Thinking out loud
Oct. 12th, 2004 12:42 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
morslaI guess this journal is really a place where everything is a form of "thinking out loud." I'd like to get a few things straight in my own mind though, so I might as well put them here.
Firstly, thanks to everyone who descended on my house bearing alcohol last night, on only a couple of hours notice. You guys rock :) I lost count of how many people I ended up cooking for, but I'm still pretty confident that we could have accomodated another dozen - I only had to open one of the reserve packets of hokkien noodles...
Various discussions (in the uni, at home, on![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
mousebane and barrington's journals, etc) have got me thinking about what exactly I'm trying to do with my life. I know where I want to go, and I think I'm heading the right direction to get there one day... but there are so many different paths. I'd like one that doesn't take forever to reach the end, but I need a good dose of meandering to enjoy the scenery as I go.
See, I still find science fascinating. I don't just want to "do" science, though - I want to learn about science, of all types. Maybe I'm fooling myself, but I think there's a niche in the middle of it all, and it's never going to fade completely. That's the thing I've been labelling "science communications," although I don't know if my mental image is shared by all the people who advertise jobs in the area...
Contrary to popular belief, scientists do communicate. In fact, in recent years there have been some incredibly eloquent scientists from plenty of different disciplines - so the problem isn't that the researchers are inept. Yet, there's a whole world of fascinating stuff out there that most people will never see the importance of, and that's a crying shame. But it's not just a problem with the education system, either - while we could teach things far better than we do now, it's ludicrous to expect a basic education to let people understand all the world's knowledge.
So, the problem doesn't seem to rest in either camp. Jargon's a barrier; understanding the concepts underpinning the useful stuff is another. No matter how well individual scientists can share their work, you can't expect everyone to do that - how many researchers realise even half of the words they internalised years ago?
That spot in the middle is where I want to go. I want to know enough to approach the researchers, and find out what they're excited about - to see the relevance of it, and find out how they do their work. I want to be able to communicate that spark with the people who haven't spent decades studying in that field - showing other people what the excitement is all about. The job location might change; the subject matter certainly will. But there will always be fascinating things being done out there, and people who ought to be fascinated by them.
It's been a long walk so far, but the journey is half the fun. I've studied majors in chemistry and geology; history, philosophy and sociology of science; media and communications. I've worked with toxicologists and electrochemists, botanists and geologists; written for magazines and research workgroups. I still don't have a piece of paper that calls me a "science communicator," but I'm damned if I'll let that stop me.
All these years, and I think I'm almost at the beginning. I wonder where I can go from here?
Firstly, thanks to everyone who descended on my house bearing alcohol last night, on only a couple of hours notice. You guys rock :) I lost count of how many people I ended up cooking for, but I'm still pretty confident that we could have accomodated another dozen - I only had to open one of the reserve packets of hokkien noodles...
Various discussions (in the uni, at home, on
mousebane and barrington's journals, etc) have got me thinking about what exactly I'm trying to do with my life. I know where I want to go, and I think I'm heading the right direction to get there one day... but there are so many different paths. I'd like one that doesn't take forever to reach the end, but I need a good dose of meandering to enjoy the scenery as I go.See, I still find science fascinating. I don't just want to "do" science, though - I want to learn about science, of all types. Maybe I'm fooling myself, but I think there's a niche in the middle of it all, and it's never going to fade completely. That's the thing I've been labelling "science communications," although I don't know if my mental image is shared by all the people who advertise jobs in the area...
Contrary to popular belief, scientists do communicate. In fact, in recent years there have been some incredibly eloquent scientists from plenty of different disciplines - so the problem isn't that the researchers are inept. Yet, there's a whole world of fascinating stuff out there that most people will never see the importance of, and that's a crying shame. But it's not just a problem with the education system, either - while we could teach things far better than we do now, it's ludicrous to expect a basic education to let people understand all the world's knowledge.
So, the problem doesn't seem to rest in either camp. Jargon's a barrier; understanding the concepts underpinning the useful stuff is another. No matter how well individual scientists can share their work, you can't expect everyone to do that - how many researchers realise even half of the words they internalised years ago?
That spot in the middle is where I want to go. I want to know enough to approach the researchers, and find out what they're excited about - to see the relevance of it, and find out how they do their work. I want to be able to communicate that spark with the people who haven't spent decades studying in that field - showing other people what the excitement is all about. The job location might change; the subject matter certainly will. But there will always be fascinating things being done out there, and people who ought to be fascinated by them.
It's been a long walk so far, but the journey is half the fun. I've studied majors in chemistry and geology; history, philosophy and sociology of science; media and communications. I've worked with toxicologists and electrochemists, botanists and geologists; written for magazines and research workgroups. I still don't have a piece of paper that calls me a "science communicator," but I'm damned if I'll let that stop me.
All these years, and I think I'm almost at the beginning. I wonder where I can go from here?
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2004-10-12 03:05 am (UTC)<<
Gods, I know the problems I have with that and *games* - I'd suck badly if I was a reasercher talking about anything technical.
no subject
Date: 2004-10-12 03:05 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-10-12 04:10 am (UTC)I'm a friend of
The scary part is that I'm not being sarcastic in that whole paragraph.
I'm also adding you to my friends list. I figure that a friend of Simon's is a friend of mine. Hoping you feel the same way, Kashii-Chan
no subject
Date: 2004-10-12 06:17 am (UTC)I was the one putting food in him, while everyone else filled him with drinks :)
Mind you, I think I did make a statement along the lines of "bring drinks and I'll cook dinner" so I'm not entirely blameless...
no subject
Date: 2004-10-12 06:18 am (UTC)Not much point giving up my own arms (text-to-speech software is good, but not that good), so I guess I should look for someone else's instead.
no subject
Date: 2004-10-12 06:21 am (UTC)It's part of the reason (well, that and my obsessive compulsive habits) why I like editing things so much - I'm sure it'll all be good practice for something in the future.
If I get a chance to claim it as a tax deduction, I even intend to buy the Adobe DTP suite - Photoshop and Illustrator are programs I want to learn more about, and I'd like a proper text-layout program.
no subject
Date: 2004-10-12 06:52 am (UTC)Sounds like one of the best goals I've heard in a long time.
no subject
Date: 2004-10-12 07:20 am (UTC)The second was working for the Patent office... a perhaps less glamourous role.
Then ofcourse there is always middle management.
no subject
Date: 2004-10-12 01:08 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-10-14 12:14 am (UTC)And thanks for force-feeding him when no one else was. Drinking on an empty stomach is bad.
Although the fact that you didn't get him drunk that day means that you now have to do it in the future. You owe it to him. ;)