The Chinese Felid Conservation Alliance focuses on research of North-Chinese leopards in the Taihang Mountains. The nonprofit's posts on social media are drawing an increasing number of followers. [Photo provided to China Daily]

"People tend to believe in their intuitions without thinking. That's why a rumor can spread quickly online but a post to deny it doesn't get as many hits," he added.

Shi said many people use boiled water to rinse bowls and chopsticks at restaurants for sterilization but that actually doesn't completely work.

"The general public prefers practicability and needs an answer, but a problem about science often has no standard answer because there are many factors. You can only get the most reasonable answer based on conditions at a time."

In October 2014, the Institute of Physics under the Chinese Academy of Sciences established an official account on popular instant messaging app WeChat to spread the knowledge of physics. It has 400,000 fans, many between the ages of 20 and 30, and some are middle school students.

"The app account originally targeted only those engaged in physics but gradually extended to all those who love physics. The first group can read the original posts that use technical language. It's the latter group that needs our readable articles," said the institute's assistant director Wei Hongxiang, 40, from the team in charge of the WeChat account.