Tech Me Out: How Pint of Science Made STEM Feel Human Again

When you hear the word science, what comes to mind?

For many people, it’s lab coats, complex equations, or maybe a debate among professors. For others, it’s something even more distant—an elite world full of jargon and closed doors. But science does not have to feel that way. It should be something you could talk about openly, casually, even over a cold drink with friends. It should feel less like a lecture and more like a story you could relate to, question, and laugh about.

That’s exactly what Pint of Science Kenya 2025 brought to life. And I was lucky enough to experience it, not as a scientist, but as a curious software developer with a love for stories, ideas, and human connection.

Breaking Down Walls, One Pint at a Time

Pint of Science isn’t like other science events. Instead, picture a warm atmosphere, the murmur of laughter, and a room full of curious minds from all walks of life. In Kisumu, this May 2025, something truly special happened.

Researchers who spend their days studying stepped out of their labs and onto the stage, sharing their work not through slides and citations, but through stories. They explained their findings with humor, with humility, and with heart.

The audience showed up with curiosity, questions and openness. You could see eyes light up, and hands shoot up for questions. It wasn’t just educational but electric.

Where Tech Meets Curiosity

As a software developer, I’ll admit walking into an event branded as “science communication” felt slightly outside my lane but by the end of the night, I didn’t feel like an outsider. I felt like part of a community. Because the truth is, technology and science are deeply intertwined—and tech has a seat at the science table.

Think about it:

• Scientists rely on software to model climate change, visualize molecules, and even decode the human genome.

• Algorithms sift through mountains of research data, spotting patterns faster than any human could.

• Apps help communicate findings, track disease outbreaks, and even crowdsource environmental insights.

And beyond that, tech folks are natural translators. We take complex ideas and build tools, platforms, and experiences that people can interact with. That’s science communication too, just written in code.

These Moments Matter

It’s easy to underestimate how powerful these informal, public events are. But Pint of Science reminded me that science isn’t just about facts, it’s about people. People doing the research for affected people and people engaging with it, even if just for one night. That kind of transformation can’t be measured in metrics. But it can change lives.

Science Belongs to Everyone

Events like Pint of Science work because they strip away the formalities. They remind us that curiosity is human, and science at its core is just organized curiosity. It shouldn’t be locked behind walls or limited to people, but should be shared in spaces where real life happens: in pubs, cafes, libraries, even bus stops.

That’s the future I want to be part of. A future where someone like me, a developer, can sit next to a plant biologist or a robotics engineer and both of us can learn something new. A future where a grandmother asks a PhD student, “So what does this mean for my grandson’s asthma?” and gets a real, heartfelt answer. Because that’s where real trust in science starts, not in labs, but in conversations.

Looking Ahead

Pint of Science Kenya 2025 may be over, but the spirit of it lingers. It reminded me, and many others, that knowledge is not just meant to be stored, but it’s meant to be shared. Whether you're a scientist, an engineer, a teacher, a student, a parent, or just someone who enjoys a good story, there’s a place for you in the science conversation. And maybe, just maybe, the next breakthrough won’t happen in a lab but over a drink, sparked by a question from someone brave enough to ask.

Let’s keep building spaces where science feels like it belongs to all of us because when everyone is invited to the table, everyone grows.

~By John Eliud