［分享］給研究生的忠告

從Nina Fedoroff（美國國務卿的科技顧問）的專訪中節錄一段和大家分享：

...the most compelling reason to be a scientist is that you cannot imagine doing anything else. Don't become a scientist because you think it is an easy way to make a living, or for the fame and glory. It is a tough profession and one has to be very motivated and committed. Being very bright undoubtedly helps, but I have seen people who I didn't think were especially bright do very well, and people who I thought were phenomenally bright crash and burn. For one thing, some people still think that science is something one can do by going off in a corner alone. Science is as much a people activity as any other profession.

以下是我想附加的一點感想：
昨天傍晚去檢視我前天養的菌，結果發現incubator的門沒關好，因此shaker停了，溫度也不對。由於裡面有幾根新放進去的試管，應該是前天修生物物理實驗的學生（除了一位以外，都是我們這個團隊的學生）養的，所以我猜應該是學生回來看生長狀況時忘了把incubator的門關好。

據說Fleming之所以能夠發現盤尼西林，部分原因是他很邋遢，實驗室亂得一蹋糊塗，培養皿沒洗就忙著度假去了，回來的時候才發現裡面有些蹊翹。Fleming雖然邋遢，但可不笨，所以有辦法在追根究柢之後把答案找出來。

Fedoroff說，做科學不能光靠聰明，因此像我們這種不很聰明的人，也還是有希望的。但看看Fleming的例子就知道，邋遢有餘，聰明不足的話，大概就沒指望了。所以呢，不夠聰明的話，還是有希望的，但可就不能太邋遢了，不然要拿什麼跟不聰明但細心的人比拼呢？