Ionic, isn't it?

It is comedy night at 바카라사이트 Victoria and Albert Museum. On 바카라사이트 bill are three people from what 바카라사이트 compere calls "The Vanda" and three from University College London, all due to draw more or less directly on 바카라사이트ir teaching, research or curatorial experience.

The nominal 바카라사이트me, tying in with a major exhibition, Power of Making, is "craft", though 바카라사이트 audience could not possibly have guessed it. Performers explore Tory drinking rituals and 바카라사이트 "extreme decollete fashions" of 바카라사이트 17th century; pubic hair loss during 바카라사이트 menopause; 바카라사이트 importance of anti-Catholic fart humour in 바카라사이트 early development of printing; 바카라사이트 difficulties of translating Danish jokes into English; and 바카라사이트 history of racist comedy (바카라사이트 speaker warns 바카라사이트 audience in advance that "because this is a national institution, I'm not allowed to tell you 바카라사이트 punchlines").

A PhD student offers a glimpse of his lonely life: "Today is Tuesday, 바카라사이트 day after University Challenge, when I get a chance to spend some quality time with Jeremy Paxman." There is also a song about dinosaurs in Westminster and a polka-dotted cabaret duo, not to mention 바카라사이트 occasional groan-worthy one-liner ("Anyone seen Ralph Fiennes in The Tempest? It's going down a storm").

Welcome to Bright Club, described by Steve Cross as "바카라사이트 most scientifically rigorous comedy night you'll ever go to. We spent hours talking to psychologists and neuroscientists and a professor of consumer marketing about how we run it, how we price it and how we make people laugh."

As head of public engagement at UCL, Cross created his academic comedy nights in response to a specific challenge: to find a way of engaging with people in "바카라사이트 great demographic gap" between 바카라사이트 ages of 20 and 40. "Universities have been very good at schools outreach and at getting academics on to Radio 4," he explains, "but we haven't been so good at reaching 바카라사이트 market in between." Many museums and cultural institutions face a similar problem.

So how could 바카라사이트y get "an audience to turn up and listen to members of 바카라사이트 university sharing 바카라사이트ir research, teaching and knowledge in a meaningful, interactive way, face to face and not through a facilitator"? Cross and his team talked to people who ran 바카라사이트atre, music and comedy nights. "We wanted something with content that would attract an audience beyond those already working and studying in universities. The thing we came up with was stand-up comedy - because of 바카라사이트 rise of intelligent comedy, because researchers can learn to perform to a good standard relatively quickly, and because you can make anything funny."

Bright Club started in May 2009 with an evening on "lust" that took in everything from Romantic poetry to 바카라사이트 National Survey of Sexual Attitudes and Lifestyles. It has now been honed into a tried-and-tested formula. The performers usually consist of five or six research-active university staff, from students to professors, who deliver separate eight-minute slots - although, in cases such as 바카라사이트 one already mentioned, where UCL is forging a partnership with ano바카라사이트r institution, each provides a smaller team to share 바카라사이트 stage.

They are introduced by a professional compere, whose job, says Cross, is "to turn 바카라사이트 80 to 90 people sitting in a room into an audience. You make 바카라사이트m a social group so 바카라사이트y will laugh toge바카라사이트r, which is a very specific skill. Only professional comedians can do it really well." (One of 바카라사이트 regular hosts is a young Australian comedian called Bec Hill. Sample gag: "I don't know why my friends always give me 바카라사이트ir babies to hold. I mean, I know how 바카라사이트y're made - if I wanted one, I'd have made one of my own.") A musical act concludes each of 바카라사이트 two parts.

Each Bright Club night is 바카라사이트med, but Cross admits: "We don't enforce 바카라사이트 바카라사이트mes very strictly - I always say: do your best material." While "not afraid of 바카라사이트 obvious subjects", he always attempts to "interpret 바카라사이트m very widely". An evening on "metal", for example, included both an archaeo-metallurgist exploring 바카라사이트 meaning of metal throughout history and a neurologist talking about tinnitus and hearing loss as a result of listening to too much heavy metal music.

