• Question: what do you find the most intiguing about your job

    Asked by laurie to Ollie, Alex, Amy, Andy, Georgia on 17 Jun 2011. This question was also asked by anthayward, leah22.
    • Photo: Amy Reeve

      Amy Reeve answered on 13 Jun 2011:

      Hello

      Our brains are amazing things. They control everything we do from speaking, to remembering things. They make sure we carry on breathing even when we are asleep. All this happens because our brain cells send electrical messages to each other. I have been working in science for 8 years now and this still amazes me and intrigues me!!

    • Photo: Andy MacLeod

      Andy MacLeod answered on 16 Jun 2011:

      The short answer is: everything!

      Hello laurie, and everyone else! Any scientific enquiry starts with something like “that’s odd”, or “I wonder how that works”, or “I don’t know the answer, but I can try to find out” and we work out a way to do just that. Most people go through a phase when they’re young of asking constant questions “why? why? why?”. I think most scientists never grow out of it. 😀

      There’s always something more to be discovered, something new to learn. We’re like an army of curiousity trying to collectively push back the frontiers of human knowledge and understanding. Individually, we’re not all going to make ground-breaking discoveries, but together we’re powerful. I’m glad to be a part of that, even if it’s just a small one.

      “If I have seen further than others, it is because I stand on the shoulders of giants”.

    • Photo: Ollie Russell

      Ollie Russell answered on 17 Jun 2011:

      Hi laurie, leah and anthayward!

      I think the most intriguing thing about my job is that every day I get to do something that is different. I also love that no matter how hard I try I will never know everything about the area I work in, so its really cool going on this journey where I get to know more and more everyday!

    • Photo: Georgia Campbell

      Georgia Campbell answered on 17 Jun 2011:

      The best thing about my job day-to-day is that I always get to try new experiments and learn new things, so it’s always intriguing and never boring!

      The most interesting thing I’ve learnt is that mitochondria – the little organelles in every cell that make almost all of our energy – weren’t originally part of our cells. They used to be free living, single cell organisms – a bit like bacteria. But then, a very very long time ago (before humans even evolved!), they started living in animal cells. They got protection from the outside world, and we got a free source of energy, so it was a win-win situation, and they’ve been part of cells in animals ever since!

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