Why I love reading papers
A youthful ode to science discoveries.
The Intelligent Friend - The newsletter about the AI-humans relationships, based only on scientific papers.
Hi IF readers! This will be a slightly different issue from the others, but - I hope - no less engaging. In this period I'm reading a lot about the 'pleasure of science' and so I wanted to write a personal piece for the first time where I have my say. Also because I think that, on the one hand, it's nice to find different content; on the other, to nourish a community of readers I also want to share something about myself with you, what I like, what I think and much more. In short, a way to get to know each other better. Honestly, it's a piece that I personally appreciated and worked a lot on. If you like this type of pieces, don't hesitate to let me know in the comments.
Good discovery.
‘Why do you love reading papers?’
It may seem strange to you, but I have been asked this question many times over the last year. Much more than you think. The reason, at least at first glance, is quite simple: I read a lot of scientific papers, I talk about them with my friends and now I write about them continuously in my newsletter, The Intelligent Friend. What is the missing piece? That I am 23 years old - just turned - and my friends and people I know are often surprised by the 'spasmodic passion' (to quote one of my dearest friends) that I have for this type of reading. I'm about to finish my master's degree, so people consider me sometimes 'strangely young' for this strong interest. But I think that in reality it depends above all on the field in which I am a student: Economics and specifically Marketing, where the majority of students have other objectives that are slightly different from the idea of an academic career - which is what I would like to pursue. A clarification: when I talk about scientific papers I am talking about everything that is research published - or that is written with the aim of being so - in a journal or scientific magazine (so also preprints). Usually, there are basically three things that surprise people:
The first is the number of papers I read. On average, also for the newsletter that I read every week, I read around 10/15 papers a week. I know they may not be considered many. I don't actually know, but for people close to me they are a good number.
The second is the variety of them. I mainly read studies in the field of Consumer Behavior and Marketing, but in recent months I have discovered the beauty of reading not only Psychology and Computer Science studies, but also biology ones, neuroscience papers and much more.
Finally, enthusiasm. When I talk about research, they tell me that I am struck by a 'contagious energy' bordering on 'passion for a football team' (a sport which in Italy, where I come from, as you will imagine, is a pillar of daily life and of any chat at the bar).
Therefore, all these motivations, and my interest which I would not define as 'surprising' at all, led me to write this short essay also inspired by absolute giants whose writings I am reading in depth, such as Richard Feynman, and brilliant contemporary minds such as Jim Al-Khalili and Daniela Rus.
Creation and sharing
The first reason why I love reading papers is something very 'inspirational', abstract, in some ways. The reason lies, that is, in the purpose of scientific publications (or at least as I interpret it): the creation of knowledge. I know that behind every study there is a team of scholars who aim to make their studies known, perhaps aiming for better job positions, benefits and so on. But I would remain on the true essence of the question: studies are conducted, first and foremost, to advance knowledge on a specific topic, starting from what has been said by other scholars. This, I think, is an incredible goal of one's work, of immeasurable value, and which truly fills a person in his daily work. Naturally there is scientific research that is more or less applicable, more or less engaging and exciting, and more or less impactful from many points of view. But, as you may have guessed, I would stick to the nitty-gritty of what we're talking about. Scientific papers see the work of one or more researchers who, starting from an idea regarding something they have read, studied, seen, develop it until it becomes a study of various types and then request its publication - or publish it as a 'preprint'. But the point is that that small piece of knowledge shared online aims to advance knowledge in some way, it aims to raise awareness of certain themes or advances, in short it creates knowledge. This is an aim of the work that has always fascinated me, and one of the reasons why I am always passionate about reading the final parts of the papers, which usually - especially in the social sciences but not only - are dedicated to suggestions for the development of research future. And this is also why I have always been constantly fascinated by the figure of the 'scientist', in the broad sense, and by the people who, regardless of their specific field of interest, have shown how to make a contribution to humanity, a different perspective on knowledge and so on. As I mentioned before, in this period I am having the pleasure of reading, for example, the books by Richard Feyman on the 'pleasure of discovering' and by Al Khalili on the 'joy of science'. I think similar books should be suggested in all schools and colleges.
The second reason why I like to spend time losing papers is knowledge sharing. And this is where I would like to focus. My interest is a continuous osmosis between what is created and what is shared. Think about it. Think of great scientific research capable, for example, of inspiring a new drug for Alzheimer's. What value would that research have if it were not disseminated, if it was not published and shared? Naturally, I won't go into ontological questions that people who are enormously more profound and knowledgeable than me can put into action, regarding for example the fact that - as argued by Yann LeCun, a paper actually becomes 'science' when it is published. And therefore, in reality, a scientific study is ontologically connected to its publication and sharing.
Instead, I would like to emphasize the importance of sharing that knowledge in a broader way, beyond the simple paper that is disseminated. It is no coincidence that my newsletter is nothing more than a great effort to share the work of many researchers who strive every day to advance knowledge. And I try to do it in more or less original, more or less engaging ways. That's because there is also a great deal of scientific research that doesn't get the attention it deserves or sees few readers.
Sharing efforts are fundamental, among non-academics, to spread not only the value of specific research, but also of research in a broad sense, and to always bring people closer to science. Here, directly deriving from this, I am increasingly fascinated by interdisciplinary papers - which have always been debated in the various disciplines, capable of sharing different perspectives and suggesting more ways of expansion and future discovery.
