Science Insurance

I stole this neat graphic from Science Notes, who in turn got it from somebody else.

When you think about it, a scientist is the last person you want in an emergency. This is the realm of the verbalizers, and shouters, power people, and walkie-talkie pushers. Tote that barge! Lift that bale! These people love a crisis, and prefer lurching from disaster to disaster.

Science Insurance is what you pay before the crisis, to either eliminate it, or reduce the impact. It's totally up to the power-people as to whether they want to pay this insurance, or not. For most of my career, they chose to pay, and I helped avoid many a potential disaster. But avoided disasters have no value, and soon, everybody decides not to pay their Science Insurance. And so, for the old company, when they run into a future disaster, such as a blown-up transformer, rock squeeze destroying the tunnel lining for Niagara, or finding that seismic issues will delay the new reactors, then it's too late. I can't do anything for them!

That's probably why I have my depressions. My mind is full of potential disasters, and they are constantly lurching towards them. When it happens, they just let things blow, kill a few people, and clean up afterward. They people in charge thrive on the excitement, since it validates their lives. :)