Metadata
- Author: nadiaeghbal.com
- Title: The independent researcher
- Reference: https://nadiaeghbal.com/independent-research
- Category: #article
Page Notes
Highlights
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But it’s sort of odd that we assume you need someone’s permission to do research. There’s no reason that universities need to be the gatekeepers of exploring and developing new ideas. — Updated on 2021-11-06 15:05:06 — Group: #Public ^71bebf
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This is the dark side of independent research. Without external validation - “I teach at Stanford” or “I got a grant from NASA”, it’s hard to convince people that you’re any good at what you do. The same goes for your output: you want peers to acknowledge and review your work, or the signoff of a well-respected journal. — Updated on 2021-11-06 15:06:56 — Group: #Public ^830649
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For the truly obsessed person, the need for validation isn’t about ego; it’s about sanity. You want to know there’s some meaning behind the dizzying mental labyrinth that you simultaneously can’t escape and also never want to leave. — Updated on 2021-11-06 15:08:09 — Group: #Public ^342e90
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Life is short. Do whatever you can’t stop thinking about. — Updated on 2021-11-06 15:10:42 — Group: #Public
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Documenting your findings in public (regardless of outcomes!) is a worthy contribution to society, full stop. — Updated on 2021-11-06 15:10:47 — Group: #Public ^46d8b2
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If you’re doing something new, and you care about understanding the problem, people will pay attention. What’s more, they’ll take your ideas and make them better than you’d ever imagined. And that style of research - living in service to the public - starts to look very different from the bloated, ivory tower models we’ve been accustomed to. — Updated on 2021-11-06 15:11:03 — Group: #Public
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You don’t need a PhD to study something you care about. You don’t need to publish papers in academic journals to become widely respected. You just need a curious mind, a bankroll, and a commitment to learning in public. Producing work that makes other people think, and perhaps change their behavior, is the validation, and it’s enormously satisfying. — Updated on 2021-11-06 15:11:25 — Group: #Public ^da6425