How to Use Writers' Pieces of Art – Popularizers of Science and Technology for the Development of Soft Skills of Engineering Students

Abstract

Fiction writers who are engaged in science is a phenomenon. We studied this phenomenon to gain new opportunities for the development of soft skills in students of technical specialties and to widen the possibility of popularizing scientific achievements. The chronological boundaries of the study cover the period of XVIII – the first half of XX century; geographical boundaries cover Europe, the United Kingdom and the United States. The relevance of the study is related to the relevance of popularizing science among students of technical specialties, as well as the development of soft skills through writing stories about scientific discoveries, fostering interest in reading fiction about science and technology. The purpose of the study was to find psychological and informational material that will affect the emotional sphere of the student's personality and motivate him to write and read works of art about research and innovation. The ability to use research on the role of writers as promoters of science and technology depends on how we provide information about their works. In this regard, we offer a psychological technique to impress readers of scientific stories, i.e. the effect of “wow” as a combination of the factor “wow” and the halo effect. Stories about science affect different areas of human activity. They are used to address environmental, medical, political and other issues. The information material of the study confirms the following: if scientists and inventors do not demonstrate the consequences of their inventions and discoveries, it leads to erroneous assumptions, causes alarm in society and affects the mind of the individual. We studied the nature of writers' connection to science and sought answers to the question of whether writing works of art and the ability to do research could be equal aspects of an individual's abilities. The results of the study prove that these abilities predominate in only one area of activity. We also support the view that writers can be impartial promoters of science and technology. However, we propose this idea for discussion because writers demonstrate more the ethical side of the interaction between science and the human mind than they disseminate scientific facts. The further development of the study will be related to the study of the influence of science fiction on consciousness, namely how science fiction informs the reader about the current state of the world and draws attention to the changes we must make as a species.