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The Stroke of Genius Strikes Later In Life Than It Used To

Posted by Soulskill on from the i-blame-reality-tv dept.

InfiniteZero writes with this quote from MSNBC: "Einstein once said, 'A person who has not made his great contribution to science before the age of 30 will never do so.' That peak age has shifted considerably, a new study found, with 48 being prime time for physicists. ... For instance, in physics, in the early 20th century, a rise in young scientists generating prize-winning work coincided with the development of quantum mechanics. In fact, in 1923, the proportion of physicists who did their breakthrough work by age 30 peaked at 31 percent. Those who did their best work by age 40 peaked in 1934 at 78 percent. The proportion of physics laureates producing Nobel Prize-winning work under age 30 or 40 then declined throughout the rest of the century."

5 of 162 comments (clear)

  1. Great by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    There is hope for many on /.

  2. How dare you. Now I need a new excuse! by Master+Moose · · Score: 5, Funny

    At 33 my laziness was justified in "past my prime", but typical as with everything, the goal posts are moved on me.

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    . . .gone when the morning comes
  3. The peak age hasn't changed considerably. by oobayly · · Score: 3, Funny

    Einstein was working in hex.

  4. The stroke of genius has to be later by HtR · · Score: 5, Funny

    I know that it has to be later in life, since I'm already 46, and I haven't even had mine yet.

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    Have you tried turning it off and on again?
  5. You would think... by camperdave · · Score: 5, Funny

    You would think 47 would be the prime age for physicists, as 48 is fairly composite... highly composite even.

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    When our name is on the back of your car, we're behind you all the way!