Science in Anime? A Debate from the Content and Characteristics of Communication of Science-related Ideas
Aleilson da Silva Rodrigues
Universidade Federal de Alagoas
Wilmo Ernesto Francisco Junior
Universidade Federal de Alagoas
Abstract
To investigate the content and characteristics of the communication of science-related ideas in anime, this work examined six productions of worldwide popularity. Fleck’s epistemology was employed as theoretical background to understand the communication of ideas. The first 50 episodes of each anime (except for two that comprised 35 and 21 episodes at the time of the research) were watched, and all the excerpts containing terms, expressions, or representations referring to science were identified, transcribed, and coded. The overall results indicate the strong presence, both unintentional and intentional, of representations of science (396 scenes), most of which are scientifically accurate (377) and combine visual and verbal texts to display mentions or explanations. The set of anime analyzed demonstrates a potential role for the exchange and the furtherance of intra- and intercollective interaction of scientific ideas, as well as for discussion between specialized, school and popular audiences.
