Question: how did you think you wanted to be a scientist

Carl Peter Robinson answered on 17 Jan 2024:

I’ve always enjoyed being curious about the world and how things work, or how they came to be in their current state. I think that curiosity, fuelled by the cool documentaries I used to watch, hosted by people like Brian Cox, Jim Al-Khalili, Helen Czerski, Marcus du Sautoy, and Alice Roberts, on BBC2, BBC4, and Discovery Channel, developed a passion in me to prove to myself, and others, that I could become a scientist of some description. I remember back when I was working in software development, someone I knew once said during an online debate a few friends and I were having about science, “Get back in your box, Carl. You’re a software engineer, you’re not a scientist.” That annoyed me at first, but later, as I took some time to process those words and think about what they meant, and why they affected me, I concluded the following very important points:
1. In terms of work and jobs, I don’t think anyone should ever have to spend their lives doing one specific thing (unless they love what they’re doing), especially if they become passionate about doing something else or they feel what they are currently doing isn’t making them happy.
2. I wasn’t happy in my current job any more and I really wanted to make a go of a career in data science, machine learning, or robotics.
3. No-one should be allowed to label you in such a way that it puts you down or prevents you from changing that label. Just because someone says you’re not a scientist, it doesn’t mean you can’t become one, as long as you’re willing to put the effort in.

If you want to become a scientist, go for it! Don’t let anyone tell you that you’re not good enough or that you should be doing something else, especially if that something else is not what you want to do or won’t make you happy. If you’ve got the passion for a subject, the hard work getting to where you want will be worth it.