• Question: How do scientists make the world a better place?

    Asked by 466cmtm28 to Aileen, Christopher, Stephanie on 16 Mar 2018.
    • Photo: Aileen Baird

      Aileen Baird answered on 16 Mar 2018:


      I think almost every scientist is trying to discover something that will help the world become a better place. Most of the discoveries in science are very small, so we need lots of these little new pieces of information to come together to form something bigger and more meaningful! I like to think of it like a jigsaw puzzle, with each scientist hopefully making up one piece each. On their own, the pieces might look a bit weird and confusing, but when you put them all together you make a bigger picture that could be really useful.

      For example, my work looks at how forests will respond to the changing levels of carbon dioxide (the most important greenhouse gas) in the air. By understanding this better, it will help us to predict what the planet will be like in 50-100 years time, and also whether doing things like planting more trees will help the Earth with climate change.

    • Photo: Christopher Nankervis

      Christopher Nankervis answered on 16 Mar 2018:


      Many scientists would like to discover new things to make the world a better place in the future. Most of the time this involves working in teams to develop new ideas and share skills and experience. In my work I talk to a lot of experts in weather and climate science to learn new knowledge that helps me to produce my weather forecasts.

    • Photo: Stephanie Mann

      Stephanie Mann answered on 16 Mar 2018:


      I think scientists make the world a better place in lots of ways. I know all the scientists in this zone really care about the planet and study ways to make sure we help stop climate change and leave a place that is better than it was before. Other scientists make the world better by making technology faster, safer, and smarter. And some scientists study medicines to help stop disease, and make people healthier!

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