• You are currently viewing our forum as a guest, which gives you limited access to view most discussions and access our other features. By joining our free community, you will have access to additional post topics, communicate privately with other members (PM), view blogs, respond to polls, upload content, and access many other special features. Registration is fast, simple and absolutely free, so please join our community today! Just click here to register. You should turn your Ad Blocker off for this site or certain features may not work properly. If you have any problems with the registration process or your account login, please contact us by clicking here.

[NF] NFs in the sciences

TaylorS

Aspie Idealist
Joined
Aug 6, 2007
Messages
365
MBTI Type
INFP
Enneagram
972
Instinctual Variant
so/sp
NFs are obviously common in the social sciences, and NTs almost totally dominate the physical sciences, but NFs do not seem to be uncommon in the life sciences, and I myself am a biology major. I find physics interesting but it's too much math. I find chemistry generally boring except for biochemistry. But Biology I have always loved since I was a kid.

Any other NFs here who are into sciency stuff?
 

cascadeco

New member
Joined
Oct 7, 2007
Messages
9,083
MBTI Type
INFJ
Enneagram
9w1
Instinctual Variant
sp/sx
I am very much into the sciences, and growing up was always into the sciences much more than I was into sociology or anything people-related.

Biology was always a favorite of mine, but in junior high I liked earth science quite a bit, and in high school I was equally interested in chemistry. Physics...not terribly much. In college, I ended up getting a degree in the life sciences (Ecology, ethology, and evolution).

I always loved math growing up, too, and took several math courses in college (as I had started out in engineering). I liked calculus, although my brain ceased to easily grasp it once it hit multiple dimensions...however, I really liked differential equations (I know, I know...I'm weird). For some reason I could handle 2 dimensions plus the factor of time, but I couldn't handle more than 2 dimensions in space.:)
 

Nonsensical

New member
Joined
Aug 2, 2008
Messages
4,006
MBTI Type
ENFP
Enneagram
7
Science is one of my best subjects, next to English. I plan on going into Medical Anthropology. I think it's a false assumption that only NTs can be logical and scientific. NFs have just as much sucess in the sciences, though not as many NFs go into the sciences as NTs.
 

Lauren Ashley

Revelation
Joined
Aug 19, 2008
Messages
3,067
MBTI Type
INFJ
Enneagram
4
Instinctual Variant
sx/sp
I'm also a biology major (molecular and cellular to be specific) and have always loved biology. I have next to no interest in social sciences and would never have taken a course in those areas if I wasn't obligated to, although some were worthwhile. Chemistry is a mixed bag; inorganic and physical chemistry are extremely dull, while organic and biochemistry I find intriguing.
 

sade

New member
Joined
Aug 23, 2008
Messages
761
I'm also a biology major (molecular and cellular to be specific) and have always loved biology. I have next to no interest in social sciences and would never have taken a course in those areas if I wasn't obligated to, although some were worthwhile. Chemistry is a mixed bag; inorganic and physical chemistry are extremely dull, while organic and biochemistry I find intriguing.
+ 1 to all, this is creepy.
I'm the same, except that I hold a small interest in languages and sociology.
 

Kyrielle

New member
Joined
Apr 26, 2007
Messages
1,294
MBTI Type
INFJ
Enneagram
4w5
NFs are obviously common in the social sciences, and NTs almost totally dominate the physical sciences, but NFs do not seem to be uncommon in the life sciences, and I myself am a biology major. I find physics interesting but it's too much math. I find chemistry generally boring except for biochemistry. But Biology I have always loved since I was a kid.

Any other NFs here who are into sciency stuff?

As far as the three fields of science taught in highschools, I prefered them in this order from greatest to least:

Chemistry
Biology
Physics


I like the concepts behind physics, especially advanced fields that deal with the more "gray" areas of the universe. But I am, in actuality, not very good at the math involved behind it.

Biology was only ever okay for me. I think it may have been because my teacher really annoyed me and the classmate who sat next to me was always trying to psychoanalyse me. I like biology on an ecosystem level, rather than say, a cellular level. However, I am quite fascinated by biochemistry.

