How I Knew I Was A Scientist

An Exploration into the Stories of Underrepresented People in STEM

What Makes You Passionate?

Manavi chatterjee:.

The unexpected findings and the breadth of possibilities of exploration makes me passionate.

Rajeev Erramilli:

I love solving problems about the universe that no one has solved before, or otherwise coming up with new understandings of the universe that no one has had before. We’re just specks on a rock floating through the universe, so it’s kind of thrilling to do our best to understand it all.

Juri Miyamae (Earth and Planetary Sciences)

I am passionate about science because it is a way of engaging with Nature.  It is the pursuit of wonder through making close observations and asking questions.  For me, I love animals and other living organisms.  How they got here, the diversity of their bodies, how they carry out their normal daily lives – it always leaves me in awe.  And when you discover you are not the only one to say “wow!” because your colleagues at the latest meeting or some person who lived a century ago had a similar reaction to the same mystery – there is something I find quite beautiful and profound about that.  Science does have its many problematic aspects, but at its best, the experience of doing science and sharing what we learn from it can hopefully generate a greater sense of compassion, connection, and humility in the face of the unknown.

Martha Muñoz (Ecology and Evolutionary Biology)

Like many others in STEM, I can definitely remember being passionate about nature as a child. Among my first memories are those that I spent at the Bronx Zoo, the New York Botanical Gardens, and the American Museum of Natural History. Those experiences were really impactful for me. My passion for science began the first time I mentally flexed my wonderment reflex through these experiences at the museum and in the zoo. There I first felt my wonder and awe for it all.

It’s impossible to stand a few inches tall, for example in the AMNH’s Hall of Biodiversity without being awestruck, and I was naturally curious about it. I think that I’ve just been lucky enough to follow that natural curiosity into STEM.

Rowan Palmer:

I’m passionate about science, and more specifically engineering, because I love the idea of solving problems, working and thinking methodically, being innovative, and pushing the bounds of what we currently know and understand. Engineering is a way of thinking that helps us to better understand our world and to produce solutions that will improve it. I’m most passionate about this intersection of science, technology, math, art, design, and, most importantly, humanity. Engineering is a space where I can listen and learn about others’ stories, and create useful and beautiful technology that works for them. The human-side of engineering – the idea that what I build can be impactful, beautiful, useful, and cool – is what empowers me to keep going. 

Dr. Sreeganga Chandra (Neuroscience):

It [science] is a very creative profession that affords me the opportunity to constantly learn. There is also the discovery aspect of it, I can say “hey I really found something and it all clicked together”. Of course, it is also very frustrating….

Valerie Navarrete (Biology):

It’s so fascinating to think of something and wonder why it happens and be able to prove it. Admittedly my relationship with STEM has definitely changed. When I was first taking classes, it felt like a requirement. I think that the best scientists are the creative ones and when I started to think like that, I started to feel more and more confident.

Chika Ogbejesi (Neuroscience):

I think in science the goal is to get to predictability. I love how solid and consistent it is and how it is a body of knowledge that keeps growing and growing, especially for neuroscience which is one of the few fields that is brand new.

Nazar Chowdhury ( Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology ):

“For me, I think every person has their own place where they feel connected to the subject. I think I really enjoy it, that’s one. But more importantly, it is where I feel I have the most impact. My impact is so big wherever I want to go. I am sure you feel that way when it comes to electrical engineering. Medicine is a field that I found super applicable to just affect a person’s daily life. I think the patient-physician relationship is so cool that you can have so much impact in a limited span and really just change the course of someone’s life. I think that is what medicine and science in general stick out to me, the application.”

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I love science — and here’s why that’s important

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 Calvin Bell (second row, third from right) is shown with fellow students in the Envision National Youth Leadership Forum: Explore STEM program. (Calvin Bell)

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Want to succeed in research? Passion is key!

Featured image

(Editor’s note: This post was originally published on the author’s personal blog, Brain & Beyond .)

Everyone wants to know how to shape a successful career early on. Who better to ask than Nobel Laureates? Their pragmatic advice: passion, inner drive, and luck.

Many people assume graduating with a PhD is difficult, however, the even trickier part awaits the students right after graduation: Where to go next? Several articles have already summarized how one can switch from  academia to industry . Here, I want to outline what you need to consider if you do want to stay in research and what to look out for when choosing the right Post-Doc position.

Let me explain: During my recent tenure as a blogger at the  68 th  Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting  at the end of June in the south of Germany, I was struck by how many of the attending young scientists kept asking the Laureates the same questions: “How did you make it to where you are now? How can I become a successful scientist?” The resounding answer: “I worked very hard and I got incredibly lucky.”

