• Question: i find it hard to get inspired to do science, what inspired you?

    Asked by bigpackage to Fiona, Jane, Joanna, Michelle, William on 20 Jun 2010 in Categories: .
    • Photo: Michelle Murphy

      Michelle Murphy answered on 18 Jun 2010:

      People have different talents and interests if you like maths or history and not science that is not a bad thing. I think the interesting thing about science is that you can find it everywhere. Libraries use science techniques like freeze drying books if they get damp, sports people are very aware of nutrition and physics (helps with speed and force needed to get a ball or javelin to go where you want it to). Supermarket club cards use science to work out what type of people buy certain foods for example old people might go shopping in the mornings and buy cocoa so supermarkets might advertise cocoa in the mornings as a reminder before they go to the shops. Councils use science to monitor water flow in sewers and pollution levels. Then there are pharmacies, engineers (builders, car/plane/train designers), cleaners (think of all the chemicals they use), Nasa (study of space), our weather reporters and lots more. I am interested in how the body works but there are lots of interesting areas in science.

    • Photo: Joanna Brooks

      Joanna Brooks answered on 18 Jun 2010:

      Hello! Yes I can understand that because when I was in school I really didn’t like science. I think it had a lot to do with the fact that I didn’t really like my science teachers! When I left school and went to university I became far more interested because I could learn about science in the way that I wanted to and not in the way someone else told me to. I think I inspired myself by thinking about all the things that I would like to discover – like telepathy!

      These days we have so many exciting new topics like ‘optogenetics’ that uses lasers (light) to turn cells in the brain on and off! Have a look online – it’s really amazing.

    • Photo: William Davies

      William Davies answered on 18 Jun 2010:

      Interesting name! science at school is very different from science in real life – i get inspired by trying to come up with some interesting questions, trying to devise experiments to try and answer those questions, and then discovering something that no-one else in the world knows. I also like the money and fame (at least amongst scientists!) that making big discoveries brings!

    • Photo: Jane Henry

      Jane Henry answered on 18 Jun 2010:

      I can understand that. i think I am a natural scientist but I remember putting more work into science and chemistry exams when I was 16 than all the rest. It was partly because the way it was taught then you had to learn lots of chemicals and experiment results whereas I’d have liked to learn in a way that enabled me to discover aspects of science I was interested in and see the bigger picture of how things link up. I presume science is now taught in a more interesting way. How well you get on with an individual teacher can also make a lot of difference. I was always interested in ideas and how things work and asking why. Some people prefer arts though.

    • Photo: Fiona Randall

      Fiona Randall answered on 20 Jun 2010:

      Hi, I sometimes found science at school a bit tough. It just always felt like we had to learn loads of facts and not really put them to use. But when you get away from school and start doing real experiments to answer questions noone knows the answer too yet it becomes really exciting. Also, my Gran has Alzheimer’s and seeing the upset that caused to her and my family made me inspired to work on the brain. But all areas of science are cool. My friend did Physics with music and now he has the best job in the world… he gets backstage at concerts to tell them how loud they can play the music-LUCKY HIM!!

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