FISHING

Reading this book currently. Its free and interesting data driven approach to study how science works. It ends talking, like most things do lately, about AI. But still really interesting stuff, even that section I learned something new. 

One really cool thing it talks about is that persistence seems to pay off in making scientific discoveries, but also to this, that making scientific discoveries is kind of random. 

This they discovered because they were trying to find evidence for the "young discoverer" hypothesis. What they found did support this, in that 10-20 years after you start your scientific career is usually when you make your most major scientific discovery. 

However, what they also found that if you randomize the scientific discoveries, so keep when the papers were published throughout a scientists career constant, and randomize the impact. They demonstrate that it occurs in the same 10-20 year span. 

This means that discoveries are not related to peoples' ages at all, but times of productivity which is usually when people are early in their career. 

Pretty much this could be compared to just drawing cards. When people are more productive, their drawing more cards consistently. 

Scientific discoveries in this way seem more like fishing. 
If you're on the water more you're gunna catch more fish. 
The authors also found this with other fields of creation, artists and directors, and I imagine writers. 


So keep fishing everyday you never know when you'll catch something big.