• Question: how does it feel when you discover something some thing new?

    Asked by me is myself to Kevin, Liz, Beccy, Rosie on 9 Jun 2017. This question was also asked by 847epdj46.
    • Photo: Kevin Pollock

      Kevin Pollock answered on 9 Jun 2017:

      It is a very exciting moment – you feel like you are making a difference but before you get too excited, you have to consider whether the methods you used are appropriate and robust because once you announce the result, people will want to see whether there are weaknesses in your study method. Also, something new is fine but it should be something new that makes a difference to population health (or individual health).

    • Photo: anon

      anon answered on 9 Jun 2017:

      It’s the best professional adrenaline rush.

      Of course, you do come down from the initial rush because before you can tell anyone else about the new thing, you need to step back and challenge yourself. What if I’m wrong? How can I be certain that my explanation is right? What tests would convince sceptics? Not all the new things I thought I “discovered” were right. It’s important to remain as sceptical of your own work (if not more so) then you would be of someone else’s.

    • Photo: Rosie Fok

      Rosie Fok answered on 10 Jun 2017:

      I am a clinician rather than a researcher, so my job doesn’t involve discovering new scientific knowledge. But, sometimes discovering a new fact about a patient is the clue we need to work out the right treatment to give them. Maybe they have travelled to a certain country, or eaten an unusual food, and that is how we work out what their infection might be.

      Science is exciting because it is all about discovering new things.

    • Photo: Rebecca Corkill

      Rebecca Corkill answered on 11 Jun 2017:

      If I have discovered something new that is really beneficial, normally I happy dance around the lab.
      Mainly to my favourite song of all time:

      So it is the best feeling ever!
      (Of course I agree with everyone else that challenging your results are important, but one little dance before getting back to reality does not hurt either :p)

    • Photo: Liz Buckingham-Jeffery

      Liz Buckingham-Jeffery answered on 11 Jun 2017:

      It feels so amazing! 🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉

      Sometimes I feel like I spend a lot of time trying things that don’t work, or ‘discovering’ things that actually someone else has done before and it can get a little bit disheartening. So when something goes well it is a nice feeling!

Comments

  • Photo: Liz

    Liz commented on :

    Beccy: have you seen Guardians of the Galaxy 2?? The opening scene (with your favourite song) is so good, I watched it last night and the song has been in my head all day today!

    I ♥️️ Baby Groot 😆