Repost: Independence

At last check the poll over at Young Female Scientist found some 74% (98/133) of postdocs reporting that they have contributed to writing “part of all” of an R01 grant application. Commentary arising from the issue reminds me of the complex interdigitation of intellectual property in the advisor/mentee relationship, particularly when it comes to well-experienced postdocs. Placed in a milieu of increasingly complex scientific enterprise this inevitably leads to musings on academic crediting amongst members of a research team or super-group. This reminded me of some thoughts I originally posted Sept 25, 2007.

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It is a StockCritique of grant review and promotion/tenure review alike.
The concern is related to the tendency we have to assume that the most senior person involved in a research collaboration is the one “really” calling the shots. The one providing the most sophisticated intellectual ideas and creativity. The one in charge. The assumption in the “independence”critique is that the person criticized may not have what it takes to succeed or excel scientifically “on their own” and is thus not worthy of promotion or the stewardship of a major grant award. Is this a valid criterion?

Why Are We Scientists?

Ambivalent Academic has an interesting post up in which she discusses the details of her ambivalent–love/hate–relationship to science. One of the things she loves about science is the “pure pursuit of truth/knowledge/information”:

Science, in it’s purest form, is a way of knowing. There are other ways to approach what we do not understand about life, the universe, whathaveyou. They also have value. But science is somewhat unique in that it precludes a particular background or set of beliefs. It requires only the ability to observe, to ask questions, and to design and conduct tests that determine the answer to those questions within the rules of logic.

While a common stereotype of scientists is of unemotional nerds with clipboards and thick glasses, AA points out that scientists are, by necessity, driven by passion: