Passion is overrated. Let’s be dispassionate for research.

In one of my side projects, I had some intriguing results, but then a collaborator tried a different method to get the same thing, which led to not-so-intriguing results. So, I set out to compare my method vs. his, on a reference system with some “gold standard” answer from the literature. I was collecting the results of these calculations when I realized I was mentally holding my breath, hoping that mine would pull through as “better.” That shouldn’t be the way to do science. My view is that science should be an objective process, in which we seek to gain knowledge about the natural world, to further our understanding and the tools we use to develop that understanding. We shouldn’t merely seek the good and avoid the bad, as is instinctual to do. That can lead to skewed interpretations, being blind to unfavorable data, and misrepresentation of reality. This takes mindfulness, being aware of these biases and preconceptions. It’s something for me to work on.