• Question: If you weren't to have become a scientist but still liked it, what would you have become that still involved it?

    Asked by tootsiewoo9122 to Hazel, Ellen, Elliot, Rupesh, Thomas on 10 Jun 2016. This question was also asked by megan.
    • Photo: Elliot Jokl

      Elliot Jokl answered on 10 Jun 2016:

      That’s a great question!

      I was actually pretty lucky in that I recently got a chance to do an internship at a charity (Yorkshire Cancer Research). They fund lots of different research projects, and it is important for them to be able to tell members of the public about the work that their scientists are doing. When I was there I spent a lot of time reading about the work that cancer research scientists were doing, and trying to explain that in an easy way for the public to understand.

      It was very challenging, but also quite fun: you get to read about a lot of the interesting science that is happening and learn lots of new things. So I think if I were to leave the lab, I would like that kind of job as you can keep up with the latest scientific developments, and you are also helping research get funded by explaining to the public why that is important.

    • Photo: Thomas Biggans

      Thomas Biggans answered on 11 Jun 2016:

      If I wasn’t a scientist I think I would have been an engineer. Engineers use science to build things from phones to bridges to rockets. They get quite hands on with their equipment and usually know how to fix anything that breaks.

      I work with service engineers that visit regularly to give our scanners a check up. They check vital components for damage or wear and decide if they need replaced or not. Sometimes we have to call them to fix problems which we can solve ourselves.

    • Photo: Hazel Garvie-Cook

      Hazel Garvie-Cook answered on 15 Jun 2016:

      Good question! I did an internship in Science Policy whilst I was doing my Physics degree. People who work in science policy use their scientific knowledge to shape the kind of policies that people have to stick to in their everyday lives. Working in science policy in government means you can tell politicians about important scientific discoveries and important issues for the future. The government will then decide who to give money to and how much money to give, based on the information they’ve been given.

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