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Science is a lot of things. It’s a person in a lab coat experimenting with different materials as well as an astronaut bouncing around in zero gravity. It’s a geologist studying rocks and a mathematician perusing books. It’s an archeologist out on an expedition and a biologist monitoring different animal species. 

That’s the great thing about science—it’s vast. It is also useful because of discoveries that allow us to advance in this world. It is exciting because it gives us new prospects to aspire to. It is ongoing, inspiring, devastating, beautiful and, also, funny.

The list below is all about the funny side of science. The jokes, the puns, the memes, and other ridiculousness that was collected and posted on The Lighter Side of Science Facebook group. Scroll down to see our favorites.

Because science is so vast and multilayered, learning about it can be quite challenging. That’s partly because there’s so much to learn but also because it’s easy to get scared of how much there is to learn. That is where the science communication people come in. They are the ones that combine science and fun to make it appealing to all.

These are passionate people who make it their mission to spread the word of science to the common, non-science related folk. Sometimes they are researchers or medical professionals themselves and sometimes they are well-informed journalists that want the people around them to better understand the world. Either way, they are helping everyone to get excited about science.

#2

Humorous-Light-Science-Memes

Diane Ohlzen Report

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Panda Kicki
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4 months ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Our whole attict is a bat sanctuary. They fly around the house at night, catching mosquitoes and we love the little buggers. Sometime they crash in the grass and I use welding gloves to gently put them back. When I grew up a tv tower was built nearby, the poor bats got disorientated and every morning I found dozens in tve grass

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While popularizing science has been a thing since the invention of media and the printing press, the most notable figures emerged in recent years. One of them is Carl Sagan

Sagan was an astronomer and did a lot of research into the possibility of extraterrestrial lives. However, it wasn’t his discovery or any of his 600 papers that made him famous. It was his show Cosmos that was aired in 1980 that made him undoubtedly one of the most popular scientists back in the day.

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Of course, he wasn’t a nobody before he landed the show. The science community appreciated him for his research and advocacy, though some were a little put off by his speculative approach to science. Still, he taught at Harvard and then earned his position as a full-time professor at Cornell. He was also working with NASA since the inception of the US space program in the '50s. He even briefed Apollo astronauts before going to the Moon.

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He became better-known to the public after he published his best-selling science-fiction book The Dragons of Eden, which won him a Pulitzer Prize in 1977. Because of this, he was invited to write and narrate Cosmos. In it, he delved into various different topics related to space and the world around us. He told fascinating stories that got people excited about our universe.

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#11

Humorous-Light-Science-Memes

Steven Downs Report

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Doctor Strange
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4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Remember, if it bites you and you die, its venomous. If you bite it and you die, its poisonous. If it bites itself and you die, its voodoo. If you both bite each other and neither of you die, its kinky.

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The 13-part series was well received by both the audience and the critics. It won an Emmy and a Peabody Award, and also became the most widely watched series in the history of American television and held that record for a whole decade after. As a result, Sagan became a cultural icon.

#13

Humorous-Light-Science-Memes

IFLScience Report

#15

Humorous-Light-Science-Memes

Makenzee Jade Report

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Crybabyartist
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4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

There is no point in having these. Unnecessary and messy... time to phase these out... I'm staying inside with all my doors shut tight... and a blow torch in case my chair turns into a spider.

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In the show, he often said “billions and billions” referring to and emphasizing the innumerable amount of things in the universe. This became his catchphrase and a part of the cultural vocabulary in the '80s. Musicians were including it in their songs and comedians were incorporating it into their routines.

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#17

Humorous-Light-Science-Memes

Aleksandra Bilewicz Report

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Andy Cran
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4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

being a Brit myself and it not of any real use to me I really like this

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Furthermore, now “sagan” can be used as a unit of measurement that is equivalent to a very large number of anything (at least 4 billion or more). His name is also used when referring to the number of stars observable in the universe. This is called Sagan’s number and at the moment it’s estimated to be 300 sextillion.

#20

Humorous-Light-Science-Memes

S Dharma Teg Report

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Did I say that out loud? (he/him)cis/het
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4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

When you put it like that, it makes you wonder what on earth they were doing? Also, what was going through the mind of the first person to milk a cow? I suppose we should just be thankful that they didn't do it to a bull first.

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#21

Humorous-Light-Science-Memes

S Dharma Teg Report

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Multa Nocte
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4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I love it when a 4 year old is so much more intelligent than a grown person.

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To this day, Sagan is highly admired by many. He made many people curious about the world and even nudged some towards scientific careers. And sure, this list can never compare to the perfect knowledge and entertainment balance that he achieved in his masterpiece of a series, but, hey, it’s still pretty darn funny. 

