Of all the fantastic faculty seminars that we’ve had this summer, I think my favorite still remains the very first one – Dr. Mohamed Noor’s talk about his life and his research on evolution. I remember feeling really impressed at his accomplishments in both contexts. In fact, Dr. Noor’s professional success – Darwin-Wallace Medal awardee, chair of Duke’s biology department, recipient of numerous teaching and mentoring awards – inspired me even more when I stumbled across Dr. Noor’s Yelp elite account. Yelp elite! I frequently visit the website for insight from savvy Yelpers who seem to spend their days eating and critiquing food, and here was one of Duke’s most acclaimed professors dishing advice about taco joints in Durham.
To be clear, Dr. Noor’s talk wasn’t just my favorite because of his foodie prowess. It was my favorite because he’s living proof that one person can indeed pursue a successful career (groundbreaking science, highly praised teaching, or presumably any other goals) and a life! I’ve met many great scientists who seem completely consumed by their work – even my dad talks a bit too much about interventional catheterization and geriatric CAD research at the dinner table; it’s not that appetizing – so Dr. Noor’s seminar provided me with another model of what’s possible.
I think it was an especially important story me to take into the weeks of tedious, time-consuming research that followed. I’ve known for a while that science is incredibly exciting for me and that I’ll most likely devote a good chunk of my life to it, but perhaps this summer – Dr. Noor’s talk, as well as the experiences shared by other faculty speakers, the experience of apartment living, the full-time research, etc. – has subtly taught me how to think about life in general. It’s a lesson that experiments may fail or succeed, but taking a bit of time to reflect and enjoy life consistently – whether this means Yelping about the newest taqueria or, for me, sitting down with a caramel latte and a totally unscientific book at Cocoa Cinnamon after getting out of lab at/past 8pm – will keep us grounded and happy.
