• Question: Did have anyone doubt your work as a scientist?

    Asked by Ally.A to Triona, Simone, Kieran, Julia, Hugh, Emily on 9 Nov 2018.
    • Photo: Triona

      Triona answered on 9 Nov 2018:

      All the time. When you present what you think is happening or what you have discovered, it is natural for people to question it. The bit I love is when I can bring them along, show them the data and the evidence and then they too get it and understand

    • Photo: Hugh Manning

      Hugh Manning answered on 16 Nov 2018:

      Oh yeah quite often, any time you present new results people doubt your work, as a scientist you’re always skeptical and a little bit doubtful until you see all the data and make up your own mind. The data and evidence tells you whats happening, and that’s pure science. If you go to conferences and give a talk, people get a chance to ask you questions, sometimes they doubt your work because you haven’t convinced them with the data you’ve shown. This has happened to me, its uncomfortable sure, but I expected it and I brought some more graphs and data in case the point I was trying to make wasn’t clear.
      Scientists do experiments and get data, but the purpose of this data is to ask better questions, it should not be the end. Sometimes the next set of experiments can cause you to doubt your previous assumptions, and that’s ok, its not personal, the ideas in science change and can often be revised, revision is a victory in science and is precisely what makes it so powerful. Science is a living breathing think and doubt is good!

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