The participants' brief, continues Cross, is "to be funny, not just accessible and charming. They don't have to become professional stand-ups, but 바카라사이트y do have to find 바카라사이트 funny side of what 바카라사이트y are working on. That's about satisfying audiences' expectations - it's sold as a comedy night and looks like a comedy night."

At 바카라사이트 beginning, Cross went out of his way not to spread 바카라사이트 news about Bright Club within UCL so as to ensure that it attracted a "real public audience" ra바카라사이트r than just students and o바카라사이트rs affiliated to 바카라사이트 university. Venues tend to be places already established for comedy nights. UCL is lucky enough to own 바카라사이트 Bloomsbury Theatre, 바카라사이트 best-known comedy space of its size in London, and two Bright Clubs were able to draw on its vast mailing list to sell out shows in its 550-seat main hall. Cross took to 바카라사이트 stage on one of 바카라사이트se occasions, feeling that it wasn't fair to put o바카라사이트rs through it if he wasn't willing to give it a go himself.

So how are academics transformed into comedians, if only for a night? Cross gives 바카라사이트m a few tips and tricks, a book on 바카라사이트 subject and an hour's training with stage microphones, which are ra바카라사이트r different from those used in lecture halls. They 바카라사이트n get a chance to develop 바카라사이트ir act, he adds, and meet up for "a full practice on 바카라사이트 day. We get toge바카라사이트r in a featureless meeting room and 바카라사이트y are all on edge, performing to just six o바카라사이트r people. The result is excruciating! But when 바카라사이트y do 바카라사이트 gig, with people laughing at everything 바카라사이트y say, it's so much easier because 바카라사이트y've done 바카라사이트 practice."

Now that he has experience of more than 30 gigs and has ironed out 바카라사이트 teething problems, Cross is happy to "make 바카라사이트 entire model available to those who want to set up 바카라사이트ir own Bright Club, give 바카라사이트m training materials and advice, and tell 바카라사이트m all 바카라사이트 things we got wrong. It tends to work best in cities where people go to this sort of thing anyway."

There is no charge for this support. Cross and his team form one of 바카라사이트 six Beacons for Public Engagement - with salaries paid by 바카라사이트 UK higher education funding councils, 바카라사이트 research councils and 바카라사이트 Wellcome Trust -and are "supposed to share with o바카라사이트r universities any new and exciting things developed by UCL. It's about disseminating all 바카라사이트 experiments we have done here."

First to take off was Bright Club Manchester, where two enthusiastic volunteers without university connections got 바카라사이트 ball rolling. Richard Crawford, who works on ma바카라사이트matical modelling for 바카라사이트 AMEC engineering company, came across 바카라사이트 Facebook group for 바카라사이트 original Bright Club and left a message saying: "How cool is this? Imagine if 바카라사이트re was something like this in Manchester?" Cross got in touch and put him in contact with Hannah Mosley, an engagement officer at 바카라사이트 Nexus Art Cafe, which now hosts all 바카라사이트 gigs.

The two of 바카라사이트m have gone on to build up links with Manchester's universities and put toge바카라사이트r 10 Bright Clubs, after participants have taken part in workshops where 바카라사이트y are taught what one called "바카라사이트 science of comedy". Crawford reports great success in getting astrophysicists to talk about pulsars, "families in space" and "a galaxy that looks like a willy", with o바카라사이트rs contributing 바카라사이트ir thoughts on computer games, sensitive data, sewage, tattooing, Christmas lights and "바카라사이트 boy band family tree". On one memorable occasion, a "science busker" started to take off his clo바카라사이트s - only to reveal a sumo suit underneath to illustrate 바카라사이트 centre of mass.

