1. If you ever encounter a mountain lion, you should try to make yourself look as big as possible (wave around a jacket and such) and make a lot of noise in the hopes of convincing it that you're not easy prey. By contrast, if you run into a gorilla, it would be much better to stay still and whatever you do, avoid eye contact. In both cases, running away is not recommended as then you make yourself something to chase.
What's your reaction to me telling you this random information? I already knew it. I also know how to kill an anaconda if it tries to hunt you. My reaction to knowing this kind of – not random – information is that one needs to know one's enemy/predator/threat in order to best survive in the world. Knowledge is power. The best way to survive is to be ready for anything, be prepared, both with knowledge and physical skill. And in case you wanted to know, I actually have survived encountering a mountain lion. I had an incredible adrenaline rush for the entire day after that incredible encounter.
2. You're on the verge of a truly amazing scientific discovery when a coworker sneaks into your lab at night, copies your research, and makes a big announcement about it the next day. You feel that enough research had not been done and making your findings known was premature, and of course this guy is now claiming credit for your work. What's your reaction? What do you do? Which part of this scenario bothers you most? Have any of you heard of Watson and Crick, who “discovered” the double helix? Rosalind Franklin had that recorded in her lab book before they “discovered” it. The issue of bullshit results or stolen discoveries is one dealt with in the scientific world, one I am always aware of since that is my arena.
Anyway, I would feel completely murderous, but the thing is, nowadays results and findings are regularly recorded with names and dates. Everything is written down in five places and properly accredited. As such, I would not be terribly worried about proving the person as a fraud. That simply is what would happen, hands down. No one pulls that shit on me. No one. It would be the end of that coworker’s career.
Given my surety regarding the final results of this situation, I think the most bothering part is that the results are premature. Premature in science is not like with babies. Premature can lead to false investment and loss of money, it can even lead to death if the discovery is in any way related to health. And it ruins the reputation of science. Now, more than ever, America and other countries need to invest in science, or else we will not survive as a species. We are ruining the earth, and personally, I care about what that does to my people. I do not want that to happen. And even though I would come out unscathed and accredited in this situation, it would damage the situation for science in general – as scandals always do – which would restrict me and hold me back from my goals and the goals of other scientists. In the end, everyone loses in this scenario. And that bothers me.
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2009-04-02 09:55 pm (UTC)What's your reaction to me telling you this random information? I already knew it. I also know how to kill an anaconda if it tries to hunt you. My reaction to knowing this kind of – not random – information is that one needs to know one's enemy/predator/threat in order to best survive in the world. Knowledge is power. The best way to survive is to be ready for anything, be prepared, both with knowledge and physical skill. And in case you wanted to know, I actually have survived encountering a mountain lion. I had an incredible adrenaline rush for the entire day after that incredible encounter.
2. You're on the verge of a truly amazing scientific discovery when a coworker sneaks into your lab at night, copies your research, and makes a big announcement about it the next day. You feel that enough research had not been done and making your findings known was premature, and of course this guy is now claiming credit for your work. What's your reaction? What do you do? Which part of this scenario bothers you most? Have any of you heard of Watson and Crick, who “discovered” the double helix? Rosalind Franklin had that recorded in her lab book before they “discovered” it. The issue of bullshit results or stolen discoveries is one dealt with in the scientific world, one I am always aware of since that is my arena.
Anyway, I would feel completely murderous, but the thing is, nowadays results and findings are regularly recorded with names and dates. Everything is written down in five places and properly accredited. As such, I would not be terribly worried about proving the person as a fraud. That simply is what would happen, hands down. No one pulls that shit on me. No one. It would be the end of that coworker’s career.
Given my surety regarding the final results of this situation, I think the most bothering part is that the results are premature. Premature in science is not like with babies. Premature can lead to false investment and loss of money, it can even lead to death if the discovery is in any way related to health. And it ruins the reputation of science. Now, more than ever, America and other countries need to invest in science, or else we will not survive as a species. We are ruining the earth, and personally, I care about what that does to my people. I do not want that to happen. And even though I would come out unscathed and accredited in this situation, it would damage the situation for science in general – as scandals always do – which would restrict me and hold me back from my goals and the goals of other scientists. In the end, everyone loses in this scenario. And that bothers me.