• Question: I realise science and help you understand the world around you but if science is not relavent to the career I want is there any point in my taking so much time to study it?

    Asked by 223cara47 on 26 Jan 2018.
    • Photo: Tim Millar

      Tim Millar answered on 26 Jan 2018:


      Yes. Science is important in many of the decisions we make in every day life. Do you think the government should put fluoride in the water to stop tooth decay or is it worth building wind turbines when there is 300 years worth of coal in the ground?

      There was a report in the papers some years ago that linked autism to vaccination. There was a lot of attention and many parents decided to not vaacinate their children just in case. The link to autism was wrong and against all the evidence of millions of samples of the vaccine used in children. Unfortunately there were measles outbreaks in areas where vaccines had not been used and some children died. With some science knowledge, as a parent you would be able to make and informed and intelligent decision. Thats why even though it might not be obvious in your career choice, science is everywhere in our daily lives and a good understanding wil help you get on in life.

    • Photo: anon

      anon answered on 26 Jan 2018:


      Science as a method of looking at information and figuring out what it means, and how certain you are about it is pretty much universally useful, I’d argue.

      Science as a bunch of facts about the world that you personally find irrelevant – I can see why you’d be frustrated with that if you look at it that way.

      I wouldn’t dismiss science even if at any point in life I think it’s not relevant to my career – I’ve looked back and can confidently say that I cannot predict precisely what would happen to me in five years, never mind the entire working life.

      What should and shouldn’t be taught in schools is a decades- if not centuries-long debate, by the way. We are still not entirely sure what’s relevant and what’s not at that stage. Everyone tries to push forward the subject they are invested in – that’s my understanding of it.

    • Photo: Jonathan Kay

      Jonathan Kay answered on 26 Jan 2018:


      I think you’ve already answered your own question: it’s worth it if you want to understand the world around you. 🙂
      There’s a famous argument known as “The Two Cultures”, you might find that interesting: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Two_Cultures

    • Photo: Sarah Finnegan

      Sarah Finnegan answered on 26 Jan 2018:


      I suppose you could consider that studying science not only gives you facts but also helps you to think critically and analytically about things. That can be a really big help for any future path you choose to take!

    • Photo: anon

      anon answered on 26 Jan 2018:


      Firstly very few people know for sure what their career will involve when they are teenagers. The world of work is constantly changing, and your skills and interests might be different than you predict now.

      Even if your future career never involves science, I think learning about science (to some extent) is good for everyone. It is about understanding the world around us but also it is about thinking clearly and gathering evidence. Making decisions based on evidence is important in lots of careers that don’t involve science directly.

    • Photo: Rebecca Dewey

      Rebecca Dewey answered on 5 Feb 2018:


      I think several people have answered your question quite well already, and I don’t have much to add beyond this thought: you never know what area of science might suddenly become critical in the future and might put you at a massive advantage over others.

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