Finding fun in paleontology

Couple gains legions of young fans on social media with animated videos on popular science, Cheng Yuezhu reports.

Paleontology is rarely the socially acceptable definition of fun, but a video series on fossils has recently captivated youngsters who find the portrayal of struggle for survival in a bygone world interesting.

These videos are created by Fun Stuff, a channel that has gained 1.9 million followers on online streaming site Bilibili by introducing scientific disciplines including paleontology, neuroscience and evolutionary biology to its viewers.

The producers behind Fun Stuff are Tang Cheng and Cai Chunlin, a couple who both majored in science disciplines at university, and have now devoted themselves full time to developing science media content.

Tang, who has a doctoral degree from the Institute of Neuroscience at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, says that he has been interested in various science topics from an early age, and paleontology is one of the disciplines that appealed to him particularly.

They first started translating and uploading science videos from English to Chinese, but these videos received merely several thousand views. By the end of 2018, the couple had set a goal. If their latest translated video got more than 20 likes, they would make an original video.

The goal was soon reached with the support of their followers, but the effort to make a video from scratch was extremely time-consuming. From beginning to end, the process of designing the video format, choosing a narration style, scriptwriting and editing the video sequence all took a lot of time.

Other than Tang's long-term interest in the discipline, the couple decided to make science videos on paleontology their first choice as pictures of ancient creatures will be more appealing to viewers.

Apart from reading academic literature on paleontology and ensuring accuracy of scientific facts, Tang also took time to watch and study other popular videos on Bilibili.

"We need to naturally integrate some popular memes into the videos. The narration needs to be clear and lively," Tang says. "The video needs to include transitions and effects, or it will just be a series of still images－like a slide presentation. We need to constantly grip the attention of the viewers."

After months of preparation, they uploaded their first original video on anomalocaris, or abnormal shrimp, an extinct species from the Cambrian period. In the video, the animal is described as the earliest hegemon, claiming supremacy of the primordial oceans for a long period of time.

Drawing analogies between the species and ocean wildlife such as whales or sharks, Tang talks about the animal's appearance, habits and characteristics, its evolutionary process and its gradual extinction using memes popular among Bilibili viewers.

The zealous narration style, clear explanation of scientific facts, and a connection with youth subculture soon made the video a hit. Within a day, the video was viewed nearly 100,000 times and won the channel 20,000 followers. Its popularity continued to rise, with the video now being watched over 3.6 million times.

Since then, Tang and Cai began making a series of original videos on the evolution of prehistoric creatures. Tang takes charge of researching, scriptwriting and recording, while Cai edits and uploads the videos.

Despite their efforts in making videos more frequently, the research process for a 15-minute video takes at least an entire week, and sometimes more than a month. So the couple chose quality over quantity, and Cai gave up her job in an academic journal to become a full-time content creator.

Based on the account analysis provided by Bilibili, Tang says their fans mainly consist of high school and university students. The 30-40 age group is also noteworthy, but fan feedback shows that it is the children of these account owners who watch the videos regularly.

"Science videos are not well-known or a popular type of video, but the scripts and narration style of Fun Stuff turned science into a sensational series about the ancient world," comments Bilibili user Yichen Changfeng.

Another user, Yeyu Feiying, says that although she learned biology at school, she had no clue about the connection among different animal species. She is grateful that Fun Stuff videos give her an overview of the biological system and the evolutionary process.

"My current job is not related to life sciences, and watching these videos is more of a personal interest. But their videos have given me a new perspective in the intrinsic commonality of human nature," she says. "Humans, like other animals, also have the ability to adapt to the environment and possess yearning for survival."

Fun Stuff rose amid a growing emphasis on knowledge-based content on the Bilibili platform. At first, they could only upload their videos on the underdeveloped science and technology section of the site. However, Bilibili gradually accommodated to the needs of viewers wanting to learn new things, integrating relevant videos pertaining to science, technology, humanities and finance by developing a knowledge section on the platform.

For two consecutive years, Fun Stuff has been listed as one of the top 100 accounts on Bilibili based on their video quality, popularity and influence, making them exemplary in the knowledge section.

The couple was initially stunned by their own fame, and gradually understood their success and popularity among animation and game lovers on Bilibili.

"We think that curiosity is an innate need possessed by everyone－especially in China, where there is such a big population and a significant number of teenagers. Many may be interested in these disciplines which seem obscure to others," Tang says.

For viewers who have absolutely no interest in science and simply want to listen to the stories, Tang says their goal is to plant the seed into the minds of general viewers, and they may gradually develop an interest in science related disciplines.

Apart from paleontology, the couple is now making videos on neuroscience, the history of science, and occasionally debunking urban legends.

Currently making videos without a production team, the couple hopes to build a team so that it will allow them to make videos more efficiently. They also want to attract more people with postgraduate degrees to join them in promoting science media content, and popularizing scientific knowledge to a wider Chinese audience.

Contact the writer at chengyuezhu@chinadaily.com.cn