Overheard: science is hard

Astronomy 210L, fall semester 2012
Cuesta College, San Luis Obispo, CA

(Overheard while students are formulating a research question in a backwards faded scaffolding laboratory on telescope powers.)

Instructor: (Reading students' proposed research question.) "You know I don't like 'yes or no' answerable research questions, such as, 'Is science hard?'"

Student 1: "Because the answer is 'yes?'"

Instructor: (Beat.) "So, you need to ask better research questions, like, 'Why is science hard?' Or, 'What makes science so hard?' Those are the tough kinds of research questions I want you to be able to ask."

Student 2: "Because science is hard."