• Question: why do you like science

    Asked by fisheyes to Robert, Angela, Sarah, Ian, Claire on 8 Nov 2014. This question was also asked by scottyboy, AdamGreen21.
    • Photo: Angela Stokes

      Angela Stokes answered on 8 Nov 2014:

      Well fisheyes, why do I like science?
      I guess I find it exciting. I have a naturally curious mind and I always want to find out a little bit more about everything. I find it stimulating and financially rewarding as well as giving me a sense of personal fulfilment.
      Science is all around us and skills from one discipline are often transferable to another discipline which allows you to change your mind about what you might like to do, so you may do a degree in chemistry but then decide after gaining some experience that you like to write about chemistry, not work in a laboratory, so you change and become a science journalist. It is this flexibility I like – of course, some people find their niche and stay there forever, I have friends who have never left the university they originally attended and are now senior lecturers doing major pieces of research.

      So the things that attract me to science are a thirst for knowledge, personal fulfilment, financial reward and flexibility of career.

      I hope that helps…..so do you like science?

    • Photo: Robert Bowles

      Robert Bowles answered on 10 Nov 2014:

      Good answer Angela.
      I also like the uses and applications of science. Taking it out of the lab and using it in the real world to solve real problems or just make things better or more fun. So many things now we take for granted now are possible because of science.

    • Photo: Ian Cade

      Ian Cade answered on 10 Nov 2014:

      I suppose the short answer is that it allows you to explore the universe. The Chemistry (or Physics, Maths and probably some general aspects of Biology) you can study here on Earth is the same as the Chemistry going on anywhere else in the universe (provided you set up similar conditions).

      So, for example, it is entirely possible to look out across the night sky at a star, observe the particular frequencies of light it emits and just from that determine the elements present (meaning you can say something about how the star was formed and how old it is) and how fast it is moving relative to us. How is this possible? Because the emission spectra of the elements have been recorded here on Earth and the same processes happen in that distant star. In some sense you are able to travel thousands of light years just by looking carefully at something here on Earth.

      The knowledge that may be gained by scientific enquiry is not necessarily more complicated or detailed than any other knowledge, but it does have the virtue of being uniquely true (‘true’ within certain levels of precision!). For a counter example: a successful Lawyer requires a huge knowledge with many nuanced details, certainly no less so than a Chemist (Physicist… etc). However, despite this detail, a knowledge of the Law does not necessarily tell you anything about the world outside the legal system of your particular country, let alone off the surface of the Earth.

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