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#22

Humorous-Light-Science-Memes

greenisneon Report

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BrownTabby
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4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Me, a Japanese speaker who has heard a love song that mentioned being “only 10cm apart”: sounds like a you problem

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#25

Humorous-Light-Science-Memes

Hennri Starr Report

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Bouche and Audi and Shyla, Oh My!
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4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The things we put up with. I mean, at least our kittens outgrow it quickly. Human kittens will grab you around the waist and drag you for years!

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Ry-o
Community Member
4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Oh sweetie give up. He's not even paying attention. Smh. He's not even trying...

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Isaac Harvey
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4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

If cats had thumbs and could write, they probably wouldn’t.

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keyboardtek
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4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

How do you know they don't already know how to write but just refuse to?

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sbj
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4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Cat's thinking "when am I ever going to need this, I've already got an escape plan"

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CaptainFluffy
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4 months ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The cat’s only tolerating this so he can make a kill list after.

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SCP 4666
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4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Geez girl, you do realize I don't have fingers to hold the pen with?

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Dorothy Stovall
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4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Some cats are extremely tolerant of babies and small kids. My boy cat has the biggest teeth and claws and weighs 24 pounds of muscle, but he's so loving and gentle with all species of babies regardless of how they poke and annoy him.

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DC
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4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

... my cat would have to eat "human" a few days in a row, if somebody tried that. Regarding her hunting activities, I've come to a set of proper reactions: I prevent any beast I see before her from meeting her, but whatever she kills, she eats (after checking that it's not poisonous to cats, of course). Spider may already consider me a, kind of, friend therefore. They should. They better... Anyway, as this little human really has it coming, my dearest of all Ginas wouldn't hesitate in adjusting their roles - "I am to cat, you are to edible!". Or something. Seriously, just don't do that to cats, regardless of cutery and downvotism, it's forcing some childish - done by children explains but doesn't excuse - idea of what's cute onto an animal who's not really known to obey or to accept being made to.

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Callie Krisel
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4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Omigod I used to do this with crayons and I coloring books with my old cat grey

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Christof Irran
Community Member
4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

"OK Karen. One day you'll be really good at telling people what to do. Have you thought about studying to become an HOA when you grow up?"

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Tim Scott
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4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

What writing system is the cat learning? It looks like Arabic on the top of the page but Thai on the bottom.

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Tim Scott
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4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

What writing system is the cat being taught? It looks like Arabic on top but maybe Thai on the bottom of the page.

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Unauthorized Kiwi
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4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I remember trying to teach my bird to do that when I was 7. Fun times.

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AngelWingsYT
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4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Cat: on a scale of: laugh it off to kick me out.....how mad would you be if i bite the little demon spawn?

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Roxy222uk
Community Member
4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Let's be real for a moment. Cat facial expressions do not need to share the same emotions that we do, so we are misreading this one. If the cat did not want to do this it wouldn't. It would leave.

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#29

Humorous-Light-Science-Memes

Alanna Marie Fresquez-Apodaca Report

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Bookworm
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4 months ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

In all seriousness, the regenerating teeth would be awesome but wouldn't be feasible, because permanent, non-replacing teeth were actually one of the great innovations in the evolution of mammals. If your teeth are always falling out and growing back, you never run out, but you also can't develop feeding strategies that rely on your teeth meeting up in a certain way, a.k.a chewing. Permanent teeth allowed the first mammals to start specializing teeth to do different jobs; if their teeth were all in different stages of development, it wouldn't work, because once you get beyond simple plant-tearing pegs or sharp points, your teeth have to make contact with each other the same way all the time to be useable. ('The Rise And Reign Of The Mammals' is a fascinating book if you have any interest in evolutionary history.) Edit: book title

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#31

Humorous-Light-Science-Memes

Christine Nicole Bagley Report

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Bec
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4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Unlike most Internet trolls, most scientists are open to new ideas and possibilities

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#39

Humorous-Light-Science-Memes

S Dharma Teg Report

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Crybabyartist
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4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Dont go sticking your hands in those pockets, there is no loose change and if you touch me afterwards I'm gonna puke on your shirt... mucus is gross!! ITS A MUCUS pocket!! worse than a sweaty pocket!!

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#41

Humorous-Light-Science-Memes

Diane Ohlzen Report

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Fat Harry
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4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Entirely numeric passwords are a terrible idea because they're so easily brute-forced.

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#42

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S Dharma Teg Report

#44

Humorous-Light-Science-Memes

Gowtham Prithvi Report

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Jack Burton
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4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That is actually a great answer but sadly they will tell you back how Youtube is free for people and not edited by pedo socialist satanists like the washington post

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#50

Humorous-Light-Science-Memes

S Dharma Teg Report

Note: this post originally had 70 images. It’s been shortened to the top 50 images based on user votes.