Bridging the Language Gap: Exploring the Divide Between Scientific Discourse and Everyday Language through Word-Cards

This study investigates the semantic friction between colloquial language and chemical discourse, exploring how technical terminology functions as a tool for “narrative technocracy.” Focusing on terms such as “law”, “energy”, “resonance,” the paper demonstrates how ostensibly familiar words, when adopted by science, acquire precise, often exclusionary meanings. This process can lead to either a false sense of understanding or an imperative of blind trust for non-expert audiences, thereby stabilizing expert authority. Using a qualitative analysis of a series of “Word-Cards” designed for LinkedIn, the study examines how visual mediation can navigate these interpretative contingencies. The findings suggest that deliberate linguistic reflection in science communication can mitigate semantic misalignments, transforming technical discourse from a barrier of authority into a platform for informed public engagement.