There was even an entire session with Laureates  Harold Varmus and J. Michael Bishop , focusing on whether successful academic careers can be planned – the outcome:  no, they cannot . At least not to the extent the young researchers would hope. Instead, Bishop and Varmus followed their intuition, they were curious about a research question and wanted to find out how something worked. There seems to be no magic formula of ‘publish a big paper here, change labs there, and learn a new technique there.’

Rather, and all attending Laureates stressed this repeatedly, an intense internal drive and passion, and the willingness to take a chance, to fail if necessary, and to start the process all over again are far more important than anything else. In fact, if you look at the early publications of the laureates and sometimes even those articles that describe the findings that would later earn them the Nobel Prize, very few are “big” papers in high-impact journals. What they do have in common: tremendous passion, drive and meticulous research.

Many Post-Doc-advice articles tell you to look out for at least three characteristics when choosing a prospective lab: it should be in another country than your PhD lab was, have different or at least additional techniques, and an excellent publication record. Sure, these are beneficial aspects, but are by far not the main criteria you should look for.

Instead, let’s get back to the intense interest and passion mentioned by the Laureates: Again, two other of this year’s Lindau participants,  Tomas Lindahl  and  Torsten N. Wiesel , also moved to research mostly by chance: both started out at medical school and by pure coincidence and luck “caught” the research bug during a lab-rotation. They were fascinated by a scientific research topic or question to such a degree that they wanted nothing more than to immerse themselves in it and understand it completely.

Naturally, today’s curricula at universities are far more streamlined and anyone interested in research will most likely study e.g. biology or chemistry and go straight to the research lab from there. And all the Laureates, now mostly in their 60s to 80s, or even 90s as is the case of Torsten Wiesel, freely admitted that it is a completely different research and employment world now, than it was 40 to 60 years ago, when they were coming up. One thing remained the same though: You won’t make it without the same intense interest and passion that drove them. If at the end of your graduate studies your research topic causes nothing but annoyance or fatigue (and this doesn’t change after a couple of weeks of vacation), chances are, it’s going to be difficult to stay motivated to keep investigating the same topic for up to 60 hours a week during a Post Doc. Because the truth is: you will have to work very hard as a Post Doc, so you better make sure you’re actually passionate about your research topic. If you’re not interested or invested in it, the workload to stay competitive can soon be overwhelming.

What about a new topic? Certainly, you can always start a new topic, sometimes you might even have to, because funding runs out or the experiments just won’t bring you the coveted results. However, with a new topic come new difficulties: new literature you need to familiarize yourself with, new techniques, new experimental problems, etc. Especially at the beginning of a new project, work load often intensifies, rather than decreases. Hence, switching topics or projects should not be your go-to solution from the outset, rather, use it as a last-resort if everything else fails you.

So, how do you become successful as a researcher and how do you choose the right Post Doc position? First and foremost you should be motivated by passion and curiosity for your research topic –  do it for science, not for tenure ! No one ever became a successful scientist with the sole premise of being awarded the Nobel Prize down the line. Pick your Post Doc lab based on their research interest and attitude towards it, not primarily based on their publication record. And keep in mind: plans rarely work out the way you thought they would. But according to Laureate  Aaron Ciechanover , the key to success is: “Do something you are passionate about, something that you love and your gut tells you, you are good at! Then success is inevitable.”

Featured image: Air Force Medical Service , Staff Sgt. Alana Pool, 45th Medical Group medical laboratory technician performs a microscopic examination. 

Original post on author’s blog:  https://brainandbeyond.wordpress.com/2018/08/17/want-to-succeed-in-research-passion-is-key/

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  • CAREER COLUMN
  • 07 February 2022
  • Correction 14 November 2022

My lesson from successful scientists: success can be learnt

  • Ruth Gotian 0

Ruth Gotian is the chief learning officer and assistant professor of education in anaesthesiology at Weill Cornell Medicine in New York City and author of The Success Factor . Twitter: @RuthGotian

You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

At the age of 43, while working full-time and raising my family, I decided to pursue a doctorate, studying the most successful physician-scientists of our generation. I wanted to investigate whether there was anything special about their habits, mindsets or lifestyles: something that could be later replicated in researchers’ training programmes. My research focused on Nobel prizewinners, National Institutes of Health directors, Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigators, and winners of a top award such as a Breakthrough or Lasker prize, as well as a former surgeon-general of the United States.

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doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-022-00354-6

Updates & Corrections

Correction 14 November 2022 : An earlier version of this story omitted to mention that the author receives royalties for her book The Success Factor .

Gotian, R. & Andersen, O. S. BMC Med. Educ. 20 , 50 (2020).

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Ruth Gotian receives royalties for the book described in the article.

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Science Essay

Betty P.

