• Question: What is the best part of your job? Why did you decide to do it in the first place?

    Asked by klarasayshi to Clare, Mariana, Pedro, Robert, Susanne on 9 Nov 2012. This question was also asked by jesssica14, anna13, jammydodger, bethany10, jordonsid, 12leipea.
    • Photo: Robert Insall

      Robert Insall answered on 9 Nov 2012:

      Hello Klara

      Easy peasy

      I like it when someone gets a result that makes us understand something we didn’t understand before. And if we didn’t understand it before, nobody else did, did they? So we’ve just discovered something that nobody else in the world knows, and nobody knew at all a week ago.

      (this happened last week – Tuesday, in fact – much dancing in the lab)

      I also like it when students graduate with PhD’s. They come in all nervous and naive and ignorant and they leave as clued-up scientists and it’s very satisfying.

    • Photo: Susanne Muekusch

      Susanne Muekusch answered on 11 Nov 2012:

      I think the best part is to discover previously unknown things- it is really thrilling when you suddenly understand (or you think you do) what was puzzling you for quite some time. Trying to figure out what the results of different experiments mean and how they fit together can be a real brainteaser.

      Sometimes I can’t figure out what it means, but sometimes I can and that is great!

      I also enjoy to play around with ideas and perform experiments trying to get something to work.
      Why did I do it in the first place: Because I am curious. I want to know how things work.

    • Photo: Clare Taylor

      Clare Taylor answered on 13 Nov 2012:

      There are two really good parts to my job – one is seeing students challenge themselves and do well, and it is always a nice feeling to go to graduation and see how much the achievement of getting a degree or a PhD means to them. The other part is getting great results in our research! Even little experiments mean a lot to us because when they all come together, the end result is usually some new knowledge that we didn’t have before. Being part of that is something really special! The reason I do it, is because it just feels like the right thing for me to do! I like to think that I’m pretty good at doing it, and I’m lucky to have a job that gives me such satisfaction!

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