How a Brazilian botanist uses Taylor Swift to teach plant science

A Brazilian researcher is using Taylor Swift's music videos to teach plant science, helping students overcome \

Taylor Swift sings "we can plant a memory garden" in her song "The Great War." For Glaucia Silva, that lyric became a mission rooted in helping students pay attention to the green life around them.

Silva lives in the city of Natal, Brazil, where she grew up. As a botanist and teacher, she developed a method that uses the superstar's music videos as visual tools for introducing plant science.

"I hope people can see plants and recognize them as important parts of our planet, through the lens of art and pop culture," she said. "Plants are everywhere, in everything. Without them, there is no life."

Her idea began during the pandemic, when students were overwhelmed with traditional botany instruction.

"If you go on twitter and type 'I hate botany' on search, trust me, you will find a lot of students complaining about botany," Silva said. So she tried something new: "Hey guys, today we are gonna watch a Taylor Swift music video, what do you think?"