Jump to content

Blog post: swansont: Have a Little Trouble With Bears, Did Ya?

SFN Blogs
in SFN Blogs

Featured Replies

(You can only go to the "the hard is what makes it great" well only so many times.)

 

Research is Hard

 

Yes, you have to learn lots of math, physics, programming, and many other related things in order to tackle new and interesting research questions in astronomy. The same is true for many fields. But at the end of the day? We are all banging our heads against walls over a minus sign, or a factor of 2, or mixing up log-10 with natural log, or losing track of which star is which. This kind of “stupid mistake†hurdle is what really makes research hard.

 

The sheer volume of little details makes it inevitable that at least one will be wrong the first time through any problem, whether theoretical or experimental.

 

Also note the whole "we first tested this on data where we know the answer" bit. Good protocol.
Read and comment on the full post

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.

Configure browser push notifications
Chrome (Android)
  1. Tap the lock icon next to the address bar.
  2. Tap Permissions → Notifications.
  3. Adjust your preference.
Chrome (Desktop)
  1. Click the padlock icon in the address bar.
  2. Select Site settings.
  3. Find Notifications and adjust your preference.