A reluctant department chair finds great value in a diversity of opinions. More
Edited by Sarah C.P. Williams
Diane K. O'Dowd HHMI PROFESSOR University of California, Irvine
“Keeping both my research and teaching programs in good form is a constant balancing act, so I think I'm best suited for a spot on the gymnastics team.”
“My scientific career has best qualified me for archery—keeping an eye on the target. Or perhaps if team archery were a sport, that would be a better analogy. A large part of a scientific career is training students and postdocs to be better shots than you.”
Gabrielle T. Belz HHMI INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH SCHOLAR The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, Melbourne, Australia
“I would have to say cycling—it's a unique combination of speed, wit, tactics, razor sharp skills, and endurance.”
Paul W. Sternberg HHMI INVESTIGATOR California Institute of Technology
“My first thought is dry land luge, where you lie on your back on a skateboard careening down a mountain road, but I don't think that's an Olympic sport yet. But seriously... I'd say biathlon—a professional scientist has to multitask and be able to change activities in a split second. You have to switch motor tasks—from moving an incubator to precise pipetting under time pressure. And you have to switch mental activities—from obsessing over a calculation to musing about possible connections of maybe-facts.”
