• Question: What responsibilities come with being a scientist? How do you cope with some situations?

    Asked by Madi to Craig, Flavia, Giuditta, Jack, Sheona on 9 Nov 2015.
    • Photo: Jack Carlyle

      Jack Carlyle answered on 9 Nov 2015:

      I think the main responsibility of being a scientist is being able to get down to work without anyone telling you what to do. I find it quite difficult to focus without any help sometimes, but I have managed to overcome that by setting myself small, achievable goals, and rewarding myself with an episode of Adventure Time when I achieve them, for example 🙂

    • Photo: Giuditta Perversi

      Giuditta Perversi answered on 10 Nov 2015:

      Probably the most complicated thing is that you need to fit weird time schedules.

      You could spend months with relaxed work, only a couple of things to do, and everything goes with a routine quite smoothly. Then suddenly what was working before is not working anymore, you need to attend this and that event, there are four deadlines of different things approaching, you need to go to this training and do remember that undergraduates need you to teach them this and that! It can be quite overwhelming!

      I am usually a bit strict with myself in those situations, I set up a timetable with personal deadlines for everything that I can fit in the category “spend these two hours on it and get it going” so that I can remain concentrated in what needs more attention and effort and not just “a bit of time”.
      Lots of tea helps as well!

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