• Question: What experiment did you do that you most enjoyed?

    Asked by leannemari to Ben, Jony, Katharine, Mark, Peter on 14 Nov 2011. This question was also asked by annabelsusan, 02dawilliams, nobody115.
    • Photo: Ben Still

      Ben Still answered on 14 Nov 2011:

      I loved all chemistry experiments that involved an explosion or fire in some way, but as I have got older my tastes have changed. I think I would have to say the experiment I currently work on. It is not something that can be done in a lab as it is spread over 300km, requires a massive particle accelerator and is in Japan. I enjoy it because of the science we want to do with it, we are trying to get a lottle closer to understanding the birth of the Universe.

    • Photo: Katharine Schofield

      Katharine Schofield answered on 14 Nov 2011:

      Actually at school and uni I wasn’t 100% keen on doing experiments and labs because usually something didn’t quite work and it got kind of frustrating when you had a limited amount of time to get it to work. I usually got there in the end but there might have been some swearing along the way. 🙂

      It was different when I moved on from that to my PhD (so doing new research rather than repeating stuff that’s been done before) because then you have a much bigger, longer-term thing to think about and if what you were doing didn’t work by the end of the day you came back the next day and the next trying different things. Again, I got there in the end, but yeah there might possibly also have been a bit of swearing there too. 🙂

    • Photo: Mark Basham

      Mark Basham answered on 14 Nov 2011:

      I don’t get the chance to do may experiments as i spend most of my time at a computer, but every now and then I’m able to get involved in some hands on work. The best experimental experience i have had has to be when we clamped £50,000 worth of camera equipment to some existing kit to collect truly unique data for the first time 🙂

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