Interviews with university professors where they have fancy equipment

[tectonicplates]

Sorry, a first world problem here, and no, it's not the worst thing going on in my life.

I sometimes see interviews or documentaries with university lecturers/researchers talking about a topic, and they'll have all this big, fancy equipment and machines etc where they explain what they're measuring. I always think to myself, but we never had any of that when I was at uni, certainly not in my department anyway. Do most universities have large rooms full of all this fancy stuff, or do the programme makers search around until they find the one university that has up-to-date equipment? At first I wondered if it was because I went to a non-Russell Group university which isn't as impressive as others, but actually it often seems to be the newer universities that have all this fancy equipment.

Am I overanalysing?

What do you mean?

History, or english professors no I wouldn’t expect big fancy machines, just books. Lots of books.

However I did science at uni nearly 30 years ago and yes, we had all the big fancy machines. Generally they were the research labs though, so undergrads would only see or use them if they had reason to visit or use that lab, to see a tutor or a dissertation project, for example.

Professors usually oversee their research labs alongside lectures. Ime the professor would have their own office - with books not machines!- but if the press were round for any reason the media types loved to have the big fancy machines and the little postgrad beavers with their gilsens pipetting away in the background. That would be the only time you saw the prof in the lab!

How long ago did you go to Uni and did you study a similar subject?

Maybe technology has moved on since you went and the gadgets they have now weren't available back then.

Generally they were the research labs though, so undergrads would only see or use them if they had reason to visit or use that lab, to see a tutor or a dissertation project, for example.

Professors usually oversee their research labs alongside lectures. Ime the professor would have their own office - with books not machines!- but if the press were round for any reason the media types loved to have the big fancy machines and the little postgrad beavers with their gilsens pipetting away in the background. That would be the only time you saw the prof in the lab!

Ah, that probably explains it then!

I didn't do a science degree but I imagine some/most unis have fancy equipment that they only let researchers and postgrads near and the undergraduates never go near/into that lab.

I couldn't get access to some data recently because I wasn't doing a PhD.

@HilaryBriss

How long ago did you go to Uni and did you study a similar subject?

Maybe technology has moved on since you went and the gadgets they have now weren't available back then.

Only a few years ago. I had seen documentaries beforehand, so I was surprised when I went to uni and never saw any of this stuff. I wondered if it was just mine, but maybe like a pp said it's hidden away unless you're doing specific research.

Most undergrads never step foot in the real labs, but they do exist.

Right well, looks like I'd have to do a Masters and/or PhD in order to see these fancy things.

@GlowingOrb

Most undergrads never step foot in the real labs, but they do exist.

This.

The teaching labs are not the real labs!!

tectonicplates If you are in London you could go to the British library? I always feel fancy when I go into a reading room and am only allowed to bring pencils.

Most undergrads never step foot in the real labs, but they do exist

Maybe it’s just my uni but all undergrads did at least one research project so saw what “real” labs were like. I think it does depend on whether you go to a “research” or “teaching” uni though, mine was renowned for producing excellent research and excellent PhD candidates. The uni my sibling went to was teaching focussed, had few research labs, and their graduates were in demand for technical and practical vocations rather than research.

People buy or build equipment out of their research funds as well as items the University buys. I know DH has a microscope and a student accidentally damaged it. To replace the part was going to cost 10k and this was a decade ago.

He has designed unique pieces of kit and the incredibly skilled technicians in his dept built it with him so it’s the only one with those exact specifications in the world. The design, finding funding and the build takes months. So it’s incredibly unlikely those bits of equipment would ever be used by an undergraduate.

The other thing is something that looks fancy may indeed not be that fancy. Russell group universities are more research focussed and usually richer though currently all my ex colleagues have been offered redundancy and that’s two leading RG Universities.

I do know someone who was required to go to a totally unrelated department and stand casually against a very fancy-looking bit of kit while talking about her research, and all of her colleagues were pissing themselves because, if you know anything about either subject, it is totally obvious that the fancy machine is absolutely nothing possible to do with the type of research she does.

I bet that happens a fair bit.

I bet that happens a fair bit

Yep. It’s quite a good game matching the prof to the kit, and spotting the equipment clearly set up for appearance. Bunsen burners boiling water unattended with a flea swirling away...

Also spotting the £5million machine barely in shot because the desktop centrifuge looks more science-y to the media people..

Thanks everyone for all your replies. You've made me feel a lot better now!

Our research lab is crammed packed with very expensive equipment which undergraduates will never been allowed anywhere near (I don't trust half the Professors either). We have some equipment that needs specialist knowledge to use so very few people are able to get their hasn't on it.

We often have news crews in covering our research but they're always fascinated with the £100 vortex mixer rather, than the huge £1,000,000 box sitting quietly up the corner.

but they're always fascinated with the £100 vortex mixer rather, than the huge £1,000,000 box sitting quietly up the corner

It's much less fun to put your finger in the £1m box though
Totally professional scientist, me

No fancy machines here (to be fair, I work at a top research uni but I’m not lab based). I do have a plastic plant on a shelf that I inherited from an office mate that spent about 6 months watering before I realised it wasn’t real.

It's much less fun to put your finger in the £1m box though grin
Totally professional scientist, me

But the real fun comes with the dry ice packing...

Table hockey, or dump it all in the sink and pretend you’re Kate Bush on TOTP....