‘It’s Okay To Be Smart’ host to give SciFest keynote

Joe Hanson

Visit the It’s Okay To Be Smart YouTube page, and you’re immediately greeted by Joe Hanson, the PBS Digital Studios show’s creator and host.

“Have you ever been curious,” he begins before listing off, in rapid fire, a slew of topics, everything the universe at large to climate change to dog spiders—no, wait, dogs and spiders.

It’s Okay To Be Smart is, according to PBS, a show about science but probably not the way you’re used to it.

Hanson will bring his passion for “the fun, creative and pure ‘wow’ of science” to Randolph College’s Science Festival later this month.

SciFest features a series of free events that invite the community to discover and celebrate science and its connections to many aspects of life.

The 2022 festival kicks off on Monday, March 14, with the Pi Run, a 3.14-mile fun run. It will be held in-person this year, starting at 6 p.m. in front of Main Hall, with virtual options also available.

The main series of events begins with Hanson’s keynote, “Life Lessons from Curious Adventures,” at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, March 31.

His own curious adventures are documented on It’s OK To Be Smart, which has more than 3 million YouTube subscribers.

Hanson, who studied biochemistry at the University of Texas at Austin and also holds a Ph.D. in cell and molecular biology, created the show in 2013.

Prior to that, he was an American Association for the Advancement of Science Mass Media Fellow, which found him working as a science reporter at Wired.com, covering topics that ranged from ancient genomes to shark biology to violent volcanoes.

Winner of a 2017 Webby Award for Best Web Personality for his work on It’s OK To Be Smart, Hanson is also the creator and co-host of Hot Mess, a show about climate change and the environment from PBS Digital Studios.

Hanson’s keynote also includes the presentation of the 2022 SciFest Science Teacher Award.

Events continue throughout the weekend; check out the full schedule at http://randolphscience.org/scifest.

Highlights include:

• The College’s Women in Science Panel, featuring Quay Dortch ’70, Scotti Estes ’76, and Maddy Carmain ’13 at 3:30 p.m. Friday, April 1.
• The Poetry Jam! Reading and Competition Awards, featuring local students, at 6 p.m. Friday, April 1 in Presser Hall.
• A Scientist Goes to the Movies: Free Guy, with commentary from mathematics and computer science professor Jasmine Wan, at 8 p.m. Friday, April 1 in Nichols Theatre.
• Science Day, for students in grades 3-6, and Science Day for Little Scientists, for children ages 3-7, on Saturday, April 2. The event is free but requires registration at https://sciday22.brownpapertickets.com and https://littlesciday22.brownpapertickets.com respectively
• Smash @ SciFest, a double-elimination Super Smash Bros. esports tournament, at 3 p.m. Saturday, April 2, in Houston Memorial Chapel.
• The Maker Faire of Lynchburg from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, April 3 on front campus.
• Robocode Programming Competition, for high school students, from 10 a.m. to noon Sunday, April 3, in Main Hall.
• The SciFest LEGO Build Challenge Expo, featuring contraptions built by local students, at 12:30 p.m. Sunday, April 3, in Smith Memorial Building.