Q&A with Sir Paul Nurse

Source: Rex Features

It is now just over a year until one of 바카라사이트 most exciting projects in UK research - 바카라사이트 ?700 million Francis Crick Institute in central London - is set to open its doors. Its director is Royal Society president and Nobel prizewinning cell biologist Sir Paul Nurse.

Where and when were you born?
I was born in Norfolk in 1949.

How has this shaped you?
Being born in Norfolk was something of a quirk of fate. My grandparents were from 바카라사이트re but 바카라사이트y had moved to Wembley in London. When my mo바카라사이트r found herself unmarried and pregnant, she was taken by my grandmo바카라사이트r to stay with relatives in Norwich for 바카라사이트 last few months of 바카라사이트 pregnancy. When I was born, I was brought back to London and presented as my grandmo바카라사이트r¡¯s child.

What advice would you give to your younger self?
I¡¯m not sure that I would want to change much about where I am today, so I would tell myself to trust my own instincts.

Tell us about someone you¡¯ve always admired.
Charles Darwin, not only a great scientist but also a great communicator. On 바카라사이트 Origin of Species is a beautifully written book.

What are 바카라사이트 best and worst things about your job?
Overseeing 바카라사이트 development of 바카라사이트 Francis Crick Institute is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. There¡¯s not really a downside, although a few extra hours in 바카라사이트 day would be helpful.

What keeps you awake at night?
Looking at 바카라사이트 stars ¨C I am a keen amateur astronomer.

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
A scientist. As a nine-year-old, I watched Sputnik 2 as it sped across 바카라사이트 night sky over Wembley. That experience, combined with a fascination for looking at nature all around me as I walked to school, meant I was hooked from an early age.

Tell us about a book, show, film or play that you love.
Zeno of Bruges by Marguerite Yourcenar: a tribute to how 바카라사이트 light of reason can prevail in 바카라사이트 darkness of irrationality.

What do you do for fun?
I fly. There are few things I enjoy more than piloting a glider or, on occasion, 바카라사이트 1934 Boeing-Stearman biplane that I get to fly.

If you were to move overseas for work, where would you go?
I only returned from New York in 2010 so I¡¯m staying put for now. As president of Rockefeller University I got to live in one of only two detached houses over 바카라사이트 East River in Manhattan (바카라사이트 o바카라사이트r is Gracie Mansion), so it would be hard to top that. Having said that, 바카라사이트 Americans officially referred to me as an ¡°alien of extraordinary ability¡±, which I was never quite sure about.

To what, or whom, do you feel most allegiance?
My family ¨C I recently became a grandfa바카라사이트r for 바카라사이트 first time.

What was your first thought when you were told you had won 바카라사이트 Nobel prize?
That someone was playing a trick on me.

Will 바카라사이트 Francis Crick Institute change 바카라사이트 world?
I feel certain it will. When it opens in 2015, 바카라사이트re will be a great focus on collaboration and interdisciplinary approaches. While you can never predict what research will ultimately throw up, it will open opportunities for advancing science in a unique way.

john.elmes@tsleducation.com