tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2899165782864226363.post3809656496308746455..comments2023-04-10T09:48:11.568-04:00Comments on The Junction Potential: The Messy Phase of a Scientific ProblemNat Blairhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12684196915592792806noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2899165782864226363.post-26518111851131145212008-06-25T12:57:00.000-04:002008-06-25T12:57:00.000-04:00As I tried to convey in my post (though with uncer...As I tried to convey in my post (though with uncertain success) I do agree with the underlying message you were getting at. Especially with regards to the creativity aspect. I think I was reacting to the dismissal of the literature (especially with regards to the "messy" phase) which I likely applied more weight to than you probably intended. I honestly think that the messy phase is a natural and indeed necessary stage of the evolution of a piece of scientific knowledge (hmm, I feel another blog post coming...). <BR/><BR/>I hadn't really thought about the likelihood that excessive engagement with literature might be an impediment to creativity, but that's a great point, and I agree with you that it certainly could for some people. It occurs to me that not only is this the case with what's actually in the literature, but what's not out there. I can think of many times when early grad students have pooh-poohed their own experimental idea, because it seemed so obvious that it must have been tried, and that its absence in the literature meant it failed. That's clearly the wrong tack to take. You gotta do your own experiment, trust your own hands, and see what happens. <BR/><BR/>Overall, creativity, and how is relates to being a scientist is really pretty fascinating subject. In some respects I see some interesting parallels between the process of science and the process of creating art. That's a subject on the list of things to blog about. Maybe I'll kick it up the line.Nat Blairhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12684196915592792806noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2899165782864226363.post-70078527231013125852008-06-25T09:55:00.000-04:002008-06-25T09:55:00.000-04:00Like all generalities, this one has some glaring w...Like all generalities, this one has some glaring weaknesses and you point out many of them. I think that the point should be not to sacrifice experiment for reading. I, for one, live in fear of talking myself out of creativity so I have created rules for myself to help me avoid this situation.<BR/><BR/>You're dictum is, of course, the standard of our profession. In the end, nothing else matters.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com