• Question: have you ever disliked science

    Asked by randy orten (out of no where) to Rebecca, Francesca, Laura, Matthew, Andrew on 7 Nov 2014. This question was also asked by Aye_its_bethanyyy, Lucymay12, Ray Ray.
    • Photo: Rebecca Ingle

      Rebecca Ingle answered on 7 Nov 2014:

      Research can be quite tough when you’re trying to experiments time and time again when nothing is working. When you’re trying new work, you never really know whether it is going to work until it is done! Sometimes when equipment breaks you can be waiting months for companies to send out replacements which can be really frustrating as well.

      However, I think the science itself is still really exciting, particularly when you’re talking to other scientists about new and novel work. It’s impossible to get bored with the sheer amount of awesome new work going on around the world and as I do a variety of different experiments, when one thing breaks, I just tend to do something else for a while.

      It’s incredible when you finally solve a problem, see something new or have some new ideas and for me, that far outweighs the times when it is a little frustrating so I wouldn’t say I’ve ever really disliked science itself. (Do I sometimes dislike my experiment though? Absolutely!)

    • Photo: Laura Schofield

      Laura Schofield answered on 9 Nov 2014:

      Like Rebecca, sometimes I get a bit fed up with what I do all day, every day but it’s just the same with any job.
      In high school I got very frustrated with our science lessons because we couldn’t do many experiments. I always wanted to try the reactions we were learning about for myself so I’d say that’s the closest I came to actively disliking it. Luckily there are so many more ways for students to experience learning now and so many videos on YouTube, science is getting a much better rep nowadays!

    • Photo: Francesca Palombo

      Francesca Palombo answered on 10 Nov 2014:

      Of course! When I expected a given experimental result and what I found complicates the picture even more, then I really dislike it! Just joking – it is fascinating, but really challenging and often unpredictable

    • Photo: Matthew Camilleri

      Matthew Camilleri answered on 10 Nov 2014:

      Disliking science is a little bit too much, but there were times where I was asking myself why I was doing science. Last year I was doing a project that had great potential if it worked, but unfortunately I spent 7 months on the project without a single reaction working. It was frustrating, but it still was not enough to make me dislike science.

    • Photo: Andrew McKinley

      Andrew McKinley answered on 10 Nov 2014:

      I’ve often cursed the results I achieve (or rather; the results I have failed to achieve!). but it is a reality that stuff doesn’t always work, and research truly does reward patience.

      “Science”, or “The Scientific Method” however is how we make sure that we get consistent and reliable results – if things aren’t working, if you are not achieving reliable results, then what you are doing is not ‘good science’. It is this that ensures that the ‘good science’ we do manage to do is what is shared and enhances the overall knowlege of humanity.

      When something does work, when something can be shown repeatedly under a range of conditions, now *that* is truly wonderful and exciting to be a part of!

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