|
Trail
blazing science!
Alan
Finkel , Science Entrepreneur
& co-founder of Cosmos Magazine, Melbourne
April 12th finds me in the middle of a multi-month career
transition. For over 20 years, I ran a company named Axon
Instruments that made electronic amplifiers
and automated microscopes for neuroscientists
and researchers at pharmaceutical companies.
Prior to that I spent a couple of years as a postdoctoral
researcher but I realized that while I loved the neurosciences
I got more kicks out of making the
scientific instruments that enabled my research
than doing the research itself.
Recently, my company was purchased and as of the beginning
of 2006 I am officially retired but full of energy to do things.
One of the activities I have invested in is an unusual magazine
about science and society called Cosmos Magazine.
As it happens, today was one of those days where
not much worked out in the morning as planned:
there were phone calls about our magazine distribution strategy,
providing references for ex-employees, dealing with creating
a new web site that had a mind of its own,
organizing bank transfers and reviewing a possible investment
in a medical technology company.
But the most interesting part of the day was an afternoon
meeting I had with the publishing arm of the CSIRO (Australia's
national scientific research organization) to explore ways
that we could help each other in our mutual desire to inform
and inspire prospective scientists and engineers.
My interest
in science as a youngster was fuelled by reading books
on medicine, electronics and science. Magazines like Popular
Scientist,
Scientific American and even National Geographic
enthralled me with their descriptions
of trail blazing science and technology driven
exploration.
Last year, when I reviewed the science magazine landscape,
I didn't think it was as rich as what I recalled, which is
why I co-founded Cosmos Magazine to present science
in its true milieu,
which consists of the people behind it and a mixture of history
and sociology that gives it context.
|
|
