A zine (promounced ‘zeen’, derived from magazine, or fanzine) is a short-run non-commercial niche original publication, usually produced in a physical way cheaply and easily through photocopying or other DIY techniques.

Often, zines are a way for isolated people or groups to share common ideas or interests in an ‘underground’ way. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zine has much more on the history of the zine. 

Our ‘zine workbook’ is a take-away for laundromat participants, documenting the process and inviting them to record their wash. The catalyst for adopting the term ‘zine’ in this project was inspired by Dr Emily Dawson, who worked with an illustrator, Sophie Wang, to produce a summary version of her book Equity, exclusion and everyday science learning. 

Dawson said:

I am not into the idea that a book about access, equity and exclusion/inclusion costs so much money, so wanted to make sure there was something I could share for free. I am also very aware that not everyone can or wants to read an academic monograph 

Emily Dawson on her website here

This really chimed with what we were trying to do with the scicomm laundromat. To make a kind of accessible, free, physical aide-mémoire for people going through the workshop, and to allow them to scribble on something analogue of their own (alongside a ‘washing machine’, if they were working as a group in-person) as they do the physical, tangible exercises perhaps as a group.

Perhaps zine isn’t technically the right term, but the lo-fi ethos is there, and it stuck!