beamtimes and lifetimes

reading for classes can be rewarding sometimes :). yesterday, i started reading assigned portions of sharon traweek's beamtimes and lifetimes. an intriguing read, i highly recommend it for all lovers of physics. traweek is an ethnologist who studies the world of high energy physicists. i'm not done reading it yet, and am shocked that i have no desire to put it down even after obtaining the gist. while on the one hand, i find myself enraptured by physicists, their science (um, religion?), and how they connect, there are fascinating analogies to be drawn with the non-physics-driven world as well. i found this quote by roland barthes deep and inspiring in particular:

The origin of work is not in the first influence, it is in the first posture: one copies a role, then by metonymy, an art; I begin by reproducing the person I want to be.