Hi all! First time posting here but I think my question might fall under speculation as I am asking for scientific opinion based on facts instead of the facts themselves. Please let me know if I should rewrite my question.

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Posted by31 minutes ago

How viable is James Hansen’s study that we are on track for 4C to 5C of warming by 2050?

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Posted by21 hours ago

How do people that have grown at high altitudes feel like at sea level?

It's well known that when people that live at sea level go to higher altitudes they tend to exhaust themselves more easily, feel like breathing is harder, feel sick, etc. But what about the opposite? What if for example, a native of La Paz (Bolivia) who lives at over 3500 m, goes down to sea level? Will he feel extremely energized, or perhaps sick? Do they have far superior stamina at this height (they clearly do when at those altitudes because they are used)?

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Posted by12 hours ago

General Discussion

What are some current research topics in your field that are not mainstream but have the potential to revolutionize the future?

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Posted by12 hours ago

General Discussion

Why is it so important to publish in journals?

I am wondering why it is so important to publish in journals.

With them apparently making huge amounts of money on publicly funded research, with academics sometimes paying to have their paper be evaluated, it feels like a crude system that should have no right of existence with the possibilities of self organized and open source focused communities.

Why isn't there a suitable alternative yet, that makes journals obsolete? What's the unique selling proposition they have that cannot be reached by open source/community initiatives?

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Posted by1 day ago

Continuing Education

I want to make a career-pivot into biology and/or adjacent work after several years in non-profit admin. I have an intense interest in Biology & life sciences, but unfortunately no formal science-education under my belt. What are some realistic expectations/potential paths for somebody like me?

I received an undergraduate degree in Communications from a liberal arts college about 5 years ago. I have had steady work in an international non-profit admin setting, but I am experiencing major burn-out and have been thinking intensely lately about pivoting to a more personally fulfilling line of work in the natural sciences.

Does anybody have any advice for expectations or promising options for a late-comer like me? I have read about the intensity & saturation of the biology field, and basically having to redo my entire education just to compete with an endless stream of younger 4-year bio-majors is daunting to me.

I am looking into Associate (2-year) Degrees, but those seem to function more as springboards into 4 year programs rather than providing much job prospects on their own. I am also looking into various lab-tech certification programs administered by NY State (I live in NYC) which seem like a promising foot-in-the-door for scientific work.

Any advice or information would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

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Here you can ask any question you have about being a scientist, what's new in a field, what's going to happen in a field, or are curious about how we got to this point.

Created Nov 19, 2012

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