I am suddenly relieved. I worry about the future of the nation, the world, the universe.
But if it were to end up in the hands of the students who joined us in the 702 Mornings studio today, all things being equal, I think we'll be alright.
Sitting in a cosy studio with one of the best science communicators in the world today, British physicist and TV presenter Professor Brian Cox, the thirty science enthusiasts from Ravenswood School for Girls and Sydney Boys High were confident, excited and pleased to hear that you can be a rock star and a physicist.
"You can be a pop star but wait till you're 18, pass all your exams, then be a pop star for a while, then go back and explore the universe," was Brian's career advice, harking back to his days playing in the band D:Ream, famous for the track 'Things Can Only Get Better'.
His own wonder at the heavens was sparked by his father's moon gazing, and particularly the Apollo moon landings. We are all grateful.
Brian is in Sydney for two sell-out talks and to film for a new BBC TV series, following the huge success of earlier offerings 'Wonders of the Universe' and 'Wonders of the Solar System'.
Indeed he has even induced Eric Idle to rewrite the famous 'Galaxy Song' with updated science. Stay tuned, as they say. It'll be out soon.
To be clear though, being a physicist was better than being a pop star, Brian declared. And this group of students seemed overwhelmingly to be on that track.
We'd invited them in for a science lesson because it seemed we should share the opportunity to hear a prominent research physicist with such story-telling ability with a new generation.
Their questions ranged widely, from the nature of life to dark matter and black holes. Kevin asked whether particles literally spin, as physicists describe it. The answer is no but you'll have to listen to Brian's explanation if you want to know why not.
Rick cleverly linked the main elements in the human body - carbon, nitrogen and oxygen - with the major elements found throughout the universe and asked, "So wouldn't we be very self-centred to think we're the only life in the universe?"
That made Brian's eyes light up.
All the student questions were declared by Brian to be either good, great or excellent. This one I think he was particularly passionate about.
But in a world of scarce resources, should scientists have the luxury of research for its own sake, when schools and roads and hospitals call on those resources?
"Time and again history shows you that trying to understand nature as a goal leads to the most wonderful discoveries that change civilisation. It's impossible to know which bit of that discovery is going to lead to something useful.
"You'd never get electric light by doing R&D on a candle," he said.
In fact one of Brian's friends, who was one day fiddling with some sticky tape and a pencil, discovered a new form of carbon called graphene - Andre Geim, Russian born british Dutch physicist and joint physics Nobel prize winner.
Graphene could well be used to make lighter, more efficient aircraft wings for example, reducing pollution and fuel consumption.
I think we'll be playing grabs of Brian Cox on this issue to all the politicians who come to us trying to justify cuts to pure research.
(Brian Cox received his doctorate in physics from the University of Manchester, completing his thesis in 1998. In 2005, he was awarded a Royal Society University Research Fellowship. He splits his time between work at the University of Manchester and at the CERN facility in Geneva, Switzerland, home of the Large Hadron Collider. He still loves to play music, when he's not appearing in clever tv shows and radio programs like 'The Infinite Monkey Cage'.)
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