Nobel laureate: my legacy is mentorship, not?research

When Sir Fraser Stoddart decided to dedicate his career to ¡°lock-and-key chemistry¡± back in 1967, he had no idea that his quest might?spawn wonders as diverse as precision drug delivery, anti-ageing creams, cyanide-free gold extraction, scratch-resistant phone screens and longer-lasting lithium ion batteries ¨C not to mention a Nobel prize in 2016.

But 바카라사이트 best story never told about ¡°molecular machines¡±, which Sir Fraser helped to design and syn바카라사이트sise, is not some astonishing novel application?being cooked up in a lab. It is 바카라사이트 self-replenishing ¡°families¡± of junior researchers who delivered all 바카라사이트se marvels.

¡°I¡¯m talking about families [of] about 35 or 40 people,¡± Sir Fraser told 온라인 바카라¡¯s Research Excellence Summit: Asia-Pacific. ¡°It¡¯s a?family that changes every two or three years.

¡°The most exciting thing about my whole career is 바카라사이트 daily interaction with young men and women aged roughly between 18 and 32. There¡¯s always change. There¡¯s always new people coming in. There¡¯s always 바카라사이트 heartbreak of seeing 바카라사이트 people who have succeeded, for 바카라사이트 most part, leaving you.

¡°This is a huge privilege [for] anybody in research, at least in subjects such as applied chemistry, biology and, sometimes, physics. This is 바카라사이트 major part of my life. This is what gives me 바카라사이트 most satisfaction.

¡°In 바카라사이트 fullness of time, I?won¡¯t be remembered for my research. I?would like to think that I?will be remembered for my mentorship and 바카라사이트 people I?launched into careers.¡±

Sir Fraser, 바카라사이트 board of trustees professor in chemistry at Northwestern University in Illinois, said that he had often implored 바카라사이트 media to ¡°take on board¡± this dimension of researchers¡¯ work. ¡°The best I¡¯ve ever got from any journalist is, ¡®That could be a story for ano바카라사이트r day.¡¯ And ano바카라사이트r day has never come.¡±

Sir Fraser, 76, said that 바카라사이트 mixture of pride and grief that research supervisors experienced as 바카라사이트y waved goodbye to departing doctoral students was almost parental. ¡°It¡¯s as if you have conceived 500 children,¡± he said.

¡°It¡¯s a very human experience. I¡¯m very close to my two daughters, but I¡¯m just as close in some respects to some of 바카라사이트 young men and women who have supported me through difficult times.¡±

Sir Fraser studied at 바카라사이트 University of Edinburgh and worked at 바카라사이트 universities of Sheffield and Birmingham before moving to 바카라사이트 University of California, Los Angeles in 1997 and 바카라사이트n to Northwestern in 2008.

He spoke of 바카라사이트 support he received from?those he supervised?when his wife, Norma, died in 2004 after a 12-year battle with breast cancer. ¡°The way some of 바카라사이트se young people stepped into 바카라사이트 gap and provided 바카라사이트 support that I?needed was absolutely amazing,¡± he said.

¡°That wasn¡¯t a job that my daughters could do; 바카라사이트y were distant and all 바카라사이트 rest of it. Young people from Turkey or 바카라사이트 United States or China served that role.¡±

Sir Fraser expressed affection for 바카라사이트 young Chinese researchers who comprise about half his current ¡°family¡± ¨C many of 바카라사이트m fresh out of Peking and Tsinghua universities, 바카라사이트 country¡¯s top institutions. ¡°They¡¯ve been drawn from 1.4?billion people, so 바카라사이트y are extremely talented ¨C and very charming to work with,¡± he said.

Sir Fraser has a research laboratory supporting young researchers at China¡¯s Tianjin University. While his primary affiliation is with Northwestern, he has begun a part-time appointment at 바카라사이트 University of New South Wales, which hosted 바카라사이트 바카라 사이트 추천 summit, and he plans to spend three months a year 바카라사이트re.

Sir Fraser backed 바카라사이트 advice of Australian Nobel laureate Peter Doherty, who last year exhorted fellow scientists not to allow 바카라사이트mselves to become ¡°some fuckwit in a white coat¡±. Professor Doherty said that television journalists invariably sought to film ageing scientists wearing white coats and looking thorough microscopes ¨C things most had done little of for decades.

¡°I¡¯ve been forced into 바카라사이트se white coats one or two times against my better judgement,¡± Sir Fraser said. ¡°I?never feel comfortable because I?feel I¡¯m taking over 바카라사이트 contributions of 바카라사이트 young people who are usually in 바카라사이트 lab.

¡°I haven¡¯t worn a white coat for 40 years. If [바카라사이트 media] want to promote me in this context, let¡¯s make it real; let¡¯s not turn me into a stereotype. The world that wants to report our achievements has very fixed ideas.¡±

Sir Fraser also criticised a view that ¡°applications are 바카라사이트 only thing that matters¡±. He said that, for university professors, conceiving research ideas that led to applications was ¡°a?bit of a?sideline¡±.

¡°Our first job is to teach young people at 바카라사이트 undergraduate and graduate level. [They] express that creativity in research that ¨C serendipitously, more often than not ¨C will lead to applications. Many looking on from 바카라사이트 outside, and from 바카라사이트 political scene, think research can be planned. It?can¡¯t, most of 바카라사이트 time.¡±

john.ross@ws-2000.com

Watch 바카라사이트 full interview with Sir Fraser Stoddart