Last week, I heard a news that a Japanese young biologist, Dr. Haruko Obokata, found innovative discovery in stem cell research (Nature.com, The New York Times, WSFA.com, and blogs.discovermagazine.com...etc).
Here is her big finding: She found the easiest way to make stem cells. White blood cells from a baby mouse put in a mild acid solution for 25 min, stem cells (STAP cells) eventually emerge (!) that can turn into any other cell in the body, skin, heart, liver or neurons. That means, if our cells which consist of our body are taken out from somewhere in body, put in an acid solution, and culture for a while, we may be able to get our organs from these cells. So far, many researcher have tried to make stem cells from adult cells, but there is no known such an easy method of making it. (The 2012 Nobel Prize winner, Dr. Yamanaka found iPS cells which have similar character to STAP cells, but it is more complicate to make iPS than STAP cells.)
Every time I hear other researches find innovative discoveries, I admire them, of course. But to be honest, I hate to admire or feel frustrated simultaneously (I have small capacity...). Fortunately, her new discovery this time was not in my research area, so I don't feel bad strongly. But if scientists in my field discover great new findings, I will feel so uncomfortable. Am I the only one who thinks this? Am I like a child? I don't know.
However, I know it is quite meaningless to be frustrated by other's good performance. So, I should accept them and I should learn from those researchers. They must know a lot of things I don't know. For example,
1. In order to get new discoveries, how did they lead their new idea by themselves?
2. What was the thing that they struggled with the most and how did they overcome it?
3. Why didn't they gave up such difficult projects halfway?
I think these three answers derived from their experience are related to the strategy or methodology for challenging the unknown world. In order to find important discoveries in each fields, their experience will help not only me but also other people who are in different research area or who are not scientists.
In short, we should learn from discoverers and use their experience in each work. If we have some luck, we may be able to find big discoveries as well and to change the world. And we should do that.
Someday I want to become like this scientist and I want to become a researcher who are asked my experience by many people after finding new innovative discovery.
みなさんもニュース等でご存知の通り、理化学研究所の小保方晴子さんが画期的な発見をした。
彼女の大発見は、幹細胞を簡単に作る方法を見つけたことだ。ネズミの血液からリンパ球を取ってきて酸性の液に25分漬けたところ、リンパ球に変化が起こってもともとの幹細胞に戻った、そして、この幹細胞は脳や心臓になれる能力を持っていたというのだ。自分たち自身の血液から（血液以外の他の部位の細胞からも）、お手軽操作で皮膚、心臓、腎臓、肺、その他のいろんな臓器が作れるかもしれないということ。これまでの常識を覆す発見だということは言うまでもない。同様の幹細胞研究は2012年ノーベル賞受賞者の山中伸弥先生をはじめ世界中の多くの研究者が挑戦してきたけど、ここまで簡単に幹細胞を作る方法は知られていなかった。
こういった大発見を聞くたびに毎度驚かされるし、発見者にはもちろん敬意を払う。でも、正直言うと、うれしいことなんか一つもなくて悔しい気持ちでいっぱいだ（人間が小せぇ…）。当然、今回の新発見も本当にすばらしいことはよーくわかる。ただ、「先にやられた。」という悔しい気持ちのほうが断然強い。幸い、今回のは自分と競合する研究分野ではないからまだよいものの、もし同じ分野の研究者たちがこんな成果を発表したとしたら、「くそー、その手があったか！」と悔しさは一層激しいだろう。
でも、悔しがってばかりいても仕方ない。発見者は、ぼくが知らないことをたくさん知ってる。アイディアを思いついた背景、苦労したときそれをどう乗り越えたか、途中で投げ出さなかった理由、をよく覚えているはずだ。つまり、誰もしらない世界をどういう戦略とか方法論で切り開いたのか、ということを新発見者は経験を通して知っている。
彼ら彼女らの経験は、ぼくもそうだし他分野の研究者、研究じゃない他の仕事をしている人にだって間違いなく参考になるはず。経験を自分たちも真似て、我々仕事に取り入れてさらに自分の経験をも入れることで、もしかしたら同様なビッグな発見ができるかもしれないという気がしてならない。というか、そうすべきだ。
いつかは自分も経験を聞かれるほうにまわりたいものだ。
Here is her big finding: She found the easiest way to make stem cells. White blood cells from a baby mouse put in a mild acid solution for 25 min, stem cells (STAP cells) eventually emerge (!) that can turn into any other cell in the body, skin, heart, liver or neurons. That means, if our cells which consist of our body are taken out from somewhere in body, put in an acid solution, and culture for a while, we may be able to get our organs from these cells. So far, many researcher have tried to make stem cells from adult cells, but there is no known such an easy method of making it. (The 2012 Nobel Prize winner, Dr. Yamanaka found iPS cells which have similar character to STAP cells, but it is more complicate to make iPS than STAP cells.)
