Many famous artists over the centuries are known for having produced some of their finest work toward the ends of their lives. When it comes to the field of biomedical science, however, a researcher’s work doesn’t usually improve with age, according to a study published October 7 in the Journal of Human Resources. Based on an analysis of millions of publications over several decades, it finds that biomedical scientists hit their innovative and creative peak early in their careers—an assertion with complex implications for a field in which older, established scientists have an edge in gaining funding.
According to Ohio State University economist and study coauthor Bruce Weinberg, people have been investigating how a person’s creativity changes over time for thousands of years, and it became a formalized scientific question around 150 years ago. However, until recently researchers have lacked the tools necessary to investigate these patterns at a large ...
