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Photograph by Michael J. Clarke
spring 2024
The ‘Science on the Street’ team in the studio: Chaimaa Hossaini, BS ’23, Biology Professor Eugenia Gold, Studio 73 Assistant Manager Patrick Lys, and Kostas Winslow, Class of 2026.
Kostas Winslow, Class of 2026, is on a mission. Microphone in hand and camera operator in tow, he patrols Boston Common approaching people with one burning question: Who is the real face of environmental justice, the Lorax or Captain Planet?
“That’s simple—Captain Planet,” a young man declares. “He taught us on Saturday morning cartoons to recycle and do well for the earth. Captain Planet is the original Power Ranger.”
For more than a year, Winslow has been a reporter, writer, and director for Science on the Street, a YouTube series that combines comedy with serious science topics, in the vein of The Daily Show or Last Week Tonight with John Oliver.
“This technique allows adults to engage with scientific concepts in an approachable way,” says Suffolk Biology Professor Maria Eugenia Leone Gold, a paleontologist, who created the show and launched its first episode in March 2022. “It also increases representation in science and encourages people from all walks of life to stay curious.”
A naturally engaging host, Gold opens each monthly episode with a fact-filled, funny monologue and then interviews an expert on various hot topics such as climate change, earthquakes, toxic spills, sharks, and even squirrels. She also fact-checks pop culture hits like Jurassic Park and The Last of Us, and regularly features Suffolk faculty members on the show.
A film major, Winslow says he loves “being in the middle of the action, learning how to improvise under pressure. Working with Professor Gold has taught me that there are many ways to tackle a problem and come up with a solution.” His work was supported in part by a summer career development stipend funded by Suffolk’s Center for Career Equity, Development & Success. The $3,500 stipend is available to all incoming undergraduate students who pursue unpaid internships, research with faculty, or other volunteer experiential learning opportunities during their first summer at Suffolk.
Behind the scenes, work-study students at Suffolk’s Studio 73 also play a significant role in the show’s success, learning skills including running the camera and teleprompter, maintaining the audio, and creating set designs.
“It’s a great hands-on experience for our students that will prepare them for the real world,” says Studio 73 Assistant Manager Patrick Lys. “They become more confident in what it takes to put a show together.”
By Tony Ferullo