The Rocket That Launched a Million Careers in STEM

The world’s biggest rock star right now is the James Webb Space Telescope.

The James Webb Space Telescope first full-color image unveiling event was hosted at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center July 12, 2022. Pictured is the pep squad who got the crowd excited before the broadcast. Photo (Credit: NASA Goddard/Taylor Mickal)

There are thousands of scientific specialties; a million fascinating fields of study on which to focus. Everything from the tiniest nanoparticles in quantum entanglement experiments to the largest objects in our solar system has its own scientific acolytes and dedicates.

But the biggest, most influential branch of science, has probably always been the Why Sciences.

Whoever called necessity the mother of invention was only half right. Invention has a million mothers- necessity is only one of them. Another mother of invention has been humankind’s epic struggle to make camping easier- which we can thank for things like indoor plumbing.

Another mother of invention, unfortunately, has been the arms race.

Invention’s most prolific mother, however, has been the Why Sciences.

Many scientists pursue a lifetime of professional obsession in a variety of subjects and disciplines for one very simple reason: They want to know why.

Scientists aren’t all looking for something specific; they aren’t all interested in the practical applications of their experiments and some even less so in any potential financial remuneration.