Ingenious : Kirk Johnson - Issue 33 : Attraction
▻http://nautil.us/issue/33/attraction/ingenious-kirk-johnson
Not all of the 100 million specimens that Kirk Johnson oversees as director of the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History can be seen or touched. For 20 years, Johnson has been collecting stories along with dinosaur bones and seed pods—stories of how a lifelong passion for science is sparked. His capacity as director gives him access to 1,000 museum employees, 8 million yearly museum visitors (the third-greatest total of any museum in the world), and countless colleagues and fellow scientists. Through a combination of everything from direct video interviews to anecdotal interactions, Johnson has developed a remarkable bird’s-eye view of what motivates (and de-motivates) young scientists today. Nautilus caught up with Johnson last month to talk about what he’s learned. And, (...)