Which makes sense because ever since I took chemistry, I've loved it. I love studying the way molecules and atoms interact with each other. I love learning about how compounds are made. I love learning about how one substance interacts with another. It's all fascinating to me.

That said, I'm not majoring in any of the sciences, but science will always be a side interest for me.
 

whimsical

New member
Joined
Feb 27, 2009
Messages
351
MBTI Type
infj
Enneagram
4
I hate science. Especially chemistry & physics. Bio is alright but overall I am not a scientific/mathematical person
 

BlackCat

Shaman
Joined
Nov 19, 2008
Messages
7,038
MBTI Type
ESFP
Enneagram
9w8
Instinctual Variant
sx/sp
Chemistry was one of my best subjects and favorite subjects, my teacher was an INFJ. I like science overall.
 

SpottingTrains

New member
Joined
Jan 21, 2009
Messages
444
MBTI Type
ENFJ
Enneagram
3w2
For every science I find that I enjoy the structure but complete detachment from anything emotional puts me at a disadvantage. Over the years I have continuously struggled and slowly developed my Ti to a point where I can be productive but at the cost of draining my soul.

Yes, the italics were necessary!
 

nanook

a scream in a vortex
Joined
Jul 22, 2007
Messages
1,361
me, not so much


school subjects i liked:
  • art
  • ethics (or religion, actually, despite the fact that i was never a believer - to me religion is what history ought to be. a reflecting feeling into the inner evolution of the human condition)

school subjects i did not like

  • social science (argh! anarchy!!! :D )
  • history (like learning dates and stuff)
  • biology
  • anything worse (anything else)

outside of school (and before school, mostly) i used to like archeology

for me archeology is a stage in getting to know the world we live in. psychology, spirituality and integral vision are the logical progression of the very same interest. but archeology is still a great combination of introversion and "adventure". a bit autistic, though. unless you are estp enough to converse happily with Egyptians.

i am actually puzzled that i dropped that archeology dream, without missing it. i guess i am not good with dreams.

i am okay with computers. but i have a depression of that interest.
i am also not fast enough, to base a career on that. and i hate Dilbert (it's fun to laugh at Dilbert...).
 

Lauren Ashley

Revelation
Joined
Aug 19, 2008
Messages
3,067
MBTI Type
INFJ
Enneagram
4
Instinctual Variant
sx/sp
NFs have just as much sucess in the sciences, though not as many NFs go into the sciences as NTs.

Ns in general are more common in the sciences; N dominants in particular. I used to work at a biochem lab which was focused more on chem, and the staff was mainly comprised of INTJs and ENTPs (I think the INTPs were over in physics...). Most of the NFs I know in science are INFJs and ENFPs (less ENFPs, but still more than ENFJ and INFP together). To me, science becomes increasingly less interesting past the molecular level as that is where the "less obvious" lies.
 

Venom

Babylon Candle
Joined
Feb 10, 2008
Messages
2,126
MBTI Type
INTJ
Enneagram
1w9
Instinctual Variant
sp/sx
im betting that Stephan Jay Gould was an F. just based on his writing style all of the analogies he'd use...some of the arguments he'd get into over evolution and reductionists etc...

i think INFJs are probably the most commone NF scientists
 

sculpting

New member
Joined
Jan 28, 2009
Messages
4,148
I did my undergrad in biochemistry and graduate work in biophysics. I spent several years in RnD, then in Technical Training and now I am in Technical Marketing.

I find I can grasp the big picture as well as an NT due to the super Ne and some Te support but I will never be as good at the fine deliniation of details as an NT.

I am actually better at identifying/troubleshooting flaws in a system than even an ENTP, but I cant always determine how to solve the problem, just identify where it is. I am like a bird dog-I "point" so the NTs can come problem solve.

I find I actually serve a really valuable function where I am at, as I understand how most scientists think, which allows me to modify products to meet thier needs more effectively. A pure NT isnt as good at this.

Could just be me though.

My Life science/biology customers at the decision making (PhD level) seem to be about 40% ENTP, 40% INTP, 10% INTJ and 10% other Ns. Notably I have found several INFJs recently.
 

