Welcome to what is perhaps the most anticipated issue of the year – if not for The Power List itself, then to find out how we could possibly live up to our 2013 Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band cover... We hope you will agree that our pastiche of Klaus Voormann’s artwork for The Beatle’s 1966 album “Revolver” hits the right note – and emphasizes that The Power List should be about having fun first and foremost.
As I indicate with the opening lyrics of Revolver’s final track – Tomorrow Never Knows – I hope that the majority of you are able to “turn off your (analytical) minds” and view The Power List as a source of entertainment (or inspiration) rather than a reason to become upset (or angry). As with our 2013 Power List, we do not pretend that our ranking is definitive or absolute. Rather, we want it to be a celebration of the analytical sciences, promoting the importance of the whole field to the wide world in a bid to raise the profile of the excellent and valuable work you do. Of course, many important and influential scientists are not present on the list. Why are they missing? Primarily, because you didn’t nominate them (or they didn’t nominate themselves). You see, The Power List represents more than just the influential people within. It stands as a testament to a wider community of analytical scientists that wants to get involved and join in with our cries for recognition. The Analytical Scientist itself is inclusive (not exclusive). And the reason we have an open nomination process for The Power List is so that everyone and every niche area is given the opportunity. In other words, we want it to be your list, not ours. Once the nominations are in, our judges have the final daunting task of selecting their Top 100. Yes, this process is subjective – but the averaged views of five experts of the field limits any unwitting (or otherwise) bias. The result? A list of 100 names that truly showcases the diversity – and this year, particularly – the personality of the people that make up the critical field of measurement science. Indeed, in 2015 our Power Listers explore topics such as serendipity and share some of their funniest or most unexpected moments (go to The Power List 2015). Who will be on the 2016 or 2017 Power Lists? In the immortal (and incomprehensible) words of Ringo Starr: “Tomorrow Never Knows.”
- Enjoy The Power List while listening to “Tomorrow Never Knows” by The Beatles (followed by the rest of Revolver).
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