Your favorite science

[ygolo]

Which one is it?

Why are you fascinated by it?

Would you consider pursuing it as a career?

 

[cascadeco]

My favorite science is Biology; specifically Ecology. I did get a degree in it, but switched into it halfway through my sophomore year so I only had time to get the bare minimum needed to graduate with the degree, and wasn't able to take all the 300 level courses I would have enjoyed.

I am fascinated by it because I love and treasure the world around me and its complexity, and I want to save it, but know it's beyond my ability.

My 'problem' with loving the sciences was that I DO love the material and theory of it, so I wanted a degree in it (and couldn't think of anything I'd rather major in); however, I HATE controlled experiments and labwork. Hate them; so boring. So I'd make a horrible scientist, even though I enjoy the subject matter. It's why I didn't pursue a masters in it, and one of the reasons why I didn't actively seek jobs in the field. I didn't want to spend my life collecting soil samples, or monitoring field sites, to create reports that are ultimately ignored by the administration or other entities. Oops...pessimism just escaped out of me. I also think I have too much of an emotional investment in ecological stuff -- career-wise, I know it would cause me a lot of pain to watch/document/report about the stuff that I care so much about.

Also, the reality of the job market in the field - lots of people wanting the jobs, few jobs for the picking - was something I ultimately didn't want to tackle.

 

[Athenian200]

Which one is it?

Why are you fascinated by it?

Would you consider pursuing it as a career?

Right now? It would be Psychology.

I'm interested because I'm fascinated by people's behavior, and I want to understand the things that make people behave the way they do, and what can be done to teach them to behave in ways that are more beneficial/less destructive to themselves and those around them.

I'm thinking about doing so, actually.

 

[Vortex]

Economy. It's more of a love-hate relationship though. I studied economy for a few years, but around here you have to be pretty good at math to get a decent degree. I suck at math. But I enjoy reading some theory, provided there isn't too much calculus or some pesky integrals in it.

Oh, and it fascinates because you can learn so much about behaviour and because you can stuff practically anything into an economic model. It's interesting to scale down the world and even out all the bumps. I'd probably really, really love mathematics if I was any good at it.

 

[FDG]

I'm an economics major but I find economics not to be exact enough, there is a lot of indeterminacy and experiments are not repeatable. Except this, it's very interesting. I especially like it when it's built upon axiomatic-mathematical systems where everything can be deduced from a few premises. This way the testing can occur on multiple steps and deductions can be double-checked with empirical evidence.

My favorite has always been physics but for various reasons I didn't pursue a degree in it. If I were able to land in a job that gave me enough time to do so, I would enjoy getting a second degree in physics. It's always been my passion.

Vortex: it's interesting that the reason why you like economics is exactly the reason why I dislike it, and vice versa [basically, the fact that you can incorporate everything into an economics model [even though there are some pretty darn good econometric methods now]] Which branch of economics did you like most? Personally I go crazy for game theory, whereas I don't really like macroeconomics.

 

[Randomnity]

I'm a bio major (my specialization is physiology). Right now my plan is to become a researcher, most likely in the field of medical research.

Biology fascinates me because it's so complex and seemingly random, yet manages to work somehow. I'm enjoying learning about what makes things work.

 

[miss fortune]

hmmm... my first replies would be social sciences, but all of my hard science friends always tell me that those aren't real sciences and such

I actually really like astronomy! I love to go outside and look at stars and I took astronomy for my science credits here! (and as a kid I'd sit in church and stare at astronomy books! )

I'd never make a career out of it because I'm horrible at math- I succeeded in the class because my lab partner was a math major who didn't trust me with numbers!

 

[The Ü™]

Astrophysics. There's so much mystery within it. It's where science fiction is born.

EDIT: And, of course, I enjoy criminology. It's basically an excuse for criminal behavior.

 

[Vortex]

I'm an economics major but I find economics not to be exact enough, there is a lot of indeterminacy and experiments are not repeatable. Except this, it's very interesting. I especially like it when it's built upon axiomatic-mathematical systems where everything can be deduced from a few premises. This way the testing can occur on multiple steps and deductions can be double-checked with empirical evidence.

My favorite has always been physics but for various reasons I didn't pursue a degree in it. If I were able to land in a job that gave me enough time to do so, I would enjoy getting a second degree in physics. It's always been my passion.

Vortex: it's interesting that the reason why you like economics is exactly the reason why I dislike it, and vice versa [basically, the fact that you can incorporate everything into an economics model [even though there are some pretty darn good econometric methods now]] Which branch of economics did you like most? Personally I go crazy for game theory, whereas I don't really like macroeconomics.

I don't really like macroeconomics either, probably because I never really grasped the big picture, but only the endless equations that went on for a few lines I preferred statistics (for the fun of manipulating data and using SAS) and microeconomics (for the theory). I did find game theory interesting, but not really something I loved, I'm not sure why, come to think of it. Btw, to this day I can't think about anything econometric without remembering a hideous 48-hour exam where a) the laptop malfunctioned b) I'd done a day's work (on another comp), saved everything in several places only to discover that the computer only pretended to save it

 

[Forfe]

Physiology, biology and chemistry. I tried thinking about why I like those specifically so much, but I don't really know. I just love finding out how things work and how they're connected. Especially the mechanics of living beings is extremely fascinating, while maths and physics get a bit too intangible for me (past basic college level anyway). I used to like both until a certain point where the effort needed surpassed the satisfaction of solving problems...

