If you imagine a scientist as a guy in a white coat who spends all day looking at flasks, you can blame the popular media. A quick image search of the word scientist displays dozens of stock photos that fit this stereotype. And when photos deviate from the norm, things start to get weird. Now real scientists are sharing some of these bizarre depictions on Twitter using the hashtag #badstockphotosofmyjob.
Some stock photos contain errors that would go unnoticed by most members of the public. But show a pro a model posing with a goblet of tinted water or an upside-down double helix, and they might have something to say.
Chemists look longingly at the mysterious pink liquid collected from the field#BadStockPhotosOfMyJob pic.twitter.com/d9aHUjttjG
— Amy Heffernan (@DrHeffo) May 4, 2018
‘What the fuck?’ One of the key questions that biologists like me try to answer on a daily basis by intensely fixing colored liquids #BadStockPhotosOfMyJob pic.twitter.com/7fRqLm08xP
— Erin Williams (@DrErinWill) April 25, 2018
I spend my days laughing at DNA patterns twisting the wrong way #BadStockPhotosOfMyJob pic.twitter.com/G0YxJOq9LF
— Liz Tunbridge (@LizTunbridge) May 4, 2018
Despite all the lab equipment, safety rules are apparently broken all the time in the world of stock photography. On rare occasions, fake scientists abandon lab coats altogether for lingerie, or nothing at all.
Guy!! Gloves!! And have a firmer grip on that flask while you’re at it #BadStockPhotosOfMyJob pic.twitter.com/JaMvYYsGqt
— Dr. Alex T (@materialsgrrl) May 4, 2018
Freehand pour the highly hazardous blue liquid (VDBL) from a beaker into a small tube in a rack that you hold with your other hand. #BadStockPhotosOfMyJob
Obligatory eye and respiratory protection, because VDBL. pic.twitter.com/zS22pCRWSt— Kate Adamala (@KateAdamala) April 25, 2018
#BadStockPhotosOfMyJob We don’t taste things in our Petri dishes and plants don’t grow on desks. pic.twitter.com/rHDeFycctK
—Dana Simmons? (@dhsimmons1) May 4, 2018
Well made up and in my camisole, but hands and eyes covered… #BadStockPhotosOfMyJob pic.twitter.com/Xais8BfG4Y
— Tammy Ivanco (@IvancoTammy) April 25, 2018
When you’re so excited about #isotopes you don’t put on gloves or other safety gear… or clothes. #BadStockPhotosOfMyJob pic.twitter.com/uHJJygYuGa
— Chris Stantis (@ChrisStantis) May 4, 2018
The most confusing trends in science photos include injecting mysterious liquid into plants and holding stethoscopes in front of inanimate objects.
my favorite subgenre of #BadStockPhotosOfMyJob is tomatoes injected with multiple syringes. pic.twitter.com/GAjgAWp78a
— Alvaro Perez (@alperezqui) April 26, 2018
Apparently I’ve been using the wrong plant breeding methods all these years. I haven’t squirted apple juice (hope that’s what it is) into the soil and drowned seedlings in tubes. #BadStockPhotosOfMyJob pic.twitter.com/kKgtWuLSIn
—Dale Burns (@drburns1212) April 26, 2018
Ok, ok… But for real y’all… WTF is that the one? #badstockphotosofmyjob pic.twitter.com/pU80GzOzV3
— Veronica Bryant (@NoroNerd) April 26, 2018
I too inject my plants with a mysterious liquid as a seed #BadStockPhotosOfMyJob pic.twitter.com/h7cWZjfKyi
— Philippa Alvarez (@powerofplants3) May 4, 2018
Because if you *really* want to understand the brain, you have to listen to it. Very close. #BadStockPhotosOfMyJob pic.twitter.com/yMHIcATAVg
—BenMarcus (@bmarcus128) May 4, 2018
Luckily, real-world scientists are much better at their jobs than the scientists in the stock photos claim. To get a clearer picture of the difference between a scientist’s job and the stereotype, check out some behind-the-scenes testimonials from their work in the field.
[h/t IFL Science]
