---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The scientist-community guy may get a…"
description: "\"The scientist-community guy may get a $500,000 grant, and if his equipment works or doesn't work, he still gets a gold star for doing the science exper..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93e/james-balog-18078_anything_the-scientist-community-guy-may-get-a-50_2692190.jpg"
---

#  The scientist-community guy may get a $500,000 grant, and…

![“The scientist-community guy may get a $500,000 grant, and if his equipment works or doesn't work, he still gets a gold star for doing the science experiment. For me, there is no merit in anything for doing an experiment; I have to go home with pictures.” quote by James Balog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93e/james-balog-18078_anything_the-scientist-community-guy-may-get-a-50_2692190.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93e/james-balog-18078_anything_the-scientist-community-guy-may-get-a-50_2692190.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93e/james-balog-18078_anything_the-scientist-community-guy-may-get-a-50_2692190.jpg)

> “The scientist-community guy may get a $500,000 grant, and if his equipment works or doesn't work, he still gets a gold star for doing the science experiment. For me, there is no merit in anything for doing an experiment; I have to go home with pictures.”

[James Balog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-balog/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Grants reward experiments regardless of outcomes, but personal fulfillment comes from sharing results.

**In simple terms:** Science rewards effort, but meaning needs sharing.

Key Takeaway

Share findings for true reward.

Themes

science grant culture recognition personal fulfillment

Mood

analytical thoughtful

Type

essay academic

When to use this quote

- grant applications
- conference presentations
- public outreach

Key Concepts

academic incentives research ethics communication

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you measure success beyond funding?
- What stories do you want to tell?

A Different Perspective

Metrics can distort true scientific value.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Experiment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/experiment/) [Gold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gold/) [Home](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/home/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Star](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/star/) [Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work/)

## Related quotes

> [If you're doing an experiment, you should report everything that you think might make it invalid - not only what you think is right…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-feynman/if-you-re-doing-an-experiment-you-should-report-everything-that-you/)

[Richard P. Feynman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-p-feynman/)

> [Doing an experiment is not more important than writing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-boring/doing-an-experiment-is-not-more-important-than-writing/)

Edwin Boring

> [Magic is antiphysics, so it can't really exist. But is shares one thing with science. I can explain the principle behind a good science…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/koji-nakanishi/magic-is-antiphysics-so-it-can-t-really-exist-but-is-shares-one-thing/)

Koji Nakanishi

> [ \[Math is\] not at all like science. There's no experiment I can do with test tubes and equipment and whatnot that will tell me… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-lockhart/math-is-not-at-all-like-science-there-s-no-experiment-i-can-do-with/)

[Paul Lockhart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-lockhart/)

> [“Was I a science experiment? Did he want to pin me down and dissect me?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-young/was-i-a-science-experiment-did-he-want-to-pin-me-down-and-dissect-me/)

[Suzanne Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-young/)

> [Everyone knows that we're doing a science experiment with Earth. And the No. 1, No. 2, No. 3, No. 4 contributors to it are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-f-kennedy-jr/everyone-knows-that-we-re-doing-a-science-experiment-with-earth-and/)

[Robert F. Kennedy, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-f-kennedy-jr/)

> [“I didn't crawl out from under a rock, you know." "I never thought you crawled out from under a rock. I thought you were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-thornton/i-didn-t-crawl-out-from-under-a-rock-you-know-i-never-thought-you/)

[Marshall Thornton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-thornton/)

> [One of the things I like about doing science, the thing that is the most fun, is coming up with something that seems ridiculous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fischer-black/one-of-the-things-i-like-about-doing-science-the-thing-that-is-the/)

[Fischer Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fischer-black/)

> [Even when I wasn't doing much 'science for the public' stuff, I found that four or five hours of intense work in physics was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-greene/even-when-i-wasn-t-doing-much-science-for-the-public-stuff-i-found/)

[Brian Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-greene/)

> [The reason I spend so much of my time doing science is that the whole point of science is to help people resolve conflicting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-ornish/the-reason-i-spend-so-much-of-my-time-doing-science-is-that-the-whole/)

[Dean Ornish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-ornish/)

> [There are checks and balances in science. There's somebody checking the people doing the science, and then there's somebody who checks the checkers and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-shermer/there-are-checks-and-balances-in-science-there-s-somebody-checking/)

[Michael Shermer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-shermer/)

