• Question: Do You Like Being A Scientist And Why?

    Asked by moo2 to James, Marcus, Martin, Rob, Suzanne on 13 Mar 2012. This question was also asked by shehab197912, lulu123, rania, isshaaq123, gbarrowcliffe, sophie2000, hassnan.
    • Photo: Robert Thompson

      Robert Thompson answered on 9 Mar 2012:

      Being a scientist is like any job, there are bits you hate (I have a lot of paper work and writing up), and there are bits I love. I get to spend most days playing with lasers and seeing things that no one has ever seen before. I also get an insight into the future, because science innovations now are shaping the tech and gadgets we will have in a few years time.

      Do I enjoy being a scientist ? Well I think there are a lot more good bits than bad. So yes I enjoy being a scientist.

    • Photo: Suzanne McEndoo

      Suzanne McEndoo answered on 9 Mar 2012:

      I do. It can be a hard job, we usually work a lot of hours and take our work home with us. It’s also really personal. When you write up your discoveries and a journal rejects it, it can be really disappointing and hard not to take personally. But there are a lot of perks. I get to travel a lot, I get to meet interesting people, I get to decide when and where I work. Plus, technically taking part in I’m a Scientist counts as work, which is great! 🙂

      It’s a great job to have, but you really have to want to do the science work. If you like discovering new things and reading about new technologies, it’s fantastic.

    • Photo: Marcus Gallagher-Jones

      Marcus Gallagher-Jones answered on 10 Mar 2012:

      Yes I do. though It can be tough at times, especially when things aren’t working well (which happens more than I’d like). There have been times I’ve gotten frustrated as I do miss out on some social events due to working late into the night or at weekends. At the end of the day though I’m doing something I’ve always enjoyed. I also get to play around with expensive equipment. My hours are pretty flexible and I get the opportunity to travel all over the world. There aren’t many jobs where you can do that.

    • Photo: Martin Zaltz Austwick

      Martin Zaltz Austwick answered on 12 Mar 2012:

      Yes. It’s really hard but you’re constantly surrounded by people smarter and more interesting than you are! So you never really get bored.

    • Photo: James Boone

      James Boone answered on 13 Mar 2012:

      I love being a scientist because I’ve got to travel all over the place and meet loads of interesting people. There are also loads of really clever people in science, and sometimes when meeting them, I feel really stupid around them!

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