• Question: Hello, I'm asking all the scientists this, but I'd like to know what exactly inspired you to do this job in particular, and how would you say you are different to the others/why should i vote for you? Thank you for your time

    Asked by Amber White to Craig, Flavia, Giuditta, Jack, Sheona on 7 Nov 2015. This question was also asked by Madi, Holly.
    • Photo: Jack Carlyle

      Jack Carlyle answered on 7 Nov 2015:

      I’ve had a fascination with space my whole life – the night sky is so beautiful, and some of the things which are out there are mind-blowing. I always thought the stars were particularly cool, and since the Sun is the closest star to us, I started investigating it more and more. The pictures we can take of the Sun now are just beyond amazing, so I did everything I could to work as a solar physicist – and I’m lucky enough to have made it! I’m not sure what exactly makes me different from other scientists, but I’ve certainly never met another one quite like me. You should vote for me because I’m in it for the beauty, and beauty is truth.

    • Photo: Flavia de Almeida Dias

      Flavia de Almeida Dias answered on 7 Nov 2015:

      Hello!

      I have always been a super curious super hyperactive kid, and to be able to cope with me my mom had to put me to do a ton of extra activities during the time I was not at school (in Brazil, where I was born and grew up, kids used to stay in school only half time). I used to play the piano, draw in charcoal, paint oil in canvas, dance ballet and tap dancing, sing in a choir, play in theatre, swim competitively, and I still had enough energy to be a pain for my parents for keep asking them about everything. So I was also given a lot of books and resources to try to feed my curiosity. A lot of those extra things fascinated me – but nothing fascinated me nearly as when I put my hands on Carl Sagan’s book “Cosmos” and all its tales of the Universe and humanity. I then decided I wanted to be an astronomer, at the age of 10. After that, I kept reading science outreach books and trying to learn all that was within my reach, and I decided I enjoyed nuclear and particle physics more and more. From there on the path was straightforward – I studied physics at University and got a Ph.D in particle physics working at the Large Hadron Collider – where I now work as a Postdoctoral researcher.

      I can clearly say no two scientists are the same – we are all different in our history, background, and quirks. I am a female scientist in a male dominated field (we have about 15% females at CERN); I come from a undeveloped country, in a field where most of the research happens in Europe and the USA; I got my Ph.D at a reasonably young age (25); I don’t drink coffee; I am extremely talkative; I am a crazy cat lady; All of those details can already distinguish me amongst my colleagues (specially the coffee part – trust me!), but in reality, the important part is not winning, but to be able to take part on something cool and share my passion about science!

    • Photo: Craig Bull

      Craig Bull answered on 9 Nov 2015:

      Getting to where I am has been a journey of undergraduate degree (I chose Chemstry because I really enjoyed it at school and was fascinated with the subject). I then went onto a PhD in a completely new field of study which was metal oxides at high temperature (I was lucky enough to study in a Geology department and also the Royal Institution of Great Britain). It was here I met a great Professor who convinced me to do some high presuer work following my PhD and I was hooked – high pressure combines everything I like – chemistry, physics and a bit of engineering. So I was inspired by the enthusiasm around me to work in the field of extreme pressure

    • Photo: Giuditta Perversi

      Giuditta Perversi answered on 9 Nov 2015:

      Hi there!
      When it gets to choosing your undergraduate field of study, my mother always told me to get into what I was good at AND enjoyed the most at the same time. I used to get seriously excited at both Chemistry and Philosophy when I was in high-school, but Chemistry was the one who lingered the most, so that’s what I ended up doing.
      Of course, with a Chemistry degree, it is not mandatory to get into research and PhD and stuff, but while I was working on my thesis project for the Master Degree I really thought “this is nice, it’s hard trying to create something that was never really done before, but it’s nice for the same reason, I want to keep going” and that’s what I did.
      In my path I met a lot of really interesting personalities and charming researchers, it obviously helped to create the idea in my mind of “I want to be THIS type of scientist”.

      I don’t know the other scientists well enough to say “they are like this, I am different because I am like this”, but I surely know myself well enough to say that I pour all I’ve got and put a lot of effort in every task I concentrate on, and I don’t do stuff half-mindedly: it’s either make it or break it and it doesn’t matter how hard it is.
      If this is the kind of attitude you like, and especially if you enjoy reading my answers to questions and my approach to science, I would be more than happy for you to vote for me! I would most certainly like to keep part to this event as long as possible, I absolutely LOVE public engagement and I think this format is brilliant!

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