> [But the context of religion is a great background for doing science. In the words of Psalm 19, 'The heavens declare the glory of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-leonard-schawlow/but-the-context-of-religion-is-a-great-background-for-doing-science/)

[Arthur Leonard Schawlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-leonard-schawlow/)

> [We have this very clean picture of science, you know, these well-established rules with which we make predictions. But when you're really doing science,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-randall/we-have-this-very-clean-picture-of-science-you-know-these-well/)

[Lisa Randall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-randall/)

> [One of the reasons for its success is that science has a built-in, error-correcting machinery at its very heart. Some may consider this an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/one-of-the-reasons-for-its-success-is-that-science-has-a-built-in/)

[Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/)

> [“We are all Rumsfeldian, if we are doing science right.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rutherford/we-are-all-rumsfeldian-if-we-are-doing-science-right/)

[Adam Rutherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-rutherford/)

## More by James Balog

> [We still carry this old caveman-imprint idea that we're small, nature's big, and it's everything we can manage to hang on and survive. When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-balog/we-still-carry-this-old-caveman-imprint-idea-that-we-re-small-nature/)

[James Balog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-balog/)

> [Climate change should not fundamentally be seen as a political or partisan issue, but it has been turned into a political football primarily by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-balog/climate-change-should-not-fundamentally-be-seen-as-a-political-or/)

[James Balog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-balog/)

> [Once upon a time, I was a climate-change skeptic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-balog/once-upon-a-time-i-was-a-climate-change-skeptic/)

[James Balog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-balog/)

> [I've always believed that photography is a way to shape human perception.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-balog/i-ve-always-believed-that-photography-is-a-way-to-shape-human/)

[James Balog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-balog/)

> [Ultimately, we have to ask ourselves an essential spiritual and ethical question: Are we the kind of people who take everything for ourselves and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-balog/ultimately-we-have-to-ask-ourselves-an-essential-spiritual-and/)

[James Balog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-balog/)

> [You know, I've read Joseph Conrad's 'Heart of Darkness' about fifteen times.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-balog/you-know-i-ve-read-joseph-conrad-s-heart-of-darkness-about-fifteen/)

[James Balog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-balog/)

> [Hindsight can be merciless. People of any given era often look back in time and wonder how their predecessors could have been so dimwitted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-balog/hindsight-can-be-merciless-people-of-any-given-era-often-look-back-in/)

[James Balog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-balog/)

> [It's important to recognise that humans are not the measure of all things... The Earth is the measure of all things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-balog/it-s-important-to-recognise-that-humans-are-not-the-measure-of-all/)

[James Balog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-balog/)

> [The problem is almost everybody is just recording the world with home photographic toys, not doing metaphor or ideas. We have a photographic culture…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-balog/the-problem-is-almost-everybody-is-just-recording-the-world-with-home/)

[James Balog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-balog/)

> [I have often thought that my work with wildlife taught me the meaning of patience, and my work with the big trees taught me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-balog/i-have-often-thought-that-my-work-with-wildlife-taught-me-the-meaning/)

[James Balog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-balog/)

> [When I worked with wildlife a lot in the Eighties and Nineties, I learnt the meaning of patience. And when I worked with trees,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-balog/when-i-worked-with-wildlife-a-lot-in-the-eighties-and-nineties-i/)

[James Balog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-balog/)

> [I've got at least two major project ideas that I've been chewing on for several years in my head and I've been trying to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-balog/i-ve-got-at-least-two-major-project-ideas-that-i-ve-been-chewing-on/)

[James Balog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-balog/)

> [You know, we humans are programmed to think that big changes on the Earth happened a long time ago, or will happen a long…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-balog/you-know-we-humans-are-programmed-to-think-that-big-changes-on-the/)

[James Balog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-balog/)

> [I was raised a Catholic as a boy and went to a Catholic boys' high school, a private school, and kind of drifted away,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-balog/i-was-raised-a-catholic-as-a-boy-and-went-to-a-catholic-boys-high/)

[James Balog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-balog/)

> [Climate change is a really abstract thing in most of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-balog/climate-change-is-a-really-abstract-thing-in-most-of-the-world/)

[James Balog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-balog/)

[Explore all 35 James Balog quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-balog/)

## More Anything quotes

> [I guess I've never really wanted to be anything else. I've never even thought about having another job.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/owen-farrell/i-guess-i-ve-never-really-wanted-to-be-anything-else-i-ve-never-even/)

[Owen Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/owen-farrell/)

