Cambridge, UK and Cambridge, MA. Two cities twinned in scientific excellence as well as name. The banks of the Cam have nurtured the likes of Darwin, Kelvin, Newton and Rutherford, while the institutions north of the Charles River — Harvard and MIT — are modern intellectual powerhouses.
Lest I sound like some kind of scientific holiday brochure (now that’s an idea), I do have a reason for these musings. Over on Nature Network Boston, Prof Shuguang Zhang writes about his experiences working in the two Cambridges. After 19 years at MIT, he recently tried a six month spell over the pond as a Guggenheim fellow.
He notes major differences between the two cultures. In the UK, for example, researchers tend to think first (often over a cup of tea) and do later. In MA, the norm would be hasty, initial experiments as soon as the nugget of an idea forms.
So have a read and see whether you agree. I’d be particularly interested to hear the experiences of anyone who has done the reverse trip. It might make a nice companion article.
Bonus points to anyone who’s ever done science in London, Ontario.
I work in London, am going to London Ontario next week for a conference, and have a part-time job in Cambridge MA, does that count?
The website I work for, www.patientslikeme.com is based in Cambridge with me and another member of staff working remotely (LA and London). Interestingly there is another “Web 2.0” site split between the UK and US, the excellent Traineo.com.
I found a few of Prof Zhang’s comments particularly interesting. First off, the increased level of bureaucracy, red tape, and restrictions on funding that we face in the UK. If this is really true then we need to be flagging this up if we’re going to be competitive within Europe following the completion of the Bologna process in 2010, and also against the US.
Secondly campus security hindering interdisciplinary collaboration and cross-fertilisation is a great insight that I hadn’t noticed before. It’s true, I can’t get into Old Age Psychiatry and they can’t get into Psychology…
The third and perhaps most important point to me though was this: “I have found MIT researchers to be in general more adventurous and innovative in their efforts to translate their research into products.” The company I work for was founded by MIT graduates, Facebook & Traineo started at Harvard, etc. and whilst these companies are for-profit, they have had beneficial effects greater perhaps than initiatives launched by non-profits or educational entities. However in the UK we continue to be stifled by the notion that making money is “dirty” somehow.
I wonder if a more systematic approach to survey the two cultures could be helpful to develop some strategy….