I'd like to take advantage of this moment to also tell some background about The Intelligent Friend. Maybe you have wondered, for example, how I find and choose the papers I talk about in the various issues. The truth is that the process is much simpler than it seems: driven by my passion, I search scholar and read different papers, looking for those that may be most interesting for the community. One thing I do - and which is the first time I've revealed - is to have a dedicated space in the Notes (on iPhone) where I mark links to different studies. But newsletters also often inspire me: I have a folder on Gmail named after an area of New York (but I won't reveal which one!) in which I insert all the issues that have struck me and which I want to read later, mahari because I can't in that precise moment. They are usually the same that you see me comment or share in the Notes.
Curiosity matters, but not just in the sense you think
But let's get back to us. You have therefore understood that above all I love spending time reading scientific research due to this continuous osmosis between sharing and creating knowledge. Related to this is that - you may have guessed - I am a very curious person. It is certainly a helpful trait and perhaps something common in all aspiring and actual researchers.
However, I would also like to add one thing to this: although curiosity is partly innate, there is a good part that can be trained. One of the first memories I have of myself as a child is me on a rug on my stomach reading an animal atlas - one of my favorite book categories. Of course, you might say, as a particularly curious child you dove into this reading (which, of course, I didn't understand everything!). But in reality, growing up, I remember that in moments when I was bored I trained this sense of curiosity by sometimes spending time reading things that were around the house, or understanding why something I had seen on TV had particularly surprised me.
In short, one thing I would suggest is to train curiosity. And naturally, if on the one hand the papers satisfy this trait of mine, on the other they continuously stimulate it, because there is always research that you haven't read yet, that you can read. This is another big reason why I am attached to scientific studies. In short, the point is the discovery of something new, something that fascinates me, that strikes me, that pushes me to know more and more. And I feel lucky every time I read a study that makes me feel these feelings.
In the mind of those who seek
If we consider this as the third point on this list of 'whys', I would like to add one now much more linked to the concreteness of the study but no less important. I think that reading a person's work directly is the absolute best way to understand their way of thinking, their approaches, their mental paths, their inspirations, their references, their methods. I remember that, for example, recently reading the book "If Nietzsche Were a Narwhal: What Animal Intelligence Reveals About Human Stupidity", I came across a study regarding the social structures of some groups of macaques.
I know, you will have understood that I am passionate about animal research, so I won't specify it further (among other things, if you are interested, several truly fascinating issues have been published by
in which connect technology, animals and many other research). The point is that, reading what the author of the book, Justin Gregg, said, I was truly amazed at the intuition of the authors of the cited paper. So I went to look for it and read it carefully. I felt transported side by side to the laboratory table, at home or in a cafeteria where the scholars had reasoned. I recognized - as far as I understood - the path taken, I studied his method in greater depth and then understood the general approach even more. I think this exercise is excellent, regardless of the fact that there will be some passages that are naturally difficult for those who do not have a preparation background on the topic.I would call it Science Reverse Engineering: trying to understand as much as possible the origin and approach of the study to fully understand it. I think it's a fascinating and challenging operation. And I didn't use this last term by chance. Because in this motivation linked to the scholar's approach there is also the need to put yourself in his shoes to understand what the challenge he wanted to face is: why did he choose that topic exactly? Why that solution?
People often think of scientists or researchers as people who inspire a lot from the inside and then publish outward. I believe that there is instead an important component of inspiration and challenge even to oneself which has an important weight also in the efforts made by the same individual scholar or team of academics. The challenge, the understanding of the approach and reasoning of the scholars are another reason why I love reading the papers.
This was a different issue than usual, I know, but I hope you enjoyed it anyway. I think sharing personal perspectives is also important to get to know the person you are writing to better, and to be able to discuss while also going beyond the topic usually discussed. I would really like to know your opinion on what I wrote. Even a brief comment would be of extreme value to me, also to understand whether to bring similar essays in the future.
Before going I would like to mention some newsletters that I constantly read and that give me inspiration by quoting various scientific papers in their splendid issues:
- by : a reliable newsletter, full of insights and that will make you passionate about education and the application of AI;
- by : if you are a curious person, you will love this newsletter;
- by : culture and society and much more on a scientific basis;
- by : many interesting papers on education that will surprise you.
Thank you as always,
Riccardo
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In addition to your example of a focused learner motivated by a desire to know scientifically about the world, I admire your capacity to break down disciplinary walls despite the challenge of absence of prior knowledge. The fact that you don’t stop with the text but continue deeper to explore citations over time will build interconnected reservoirs of active knowledge to support ever increasing levels of comprehension across areas of science. You’ll also find yourself improving critical thinking and making creative connections that will lend you the aura of a magician. Finally, I LOVE that you read science with the same emotion others read literature. I have a similar tendency. You and Suzi share a strong intelligence and intense drive to understand reality mirroring the deepest goals of teachers. Plus it is just plain fun to read both of you. If I were still teaching EDU 250, Research Methods, I would assign this post to my students, Riccardo. In the middle of it all, you discuss every important facet of reading a study—the payoff is the discussion at the end with pointers to future research and then scouring the reference list. 👏
Thanks so much for the shout out, Riccardo!
Curiosity is a wonderful thing! And reading about what sparks yours was a nice change up. As you mentioned, it's probably not practical to spend every moment of the day with child-like wonder, but I like the idea of spending at least some of the day with the wonder and curiosity of a child. The world really is full of wonderful things to explore.