Public emergencies related to children require emergency science popularization for children. Considering the psychological characteristics and cognitive levels of children aged three to six, picture book is the ideal type of science popularization for them due to its concreteness and vividness. Therefore, efforts should be made on how to create excellent popular science picture books when facing public emergencies. Based on the analysis of classic popular science picture books and books about COVID-19 published so far in China, it could be seen that the creation of popular science picture books for public emergencies should maintain balance among vividness characteristic of excellent picture books, scientific accurateness required by science popularization, and promptness required by emergency state. Finally, pragmatic creation methods are concluded and presented in the paper.

Based on the ‘5W’ communication model, this paper takes the panic-purchasing event caused by scientific reporting of “Shuanghuanglian Oral Liquid Can Inhibit COVID-19” as a study case. Using the mixed method of interview and questionnaire, it analyzes the influences of public science cognition and cyber-behavior on people’s decision of buying or not buying the Shuanghuanglian Oral Liquid. Finally, it puts forward suggestions for scientists on how to release their academic achievements, suggestions for science journalists on how to report science news, as well as suggestions on online science communication.

Rural broadcasting network “Cun Cun Xiang” is a powerful carrier for public cultural services in rural area and an important approach to conduct rural science popularization. What’s more, its emergency broadcast function makes it irreplaceable in responding to public emergencies. This paper combs the characteristics and situations of emergency science popularization (ESP) in rural area as well as the functions of rural broadcasting network “Cun Cun Xiang”, suggests an optimized ESP route in case of public emergencies based on the crisis life-cycle theory, and makes concrete analysis on its application under COVID-19.

Based on the statistics and analysis of the strategies and characteristics of science popularization performed by the three main-stream media in combating COVID-19, this paper summarizes several features of science popularization practice of these media in the epidemic in terms of adequate agenda setting, efficient presentation, diverse information sources and effect of media convergence. The advantages and characteristics of science communication are analyzed respectively for the three main-stream media, and the limitation is pointed out as “putting emphasis on knowledge but ignoring thoughts”. Finally the key roles and functions of main-stream media in emergency science popularization in the epidemic are summed up as the following: to release alerting signals of epidemic situation and reliable professional information through topic setting; to act as communicating bridge between science community and public through interviews and reprints, as well as the supply and demand intermediary of scientific information; to take advantage of their own prestige to become the appraiser of the professionality of science popularization information, the key dissemination node of qualified science popularization contents, and the concentration area of excellent popular science writers, so as to expand the influence of excellent science popularization products and to attach much importance on the leading role of scientific spirit.

This paper analyzes the science communication practice of scientific journals in the process of combating COVID-19. Based on the characteristics and problems found in the science communication of scientific journals in public emergencies, this paper puts forward four suggestions for scientific journals to improve their efficacy of science communication, that is, to strengthen cooperation with news media, to use preprint platform actively, to establish new mindset, and to make use of new forms.

In the course of combating novel coronavirus pneumonia, emergency science popularization faces high public demand under complex information dissemination environment. Based on the practice of emergency science popularization during the period, the core characteristics and suitable operation mechanism of emergency science popularization in China are discussed, and the role played by China Association for Science and Technology (CAST, which is considered as the home of scientists and technologists as well as the home of science popularization workers) is analyzed in this paper. In the end, suggestions on improving emergency science popularization system are put forward from different perspectives of mechanism construction, resource integration, and establishment of authoritative communication platforms.

The outbreak of COVID-19 makes new media the main channel for science communication, i.e., the main battlefield of emergency science popularization develops from offline to online communication. A series of new characteristics of emergency science popularization emerge in cyberspace, with several problems revealed on the supply side of science communication. This article summarizes the characteristics and problems of media communication in emergency science popularization, and puts forward suggestions on improving emergency science communication system for future response to unexpected public events.

The development of contemporary science and technology has given rise to many social, ethical and legal problems and makes it urgent to strengthen the governance of science and technology. Science and technology governance requires the joint participation of academia, industry, government and the public, which puts forward new requirements for public scientific literacy. It is suggested that the improvement of public scientific literacy would include not only re-understanding the connotation of public scientific literacy, but also enhancing public’s abilities to participate in science and technology governance.

This paper first analyzes several representative problems in science popularization after the outbreak of novel coronavirus pneumonia (COVID-19) in China, then gives some reflections with different perspectives on the orientation, subject, media, content and object of emergency science popularization.

This study analyzed two cases of science news of wide social influence from the perspective of scientific demonstration, and pointed out that there are different problems of scientific argumentation structure in social science reports. The analysis of this paper shows that scientific argumentation, as a tool of reasoning, can help people think rationally about information and improve people’s critical thinking. Moreover, this paper puts forward specific suggestions for different groups, such as the public, mass media, scientists and others so as to enhance the scientific literacy of the nation.