> [I would give anything to be able to kick a ball with my son or read the kids a bedtime story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-burrow/i-would-give-anything-to-be-able-to-kick-a-ball-with-my-son-or-read/)

[Rob Burrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-burrow/)

> [Comfort food is really anything you want at that time. That said, I really love Naple-style pizza.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoffrey-zakarian/comfort-food-is-really-anything-you-want-at-that-time-that-said-i/)

[Geoffrey Zakarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoffrey-zakarian/)

> [I haven't shut any doors, and I'm really open to anything, so I think it's just about the material and what is going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danielle-panabaker/i-haven-t-shut-any-doors-and-i-m-really-open-to-anything-so-i-think/)

[Danielle Panabaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danielle-panabaker/)

> [When it really comes down to it, the job you do is more important and is more representative of who you are than your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-cudlitz/when-it-really-comes-down-to-it-the-job-you-do-is-more-important-and/)

[Michael Cudlitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-cudlitz/)

> [The reason I'm drawn to it is - both the off road racing and the motorcycles on the track - it takes a lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dax-shepard/the-reason-i-m-drawn-to-it-is-both-the-off-road-racing-and-the/)

[Dax Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dax-shepard/)

> [I never did drama at school. I did it for one term, when it was compulsory, and I hated it. Tennis was the main…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-mitchell/i-never-did-drama-at-school-i-did-it-for-one-term-when-it-was/)

[Luke Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-mitchell/)

> [We live in such a special time when literally anything we can think of is possible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-willey/we-live-in-such-a-special-time-when-literally-anything-we-can-think/)

[Daniel Willey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-willey/)

> [You know, I'm from Baltimore; nobody has anything. When somebody had talent, I was hiring my uncle, my cousin, you know? Getting people that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sisqo/you-know-i-m-from-baltimore-nobody-has-anything-when-somebody-had/)

[Sisqo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sisqo/)

> [I said to my agent, 'I want short, sharp, well-paid jobs because I haven't got time for anything else.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billie-whitelaw/i-said-to-my-agent-i-want-short-sharp-well-paid-jobs-because-i-haven/)

[Billie Whitelaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billie-whitelaw/)

> [I think anything that anyone writes thats any good is going to have a lot of autobiography.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-adly-guirgis/i-think-anything-that-anyone-writes-thats-any-good-is-going-to-have-a/)

[Stephen Adly Guirgis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-adly-guirgis/)

> [If the Bible is correct, and the Earth is only 6,000 years old, that means there were no dinosaurs, and museum curators have been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-shock/if-the-bible-is-correct-and-the-earth-is-only-6-000-years-old-that/)

[Ron Shock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-shock/)

> [Don't do anything drastic like getting your eyebrows tattooed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greta-lee/don-t-do-anything-drastic-like-getting-your-eyebrows-tattooed/)

[Greta Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greta-lee/)

> [Whenever you define family as anything other than a man and a woman married together, you have just introduced an ethical nightmare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-evans/whenever-you-define-family-as-anything-other-than-a-man-and-a-woman/)

[Tony Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-evans/)

> [No lusting after your neighbor's house - or wife or servant or maid or ox or donkey. Don't set your heart on anything that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moses/no-lusting-after-your-neighbor-s-house-or-wife-or-servant-or-maid-or/)

[Moses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moses/)

Browse all 9,437 Anything quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "The scientist-community guy may get a $500,000 grant, and if his equipment works or doesn't work, he still gets a gold star for doing the science experiment. For me, there is no merit in anything for doing an experiment; I have to go home with pictures.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "James Balog"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-balog/the-scientist-community-guy-may-get-a-500-000-grant-and-if-his/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Anything"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-balog/the-scientist-community-guy-may-get-a-500-000-grant-and-if-his/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93e/james-balog-18078_anything_the-scientist-community-guy-may-get-a-50_2692190.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93e/james-balog-18078_anything_the-scientist-community-guy-may-get-a-50_2692190.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93e/james-balog-18078_anything_the-scientist-community-guy-may-get-a-50_2692190.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“The scientist-community guy may get a $500,000 grant, and if his equipment works or doesn't work, he still…” — James Balog",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "James Balog",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-balog/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "The scientist-community guy may get a...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-balog/the-scientist-community-guy-may-get-a-500-000-grant-and-if-his/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-balog/the-scientist-community-guy-may-get-a-500-000-grant-and-if-his/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
