A conversation on success and failure in science

Known as the ‘Lab Coat Poets’, for their MSc Science Communication group project, Camilla, Celeste, and Scarlett wrote and filmed a performance of their crowd-sourced poem, ‘A Conversation on Success and Failure in Science’. They spoke to the public at Southbank and the scientific community on campus here at Imperial to find out how each of these groups perceive success and failure in science. These crowdsourced words and opinions were then crafted into a performance poem. Its conversational format represents a dialogue between a scientist (present at Imperial College) and the public (present at Southbank), with a science communicator (interchanging between the two locations) facilitating their discussion. The most prominent themes of the poem are the challenges of academic research and how science is applied in society, especially within the health sector.

Please note that words/phrases in bold were crowdsourced.

By Camilla, Celeste and Scarlett

6th May 2022

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Science communicator:

Excuse me

Could we maybe

Can we have a moment of your time

Don’t worry, this poem will have no specific rhyme 

Say whatever comes to mind

It can be a word

A line

To succeed or not to succeed

That is the question

But with sense

Try to stay within the scientific tense.

Scientist:

This requires thinking

I am at a loss 

My brain is blank, unyielding 

I guess failure is the first thing that comes to mind 

I can say a lab report that’s been declined?

Actually, don’t mind me, 

I don’t belong here 

I feel like an imposter 

Science communicator:

That’s alright 

Although could we ask why? 

Scientist: 

I thought science was this great field of innovation

An endless pit of inspiration

But lately I have been feeling so much shame

The pressure to publish

Has led to so much rubbish

And I think the system – that’s to blame 

 People may manipulate

The results in their favour

To not waste any labour

But this just delays the rate

 At which knowledge can get an update

Science communicator:

It sounds like you are having an important realisation

Perhaps we might ask the public about this situation

Public:

Sorry, science isn’t what I do

And that question sounds tough

So, my response is likely to be rough 

Science communicator: 

That’s ok, any thoughts you’d be willing to share 

Would be more than enough 

Public: 

I suppose science provides a rational approach 

To the mysteries we broach

That’s how I feel off the bat

How’s that? 

Science communicator: 

I hadn’t thought of it like that,

Is there anything else you would like to add? 

Public: 

Science is growth and discovery, 

so that in sickness we have recovery

It is not just about the allure of a cure

What matters is hope shared

By coming together to care

It gives us access to life-changing treatments

Advancements that before were inconceivable 

Have now been made believable: 

I mean IVF? What the F?

For science to be successful 

It needs to be accessible

Just look at all the women in STEM

And you’re one of them!

Science communicator:

Thank you for sharing your thoughts today

I wonder (to scientist) if you might relate

Scientist: 

That makes sense to me, 

and fundamentally 

I agree

With our method we empower

Although breakthroughs don’t happen every hour 

Things fall through 

Maybe it’s a lack of funding

Or a minus one that’s missing

Perhaps… 

A lack of clarity and solidarity

And a fair share of mishaps

Public: 

It seems it’s only the outcome we see 

I can only imagine how hard the work must be 

But if not you, who?

Who else could have seen the vaccine through?

Scientist:

Don’t get me wrong, vaccines are great 

But let’s not forget 

That this research fostered some regret 

In turning the Covid tide

Other work was set aside

You could say it was tunnel vision of the largest kind 

Public: 

I can see how by narrowing down the focus

Other issues aren’t noticed 

But research requires dedication

Prizes aren’t won overnight 

You need to be willing to face the fight

Scientist:

It’s hard to deny 

That I would feel a lot of pride 

In my research being recognized 

But if my work has no result

Even if it’s not my fault 

Forget about the paper

And enter the imposter

Science communicator:

Is there anything else you’d like to say?

Scientist:

I’m sure I am not the only one feeling this way

But I am wondering if I’ve got what it takes

Maybe science isn’t my fate

Public: 

I don’t have the answer to your question 

But I could offer a suggestion

In life, failure gives us scope to learn

Scientist: 

To be fair, it’s sometimes hard to discern

 When we fail or when we don’t

Science – It’s not black and white but grey

And you know what, that’s okay

Maybe there is no such thing as failure

And we may never know for sure

We need only to know when to put down the pen,

Asking a question once, then trying again 

Public:

For you I hope this isn’t the end 

You’re not an imposter, you’re a friend.

THE END. 

  

 A close-up of the words and phrases added to the lab coat by the public at our Southbank location. Words in pink represent success whilst words in green represent failure.

A link to the video performance: