Not long ago I was talking to a friend who is doing an academic course in renewable and sustainable energy. He is a physicist who acts as a reviewer for a couple of learned journals and also has his own instrument manufacturing company that he has built on the research that earned him his PhD. Not surprising he has a very good mind that has been enhanced by the combination of academic distinction and the more practical problem solving skills required in the commercial world.
When we had last met, he was worried. His company was going through difficult times – no fault of his own – and he had a wife and family to consider. He was well aware that government cutbacks in funding for his field would make it very difficult, if things went seriously wrong with the business, to find work in the only profession for which he was qualified; as a research scientist. Jokingly I suggested that he should dream up some spurious application that his instruments might have in climate research, and then sit back while the grants rolled in. That was when he said that he was doing the renewables course, just as insurance against hard times.
When we met again, the other day, we talked about the course. Continue reading »
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