Sentura

Phoenix Incarnate
Joined
Apr 23, 2009
Messages
750
MBTI Type
ENXP
Enneagram
1w9
i had higher level chemistry in high school, which i actually liked. it sort of helped me understand how atoms and molecules worked properly. interestingly enough, i liked unorganic chemistry the best. as far as physics go, quantum mechanics is the only chapters that i find interesting (although I DO NOT FAVOR THE EQUATIONS). mundane physics bore me. biology got me a high grade, but apart from the immune system and neurobiology i had little interest in it.

i'm naturally passionate about languages; i speak 3 fluently as well as 2 of which i can string together a little more than coherent sentences in both speech and writing. i also have a high cognition for semantics, so even if i don't know the specific language, i can usually understand what the semantics of the context is about.

i've since then also learned programming languages and the semantics behind them at my university. object oriented languages are not as mathematical as people outside understanding may think; it's more about coherence and cognition than it ever was about maths - but they are still logic based.

due to the background processes we learned as well, i discovered that there is more psychology in human-computer interaction than meets the eye, and it caught my interest from the beginning. i've since then been looking into mbti, archetype/personalities and their primary skills for my own seperate studies.

i agree with the notice that N dominant are more likely to spend life as scientists. i feel like a scholar myself: i have to research, i have to seek, to find the truth and thus i propel myself and those around me forward in advancements.
 

TaylorS

Aspie Idealist
Joined
Aug 6, 2007
Messages
365
MBTI Type
INFP
Enneagram
972
Instinctual Variant
so/sp
+ 1 to all, this is creepy.
I'm the same, except that I hold a small interest in languages and sociology.

Heh, my big science interests (social sciences included) are biology, geology, astronomy, and lingustics. :)
 

TaylorS

Aspie Idealist
Joined
Aug 6, 2007
Messages
365
MBTI Type
INFP
Enneagram
972
Instinctual Variant
so/sp
For every science I find that I enjoy the structure but complete detachment from anything emotional puts me at a disadvantage. Over the years I have continuously struggled and slowly developed my Ti to a point where I can be productive but at the cost of draining my soul.

Yes, the italics were necessary!

WHAAA??? I find a lot of science things to be very emotional in the sense of wonderful, beautiful, and astonishing.
 

TaylorS

Aspie Idealist
Joined
Aug 6, 2007
Messages
365
MBTI Type
INFP
Enneagram
972
Instinctual Variant
so/sp
but archeology is still a great combination of introversion and "adventure". a bit autistic, though.

Well, I find archeology fascinating and I have Asperger's, so... :D
 

TaylorS

Aspie Idealist
Joined
Aug 6, 2007
Messages
365
MBTI Type
INFP
Enneagram
972
Instinctual Variant
so/sp
im betting that Stephan Jay Gould was an F. just based on his writing style all of the analogies he'd use...some of the arguments he'd get into over evolution and reductionists etc...

i think INFJs are probably the most commone NF scientists


I always thought he was an INTP. But then again us science-minded INFJ males often get mistyped as INTPs, both types have Fe and Ti.

And I've always agreed with his criticisms of reductionism and evolutionary psychology. Hmmm...
 
G

garbage

Guest
I've got a few engineering degrees, and I'm going for one in computer science right now. Specializing in cognitive science, it's a "roundabout" and "accepted" way to get into psychology. After this degree, I plan on pursuing an MBA and perhaps a psychology degree outright. So it seems I'm getting more and more into the "soft" and "social" sciences.

Of the "hard" sciences, I'm most interested in and good at math and physics.. never really cared for the others.

Right now, I work in engineering, business, management, psychology, information technology, education, and computer programming, but my official title is "Research Scientist." Most everyone at my research center is NT (with one or two ST), but then, when I'm doing "actual" work, I come across as NT, too.
 

Southern Kross

Away with the fairies
Joined
Dec 22, 2008
Messages
2,910
MBTI Type
INFP
Enneagram
4w5
Instinctual Variant
so/sp
In my last year of high school my best subjects were Maths and Physics and my worst was English. :D

I think I felt the Arts and Humanities naturally ran through my veins so instead I went on to study them at University. However my fascination for theoretical physics (particularly astrophysics) will never die.
 
Top