The average starry-eyed 17-year old is thrilled to be in a university lab and co-author a published paper. The average 40-year-old interested in indie science typically has already been there/done that, and developed an aversion to it.
Conversation
Ymmv, but I’d be thrilled to never publish in journals/conferences again, or see a grant application. Crackpot posts on my blog will do for me.
4
10
Linking in a few related threads
Quote Tweet
17. On independent research twitter.com/vgr/status/119
Show this thread
1
5
Another
Quote Tweet
18. More on independent research twitter.com/vgr/status/119
Show this thread
1
3
Adjacent… need a blue collar science world too…
Quote Tweet
10. Blue-collar mutual influence innovation network (BCMIIN) twitter.com/vgr/status/109
Show this thread
1
6
Drive to Mt. Wilson kinda nice. Tours just reopened today. Now in long line…
1
11
Line is for cafe which also sells parking and tour tickets. Guided tour likely sold out though. Guy apparently on Mars sample return mission team holding forth at a picnic table to buddies (Mt. Wilson is near JPL/ Pasadena)
1
4
Ah no tours… so will just walk around
1
2
While I wait for our sandwiches… one of the structural frictions of research is that like half the work gets done in the idle screwing around REPL-like phase of plating with ideas, math, data, and instruments. The part that starts with proposals is like the scaling investment.
1
4
Proposal to papers is like series A to IPO. The seed stage is not institutionally organized because you’re expected to be inside the institution and not need support. Desk, computers, office, library, lab, colleagues.
1
5
Expecting indie science to start at the proposals+public-data stage is… somewhere between clueless and disingenuous. You don’t need the whole luxury university environment (though I certainly enjoyed my time in it), but you need a basic version at least.
Replying to
yeah you need to cover the basic safety levels so one can focus w/o anxiety for the next like 1y or smth
1

