Study of 12.5 million scientists links aging researcher workforce to declining scientific breakthroughs
By
The Economist
3d ago· 1 min readenNews
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Summary
A new study analyzing 12.5 million scientists finds that researchers become less likely to produce disruptive, transformative work as they age. Younger scientists tend to overturn established ideas or open new lines of inquiry, while older researchers increasingly build on existing theories. This suggests a reason why science overall is becoming less innovative and producing fewer breakthroughs.
Key quotes
· 3 pulledScientists become less likely to produce disruptive work as they age.
Younger researchers are more likely to overturn established ideas or open entirely new lines of inquiry.
Older ones still produce novel work, but increasingly build on existing theories.
A huge study suggests ageing scientists are part of the problem
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