinating Grace right now?
Something that I continue to be very curious about is the indigenous perspective. So, understanding the world from different cultural perspectives and how we can continue to intersect what we consider westernized science with indigenous science.
Because there’s a lot of influence of indigenous science into Western science but there’s not a lot of direct understanding and a lot of voices are not being heard.
And so I continue to at least want to learn about that indigenous perspective and understand how I can weave that into my teachings and provide also hopefully a platform for others to speak out about those interconnections.
Listen to the full episode with Grace Crain, ETH alumna, plant ecologist, and STEM educator as she talks about why science isn’t just about beakers and chemistry sets.
