• Question: do you think that you could win the 500 pounds if you are what are your stregths and why?

    Asked by real to Upul, Phil, Ian, Derek, Daniel on 21 Jun 2010 in Categories: . This question was also asked by 8erminerule, ryantracey.
    • Photo: Derek Mann

      Derek Mann answered on 16 Jun 2010:

      My strengths are my passion for science and I like working with young people to encourage their interest in science, its part of my job now that I am a professor. I think I have a chance to win the £500 but I am sure there are other scientists in this competition who have as good if not better chance of winning 🙂

    • Photo: Daniel Mietchen

      Daniel Mietchen answered on 16 Jun 2010:

      I think winning is a realistic possibility but I am not sure how much the probability deviates from the 20% level that I would get if students would vote by chance.

      It is hard to compare the five of us on one scale, because we are all engaged with research in a different way, using different methods, working on different topics. None of us can probably do justice to the work the others do, nor can the students and teachers. This leads me to suspect that the final vote will depend on non-scientific aspects of the contestants. In this regard, my particular strength is intercultural experience beyond the Western world (Eastern Europe as well as East and Central Asia and the Arab world), including the ability to give scientific talks in four languages, and to understand scientific papers in more than ten additional ones. I don’t think this will be of particular interest to the students, though.

    • Photo: Ian Sillett

      Ian Sillett answered on 21 Jun 2010:

      I could do, I’m in the competition so statistically speaking I’m with a chance! My strengths…? Dunno, I’m to the point and try and answer every question…eventually!

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