Learn How to Write an A+ Science Essay

11 min read

science essay

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150+ Engaging Science Essay Topics To Hook Your Readers

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Did you ever imagine that essay writing was just for students in the Humanities? Well, think again! 

For science students, tackling a science essay might seem challenging, as it not only demands a deep understanding of the subject but also strong writing skills. 

However, fret not because we've got your back!

With the right steps and tips, you can write an engaging and informative science essay easily!

This blog will take you through all the important steps of writing a science essay, from choosing a topic to presenting the final work.

So, let's get into it!

Arrow Down

  • 1. What Is a Science Essay?
  • 2. How To Write a Science Essay?
  • 3. How to Structure a Science Essay?
  • 4. Science Essay Examples
  • 5. How to Choose the Right Science Essay Topic
  • 6. Science Essay Topics
  • 7. Science Essay Writing Tips

What Is a Science Essay?

A science essay is an academic paper focusing on a scientific topic from physics, chemistry, biology, or any other scientific field.

Science essays are mostly expository. That is, they require you to explain your chosen topic in detail. However, they can also be descriptive and exploratory.

A descriptive science essay aims to describe a certain scientific phenomenon according to established knowledge.

On the other hand, the exploratory science essay requires you to go beyond the current theories and explore new interpretations.

So before you set out to write your essay, always check out the instructions given by your instructor. Whether a science essay is expository or exploratory must be clear from the start. Or, if you face any difficulty, you can take help from a science essay writer as well. 

Moreover, check out this video to understand scientific writing in detail.

Now that you know what it is, let's look at the steps you need to take to write a science essay. 

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How To Write a Science Essay?

Writing a science essay is not as complex as it may seem. All you need to do is follow the right steps to create an impressive piece of work that meets the assigned criteria.

Here's what you need to do:

Choose Your Topic

A good topic forms the foundation for an engaging and well-written essay. Therefore, you should ensure that you pick something interesting or relevant to your field of study. 

To choose a good topic, you can brainstorm ideas relating to the subject matter. You may also find inspiration from other science essays or articles about the same topic.

Conduct Research

Once you have chosen your topic, start researching it thoroughly to develop a strong argument or discussion in your essay. 

Make sure you use reliable sources and cite them properly . You should also make notes while conducting your research so that you can reference them easily when writing the essay. Or, you can get expert assistance from an essay writing service to manage your citations. 

Create an Outline

A good essay outline helps to organize the ideas in your paper. It serves as a guide throughout the writing process and ensures you don’t miss out on important points.

An outline makes it easier to write a well-structured paper that flows logically. It should be detailed enough to guide you through the entire writing process.

However, your outline should be flexible, and it's sometimes better to change it along the way to improve your structure.

Start Writing

Once you have a good outline, start writing the essay by following your plan.

The first step in writing any essay is to draft it. This means putting your thoughts down on paper in a rough form without worrying about grammar or spelling mistakes.

So begin your essay by introducing the topic, then carefully explain it using evidence and examples to support your argument.

Don't worry if your first draft isn't perfect - it's just the starting point!

Proofread & Edit

After finishing your first draft, take time to proofread and edit it for grammar and spelling mistakes.

Proofreading is the process of checking for grammatical mistakes. It should be done after you have finished writing your essay.

Editing, on the other hand, involves reviewing the structure and organization of your essay and its content. It should be done before you submit your final work.

Both proofreading and editing are essential for producing a high-quality essay. Make sure to give yourself enough time to do them properly!

After revising the essay, you should format it according to the guidelines given by your instructor. This could involve using a specific font size, page margins, or citation style.

Most science essays are written in Times New Roman font with 12-point size and double spacing. The margins should be 1 inch on all sides, and the text should be justified.

In addition, you must cite your sources properly using a recognized citation style such as APA , Chicago , or Harvard . Make sure to follow the guidelines closely so that your essay looks professional.

Following these steps will help you create an informative and well-structured science essay that meets the given criteria.

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How to Structure a Science Essay?

A basic science essay structure includes an introduction, body, and conclusion. 

Let's look at each of these briefly.

  • Introduction

Your essay introduction should introduce your topic and provide a brief overview of what you will discuss in the essay. It should also state your thesis or main argument.

For instance, a thesis statement for a science essay could be, 

"The human body is capable of incredible feats, as evidenced by the many athletes who have competed in the Olympic games."

The body of your essay will contain the bulk of your argument or discussion. It should be divided into paragraphs, each discussing a different point.

For instance, imagine you were writing about sports and the human body. 

Your first paragraph can discuss the physical capabilities of the human body. 

The second paragraph may be about the physical benefits of competing in sports. 

