SIDEBAR: Online Career Information For Scientists
"I find it fascinating when people say they're bored with what they're doing," says Fields, chief scientific officer of newly formed Molecular Informatics Inc., a Santa Fe, N.Mex., company specializing in data systems to organize gene sequence information. "I can't imagine continuing to work on something if that's the case."
Fields, of course, is not the first restless researcher to forget the obstacles and switch careers. Earlier this century, a handful of physicists-including Max Delbruck and Francis Crick-launched the study of molecular biology. Trading physical systems for the living cell, these pioneers revolutionized science.
While some scientists abandon lifelong projects for a totally different subject, others move from basic research into more applied areas or catch an employment wave-bioinformatics, for example-to launch new careers.
MARKETPLACE VENTURES: Career advisor Stephen Rosen sees a trend in job choices. "Today, many scientists are dovetailing their supporting or ...
