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A scientific celebrity or celebrity scientist is a scientist who has gained significant public attention, usually through the media. For the general public, scientific celebrities serve to represent science or a field of science, usually in an unofficial capacity. In some instances, such promotion can be self-serving in nature, can be at the behest of governmental or corporate interests or to promote the science involved.
With every new scientific discovery, various people come to be publicly known for their contributions to knowledge, medicine and methods of transportation in the field of this discovery. Although this type of public recognition has become more common in recent times , the phenomenon is centuries old with many examples of scientific celebrities. Media attention to science became more pervasive beginning in the late 1960s and early 1970s as the variety of media outlets increased and media outlets gave greater attention to scientific progress. Scientific celebrities have had a significant role in the popularization of science.
At times, scientific celebrities are also known as public scientists.