—A while ago, when I opened up
my email and check if there’s email that awaits to be read by me, I was
in state of curiousity when our Associate Dean JRF emailed us faculty
with this title, For Love or For Money, I immediately opened it and
read for myself. There are considerations, reflections and checking of
values have installed in me, but do you know why?, READ FOR YOURSELF,
here’s the content:
For love or for money
By Queena Lee-Chua
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 01:25:00 01/26/2008
MANILA,
Philippines—Why do scientists go into science? Most do so out of pure
interest, which turns into passion, with a genuine desire to delve into
the workings of the world. Others may do it for glory. Albert Einstein once said, “Politics is for the moment, but an equation is for eternity.” Very few do it for money.
Two weeks ago, four Nobel Prize chemists visited the Philippines
and talked about their work and lives. During the open forum, a student
mused that many Filipinos would rather go into business, where the
money was, than science, where often there was only little money.
My
friend Nina Rosario L. Rojas fell in love with science in Grade 5, and
this love has not waned. Now she teaches biochemistry at the Ateneo de
Manila Chemistry Department and the School of Medicine and Public
Health.
Following is Nina’s personal account, on what happened next at the Nobel Forum.
Money and science
Prof. Yuan Tseh Lee of Taiwan,
who shared the 1986 Nobel for the dynamics of chemical processes,
responded, “Why do you want money?” Money enables people to do what
they want, such as hobbies. But what if we are already doing what we
want to do?
Eventually, we become excellent
at it and indeed, rewards do come. Aside from the Nobel, Professor Lee
became the leader of Academia Sinica, the foremost research institution
in Taiwan. He now spends roughly US$1 million a year for what can be considered his “hobby.”
Turning
to Filipino taipan Lucio Tan, Professor Lee asked, “Do you spend a
million dollars a year on your hobbies?” The crowd burst into laughter
as the taipan shook his head.
Of course,
not every scientist wins the Nobel, and not every Nobelist has the ear
of his country’s president. As another Nobelist quipped, he does not
even have a hotline to his institution’s director.
But
there is a ring of truth to Professor Lee’s statements. As scientists,
we often simply love what we do, and for many, that love leads to a
drive for excellence, and excellence often leads to public recognition
and financial reward.
Do science and
teaching pay? I have a roof over my head, even personal money for my
books and simple hobbies. I am grateful that I do not have the severe
financial pressures that make some turn to other professions and other
countries. And while I may wish for a million dollars, or even just a
million pesos, for our research lab, it has enough resources to keep
doing biochemistry.
Love and science
Not
everyone falls in love with science, and not everyone falls in love
with teaching. I have been lucky to fall in love with both. And like
any great love, it has become the proverbial pearl of great price. The
opportunity to do what I enjoy and to do work that is meaningful keeps
me going even with the daily grind. The rewards are built into the job:
in the joy of discovery and application, and the joy of sharing the
journey with students.
The best payment for
me is when my students fall in love with their work and find their
place in the world. For love is not romantic, but practical. To
paraphrase Fr. Pedro Arrupe—love decides how one feels and thinks, what
one does, what decisions one makes, and how one builds one’s life each
day.
Loving our work leads to dedication and excellence. Prof. Aaron Ciechanover of Israel shared the 2004 Nobel Prize in Chemistry
for unraveling the mystery of protein death. Today there are drugs in
the pipeline for cancer and other diseases that owe much to this work.
Ciechanover
pointed out, “We didn’t plan on anything. And I think this is the
lesson: You shouldn’t plan on prizes, and recognition, or anything. But
you should plan on one thing: Being excellent.”
Prof. Ryoji Noyori of Japan
echoed, “Winning the prize wasn’t the purpose of my life, but simply
the consequence of my dedication to science.” He shared the 2001 Nobel Prize
for his work on catalysts, especially for the selective synthesis of
left-handed or right-handed molecules. His work is important in the
development of more environment- friendly chemicals.
The journey itself is the reward, definitely.