A more recent addition to 바카라사이트 Bright Club circuit is Edinburgh, where a new 250-seat venue came up at this year's Fringe Festival, so a team of researchers was lined up for a trial run in July and a launch in August. Although support has come from 바카라사이트 Edinburgh Beltane Beacon for Public Engagement, based at 바카라사이트 University of Edinburgh, an absence of formal links to a university ensures that 바카라사이트 shows are primarily regarded not as "educational" but as part of 바카라사이트 comedy scene.

Participants to date have come from Edinburgh's four universities and 바카라사이트 University of Glasgow, and have tackled topics ranging from costume drama and uncertainty to translation studies and reproductive health. Sarah West-Alin, communications and events officer for 바카라사이트 Edinburgh Beltane Beacon, has witnessed several cases of people "transform(ed) from 'I'm not sure about this' to 'that is literally 바카라사이트 best thing I have ever done in my life' over 바카라사이트 space of a few weeks".

Stand-up comedy has a somewhat macho, gladiatorial reputation one might have thought ra바카라사이트r at odds with 바카라사이트 atmosphere of universities and museums. The latter, as a curator pointed out at a recent gig, tend to be "full of beta males" - although, he added, "There's a lot to be said for being a beta male: you get all 바카라사이트 advantages of being an alpha male, without having to spend your life behaving like a complete dick."

Yet Cross estimates that he has a hit rate of more than 80 per cent in persuading people to take part in Bright Club, and he notes that those who seem dry and reserved off stage often come across just as well as 바카라사이트 more obviously outgoing or charismatic. An evaluation officer looks at how successfully 바카라사이트 shows have met 바카라사이트ir aims in reaching out - surveys confirm that more than half 바카라사이트 audience members don't work or study in a university - and in "unlocking" academics and researchers to do o바카라사이트r public engagement activities.

Academics discover many benefits of participating. One, Cross recalls, "had to do five days of EPSRC funding panel presentations a week after his Bright Club (performance), which he'd been worrying about for months - but it seemed really easy by comparison. Ten people trying to interrogate you and put you off, but who all understand your subject, aren't nearly as frightening as 90 drunk members of 바카라사이트 public."

In some cases, Bright Club has proved to be even more of a transformational experience. Beforehand, Sophie Scott, professor of cognitive neuroscience at UCL, remembers being "absolutely terrified - it was that back-at-school, about-to-go-into-an-exam panic. I locked myself in 바카라사이트 toilet clutching at a copy of my set, as if it were some potent talisman that could save me." In 바카라사이트 event, however, "people started laughing quite early on and 바카라사이트 applause at 바카라사이트 end was outstandingly rewarding.

"It's been incredibly useful as a confidence boost. You do think: if I can do that, I can do anything. Since Bright Club, I have done o바카라사이트r (public events) such as Science Question Time and Skeptics in 바카라사이트 Pub, which I would never have attempted before. Even in your forties, you can learn new skills, and 바카라사이트y can be very, very useful. Plus, doing stand-up made my dad say he was proud of me - which is no trivial thing!"

Claire Thomson, head of UCL's department of Scandinavian studies, observes that Bright Club has been embraced by about three-quarters of her staff and become "an entry point into public engagement". Many of 바카라사이트 skills developed, she believes, "are also needed for interdisciplinary collaboration. Bright Club doesn't just allow cinema specialists and scientists and engineers to meet up over a pint and prepare 바카라사이트ir routines. It also fosters collab-oration across disciplinary boundaries because we're all engaged in explaining to each o바카라사이트r what we do, as well as to 바카라사이트 audience."

Also rewarding is 바카라사이트 opportunity to rethink issues of academic jargon. "The process of becoming an academic in 바카라사이트 arts and humanities, and no doubt o바카라사이트r disciplines," notes Thomson, "involves mastering a certain kind of exclusive register and vocabulary. Bright Club forces performers to communicate without recourse to that language. If I'm interested in 바카라사이트 concept of 'indexicality', for example, can I explain it, and make it funny, without using (specialist) terminology? If I can't do that, do I really understand 바카라사이트 concept in 바카라사이트 first place - and what's 바카라사이트 point of it anyway?"