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Britain is probably not atyipical in this.
Maybe some people work in research just to pay the bills,
but I think most do it because they love it. They tolerate
low pay, bad management, and uncertain future
employment because they have a passion for knowledge
and understanding. Generally not
even the ego-driven
desire to make a great discovery, get rich, be a famous
scientist, just to find some useful nugget of information
about how some tiny part of the universe works.
At the end of their employment, most perhaps get a
reasonable pension, and are booted onto the retirement
heap, where their greatest subsequent contribution to
humankind is cooing over grandkids and perhaps
encouraging them to study science. Or stacking shelves at
a supermarket.
Most would much rather continue their research, but with
better personal care and without the poor management.
So I propose this: specialist care homes attached to
research facilities, where aged scientists can carry on their
research, keep their minds active, and contribute to
humankind’s scientific knowledge.
They might not have access to the latest cutting-edge
machines, but perhaps last-year’s cast-offs from leading
research would be enough.
Old Scientist
Old_20Scientist
The official journal for the scheme. [8th of 7, Nov 01 2019]
Maybe they could team up with my UniNursity
UniNursity
Awhile ago... [RayfordSteele, Nov 02 2019]
[link]
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Universities already have a thing called "tenure" ... |
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Yes, but that’s only a tiny fraction of the research
community |
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This is a truly excellent idea. I personally know perhaps 10
or 15 world-class scientists (some of them Nobel laureates)
who have not been kept on as emeriti, and who still have
active minds and nimble brains. |
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Cast-off equipment (much of it in perfectly good condition
and reasonably up to date) is abundant, not least because
when a biotech company dies or a lab closes, it often has no
good means of repurposing its equipment. |
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One problem is that science (OK, biology; but doubtless
other fields) requires a fairly hefty consumables spend.
You'd normally budget £1000 per month per person
minimum, but you could do a lot with half that, especially
since older scientists are not wedded to expensive plug-n-
play kits and are quite happy to make their own buffers and
reagent mixes. |
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In the absence of such an institution, I've built and equipped
my own lab (which currently serves my company, but will
become my personal playground as the company expands),
so that I can die with a Gilson in my hand. |
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Actually, this got rather more serious as I wrote it.
Originally it would have been “send retired nuclear
physicists somewhere remote, so they have fun,
don’t kill us all, and might discover something
useful” |
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But it was a long time ago, in another country, and besides the test cohort is dead ... |
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Thanks [MB], that means a lot.
I’ve seen it too, perhaps not with Nobel laureates,
but still... |
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And yes, actually stacking supermarket shelves. |
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I once moved to a notoriously (yes, notoriously) well-educated city and was waiting in line at the supermarket. I said to the cashier in passing, "They say that Ph.Ds bag your groceries here, but I've never met one." The old man bagging my groceries said "I have a Ph.D -- In nuclear physics." |
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[+] for the idea. I want my nuclear physicists many iterations away from being desperate for work. |
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Did you ask the gentleman "Are you happy to be filling grocery bags ?" which is actually the most important thing, shirley ? |
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I agree with the sentiment. Most people in the city theoretically did, which is why they apparently stayed in an overly educated market. He seemed quite happy to announce his background modestly. To be honest, bagging groceries was probably a giant step up, compared to his prior employment. |
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We are familiar with a retired surgeon (admittedly not quite the same as a researcher) who spends a great deal of time teaching youngsters to tie knots and use compasses prior to showing them how to sail small boats. It is apparrently "The most fun he's had in his entire life". |
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[Max] - it would seem odd for such a wound to prove fatal, unless you were
experimenting with neurotoxins or something. |
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I agree - although I have no idea what you're referring to. |
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^ I think it depends on which Gilson [lurch] visualised. |
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In my mind, I was picturing something like an F81018G, with [MB]
attempting to clear laboratory detritus with a flailing left hand whilst trying to
multi-skewer a fleeing small-caliber experimental animal with the precision
tool in his right. |
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//I agree - although I have no idea what you're
referring to// definitely [marked-for-tagline] |
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Ah, now it all makes sense. Sort of. |
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