Would I pursue a career in either of my 3 choices? Definitely, and I'm doing just that, next semester is my last of pre-med. And if I didn't go for medicine, I would try majoring in bio or chem. Used to study economics & business administration for a couple years but the interest I thought I had in it was fairly superficial. I really can't stand accounting or marketing, though I do like both micro- & macroeconomics (although as Yoram Bauman said - as we all know, microeconomists are people who are wrong about specific things, while macroeconomists are people who are just wrong about things in general).

 

[Zergling]

In terms of theories, figuring out how things work, etc, I have never found a science I didn't like. Currently, what i have seen of Statistical Mechanics is my favorite, it's quite interesting to see some of the ways that people can take probabilities and other information and theories about microscopic systems and work their way up to large scale systems (the associated large scale thermodynamics is also one of the more interesting parts of thermodynamics.)

In terms of lab work, I tend to find chemistry stuff pretty interesting if it works, because I can actually see a lot of the processes occurring right in front of me. for Physics labs the large scale stuff was pretty interesting (Electric circuits, magnets, and such were cool to use.), but smaller scale quantum stuff, and biology type experiments, seem much less interesting because i don't see the stuff occurring right in front of me in a directly measurable way, it has to be inferred.

In degree terms, I am sort of following my interest. In high school, I had seemed to take to chemistry quite well, and in general had an interest in science and technology, so went into a chemical engineering degree. the Statistical Mechanics was stuff I saw in college, after following up on ideas I saw in college related to the major.

 

[FDG]

I don't really like macroeconomics either, probably because I never really grasped the big picture, but only the endless equations that went on for a few lines I preferred statistics (for the fun of manipulating data and using SAS) and microeconomics (for the theory). I did find game theory interesting, but not really something I loved, I'm not sure why, come to think of it. Btw, to this day I can't think about anything econometric without remembering a hideous 48-hour exam where a) the laptop malfunctioned b) I'd done a day's work (on another comp), saved everything in several places only to discover that the computer only pretended to save it

Oh god I understand, probably you had to some empirical verification of a model. It can be very tedious. Anyway, which university in Northern Europe you went to?

 

[quietgirl]

Which one is it?

Why are you fascinated by it?

Would you consider pursuing it as a career?

Physics!

I actually studied Atmospheric Physics in college and I was drawn to it because I enjoyed learning about systems and taking all sorts of clues to form a prediction of what would happen. Completely fascinating to me (and my Ni! haha). As for the more pure Physics, I always enjoyed the theoretical aspect of the science.

I am pursuing it as a career, I suppose. My undergrad is in Physics (concentration in Atmospheric), and though I decided against the research route, I am in the process of getting my teaching licensure for Secondary Education. I think I am going to teach Earth Science over straight Physics because I can use my Atmospheric education.

As for other sciences, as I've taken them ALL in undergrad...

I never cared for Chemistry. It was too exact and detail oriented, which drove me up a damn wall. I am not much of a hands on sort of person, so I never really enjoyed the labs. I did enjoy Environmental Chemistry & Air Chemistry, but I think that's because I applied it to my course of study. I was one class away from a Chemistry minor & I refused to take it because the thought of another Chem class made me want to rip my hair out.

I liked Biology, but had a REALLY hard time memorizing hundreds of genus & species names. Even with my little latin root dictionary thing & trying to figure out the pattern between them all - still couldn't do it well. I did really enjoy Ecology, though. I especially enjoyed the differential equation aspect of Ecology & figuring out what would happen if certain factors were in place. Fascinating stuff. If I had gone the Biology route, I would've done Ecology.

 

[prplchknz]

chemistry

it was the one science that I some what got in highschool.

No.

 

[CzeCze]

1) Is food a science? According to Alton Brown it is!

That's my answer. And I'm sticking to it.

2) Because I like to eat. Yummy food.

3) No, because I lack patience and a basic understanding of physical chemistry (when things boil, how mixing things changes their cooking times, etc.) , which you need to be a good chef.


A more serious answer would've been Primatology, the study of primates! I had a thing for Jane Goodall when I was a wee lass. Actually, I was a burgeoning hippie. I even wrote down 'Primatologist' on my PSAT exam.

I took AP Bio and my Sat II test in Biology (I think) in highschool. I did respectably well on both exams and got college credit for Biology. But, I never studied that, nor any other quantitative subject (NO math, NO science) in college. I'm kinda paying for that now.

Physics and Calculus I also foolishly took in highschool even though I didn't have to. Bad idea.

I like to imagine deep down I am a scientific and/or mathematical genius just waiting to be sparked by the right muse. But in the meantime, I stay away from those subjects.

 

[LucrativeSid]

Most sciences fascinate me, but I'm particularly fond of political science and other social sciences. I also have a great liking for neuroscience and many of its branches.

I wouldn't mind making a career out of it.

 

[Domino]

I love linguistics and etymology.

Words are my #1 love. I can't get enough of them and where they came from, how they arose and formed, how they were originally used, how they're presently used, how *I* can utilize them. They're living and constantly evolving, so finding an old one that has held together for generations is a particular thrill.

I once read about linguistic scientists traveling all over the world to capture and preserve dying languages and it ridiculously excited me. I wish I could work with words as a career.

 

[The Ü™]

Oh, damn, and I'm quite fond of the motion picture arts and sciences. (Note, I did not say Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.)

 

[chippinchunk]

I liked science before I ended up with this years worst teacher ever! She sucks, everyone in my grade agrees. My chemistry class would be so much better without her. The sub taught more than the teacher ever did. It's so sad, why dont these people make her retire!? it's because she only 49 (still pretty young) and looks like she's 90!!!! And she talks like she's a robot. -I'm scared-

 

[FDG]

MMmmm not to ruin the party, but are linguistic, political sciences considered sciences? I have some real problems considering anything that doesn't give the possibility of repeatable and falsifiable experimentation as a science...