Product Description

Santiago Ramon y Cajal was a mythic figure in science. Hailed as the father of modern anatomy and neurobiology, he was largely responsible for the modern conception of the brain. His groundbreaking works were New Ideas on the Structure of the Nervous System and Histology of the Nervous System in Man and Vertebrates. In addition to leaving a legacy of unparalleled scientific research, Cajal sought to educate the novice scientist about how science was done and how he thought it should be done. This recently rediscovered classic, first published in 1897, is an anecdotal guide for the perplexed new investigator as well as a refreshing resource for the old pro. Cajal was a pragmatist, aware of the pitfalls of being too idealistic - and he had a sense of humour, particularly evident in his diagnoses of various stereotypes of eccentric scientists. The book covers everything from valuable personality traits for an investigator to social factors conducive to scientific work.

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Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #373158 in Books
• Published on: 2004-04-02
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 172 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
Santiago Ramón y Cajal (1852-1934) was an incredible scientist--he made invaluable contributions to neuroanatomy, including some of the most beautiful scientific illustrations since Vesalius. He was also a popular author and above all a dedicated teacher, offering fatherly advice to students and young researchers on a wide range of topics. After he achieved success as a scientist, he wrote the first edition of Reglas y Consejos sobre Investigación Biológia (los tonicos de la voluntad) (1916). That work has been retranslated and presented by MIT Press as Advice for a Young Investigator. Although the wisdom contained in this slim, elegant volume is almost a century old, it's as fresh and useful today as it no doubt was then. What student or researcher wouldn't benefit from advice given by a mentor who has carefully examined his own life and career? Translator Larry Swanson writes in the foreword:

Hard work, ambition, patience, humility, seriousness and passion for work, family and country were among the traits he considered essential. But above all, master technique and produce original data; all the rest will follow.

Cajal's guidance on such things as the scientific method, resolve, undue admiration of authority, passion for reputation, reading and "diseases of the will" is priceless. Every page of this little book is filled with read-aloud gems:

If a solution fails to appear after all of this, and yet we feel success is just around the corner, try resting for a while.... Like the early morning frost, this intellectual refreshment withers the parasitic and nasty vegetation that smothers the good seed. Bursting forth at last is the flower of truth.

Whether you're writing a dissertation, conquering writer's block to get that paper submitted to a journal, beginning a new research project, or just starting out in a scientific career, Advice for a Young Investigator will inspire, edify and amuse you. --Therese Littleton, Amazon.com

Review
"In my own view, some advice about what should be known, about what technical education should be acquired, about the intense motivation needed to succeed, and about the carelessness and inclination toward bias that must be avoided is far more useful than all the rules and warnings of theoretical logic." - Santiago Ramon y Cajal"

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Customer Reviews

Edification for the researcher
What a fantastic book...this advice is so germane to those involved in any kind of research. While the work is ostensibly focused on the "young" investigator, I imagine that this advice could well be heeded by those older, and some more stagnant, researchers.

Still applies today
In this brief, well composed work, Cajal- a most notable scientist in his own right, outlines his thoughts on what it takes to succeed in science. In fact he covers most of the intangable information that I seem to remember learning in graduate school. Not a bad deal, a few nights reading as opposed to 7 years of indentured servitude.

More seriously, Cajal has a clear idea of what it means to be a scientist and what it takes to be a successful practitioner. He even provides some leavity in the form of diagnosees of scientists' personalities.

All in all a good book, what he said back in the early 1900's is as true today as it was then. I plan on giving copies of it to my grad-school bound students.