Every time I hear other researches find innovative discoveries, I admire them, of course. But to be honest, I hate to admire or feel frustrated simultaneously (I have small capacity...). Fortunately, her new discovery this time was not in my research area, so I don't feel bad strongly. But if scientists in my field discover great new findings, I will feel so uncomfortable. Am I the only one who thinks this? Am I like a child? I don't know.
However, I know it is quite meaningless to be frustrated by other's good performance. So, I should accept them and I should learn from those researchers. They must know a lot of things I don't know. For example,
1. In order to get new discoveries, how did they lead their new idea by themselves?
2. What was the thing that they struggled with the most and how did they overcome it?
3. Why didn't they gave up such difficult projects halfway?
I think these three answers derived from their experience are related to the strategy or methodology for challenging the unknown world. In order to find important discoveries in each fields, their experience will help not only me but also other people who are in different research area or who are not scientists.
In short, we should learn from discoverers and use their experience in each work. If we have some luck, we may be able to find big discoveries as well and to change the world. And we should do that.
Someday I want to become like this scientist and I want to become a researcher who are asked my experience by many people after finding new innovative discovery.
みなさんもニュース等でご存知の通り、理化学研究所の小保方晴子さんが画期的な発見をした。
彼女の大発見は、幹細胞を簡単に作る方法を見つけたことだ。ネズミの血液からリンパ球を取ってきて酸性の液に25分漬けたところ、リンパ球に変化が起こってもともとの幹細胞に戻った、そして、この幹細胞は脳や心臓になれる能力を持っていたというのだ。自分たち自身の血液から（血液以外の他の部位の細胞からも）、お手軽操作で皮膚、心臓、腎臓、肺、その他のいろんな臓器が作れるかもしれないということ。これまでの常識を覆す発見だということは言うまでもない。同様の幹細胞研究は2012年ノーベル賞受賞者の山中伸弥先生をはじめ世界中の多くの研究者が挑戦してきたけど、ここまで簡単に幹細胞を作る方法は知られていなかった。
こういった大発見を聞くたびに毎度驚かされるし、発見者にはもちろん敬意を払う。でも、正直言うと、うれしいことなんか一つもなくて悔しい気持ちでいっぱいだ（人間が小せぇ…）。当然、今回の新発見も本当にすばらしいことはよーくわかる。ただ、「先にやられた。」という悔しい気持ちのほうが断然強い。幸い、今回のは自分と競合する研究分野ではないからまだよいものの、もし同じ分野の研究者たちがこんな成果を発表したとしたら、「くそー、その手があったか！」と悔しさは一層激しいだろう。
でも、悔しがってばかりいても仕方ない。発見者は、ぼくが知らないことをたくさん知ってる。アイディアを思いついた背景、苦労したときそれをどう乗り越えたか、途中で投げ出さなかった理由、をよく覚えているはずだ。つまり、誰もしらない世界をどういう戦略とか方法論で切り開いたのか、ということを新発見者は経験を通して知っている。
彼ら彼女らの経験は、ぼくもそうだし他分野の研究者、研究じゃない他の仕事をしている人にだって間違いなく参考になるはず。経験を自分たちも真似て、我々仕事に取り入れてさらに自分の経験をも入れることで、もしかしたら同様なビッグな発見ができるかもしれないという気がしてならない。というか、そうすべきだ。
いつかは自分も経験を聞かれるほうにまわりたいものだ。
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