In his doctoral thesis completed at the Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry, University of Helsinki, Roukka studied oral chemesthesis, in other words, chemically induced tactile sensation in the mouth, such as the burning effect of capsaicin in chilli and the cooling effect of menthol as well as other food-related behaviours. The sensations of burning chilli and cool menthol have now been played out on the dance floor, or rather, in the Viikki Campus sensory laboratory, which served as the setting of the winning dance video.
The contest jury especially applauded the appeal of the performance and the way science was brought close to the spectator. Besides being the overall winner of the contest, Roukka took home the chemistry category prize.
“At first I couldn’t believe I won. After all – to quote the Eurovision contestant Käärijä – It’s crazy, it’s party! I’m happy to have been able to communicate science in a creative way and to do justice to the talents of our team. I wish to thank all my friends, the University of Helsinki, the Doctoral School and the Senses and Food team for making all this possible!” says Roukka happily.
A long-time dream come true for a fan of the Eurovision song contest
Roukka began dreaming about entering the Dance Your Ph.D. Contest towards the final stages of his thesis.
“When I heard about the contest for the first time, I immediately thought that it’s a marvellous idea. However, polishing my thesis took up all my energy, so it was only after graduating with my doctorate that I had the opportunity to work on bringing it to life,” he explains.
Roukka succeeded in gathering an enthusiastic group of friends and colleagues: the artistic concept of the video was developed with the entertainer and popular culture expert Sampo Marjomaa, the dancers and developers of the flashy choreography came from the Viikki students’ musical theatre ensemble, the music was composed in collaboration with singer-songwriter Jami Pietilä with the help of artificial intelligence, and fashion designer Teemu Muurimäki was responsible for styling. The video was filmed at the University of Helsinki’s sensory laboratory under the direction of Sampo Marjomaa and assistance of Ilkka Loikkanen, who was responsible for filming and editing.
“It was wonderful to witness how science can bring together such a creative and cheerful gang to work for a common goal. We had fun and experimented with new things – and this comes across in the end result. The local shops ran out of mint and chilli. I’m also sure that the cameras in the corridor recorded some of the scenes for the amusement of the security guards,” Roukka reminisces.
The outcome was a dance video in the spirit of the Eurovision song contest that sweeps the spectator from the context of formal laboratory instruction to unconstrained revelry over chemesthetic perception.
“The theme of my thesis, the burning sensation of capsaicin and the cooling effect of menthol, makes up a fun "Hot Hot Hot" and "Cool Cool Cool” dichotomy around which the dance could be concocted. You can see glimpses of cool disco-style glitter under the white lab coats, and I’m a chilli superhero dressed in a red tailcoat and tear away pants. To my great surprise, the dancers even lifted me up in the air in Kylie Minogue style!” describes Roukka, an avid Eurovision fan.
Diverse science communication enhances the accessibility of science
Sulo Roukka is pleased about the unique opportunity offered by the Dance Your Ph.D. project to share scientific knowledge in a creative manner. He believes that, at its best, science communication can feature multiple formats and art can be used as a medium to make science more accessible.
“This project was a leap into the unknown. After the public defence, it was a rather therapeutic and creative experience, which allowed me to combine science and dance. It also provided an opportunity to enhance the accessibility of my research topic and science in general. Understanding the multi-sensory nature of culinary experiences and individual differences in food-related behaviour is key to developing new and better food products. The fact that research brings joy and evokes curiosity at the same time is great,” concludes Roukka.
Contact information:
Sulo Roukka
p. 0504003805
sulo.roukka@helsinki.fi