Similarly, in the third paragraph, you can present one or two case studies of specific athletes to support your point. 

Once you have explained all your points in the body, it’s time to conclude the essay.

Your essay conclusion should summarize the main points of your essay and leave the reader with a sense of closure.

In the conclusion, you reiterate your thesis and sum up your arguments. You can also suggest implications or potential applications of the ideas discussed in the essay. 

By following this structure, you will create a well-organized essay.

Check out a few example essays to see this structure in practice.

Science Essay Examples

A great way to get inspired when writing a science essay is to look at other examples of successful essays written by others. 

Here are some examples that will give you an idea of how to write your essay.

Science Essay About Genetics - Science Essay Example

Environmental Science Essay Example | PDF Sample

The Science of Nanotechnology

Science, Non-Science, and Pseudo-Science

The Science Of Science Education

Science in our Daily Lives

Short Science Essay Example

Let’s take a look at a short science essay: 

Want to read more essay examples? Here, you can find more science essay examples to learn from.

How to Choose the Right Science Essay Topic

Choosing the right science essay topic is a critical first step in crafting a compelling and engaging essay. Here's a concise guide on how to make this decision wisely:

  • Consider Your Interests: Start by reflecting on your personal interests within the realm of science. Selecting a topic that genuinely fascinates you will make the research and writing process more enjoyable and motivated.
  • Relevance to the Course: Ensure that your chosen topic aligns with your course or assignment requirements. Read the assignment guidelines carefully to understand the scope and focus expected by your instructor.
  • Current Trends and Issues: Stay updated with the latest scientific developments and trends. Opting for a topic that addresses contemporary issues not only makes your essay relevant but also demonstrates your awareness of current events in the field.
  • Narrow Down the Scope: Science is vast, so narrow your topic to a manageable scope. Instead of a broad subject like "Climate Change," consider a more specific angle like "The Impact of Melting Arctic Ice on Global Sea Levels."
  • Available Resources: Ensure that there are sufficient credible sources and research materials available for your chosen topic. A lack of resources can hinder your research efforts.
  • Discuss with Your Instructor: If you're uncertain about your topic choice, don't hesitate to consult your instructor or professor. They can provide valuable guidance and may even suggest specific topics based on your academic goals.

Science Essay Topics

Choosing an appropriate topic for a science essay is one of the first steps in writing a successful paper.

Here are a few science essay topics to get you started:

  • How space exploration affects our daily lives?
  • How has technology changed our understanding of medicine?
  • Are there ethical considerations to consider when conducting scientific research?
  • How does climate change affect the biodiversity of different parts of the world?
  • How can artificial intelligence be used in medicine?
  • What impact have vaccines had on global health?
  • What is the future of renewable energy?
  • How do we ensure that genetically modified organisms are safe for humans and the environment?
  • The influence of social media on human behavior: A social science perspective
  • What are the potential risks and benefits of stem cell therapy?

Important science topics can cover anything from space exploration to chemistry and biology. So you can choose any topic according to your interests!

Need more topics? We have gathered 100+ science essay topics to help you find a great topic!

Continue reading to find some tips to help you write a successful science essay. 

Science Essay Writing Tips

Once you have chosen a topic and looked at examples, it's time to start writing the science essay.

Here are some key tips for a successful essay:

  • Research thoroughly

Make sure you do extensive research before you begin writing your paper. This will ensure that the facts and figures you include are accurate and supported by reliable sources.

  • Use clear language

Avoid using jargon or overly technical language when writing your essay. Plain language is easier to understand and more engaging for readers.

  • Referencing

Always provide references for any information you include in your essay. This will demonstrate that you acknowledge other people's work and show that the evidence you use is credible.

Make sure to follow the basic structure of an essay and organize your thoughts into clear sections. This will improve the flow and make your essay easier to read.

  • Ask someone to proofread

It’s also a good idea to get someone else to proofread your work as they may spot mistakes that you have missed.

These few tips will help ensure that your science essay is well-written and informative!

You've learned the steps to writing a successful science essay and looked at some examples and topics to get you started. 

Make sure you thoroughly research, use clear language, structure your thoughts, and proofread your essay. With these tips, you’re sure to write a great science essay! 

Do you still need expert help writing a science essay? Our science essay writing service is here to help. With our team of professional writers, you can rest assured that your essay will be written to the highest standards.

Contact our online writing service now to get started!

Also, do not forget to try our essay typer tool for quick and cost-free aid with your essays!

AI Essay Bot

Write Essay Within 60 Seconds!

Betty P.

Betty is a freelance writer and researcher. She has a Masters in literature and enjoys providing writing services to her clients. Betty is an avid reader and loves learning new things. She has provided writing services to clients from all academic levels and related academic fields.

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